McDonald’s has a problem: kids. For a few generations now, families have been a big part of the company’s business, and marketing to children an important part of their business strategy. Yet kids and families just aren’t streaming in the door like they used to, and it’s not because terrifying new mascot Happy has scared them off. No, it’s because eschewing fast food is now aspirational for middle-class consumers, and everyone else is broke. [More]
children
Average Cost Of Raising A Kid Climbs To $245,000 — And That’s Not Including College
By 8.18.14
Planning on bringing a new bouncing bundle of joy into the world soon? You’re probably already used to shelling out some major bucks in preparation for that little one, but the spending won’t stop here: The average cost of rearing a human to the ripe old age of 18 has risen again, to $245,000 based on a middle-income family. And then comes college. [More]
Leaving Your Child In A Hot Car: “If You Think It Cannot Happen To You, You’re Wrong”
By 7.30.14
By this point in the summer, we’ve written more than a few times — unfortunately — about children who have died after being left in closed cars on hot days. While some cases point to parents deliberately leaving their children behind, the reason we keep writing about the dangers of doing so is because the reality is that it can happen to anyone. [More]
Restaurant: Kids Can Eat Here If They Can Sit Quietly Without Special Seating Or A Stroller
By 7.30.14
Restaurants that have tried to tell parents in the past that children or babies aren’t welcome inside have faced backlash for coming out and saying so in the past, but one restaurant has instead decided to just make it really difficult for anyone with a small child or infant to eat there. [More]
Report: Shoppers Smash Jeep’s Windows To Free Children Crying Inside Hot Car
By 7.15.14
UPDATE: Readers have pointed to a new report about what went down in that parking lot, one that says that the mother had accidentally locked her kids in the car after bringing them into a postal store with her, then putting them in the car to leave. The shoppers were helping her free them, other witnesses reportedly said. [More]
Father Of 3 Films Himself In Hot Car On 90-Degree Day To Show How Dangerous It Is
By 7.15.14
This summer has been marked with too many tragic deaths already after parents have left their children in hot, locked cars. We’ll say it over and over that it’s extremely dangerous, and you should never leave your children or any living thing in the car for even the briefest time. But one father of three went the extra step to show exactly how awful it feels by filming himself sitting in a locked car on a 90-degree day. [More]
LG Introduces House Arrest Wristbands For Small Children
By 7.10.14
We adults enjoy quantifying our every move with wearable technology like pedometer wristbands and other fitness-tracking gadgets, so why leave our kids out of the fun? Yesterday, LG announced that they’re introducing a wristband for kids that’s a hybrid of a tracking anklet used by the criminal justice system and your child’s first cell phone. [More]
Detergent Pod User? We Want To Hear From You
By 5.16.14
Do you use detergent pods, the single-serve laundry sensation that small children can’t stop cramming in their mouths? If so, our freshly-laundered colleagues down the hall at Consumer Reports would like some feedback from you on the products, especially if you have small children living with you. Click here to take their brief questionnaire on the subject. [More]
L.A. Mulling Mandatory Background Checks For All Ice Cream Truck Vendors
By 5.7.14
When a kid hears the first hint of the delicate strains of “Pop! Goes The Weasel” it means one thing — the ice cream truck is a’coming down the street. And you can bet your popsicle sticks that most youngsters are shooting out the door without Mom or Dad in tow. [More]
Outraged Strangers Beg Drug Company To Save 7-Year-Old’s Life
By 3.11.14
Most people would be appalled to hear that a pharmaceutical company is withholding a potentially life-saving drug from a dying 7-year-old child. The drug isn’t on the market yet, but could be administered under a “compassionate use” exception from the Food and Drug Administration. The situation is a lot more complex than “big mean company keeps drug away from little kid.” Update: Chimerix and the FDA found a way to let Josh Hardy access the drug. [More]
Graco Recalls 3.7 Million Child Safety Seats, Will Replace Buckles On 1.8 Million More
By 2.11.14
Millions of Graco child safety seats may have a serious problem: their buckles may not release if there happens to be any food or drink buildup in the latch. If you’ve ever met a small child or remember being one, you know that this could be an issue. [More]
Baby Not Old Enough For The iPad Potty? Not A Problem
By 12.18.13
If your child isn’t old enough for the iPad potty chair and you simply can’t wait to prop her up in front of a tablet screen at close range, there’s always another option: the Apptivity seat from Fisher-Price. It’s an iPad chair for kids from birth until toddlerhood. It’s an improvement over the potty-seat version in that it was not explicitly designed as a toilet. [More]
Recall: Baby Monitors Should Monitor Babies, Not Strangle Them
By 11.25.13
The entire purpose of a baby monitor is to keep an ear or an eye on your baby while it sleeps in a different room. The Angelcare monitor adds an extra component to that: a pad that monitors movement and rests under the mattress. Sounded like a great idea…until two babies got hold of the cord and were strangled to death. [More]
Autopsy Shows Toddler Died From Consuming A Battery
By 10.30.13
A Las Vegas toddler died a few weeks ago, and the reason for his death wasn’t immediately clear. His illness began when he started coughing blood, and doctors couldn’t figure out what was making the child ill. The culprit wasn’t identifiable in an X-ray: a small coin-shaped battery. [More]
Can Kids Recognize Cigarette Logos Even Without Cartoon Camels Involved?
By 9.30.13
Long gone are the days of Joe Camel and his cartoon pals gamboling across cigarette ads and peering out from packages, but does that mean kids don’t recognize certain brands of smokes when they see them? Nope, says one study — even without blatant gimmicks to draw in the younger set, children can still tell cigarette logos apart from each other. [More]
12-Year-Old Robs 10-Year-Old’s Lemonade Stand At BB Gunpoint
By 8.1.13
The world is a sad and scary place, and kids are only reflecting that back to us. That’s the impression we get from the report out of Pennsylvania that one child held up a younger child’s lemonade stand with a BB gun, making off with $30. Have heart, though: other kids chased the culprit down and turned him in to police. [More]
No One Has Marketed The Hell Out Of The Tooth Fairy, Until Now
By 7.23.13
Visits from the Tooth Fairy are, by their nature, a commercial transaction. Many families buy or make special under-pillow holders that make it easier for the overnight visitor to find the teeth she (or he) is after and leave behind some cash. What the Tooth Fairy lacked was a coordinated marketing campaign with an online game, books, costumes, toys and other merch. Until now. [More]
Couple Asks Random Starbucks Customers To Name Their Unborn Child
By 7.2.13
The regulars at my local Starbucks are nice people who seem like they have good taste. I would probably trust their suggestions for which new Frappuccino to try, or even their restaurant or hairdresser recommendations. I would not, however, trust them to help me make my major life decisions. Like naming my child. [More]
