Reading Round-Up

Over the long weekend, I had time to catch up on my reading. Except for the occasional novel here and there, I’m strictly a nonfiction gal. I love my magazines. That’s why I don’t mind sitting in a doctor’s waiting room or in line for the treadmill, as long as there’s a stack of current mags around. And lucky for me, all the June issues just arrived in my mailbox. Yippee! Here’s a rundown of mom-worthy news:

Parenting magazine has a fascinating story on who’s harder to raise, boys or girls, by Paula Spencer. (Who, by the way, is a super nice lady and a writer and mom after my own heart. Check out her book, “Momfidence! An Oreo Never Killed Anybody and Other Secrets of Happier Parenting.”) The consensus? About what you’d expect: boys are more challenging when they’re younger, but girls beat them by a mile when they get to be preteens.

You can’t blame boys, though. They’re hard-wired to take more risks and be more impulsive and aggressive, according to an article on boys’ brains in Baltimore’s Child. So that explains why girls will admire the pretty colors of a flower and boys just want to rip it to shreds.

Speaking of local publications, my very own beloved Baltimore magazine ran a piece on the local baby boom, calling babies “the new rats of Baltimore city.” They don’t call us Charm City for nothing! There was also a story on the growing number of Baltimore bloggers. Sadly, I wasn’t included in the list -- YET. The top-trafficked blogs cover cooking and crime. And I thought we were losing our title as the murder capital of the U.S. (We were edged out by New Orleans last year.)

I also found this story in the Baltimore Examiner newspaper interesting: some local elementary schools are lobbying to switch recess from after lunch to before lunch, to reduce stomach aches. Seems the kids are scarfing down their food too fast so they can go out and play. (Sounds like an excuse from the cafeteria to explain mystery-meat-induced maladies, if you ask me.)

In Wondertime, I read an in-depth account of why kids are obsessed with potty talk. Even at the tender age of almost-2, Miles talks about poop all the time. He puts diapers on his Curious George doll, and he’ll throw his plastic fireman in the toilet, explaining it’s because the fireman needed to poop on the potty. Of course.

In Health magazine, I learned that Kristin Davis volunteers much of her time helping people with AIDS in Africa, and also that she’s a recovering alcoholic. Who knew? Apparently all those Cosmos she drank on “Sex and the City” were virgin. Now THAT’S irony.

But my favorite read of the week is Miles’ new book, a gift from his grandmother, just home from Spain. Bullfights are big there, and she brought him a T-shirt with a bull on it. In an effort to explain it, she gave him the classic “The Story of Ferdinand,” by Munro Leaf. (Leave it to my mom, the teacher, to make a lesson plan out of anything!) It’s a very sweet story about a young bull who’s different from the rest. Instead of butting horns and fighting all day, Ferdinand likes to sit under a tree “just quietly,” and smell the flowers. It’s a testament to individuality, and being true to one’s own unique nature. Or maybe I’ve just read it too many times.

LINK O’ THE WEEK: Download the Barenaked Ladies single “7 8 9” FREE from their new “Snacktime” CD.