Happy Grandparents Day!
As the California wild fires rage on, a pertinent parenting connection was revealed this week: Apparently the El Dorado fire near Los Angeles was caused by another one of those ridiculous gender reveal explosions. (Can we please stop this insanity now?)
Meanwhile, Jennifer Garner spoiler alert: She is not now, nor will she ever again be (according to her) pregnant. Her exchange with fans on the subject this week made big news. My favorite part of her response to their questions on the subject: “Have I gained the COVID 19? Possibly. But that is another story.”
And finally, Sesame Street and CNN teamed up again for another COVID town hall — this one about going back to school.
Read on for more fam-tastic news and nonsense.
Overheard on the Playground
“Just having an opportunity to mold a great human being is a wonderful thing. To help nurture and cultivate his life, in whatever wonderful thing he is going to be, is really awesome.”
Tyler Perry
FAM-TECH
The Off-Screen App :: A new startup called Kinspire aims to make it easier for parents to find hundreds of screen-free activities for their children, including STEAM activities by Tinkerclass (via NPR’s “Wow in the World” podcast).
“Alexa, Print A Crossword Puzzle” :: Amazon recently launched Alexa Print, a printing feature that lets Echo device owners use voice commands to print out things like educational content for kids and recipes!
PARENTOPIA
The Shame Game :: In pandemic times, it’s sometimes hard to tell if the mommy wars have taken on a new set of paradigms — or if everyone’s just expecting them to.
The Parenting Expert? :: We all know Dr. Fauci as an infectious disease expert, but now we get to hear his two cents on parenting too.
EDUTAINMENT
Plant, Grow, and Eat :: Is growing microgreens the new sourdough bread-making? Well, it is a simple gardening technique that is fun to do and teaches kids about the labor and nutrition of planting your own food. So … maybe?
Cat Pencil Organizer :: What to do with all those pencils? Maybe make a little cat pencil organizer, combining craft with containment.
KIDBITS
Eew, mold! :: We typically think of mold as disgusting and hazardous. But there are so many ways it’s enhanced our lives — from the development of penicillin to the creation of soy sauce!
The Process Of Creating Vaccines :: Everyday we hear a different timeline on creating a vaccination for COVID, but how are vaccines really made?
