By Kristen Berthiaume: All right. So the title is a little harsh – I admit it. Of course, your child is very special. To you. And your family and your close friends. You love your child and think that everything he does is wonderful (except when the things he does drive you insane but that’s another...

While prom night is stressful for parents and teens for many reasons, parents should never overlook safety. However, many parents aren’t aware of simple –yet effective tips for making sure their teens stay safe on such a high-pressure night. Here are some things to keep in mind before sending your...

By Harmony Hobbs: I fear I am becoming a mess. Let me back up … clearly, I am already what you could classify as a “mess.” But before now, most of my messiness was hidden. It was either in my brain or in the kitchen drawers. You kind of had to get to know me before you found out the full extent...

By: Harmony Hobbs Quite a few celebrities are pregnant right now, and none of them are particularly exciting by themselves so I thought I would combine them all into a group. A rich-enough-to-afford-full-time-help-and-personal-trainers-nutritionists-and plastic surgery group. It’s okay to hate...

I am a big fan of Bethenny Frankel, creator of the Skinnygirl margarita, star of the show Bethenny Ever After. Recently she commented on the challenge of juggling her work, her child, and her marriage and made a reference to how her husband’s “penis has cobwebs on it.” When I heard that, I...

Snooki, New Jersey’s favorite drunken meatball, is pregnant. This is no longer breaking news, although I must admit I was holding out on writing something about it, hoping that it was all a ruse. Or maybe she read the pregnancy test wrong. Got herself a really bad, long-lasting hangover that she...

By: Kristen Berthiaume: If you’re the parent of a young girl, you probably worry from time-to-time about whether she’ll have a healthy body image in 5 years. And with good reason – research indicates that around 40% of 1st through 3rd grade girls want to be thinner and eating disorders are being...

PARENT QUESTION: We are having serious issues right now with our girls not listening. How much leniency do you allow for their age (preschool)? PARENTING WITH A PHD RESPONSE: Selective Hearing Loss, or “SHL,” is a serious condition that affects millions of kids every second. SHL can be made worse...

Parent Question: How can we nurture the big sibling when a new baby wreaks havoc on their only child universe? Parenting with a Ph.D. Response:  From the moment he pulls that “I’m a Big Brother!” shirt over his tiny head, life as he’s known it is history. Now he’ll be expected to share everything:...

By Kristen Berthiaume If you’ve ever wondered what was going on in the beautiful, old green house on 19th Street South near UAB, allow me to give you a sneak peek. It’s the home of ArtPlay, the education and outreach initiative of UAB’s Alys Stephens Performing Art Center. I recently had the opportunity...