Blog Posts by Piper Weiss, Shine Staff

The phrase child star is synonymous with tragic outcomes and E! true Hollywood stories. But there's another route: the parenting guru.

Did you ever think you'd be taking child-rearing advice from Blossom? Two decades after her sitcom aired, Mayim Bialik has launched a second career as an unofficial spokesperson for attachment parenting. Actually, after her neuroscience Ph.D and her TV comeback on 'The Big Bang Theory,' it's a fourth career, but who's counting?

In Beyond The Sling: A Real-Life Guide to Raising Confident, Loving Children the Attachment Parenting Way, the 36-year-old mother of two boys, touts the benefits of co-sleeping and diaper-free potty training.

Last year, Bialik's unconventional mothering methods drew both admiration and ire when she blogged one the website Kveller about breast feeding her 3-year-old.

Bialik let both Miles, 6, and Frederick, 3, dictate the weening process, which meant they continued to breastfeed much later than most kids. Other Bialik-isms:

Read More »from Parenting Advice from Former Child Stars

Paula Deen in February. (Photo by Serg Alexander/Getty Images) Paula Deen is used to trouble:  She's been robbed, had a ham thrown at her head and been called the "worst, most dangerous person."

That's nothing compared to her problems in 2012. Since January she's been at the center of controversy that's only gotten worse in the past week. The latest accusations come from the former general manager of a restaurant she co-owns with her brother in Savannah.

Read more about the lawsuit filed against Deen.

Lisa Jackson, who worked at Uncle Bubba's Seafood and Oyster House for five years, has filled a sexual harassment lawsuit against Deen and her brother Bubba Hiers, claiming the siblings are responsible for a hostile work environment rife with sexism, racism and other types of "outrageous and intolerable conduct."

In court documents, Jackson claims when Deen promoted her to GM she said she was "going to do something I've never done. I'm going to put a woman in a man's job." That's just the beginning.

Jackson accuses Deen's brother of repeated Read More »from Paula Deen's Controversial Year

It's been a long journey, we've traveled (kind of) far, and we've finally reached the penultimate episode that takes place in the abandoned studio once inhabited by former late night talk show host Pat Sajack. They even kept the background cityscape in tact, and all the Christmas wreaths!

There were a few familiar faces and a lot of people we've never ever seen before.

This is the Real Housewives reunion, right?

 But mostly there were sparkles and weird cleavage. And totally unsubstantiated bitchy expressions.

This one thinks she's made it a lot further in the season.

You got to love the audience reactions. There were three clusters of audience members there to provide facial feedback to anything happening on stage.

We're the Nuh-Uhs. We don't ever buy it.

I'm in charge of the I CAN NOT BELIEVE SHE JUST SAID THAT face.

I give an empowering Woooooot! Also I'm a man.

The best part of the show is always the fifteen minute teaser for the next Bachelor Pad. This one got the gang of seasons past together for a wild night of Jagermeister lemon drops at a Vegas hotel. Let me just say on a serious note, the Bachelor contestants really are like a family.

A family where everyone

Read More »from Bachelor Recap: Women You Won't Recognize Tell All

(AFP / Getty Images)
Just in case you were wondering, Pippa Middleton hasn't lost her mojo.

It's been almost a year since Kate's little sister zipped up her bridesmaid dress and earned the title of world's biggest crush. Since then, she's attracted the kind of hysterical, rabid fan-base of a Beatle, circa 1966.

Exhibit A: the above photo taken this past weekend during a charity ski race near Stockholm. After a 56-mile cross-country trek, Middleton crossed the finish line and had a total Pippa-mania moment.

"It was totally spontaneous, really innocent, just a cheek kiss," phantom kisser Erik Smede said in his own defense, on The Daily Beast. Smede, a student and part-time truck driver who lives near Stockholm where the race took place, was working as a steward helping out with the event.

Because of Middleton's participation, the race attracted a large amount of attention from locals as well as photographers (the girl is snapped an average of 400 times a day.) Undeterred, Smede

Read More »from Pippa Middleton's Rock Star Moment

Billionaire Gina Rinehart may be richer than Bill Gates in a few years. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images) Mexican telecommunications mogul Carlos Slim is the world's richest person. But that could change in day, according to Bloomberg's new Billionaires Index. On Monday, the business news outlet launched a daily site that tracks the fortunes of the world's wealthiest. According to their analysts, Gina Rinehart, a 58-year-old Australian mining heiress worth $20.4 billion, is "on the rise". With the daily fluctuations of wealth now traceable, the mother of four could break into the top 20 ranked billionaires any day now, and even one day top the list.

Already the richest person in Australia, Rinehart's wealth stems from her dad's discovery of the world's largest iron ore deposit in 1952. An only child, Rinehart studied economics and worked with her late father, Lang Hancock, before his death in 1992.

When he died, she inherited the royalty rights to a portion of thermal and iron-ore deposits throughout the country. More recently, the "soaring demand" for coal and iron ore from China has

Read More »from Will Gina Rinehart Be the World's Richest Person? Female Billionaire on the Rise

(Thinkstock Photos)The days of 'because I said so' are long gone. Why? Because your kid said so.

Parents today are more likely to consult their children on family decisions both big and small, rather than make choices all on their own. A new survey of 1300 American parents found that a startling 64 percent get feedback from their kids before before making the rules or even making a purchase.

The survey, conducted by the consumer research group The Family Room, found that 27 percent of parents actually let kids make a majority of the household decisions themselves. And that doesn't just mean what's for dinner, but what computer to buy or which car-maker to trust.

It's called Generation Collaboration, according to the Family Room, and it's a new way of parenting that puts kids, if not in the drivers' seat, than in front passenger seat with an emergency break.

What's in the fridge is more likely a blend of foods kids and parents agree on. Grocery shopping is a compromise as opposed to a litany of pleas

Read More »from Do Children Know Best? Parents Want Kids' Input on Dinner, Buying a Car

The Fantasy hits New York shores. (Getty Images)Last night I attended the christening of Disney's new cruise ship, the Fantasy. All I knew going into was that I'd be on a brand new building-sized cruise ship off of pier 88 in New York and that was enough for me. Needless to say, the event was wildly undersold. The Disney folks kept the details of the gala a secret from press. Ingredient #1 for magic.

Ingredient #2: The cult of Mickey. A small crowd of Disney cruise veterans gathered outside the pier in hopes of catching a glimpse of the champagne christening. Several compared notes on past cruises ("Did you do the two day Magic cruise?" "No, we did four days on the Dream.") People really know their Disney cruises.

My fellow guest and resident photographer, Wicked Mint blogger Ryan Green, remarked at the high level of security to get on the ship. For a moment I got nervous I'd read the invitation wrong and the boat was actually taking off for a few days. Not that I'd have minded. Turns out that metal scanner protection wasn't for

Read More »from Disney Cruise Line's Fantasy Christening. We Were There!

Forget the furniture, imagine taking home an miniature Ikea showroom. Oregon-based architectural firm Ideabox designed Aktiv, a line of prefabricated one-bedroom starter homes in collaboration with Ikea Portland. The firm, which is selling the pre-fab models directly, created the concept, designed the model and then purchased wardrobe, flooring and cabinetry from the furniture giant. You've got the land? They've got the tiny house, appointed Ikea-style.

Read More »from Would You Buy an Ikea House? Tour Aktiv $86,500 Prefab Home