If you haven’t voted in our annual “Family Favorites” contest yet, DO IT TODAY! Sunday, August 15, is the last day to voice your opinion – and be entered to win a fabulous Family Fun Package! More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on August 11, 2010 // 1 Comment

Happy Birthday Sweetie!

My little boy turns 10 tomorrow, and while I’ve never been one to lament the passing of each developmental stage (I didn’t cry when he started kindergarten and not once have I looked back longingly to his colicky beginnings!), I have to admit this double-digit milestone is affecting me. Maybe it’s because he’s started doing that thing where he rolls his eyes in exasperation every time I speak. Or maybe it’s because “Mom” has become a three syllable word (as in “Oh Mo – o – om!” … cue eye roll).

And so I have to ask: What’s a mother to do? Is 10 officially pre-teen? And if so, what can I do to remain “in parental control” while at the same time keeping the lines of communication – and the lines of affection – in tact? More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on July 21, 2010 // Leave a Comment

Let’s face it, summer fun can get costly. That’s why we’re so pleased to let you know about these great summer deals and special coupons our advertisers are offering in our July issue.

North Clackamas Aquatic Center: Buy 1 Big Surf Swim admission, get 1 free. (page 33)
Bob’s Red Mill: Buy any 2 Bob’s Red Mill products, get a third of equal or lesser value free. (page 32 … they’re also our Family Fare feature this month!)
Old Spaghetti Factory: Free kid’s meal with a paid adult meal. (page 31)
Play Boutique: Free drink, 30 percent off a class, and $25 off camps! (page 30) More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on July 7, 2010 // 1 Comment

Earlier this year we introduced Family Fare, a monthly column featuring our favorite family-friendly restaurants in the Portland metro area. For our August issue, we’re thinking outside the box to bring you a roundup of some of our favorite ice cream, frozen yogurt and gelato shops around town. But guess what? We need your help! (We’re offering a $20 gift certificate to Ben & Jerry’s to one lucky helper! Read on to find out how to enter.)

Sure we have our own favorites, but we want to know where your family goes for sweet frozen treats. The top three “Family Favorites” from our reader survey last year were Cold Stone Creamery, Ben & Jerry’s, and Staccato Gelato, but we know there are many, many more local places serving delicious ice cream, fro yo and gelato. So this week, we’re asking our readers to share their own favorites. More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on June 28, 2010 // 1 Comment

The following first appeared as an Editor’s Note in the June 2005 issue of Metro Parent. My sweet father got a big kick out of it. Dad passed away on May 17, 2008, leaving a permanent hole in our family – and in our hearts. I’m posting this today to honor him, and all of the loving, funny fathers out there.

My dad’s a funny guy – and I mean funny as in “ha ha” not funny as in odd. All of his life he’s enjoyed laughter, his own and that of others, whether it was over one of life’s countless spontaneous moments of mirth or a good solid joke.

Here’s an example: Dad and three friends (all fathers) went fishing one weekend when he was in his 30s. The fish weren’t exactly biting so he and his buddies decided to stop at a roadside stand and buy several large salmon.

One of the group – my dad can’t remember whom – came up with the idea of telling the wives that they caught the fish. This group of jokers then went a step further and had a local photographer take several shots of them with their “catch.” One of the proud wives brought a photo over to the local newspaper (you can see where this is going …). They published it in the next edition with the headline “Local Men Get Lucky.” More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on June 20, 2010 // 1 Comment

As we close out the month of May – our “focus on Moms month” here at Metro Parent – we’re taking a look at two recently released studies related to motherhood in the United States.

The fist is a Pew Research Center study that looked at the changing demographics of women who gave birth in 1990 versus those who gave birth in 2008. Turns out, new moms today are older, more likely to be unmarried, and slightly better educated. More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on May 24, 2010 // Leave a Comment

Summer’s just around the corner and we’ve got traveling on our minds! We’re hoping you do, too, because we also have a copy of Lora Shinn’s Northwest Kid Trips (ParentMap Books, 2010) to give away.

This handy guide offers tips for traveling with kids to Portland, Seattle, Victoria and Vancouver, BC. From navigating around each town to finding the best places to eat and sleep to keeping kids of all ages (and their parents) entertained, Shinn’s got you covered.

If you’d like to win a free copy of the book, More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on May 17, 2010 // 34 Comments

The documentary BABIES is a delightful and often hilarious look at the lives of four babies from birth to their first steps.

The babies come from extremely different surroundings: a yurt in Mongolia, a modern apartment in Tokyo, a mud hut in Namibia and a middle-class house in San Francisco. The film cross-cuts from one to the other, without narration, letting the babies’ personalities and adventures tell the story. Babies often is slow-paced, but that’s part of its charm – the camera keeps rolling as life goes on. More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on May 12, 2010 // Leave a Comment

Children First for Oregon released it’s 15th Annual Essay and Policy Recommendations last week, entitled Keeping Children Safe: Improving Oregon’s Child Welfare System. The essay and policy recommendations provide a detailed analysis of Oregon’s child welfare system and outline a set of nine policy recommendations designed to strengthen families and keep kids safely in their homes; ensure that when safety requires children be removed from their homes, they move to safe and stable environments; and ensure that youth aging out of foster care at age 18 have the support they need to successfully transition to adulthood. More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on May 10, 2010 // Leave a Comment

We first printed this in our Mother’s Day issue in 2006. We reprint it here, again, as food for thought for mothers (and fathers) everywhere, as they celebrate Mother’s Day.

If asked what Mothers’ Day is all about, most of us would say, simply, that it’s a day to honor mothers. We do that, for the most part, on Mothers’ Day with gifts, flowers, cards and more.
But the original idea for Mothers’ Day in America wasn’t about elaborate brunches or jewelry or chocolate. Truth be told, it wasn’t even strictly about honoring mothers but rather about honoring what all mothers want – to see their children grow up healthy, strong and safe. More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on May 8, 2010 // Leave a Comment

Our April issue features a thoughtful article about Free Range Parenting, inspired by Lenore Skenazy and her Free Range Kids movement, blog and book. Now Skenazy has a new campaign going, one that’s getting lots of attention everywhere from Twitter and parenting blogs to the NY Times. Skenazy is proposing we declare May 22 “Take Our Children to the Park… And Leave Them There Day.” More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on May 5, 2010 // 2 Comments

Some time ago, the staff of Metro Parent came up with a system for evaluating family outings. We call it the “Five E’s” analysis: Does the outing provide Education, Entertainment and Exercise? Is it Economical? And does it have minimal impact on the Environment?
We are SO LUCKY to live in an area where the possibilities for family outings that meet all of the above criteria are nearly endless.
For example, on Wednesdays you can head to Leach Botanical Garden for a Honeybee Hike or enjoy Tadpole Tales, a nature walk hosted by the Columbia Slough Watershed Council. On Fridays, the city of Portland sponsors Ladybug Nature Walks and More…

Category: Uncategorized // Posted on April 7, 2010 // Leave a Comment