From the category archives:

Character

What Solves the Kids & Advertising Problem: Education, or Avoidance?

I love what Red Pill Papa is doing with his daughter (see his “New Study …” post), teaching her to recognize the persuasive intent behind commercials and to understand that despite the ads’ claims, a particular food or toy will not bring her everlasting happiness (quite the contrary, of course). What I’ve done is a [...]

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“Clean Your Plate” and Other Time-Honored Admonitions to Avoid at the Table

I received a great printout from the AAP (The American Academy of Pediatrics) at my pediatrician’s office, entitled “Feeding Kids Right Isn’t Always Easy: Tips for Preventing Food Hassles.”  Aside from laying out six common childhood eating challenges (“Food Jags,” “Food Strikes,” etc.) and ways to deal with them, the printout contains some information that [...]

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New Study Links Commercials in TV (Not Watching TV) to Obesity

This week in Red Pillville, obesity seems to be the featured topic. So when I was perusing articles that I had bookmarked for later reading on Instapaper, the piece entitled, “Commercials Are the Culprit in TV-Obesity Link,” by Tara Parker-Pope on the New York Times Blog caught my attention (you can read the article by [...]

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Mama’s Two Cents on the Big Gulp Issue: Embracing “No”

Red Pill Papa’s Big Gulp post has my brain so completely twitterpated that I simply have to post instead of comment.  I’m Tippi Hedren once again, swatting a swarm of birds flying around my head, but the one that’s gripped my shoulder and is pecking my skull is saying, “No.  No.  No.”  Because I can’t help but [...]

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Achieving Childhood Dreams, Part 2 – I Met Gene Simmons!

Red Pill Parents, I have to share a dream fulfilled with you being that I recently wrote about achieving childhood dreams. I believe that keeping our childhood dreams, at least the one that are still pertinent, in our hearts as we travel through adulthood, helps keep us feeling young and prevents us from becoming cynical. [...]

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I’ll Admit It: I Yell At My Kids

I hate this about myself as a parent.  A little voice says, “Red Pill Parents don’t yell.”  It usually happens when we have to be somewhere at a certain time, when being late has consequences (the bus stop, dance class, a birthday party, etc.)  And it’s typically because despite all the literal verbal clues I’m [...]

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“Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams” – The Last Lecture

“Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted.” – Randy Pausch Red Pill Parents, it’s late at night, but this was just too good/important/uplifting/moving not to share with you immediately!  I just finished watching this 1 hour 16 minute lecture by Randy Pausch, the Carnegie Mellon professor who is most famous [...]

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Movie Ratings – Half the Story, or More Like 5%?

Last year I purchased a kids’ movie (rated PG for “momentary language”) based on a book that I read and loved as a child, and have read over and over with my daughter especially.  I figured the movie was based on such a fantastic book that it was a pretty sure bet, and in general [...]

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Specifying Gifts: Party Invite Faux Pas, or Conscious Parent Protocol?

Anastasia (faithful reader, commentor and Red Pill Parent) brought up a really interesting point after reading my It’s Time to Fall Out of Love With Cheap post.  She writes: It’s difficult to control children’s possessions when well-meaning family and friends give gifts that you wouldn’t buy for your children (i.e., cheap plastic). Not only cheap [...]

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Talking To Our Children About Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Thumbnail image for Talking To Our Children About Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Today, my dear friend Ann Ruckert, a musician, composer, arranger and educator, posted the following on her blog at www.annruckert.com. While she may have been born at an earlier time than many of us current parents, she is the embodiment of a Red Pill Parent. A conversation that I had with her several years back [...]

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