Laundry may be the most Sisyphean of household chores: Unless everyone in your house is stark naked, it’s literally never done. That’s why, when my son turned 11, I decided he could do his own laundry. That’s right, he washes, dries, folds and puts away his own clothes. Reactions to this news from other moms […]
Continue ReadingLegoland Florida had just opened for the day, and we were hot on the trail of the park’s retail manager. We had reason to believe he had the much-desired mobster minifig, and if we could find him, that minifig would be ours. Trading minifigs is a big part of the fun of visiting Legoland, although many […]
Continue ReadingFrom appearances on “Mythbusters” to a cameo in the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater video game, the spooky cells and windswept vistas of Alcatraz Island are enjoying a renewed moment in the pop-culture spotlight. If you’re considering taking your family to The Rock, these tips will help you get the most out of your trip. […]
Continue ReadingIf you or your geeklings harbor dreams of working as a video-game developer, here’s the inside scoop from three producers of The Malgrave Incident, the latest Mystery Case Files game and the series’ first title for the Wii. Nintendo’s Azusa Tajima and Masa Miyazaki, along with producer Shawn Seavers and the team from Big Fish […]
Continue ReadingTo celebrate the release of The Malgrave Incident, the latest game in the Mystery Case Files series, three producers from Nintendo and Big Fish Games fielded questions from GeekMom on what goes into developing a video game. Nintendo’s Azusa Tajima and Masa Miyazaki, along with producer Shawn Seavers and the team from Big Fish […]
Continue ReadingMuseum overnight programs have sprung up across the country, offering kids a chance to roll out their sleeping bags beneath some of the most iconic and beloved museum displays in the nation. But why should kids have all the fun? For the first time, San Francisco’s California Academy of Sciences is hosting an adults-only sleepover […]
Continue ReadingSorting through the daily influx of press releases that journalists like me face whenever they brave their inbox, this one caught my eye: “Are You Raising a Narcissist?” Having an only child makes me constantly on alert for signs that we’re spoiling, coddling or otherwise crippling him through our well-intentioned parenting, so I read the […]
Continue ReadingThe Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal’s Islands of Adventure just sold its millionth butterbeer, which creates a nice segue into two burning questions about the Hogsmeade brew of choice: Does it contain butter? Does it contain beer? No on both counts. Having a son who’s ragingly allergic to dairy, I shook down several […]
Continue ReadingSomething weirdly enlightening happened to me during a tech-support chat today. Chatting online with customer service agent “Jared,” I mistyped a number that caused some confusion in our interaction. When he figured out that I had botched the number, I gave him the correct number along with the message: “Sorry, cold fingers ;)” Then I […]
Continue ReadingFrom fabric-store fur to Lee press-on nails, werewolf transformations on film have a checkered past. Movie versions of the werewolf metamorphosis usually rely on the actors to stare wide-eyed at their furry hands and creepy nails and emit panicky, mortified screams, although not nearly as convincing as the ones that must have escaped them at […]
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