modern day dad

Jennifer Lopez's Nursery and Other Recent Posts On Babble

Casablanca Cribs in Jennifer Lopez's Nursery
Jennifer Lopez has a (typically) ostentatious nursery and published pictures of them in People Magazine. But the crib is actually quite nice if that kind of decor is up your alley.

Audible Launches New Kids Site
Download audio books for your kids and stop putting Spongebob on their iPods.

7 Days of BPA-Free Plastics: CamelBak Water Bottles
Something to check out when you reach post-sippy cup nirvana.

Jessica Alba Gives Tastybaby
Jessica Alba gives baby food as a party favor for her shower. Seriously.

Mariah Carey Has a Hello Kitty Boo-Boo on American Idol
Mariah Carey is obsessed with Helo Kitty apparently. And she wears the same Band-Aids on American Idol that my kids wear.

Big Deal: FLOR Carpet Tiles for Kids On Sale
FLOR has a couple of child themed carpets on sale now.

Sesame Street Monster Gallery. Dad research I never thought I'd have to do.

So we're in Borders this past weekend, my 20 month old was acting up, and in a moment of desperation prudence, we bought her this simple Elmo board book called "Monster Faces." The whole book is just faces of different Sesame Street monsters making faces. You get the idea - hungry face, sad face, angry face, silly face, happy face etc.

It worked and calmed her down, except for the rest of the day (at least while she was with us in the stroller shopping) she wanted to know the names of the monsters. Every single one. Over and over.

And to be honest, after Elmo, Cookie Monster, Grover, Oscar the Grouch and Zoe I was kind of at a loss.

So later that night, I spent a little time looking on the magical internets, and I stumbled on the Muppet Wiki, specifically the Sesame Street Monster Gallery. If you've ever wondered what Elmo's dad's name is (Louie) or what the name of that baby monster is (Baby Natasha), it's definitely worth checking out.

Check out the Sesame Street Monster Gallery, and if you're shopping for a baby check out the super cute Monster Faces board book.

Melinda Beck brings good design back to children's television. GPD08.

When I read yesterday about Gary Vaynerchuck's idea for "Good People Day 2008", I decided to get over my typically cynical self and contribute to the internet shout-outs. And from my at-home dad's perspective, one person who deserves some much needed credit is illustrator and graphic artist Melinda Beck.

The great thing about children's television network Noggin is they don't air commercials in-between the shows. Instead, they have other kid's related short programming, the most of which centers around the designs and illustrations of Melinda Beck. Melinda drew Noggin's "mascot" Moose A. Moose and his silent avian pal Zee, as well as most all of the other bumpers, network IDs and other interstitial pieces. The designs are playful, colorful and most importantly incredibly imaginative. After having your mind numbed to the design aesthetic of most kid's television, it's refreshing to see something that stands out from the rest.

So thanks Melinda Beck. I can't think of anyone better to give a shout-out to on Good People Day.

Check out Melinda Beck's work at her web site (including her work for Noggin here), or check out the Noggin web site, which is also full of her work.

(And, thanks to Greg from Daddytypes for originally explaining who Melinda was).