What was once the domain of rowdy college co-eds has now become a centralized hub for new parents. You can't so much as check your status updates without seeing some adorable tyke smiling a toothless grin or a parent giving the latest update on what their little genius is up to today. With everyone from Dr. Sears to CafeMom hanging up theirFB shingle, it seems this former bastion of social networking cool has been taken over entirely by parents - oftentimes with mixed results. Here are the five biggest offenders. - Elina Furman

			The Bragger Parent As the most popular type of parent, this category has trapped even the most well-meaning moms and dads. While your progeny may have walked early, used an adverb correctly or even commented on the recent health care debate, does everyone really need to hear about it? Sure, occasional bragging is part of the parental bill of rights, but abuse of this privilege can be met

Read More »from Facebook's Five Most Annoying Parents

We wrote an article for New York magazine this week about area moms who take a bite out of the big Twilight apple. You can read our "director's cut" of the piece, which includes more quotes and info, below:

Read More »from For Moms, 'Twilight' Saga Is a Romantic, Inspiring, Sexy Trip Down Memory Lane

Being a superstar Mom shouldn't mean sacrificing your own beauty routine. Here are 5 tips for saving time in front of the mirror while looking like you spent the day at the salon.

1. Trade Shampoo for Hair Powder
No time to hit the shower and maintain a good blowout? Baby powder works well to absorb grease on blond or gray hair - and luckily it's always within reach. If you have a darker shade of hair, invest in a decent tinted powder and apply it to your roots. Try Jonathan Green Routine Dry Shampoo. Real mom Jennifer (pictured here) says, "Thanks to this genius dry shampoo I don't have to wash my hair every day. I just brush it on my scalp, and my hair instantly looks clean and shiny, plus it has a little extra volume."

2. Switch Up Your Part
To lift limp locks, try switching your part. Turn your center part into a side part, for example, to get more lift. Your hair will have more body, and the change only takes about five seconds to accomplish. Another option for instantly fuller

Read More »from 5 Beauty Shortcuts for Moms

Here is the thing I've realized about exercising as a mom--whatever I do, it has to take all of my concentration, otherwise I'm just running on a treadmill and sweating over the diapers I need to buy, the food I need to cook, and the rooms I need to clean.

Enter rock climbing, my exercise addiction and the best workout I've ever gotten. No, in case you're wondering, I haven't found a way to leave my family for hours on end and make it up to the Catskills, but a great climbing gym opened up ten minutes away, and now, instead of running on machines that remind me of gerbil wheels, I run to the gym and spend 45 minutes pulling my way up walls.

Am I a brilliant climber? Absolutely not. To be honest, I'm not even that good. But here's the thing no one ever tells you about sports like rock climbing: you don't need to be good to get a lot out of them. You are your own competition, so you decide how to push yourself, and mark your own progress. And the best part? It really will get you in

Read More »from Mom exercise that's easier than it looks: Rock climbing

Before I had a kid, I thought baby disco parties sounded like a tiny version of hell. A bunch of screaming toddlers and parents trapped in the dark with a mirror ball? Please.

Then I discovered LBZ's love of Jay-Z. And Michael Jackson. And Stevie Wonder. And Shuggie Otis. And then I saw this video and decided I'm going to give it a shot. Have any of you gone to a baby disco? Did you like it?

Every parent knows that their kids' temper tantrums are unavoidable ... and how difficult they can often be. Still, those tantrums that the terrible twos and threes yield do have an upside: They represent a necessary stage of growth that allows a child to begin their individuating process.

But must they be so painful? Here's a little crash course in calming the torrent within, based on your child's Sun sign.

Aries
You may have your hands full, since these little ones are capable of throwing tantrums as if their lives depend on it. One of the best ways to help an Aries child out of an all-out screaming fit is to avoid it entirely by providing them with lots of activity. If that doesn't work, reinforce their sense of self by giving choices and showing consequences for their actions. Ultimately, the more powerful and challenged they feel, the more apt they will be to calm down more quickly.

Taurus
The tantrums here can last longer than most, as Taureans are known for stubbornness and

Read More »from How to Calm Your Child's Tantrums

I'm not your mother.

- April Daniels Hussar, BettyConfidential.com

I can remember so clearly the first time someone called me "Mom." And it wasn't my darling daughter Isabella, but in fact, some older photographer guy who simply couldn't be bothered to learn my name. Charming.

When Isabella was about 2, we briefly investigated the child-modeling route. We quickly decided it wasn't for us, but not before she booked a cover shoot for a major parenting magazine. I'll admit - it was an exciting prospect - imagining her beautiful little face gracing a holiday issue … and I'm afraid my addled head was filled with visions of glamour as I carried her into the giant, super chic loft space in Manhattan for her big shoot. I was once an aspiring actress, and walking into a professional set brought back memories of being backstage, or putting makeup on for a scene in one of the indie movies I was in (no you haven't seen either of them). Ah yes … the lights, the camera, the snack table … I Read More »from "Don't Call me Mom!"

Celebrity DNA is spreading and the resulting unusual baby names are giving us the kind of water-cooler fodder we crave. This last year has brought us prized favorites such as Sparrow, Mars, Atlas, Dreavyn, Ikhyd (shown here with his mom, rapper M.I.A.), and the unforgettable Petal Blossom Rainbow, among others. (Want to see the celebrity names that make us cringe? Check out our list of the 10 most unusual baby names of 2009.)

Of course, we've also seen our share of more classic girl names coming from the stars like Sarah (Kiss' Paul Stanley and wife Erin Sutton) and Sophia (Jude Law and Samantha Burke), and All-American boy names like Bob (Charlie Sheen and wife Brooke Mueller) and John (Boston Legal's Julie Bowen and husband Scott Phillips). But somehow it's those unusual ones that seem to dominate Hollywood. Must be something about their love of attention.

Not so with the rest of us. A new study conducted by researchers from New York University and Indiana University,

Read More »from From Classic to Cringe-Worthy: Baby Names and What Makes Them Popular