This week I was reminded that being a father is a priviledge and not a right. I remember thinking that in disgust that violence against children is something that needs to stop and it needs to be stopped ASAP so why isn’t it? Why is violence towards children especially in a small country like New Zealand occurring on an ongoing basis.

I found this article which made me mad and also want to do something about it and addressing it and not sweeping it under the carpet is something that I want to make sure happens.

- Scott

Three children repeatedly beaten with a broom handle were so hungry they had to rummage in rubbish bins, and yet neighbours were too scared to report the cruelty they witnessed.

Kylie Tekani, 30, of Porirua, has been sentenced in Wellington District Court to eight months' home detention after pleading guilty to three charges of cruelty to a child and assault with a weapon. ... read more >>

Man - some guys out there are getting really sophisticated with their Father's Day messages. Pretty cool, huh? I hope that's not another LonelyGirl15 thing Hollywood is trying to pull on us ... who are you "indiestopmotion"? :-)

-Stef

Last week we received the follwing joint media release for Father's Day by the Advertising Council and US government departments.

NEW YORK, June 13, 2008 — The Advertising Council, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families Office of Family Assistance and the National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse joined today to announce the launch of new public service advertisements (PSAs) designed to show dads the critical role they play in their children’s lives to coincide with Father's Day.

According to the National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse (NRFC), an estimated 24 million children live without their biological fathers and are on average at least two to three times more likely to be poor, to use drugs, to experience educational, health and emotional and behavioral problems, to be victims of child abuse and to engage in criminal behavior than their peers who live with their married, biological (or adoptive) parents. Children with involved, loving fathers are significantly more likely to do well in school, have healthy self-esteem, exhibit empathy and pro-social behavior and avoid high-risk behaviors. ... read more >>

Found this on an Internet News site, interesting to note, I thought I was being original by picking Ava for my new baby girl, as it turns out Ava is in the top 4 girls names in the US for 2007.

- Eric

Planning on naming your baby Jacob or Emily? Be forewarned, those two names topped the US most popular list again last year -- Emily for the 11th year running.

The 2007 top baby names list released by the US Social Security Administration for Mother's Day on Sunday showed Americans consistent in their love for classical names: Michael, Ethan, Joshua and Daniel topped out the top five on the boys side, while Isabella, Emma, Ava and Madison were favorites for girls.

But the list showed that plenty were striving to be unique, creating wholly new names like Nevaeh -- "heaven" spelled backwards -- or sometimes just taking extreme orthographical liberty with better-known monikers. ... read more >>

This interview has been posted with the kind permission of Warwick Pudney.

-Stef

This interview has been posted with the kind permission of Warwick Pudney.

-Stef

In the beginning of the year News hit the country of a little left behind in a Melbourne railway station, we were clearly disgusted with what happened read past Article “Hi my name is… Pumpkin”

Qian Xun Xue, a little Asian girl nick named "Pumpkin" because of the Pumpkin Patch vest that she was wearing was picked up at a Melbourne railway station after being found wondering around by herself.

As it turns out, it was no accident and the mother was found dead in their home.

The latest News today, is that Nai Yin Xue, the Auckland fugitive accused of murdering his wife and abandoning his toddler at a Melbourne railway station, has been captured in the United States. read more…

I hope he gets what’s coming to him.

Only 1% of all New Zealand early childhood teachers are men (down from almost 2.5% in 1992) which is one of the worst rates in the developed world. At a recent event in Wellington Russell Ballantyne, President of Men in Early Childhood Network New Zealand called this "a tragedy for thousands of New Zealand children".

"As a result many children who have no man at home, find no man at preschool and no man at primary school, and never meet a stable, reliable male figure in all their preteen years. Girls never experience nurturing from a trusted older male. Boys, cared for only by women, learn that nurturing is no part of the male job description. And in the absence of reliable men, too many of these boys learn their male role from violent television and music videos, and on the street" he said. ... read more >>

We just received a DVD from Korean's UGA TV who recently produced a documentary on parenting around the world featuring parents in Korea, Europe, the US and New Zealand. The DIYFather team was featured in one of the episodes which aired at the end of last year.

The 10 minute focus on DIYFather showed the team during the regular catch-ups with Scott and Stefan on baby duty in our office.

Greetings! A study in the journal Pediatrics found that 55% of teens who were exposed to a lot of sexual material in movies, music and the Internet had intercourse by the age of 16. Compare that with only 6% of teens having sex who rarely saw such imagery in the media. I don’t believe young teens are ready to put sexual content from the media into perspective. If you don’t think it makes a difference, you’re not opening your eyes.

It does makes a difference when you limit your kids’ exposure to sexual content from the media—a big difference. TVs and computers in their room at an early age might be what a lot of other parents are doing, but they are also decisions that can have a permanent impact on your child’s life.

Make the right choice.

Warmly,

Mark Brandenburg

Mark Brandenburg MA, CPCC
mark@eqnow.org ... read more >>