2009 January
All the rage
We’ve winced through the videos of an irate father grabbing a soccer coach’s collar or lobbing a volley of four-letter words
Music and lyrics
From magazine racks to toy shelves, these days the claims are hard to miss: "Music boosts your toddler’s brain power!"
You can fit in exercise
It seems like a hundred years ago when my kids were little. At one point, I had four children under age 6.
Save the memories without the clutter
Those sweet baby outfits, the countless art projects and all of those birthday cards with well wishes.
Stop the household chore wars
Clean your room. Take out the trash. Set the table.
Inexpensive ways to cool your cabin fever
It’s here girls, that string of inclement months that will test the mightiest of Midwest mamas.
Bond with your kids
Elizabeth Heneks believes there are simple things you can do to enhance your household and bolster the bond
Are you a pushy parent or a pushover?
Parents sat by watching as one teen after another filled cups with beer at a friend’s graduation party.
Thankful little hearts
Moms and dads everywhere are buoyed by thankful spirits in their children.
Welcoming the Year of the Ox
When Sherry Liu was a little girl, she heard stories about how the Kitchen God delivered a report on each family to the Jade Emperor in heaven.
Can-do kid
Twelve-year-old Sarah Babb may be small in appearance, but as her grandmother says, she has "big ideas."
What's in your neighborhood?
South suburban resource guide
Escape to play this winter
A team of educators is so eager to get kids excited about Will County’s first children’s museum
Chemist cooks up recipe for success
Linda Hardin is a woman of contrasts: a biochemist who plays the harp; a gourmet cook who helps her son with Boy Scouts.
2009 will be a good year
There’s something special about a new calendar. The new year offers us all a clean slate and this year,
Letters
Dealing with bullies
Bridging the autism gap
Longtime reader appreciative
Early childhood education
Readers missed on cover
When dreams are missing in action
I like Tyler Perry. I love his optimism, his love of life, his energy, his drive and his talent.
Little inspirations, big ideas
A fourth-grade bully named Amy who terrorized the kids on the school playground changed Steven Layne’s life.
Readers' favorite snow days
"We love to make angels in the snow, sled and build snowmen.
King Ryan's reign
I should have realized my folly when one day my wife explained that the chosen name for our son,
Banking on cord blood
If you are pregnant you’ve probably heard about the possibility of banking the blood from your baby’s
Choosing a vegetarian or flexitarian diet
One way to eat "greener" and reduce your carbon footprint is to eat a plant-centered diet with little meat.
Find ways to beat the ho-ho-woes
January quickly follows on the heels of the holiday season. It’s the month you dread because of the retail therapy
Fab mama
Your smile says a lot about you. Help brighten those pearly whites with enbrightenment, a pen that merges cosmetic
Keep away cabin fever with these activity books
Cold winter days can be a drag for all of us so try a few of these books as a source for something for the kids to do.
Get moving with Greg & Steve
The children’s music industry is a bit quirky. Performing and recording artists such as Greg & Steve,
Adventure, friendship fill this month’s list
Lucy is 17 and very happy living with her loving foster parents. Her mother is the town’s crazy homeless lady
Sew, baby, sew
Does your child know how to sew? Do you? Members of older generations learned how to sew as a basic life skill
Author brings back backyard games
Marlene Byrne remembers playing games of Kick the Can and Ghost in the Graveyard when she was a little girl in Wisconsin.
Live green at home and school
If you’re ready to take green living beyond your home, encourage your child’s school to participate in National Green
Create leaders in schools and in the home
Does your family have a mission statement? Do you know what your priorities are as a family?
Theater brings spotlight to sick kids
When 10-year-old Trevor Penn got a role in a play about aliens, he was "happy, excited, glad and proud."
Healthy living can be family affair
Teaching children about healthy nutrition and exercise has become a family affair in some local preschools.
Life with autism revealed
A national study of parents with children on the autism spectrum reveals parents are most concerned about
Wondering what kids are doing on the Web?
Teens and tweens are using online forums to create their own digital version of the neighborhood playground,
Finding hope for children who suffer traumas
Children receiving treatment at La Rabida’s Chicago Child Trauma Center have often seen and experienced unspeakable
Navigating the growing web of online social netwoking
There is simply no way to avoid the important role that Internet-based technology will play in our children’s futures.
Get out there and play. Tickle your family’s funny bone this Sunday with a little sketch comedy. For the first time this year, the Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival introduces Sketch Day for Kids, with two family-friendly afternoon shows.
Jan. 15, 2009
Get out there and play. With all of the snow Chicago has been getting, boats and RVs and the great outdoors may not be on your mind, but they can be on your schedule. Today through Monday, the Chicago Boat, RV & Outdoors Show is bringing a little bit of summer to Chicago.
The World of Wheels Auto Show, prize pack featuring that little yellow sponge guy, mush your family over to the Morton Arboretum, and win a Qubits building kit.
Jan. 29, 2009
Get out there and play. The question on everyone’s mind right now has nothing to do with politics or the economy. Right now, it’s all about the weather. More specifically, people want to know whether that cute, fuzzy groundhog will see his shadow. According to legend, if the groundhog sees its shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter; no shadow means spring is just around the corner.
