"Welcome to my nightmare."

Remember the viral phenomenon "The Landlord"? Well joy of joys, there's a sequel! I don't find it quite as funny, but it's still better than most the stuff floating around on YouTube.

Good vs Wiivil

Nintendo recently announced the winner of their Short Cuts competition. Check out "Good vs. Wiivil" below, or visit this site to see all the contenders.

McDonald's Food Quality

More on childhood obesity initiatives...

Vicki passed on this link to McDonalds.com/quality. If you haven't seen the site yet, browse around and see how the fast food giant is taking steps toward healthy choices and full disclosure.

In my opinion, a bold move: check out their Happy Meal Comparisons to see how the chicken nugget meal stacks up against what you're serving at home!

Relay for Life 2007

Time for some WonderGroup news!

For several years, Ashley has put together a WonderGroup team for the Relay for Life event in Norwood, Ohio. Relay for Life is a giant, 18-hour walk-a-thon that raises money for cancer research, and the events are held all over the world.

Let me get right to the coolest news: this year's event raised over $75, 000 for the American Cancer Society. That topped last year's $67k, as well as this year's goal of $70k.

The event was fantastic, fun and well-organized. There were so many people there for the first 8 hours or so (the event started at 6:30pm Friday), though naturally the numbers dwindled by noon on Saturday. At Relay, one member of each team is supposed to be walking the track at all times, and this year WonderGroup was able to complete all 18 hours!
Thanks to all WonderGroup friends and families that showed up to cover shifts, and to those who contributed to our team's goal of $1,000! It was a great team effort... and now it's time to start planning how to top it all next year!

Big News from Kellogg

Big steps on the childhood obesity front from cereal giant Kellogg: check out the article here. (Thanks, Elaine!)

Nair Pretty

This is kind of awkward... but relevant. Here goes.

...I found a new product through a banner ad. Absolutely had to check it out because it was all about young (early teenish?) girls. The product? Nair Pretty.

I've heard of Nair before-- who hasn't? But I guess they've discovered a hole in the market, because Nair Pretty is "specially developed for teens. The gentle but effective formulas contain fruity extracts in convenient delivery systems."

As far as I can see, Nair Pretty is hitting the nail on the head. The site is chock full of information about how and why to use the product-- mom doesn't even have to walk you through the process. But if mom does want to get involved, there's a whole "Mom's Corner" about the product... and how to talk to your teen girl about the changes she's experiencing. Wowza.

If you aren't too squeamish yet, check out the site and let me know what you think. This is a great example of the burgeoning tween/teen market-- now that your teen can Nair her legs, what's left?

More on the Dangerous Book

Today, the author of ParentHacks.com posted a quick interview with Conn Iggulden. Iggulden co-wrote The Dangerous Book for Boys, which I blogged about a while back (here). Check out the interview (here) for some insight and back history on the book, which is flying off the shelves.

In the blog post, ParentHacks also points us toward the upcoming Daring Book for Girls (info here), which I'm sure you knew was inevitable.

Fruits of Our Labor

Check out this fantastic :15 spot for AirHeads bars, created by WonderGroup!

Regal Guest Response System

I am all for innovation, but this might be a bit much. Apparently, Regal Cinemas have started implementing a remote control that alerts theater management if someone is making too much noise, if cell phones are going off, if the picture quality is bad, etc. This Regal Guest Response System is anonymous-- the remote is only given to one moviegoer per showing, and that person is never "pinpointed" when an alert is made.

I'm not sure where to stand on the issue. Does this go too far? Sure, I've been annoyed when I've paid $9 for a ticket and someone is text messaging during the bulk of the film, but when I go out to the movies, I account for the fact that other people are going to be there. It's just part of the experience, I guess.

What do you think? Innovation or overkill?