Adults Are Ruining Everything

- - - | written by Jason on 10/3/2007 | - - -

The War On Cupcakes (and Childhood Obesity)

Kids are fatter these days. But here's a newsflash: it's not from eating birthday cupcakes at school. Some adults are trying to ruin everything by banning cupcakes. Yes, cupcakes, that little bastion of evil masquerading in a facade of frosting and sprinkles. A number of schools around the country "have put the kibosh on the mini-cakes for classroom birthday and other parties, claiming they're key offenders in the growing child obesity and diabetes problems." The Cupcake Wars have begun. …

- - - | written by Jason on 9/10/2007 | - - -

Red Ink is Evil

This from Minette, a regular contributor to the discussion on this blog: They are continuing this entire stupid idea of banning all possible hits to self-esteem even in the corporate world. I work for a government agency and we do a lot of training. I’ve been told that I can no longer use red ink to correct my trainees’ work because it would “hurt their self-esteem.” I have to use green ink. I’ve gone ahead and done this like a good little girl but my first reaction was, “Life sometimes sucks. Get over it!” Yet another example of Adultitis running rampant. If red pen hurts your self-esteem, …

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- - - | written by Kim on 9/4/2007 | - - -

5 Ways to Prevent a Stressful School Year

There is something about the new school year which brings a healthy balance of anxiety and optimism for both kids and parents. This year will be even better than last year. There are still many unknowns and things out of your control, but overall a fresh start is always a good thing. With this hope in mind I have five things you can do to prevent a stressful school year. 1. Do not over schedule yourselves. 2. Do not over schedule yourselves. 3. Do not over schedule yourselves. 4. Do not over schedule yourselves. 5. Do not over schedule yourselves. The reality for most kids between …

- - - | written by Jason on 8/30/2007 | - - -

Yep, Tag is Way Too Dangerous

Ok, this topic is coming up so often, I've now deemed it an official category of this blog: Adults Are Ruining Everything. Not to be content with suffering the effects of Adultitis in their own life, we have an epidemic of stupid people trying to spread it to everyone. Childhood as we knew it is in danger. If this keeps up, an outbreak of Juvenile Adultitis is on the horizon. Curt Rosengren of Motto Magazine points us to an article about an elementary school that has banned...tag. …

- - - | written by Jason on 6/26/2007 | - - -

The Price of Losing Free Play

In the "Adults Are Ruining Everything" department, it seems that parents, colleges, and even the federal government are passing on their proclivity for busyness and stress to children. How? By threatening free play and unscheduled time. …

- - - | written by Jason on 2/12/2007 | - - -

Time to Let Kids Be Kids

As Kim and I travel around the country, I see a lot of busy families. Busy parents. Busy kids. Busy pets. I believe part of the job of parents is to help their children to appreciate childhood. It goes by so fast -- especially these days -- and kids just don't have the perspective to realize what a special time of life it can be. It's hard to avoid the gripping -- and sometimes grim -- responsibilities of adulthood, but having a pleasant childhood to look back on can have the same effect as some hot chocolate and warm cookies after a long day of playing in the snow. Every child deserves a …

- - - | written by Jason on 12/4/2006 | - - -

8 Ways to Let Adultitis Ruin Your Holidays

The holiday season is almost upon us. The snow starts falling, children get giddy, and families everywhere prepare to reunite. Things can get pretty hectic. If you're not careful, you can inadvertently have yourself a holly jolly Christmas. To avoid falling into such an unfortunate predicament, here is a guide to help you tap into your inner Adultitis, ensuring a completely stressed-out season. 1. Wait to do all of your Christmas shopping until sometime on Christmas Eve. It's easier to make decisions on what to buy when everything is picked over. 2. When decorating your home for the …

- - - | written by Kim on 11/16/2005 | - - -

The Big Brown Picture

About a month ago right before Halloween, Jason posted a blog about how “Adults Are Ruining Everything.” The conversation started with The Madison School District ‘not encouraging’ classrooms to have costume parties for Halloween. Yesterday I ran across a blog along the same lines posted on Blogging Baby, which is a online magazine about pregnancy, baby care and parenting. If any of those four words connect with your life, you will want to check out this blog. It is really well done. Actually, none of those words currently connect to my life, and I am really enjoying it. Sarah Gilbert wrote …

- - - | written by Jason on 10/29/2005 | - - -