Wednesday on Today 8/15

The big news story of the day is the toy recall: Mattel Pulls 9 Million Toys. Stephanie Oppenheim gave advice to parents about the toys to take away from your kids. Polly Pocket is the name that keeps coming up over and over again, along with Barbie and Batman. There are too many to mention here. Other than just the toys that Mattel lists that have or may have lead paint, she suggested things that are made in China such as teething rings. Those are supposed to be put in mouths, but they're filled with plant water from China. If the ring breaks, do you really want your baby to be drinking plant water from China? I can't believe toy makers could be so careless to paint toys with lead paint. What's next? Mercury in our children's vaccines? Oh, wait, that already happened. And poisoned millions of kids that are now suffering irreparable neurological damage. But our government won't even admit to that one. You can't trust anyone when it comes to the health and safety of your kids. Mattel is probably going to announce more recalls today. Stay tuned. And find out more about the recall on http://todayshow.com/.

Today Throws A Martha Stewart Wedding: Planning For The Big Day. They suggested organizing with a big binder and starting a budget. Plan and budget. That could fit any scenario. My advice would be to elope and send announcements of your nuptials. Planning a wedding is stressful and stress makes you gain weight. Just what you don't need before the big day. If you want more tips, you can also visit the Today website. I couldn't really hear much more because of my two year-old's demands for yogurt. She already had breakfast but insisted on LeCreme for dessert. I couldn't deny her.


Next up was a much lighter topic: Dog Wigs/Hound Hair Pieces. They talked with Ruth Regina, the creator of the wigs for dogs and looked at a couple of wig wearing pooches. Though, I have no idea why she decided it was necessary, she sure is having fun with it. I saw her on Late Night With David Letterman last year and just laughed at all those dogs wearing hair pieces. There's nothing funnier than a bulldog with a wig. She's been making wigs for celebrities for decades, but now also makes them for dogs. The dogs look cute, but I don't know much one of those fake furs will run you. The pictures alone are enough to check the website for.

iVillage Back To School featured a segment about medical needs for your kids when they begin or return to school. You've got to make sure they have all their vaccines and it's a good idea to have them tested for food allergies just in case. I've never thought of doing that but I guess it's a good idea since you don't want to find out about a life-threatening allergy after they've eaten the offending food. They also need regular dental cleanings--taken from a page from the book of the obvious. Once they hit grade school they should get yearly flu shots only if they're at high risk, like kids with asthma. And routine vision screenings are recommended. As far as backpacks are concerned, they shouldn't weigh more than 20% of the kid's body weight. There are a couple of new vaccines that you can discuss with your pediatrician. One is the controversial HPV vaccine, and there is a new one to protect against meningitis. The thing about new vaccines is that nobody knows about the serious side effects or any long term effects of them. I'd wait until more information is available.

Next was Northwest Airline CEO, Doug Steenland, answering e-mail questions from people inconvenienced by the surge of flight cancellations this summer. This was just more spin from another CEO trying to repair his company's reputation. He came off as testy and defensive, saying he took a 20% decline in salary and refused bonuses that he deserved. Well, sounds like he should be in the running for a Nobel prize.

Today's Kitchen had Thomas Keller of The French Laundry who cooked up some of his Favorite Foods For Summer. I'm afraid the only food I heard mentioned was fish. At that point, I was getting the kids ready for the beach and it was kind of hectic. If you would like to see what he cooked and get some recipes, visit the website.

And that's a wrap. Till tomorrow.