We’re already been in the US for 21 days! The first two weeks we were recovering from jet lag and didn’t do much other than running errands. We needed haircuts, health checkups, dentist appointments, clothes… lots of logistics after 20 months in lockdown! Charlie and Olive have been visiting Los Angeles every year (other than in 2020) since they were born, so we’ve done many of the things there are to do. This trip we’re focusing on lots of outdoor activities like hiking trails and camping where we can avoid large crowds and indoor spaces. It’s been unseasonably warm, so I think we still have time to squeeze in some tent camping trips.

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hiking in Yucaipa, CA

These are some interesting parenting links from around the web this week!

HEALTH

How a simple tummy-rub can change babies’ lives via BBC

The case for mandating Covid-19 vaccines for kids via Vox

F.D.A. Plans to Authorize Pfizer Boosters for All Adults This Week via New York Times

40 Percent Of American Kids Think Hot Dogs And Bacon Are Plants via IFL Science

When can kids take off their masks in school? Here’s what some experts say via NPR

Some U.S. states dangle cash and scholarships to get children vaccinated. via New York Times

What’s Stopping So Many Parents From Giving Their Kids the COVID Vaccine? via Slate

The One Thanksgiving Necessity America Forgot to Stock via The Atlantic

EDUCATION

A Frenzy of Book Banning via New York Times

My Teen Struggles with Executive Function via Harvard

If history is a guide, schools will start requiring COVID vaccines via NPR

Four Character Strengths That Can Help Kids Learn via Greater Good

As D’s and F’s Soar Schools Ditch Inequitable Grade Systems via LA Times

Editorial: How can kids learn without homework and rigid deadlines? Quite well, it turns out via LA Times

FAMILY

Without Parental Leave I Might Be Dead via New York Times

How to raise emotionally intelligent kids via Ted

Parental Leave is American Exceptionalism at its Bleakest via The Atlantic

What Becoming a Parent Really Does to Your Happiness via The Atlantic

‘Encanto’ is the best Disney animated movie in the past 6 years via Insider

Sesame Street makes history with the debut of its first Asian American muppet via NPR

This Is What Parents Named Their Babies In 2021 — And For The First Time In Over A Decade, There’s A New Top Girl Name via Buzzfeed

For too many girls, teenage years are a time of unwanted attention from older men via The Guardian

Is Nora from Queens a ‘loser’?: Children of Chinese immigrants on high parental expectations via BBC

How to Give Your Child Grit: The Courage and Determination to Try Again and Do Hard Things via Nurture and Thrive

My Teen’s Social Life Means That I Never Stop Driving via Your Teen Mag