Blog Posts by The_Stir

Kids may say the darnedest things, but guys? Guys are often worse.

I'm not sure if it's a tact gene that's missing from the Y chromosome, but most dudes I know are some of the biggest offenders when it comes to saying the wrong thing.

So guys, listen up: Here are a bunch of things you should NEVER say to your girlfriend.

1) "You're not the prettiest girl I've dated." So what if it's true? You may not be the hottest guy WE'VE dated, but we're not about to SAY so.

More from The Stir: 7 Deadly Relationship Sins You Are Probably Committing

2) "You look like my ex." No one wants to be compared to an ex -- unless the ex is a model.

3) "You'd look better if [insert physical characteristic here]." Guys? We don't need to be told we should improve how we look. End of story.

4) "That waitress/chick at the bar is hot!" We get it -- other chicks are hot. We also have eyeballs to see for ourselves.

5) "My mom thinks you should [insert behavior change here]." We

Kristen Chase chats with Andrea Syrtash about MILsMother-in-law. Just the mere mention of the word is enough to send chills up many a wife's spine. The problem is that, all too often, our spouse's mama grows horns and becomes more monster-in-law than mother-in-law. Why oh why? I suspect it's a combo of things -- staking their territory, control freakiness, jealousy -- but across the board, a toxic relationship with your mother-in-law is bad news for any marriage. What a bummer.

Sassy mom blogger Kristen Chase tackles this topic on her new CafeMom Studios show on YouTube, sitting down with relationship expert Andrea Syrtash to hash out some solutions to women's biggest MIL gripes.

More from The Stir: 5 Things You Should Tell Your Mother-in-Law Right Now

Check it out ...

Wow. Really gives you a thorough look at all the drama monsters-in-law are capable of stirring up. Ugh! But thankfully, it sounds like there are solutions out there. I love how Syrtash says that

lindsay lohanOk, so there's a new video of Lindsay Lohan that has gone viral, but this time it's not because of something crazy she did or some sort of illegal substance she ingested. And it's not because she passed out in the front seat of a car either. Shocking, I know.

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Instead of showing something scandalous, this particular video takes photos of Lindsay from when she was a baby up until the present year, and shows her aging an entire 25 years in only 60 seconds. And believe me, watching one photo morph into the next is really, really creepy.

Ok, enough suspense. Here's the video -- take a look and try not to be completely freaked out by Lohan's transformation.

So -- are you ready to give up booze and vow to go to bed at 8 p.m. every night for the rest of your life yet? Because I'm about to that point after seeing the drastic change in Lindsay's appearance over her short 25 years. (Just kidding -- I'd

BabyI was really looking forward to breastfeeding.

During my pregnancy I had read several books on the subject. My husband and I had also watched a couple of super crunchy (i.e., very real) breastfeeding videos. I had a prenatal meeting with a lactation doula, who checked out my equipment and determined me to be in fine and dandy condition for nursing. I bought cute (well, as cute as was available) nursing bras and camisoles.

I was ready.

I knew it would be difficult, the process of getting into a rhythm of breastfeeding with my baby. I had watched friends struggle in the past, crying with frustration (and exhaustion) over hungry babies and cracked nipples. But I was determined that we would flourish, my daughter and me. Such an earth mother I would be!

I had also planned to have natural childbirth, and had been studying and practicing self-hypnosis (hypno-birthing) techniques in the months leading up to delivery. My so-called "birth plan" was embarrassingly long (and,

co-sleeping

Did you use the Ferber method of sleep training? Do you believe in letting your baby cry it out in the name of sleep training? To me, I think letting your child cry it out is like withholding food from your newborn to teach them how to control their appetite. It's crazy.

More from The Stir: 25 Ways You Know You're Such a Mother

The "cry it out" approach assumes that falling asleep on your own is a skill like any other and that your baby can master this skill if you give him the opportunity. It is also supposed to teach a baby to learn to self-soothe rather than needing immediate attention from their caregiver.

I say this is ridiculous. Eventually, a child will learn to fall asleep on his/her own. You get tired and you fall asleep. You get hungry you eat. It's a primal instinct; no one needs to teach a baby to do this. They were doing it for months in utero. I suppose these parents are the same ones who believe that you can spoil a baby with too much love. I disagree

dressing roomThere are days I love my job because I get to do incredible things like walk the red carpet of Marvel's The Avengers for The Stir. And then there are the days I hate my job because I have to wear a dress to go walk the red carpet of Marvel's The Avengers for The Stir. Yes, I am one of those rare-found creatures otherwise known as the woman who hates to shop. We do exist!

Wait. I take that back. I love me some perusing of the wares at Tar-jay where I have been known to run in for a new curtain rod and walk out with a cartload of stuff that ran me three figures.

More from The Stir: Kim Kardashian Shows Us That a Little Black Dress Isn't Always Best

But clothes shopping fills me with the type of horror otherwise reserved for the following: rodents (especially rats), hair in deli sandwiches, and anything my dog yakked up.

If your first thought was "all of the above makes my stomach" turn, well, there you go. I hear "dress up," and my stomach begins to do barrel rolls.

jessica albaWhen Jessica Alba steps out, you pay attention. And not just because she typically has two ridiculously gorgeous children in tow, because she herself is ridiculously gorgeous. And I speak from experience here. I saw her in person once ('member, Jess?). Her skin glows; her hair shines; and she generally makes you feel like crap about yourself no matter how good you thought you looked when you left the house. The woman's a human car crash. You can't look away. But today, people are staring at the actress for a new reason entirely. They're staring because Jessica's got some serious inkage up on her arm.

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Albs was spotted out at a park recently -- yes, cute kids in tow -- with a really large, really elaborate tattoo situation on her upper left arm. The design appears to be a bed of roses, and although it looks kind of bad ass, it will be impossible to hide it come awards season. And every other season.

Guess

I don't know how many times I've heard "don't date a guy who's just broken up with someone." No one wants to be the rebound girl. Not only is it hard on YOU, it can be just as hard on him, as he's trying to heal from his breakup.

But sometimes, you find yourself breaking the rules, liking a guy who has just split up with his last partner, and you go with it. It feels right. So you do it.

Sometimes? It works out just fine -- the relationship between your partner and his ex was long over and the breakup was an inevitability.

More from The Stir: 21 Ways to Get Over a Bad Breakup

Other times, he clearly hasn't moved on. Here are some obvious and not-so-obvious signs that he's not quite over his ex.

1) He still lists his relationship status as "In a relationship" or "It's complicated" on Facebook.

2) Her picture is everywhere -- including his computer screen saver.

3) He compares her to you, and not always in your favor.

4) He's still got her programmed