While we remember fighting over the ambulance in day care (you know who you are, ambulance hoggers), we don't recall interacting with rodents until our first apartment. Eight-month-old Alanah Barba was recently found playing with a mouse in her mouth at a Newark day care center. "Lately, she's been vomiting. Everything she's eaten, she's throwing it back up," Alanah's mother Brittany tells ABC. On the other hand, it's never too early to read your children Stuart Little. more ›

Motor vehicles are the number one cause of death for children in NYC, but a new study (below) by Transportation Alternatives finds that children in or around public housing projects are disproportionately at risk. The report, which analyzed Dept. of Motor Vehicle data 1995-2009, says there are child crash "hot spots" in neighborhoods such as East Harlem and the Lower East Side, particularly near the projects. The LES recently saw a 12-year-old girl fatally run over while crossing the infamously dangerous Delancey Street, but the study finds East Harlem has the "worst intersection for child crashes" in all of Manhattan: East 125th Street and Lexington Avenue. more ›

Health professionals and parents are up in arms today over a new anti-obesity ad campaign in Georgia, featuring stark black-and-white photos of overweight children with lines like “Some diseases aren’t just for adults anymore,” and “Being fat takes the fun out of being a kid.” Is it a useful tactic, or just shameful? And when will Bloomberg bring it to New York? more ›

It's been a bad few months for toys—parents are pissed off about tattoo-covered Barbies and cursing dolls, to say nothing of the busty LEGOs that blew our minds last week—and the latest victim on the Toys 'R' Us hit list is...the little red wagon. more ›

Drama is stacking up against the children's classic LEGOs this week, with some people plenty pissed over the company's brand-new ladies-only toy set. Why, oh why, would LEGOs ever need boobs? The new LEGO "Friend" set features five busty female characters in settings like hair salons and doggie daycares, going about their girly business. It's part of a new plan from LEGO to appeal to more girls—a worthwhile cause with a poorly executed campaign. more ›

Remember back in October, when Bobby Montoya, an adorable seven-year-old boy who "likes girl stuff" drew national attention because he wanted to join his local Girl Scouts troop? Well, nearly two months later, Christian leaders of three Girl Scout troops in Louisiana are reacting with disgust, quitting their posts and disbanding their troops because Montoya was allowed to join. more ›

Laughing cruelly in the face of ADHD, public school officials announced this week that math and reading tests for third through eight-graders in the city will increase by about three hours, to a total of almost six hours overall. Better sharpen those pencils, suckers. more ›

In a study that will come as a surprise to no one who's even so much as smelled Lucky Charms, researchers found that many children's cereals have a cavity-inducing amount of sugar per serving—some clocking in with more sugar than Twinkies. more ›

A 46-year-old babysitter with a long history of working with an Upper East Side family was arrested today after a mysterious odyssey that lead the baby's panicked parents to call the cops when the child wasn't home on time. more ›

The debate over whether or not children should be allowed into restaurants enters a new stage today, with the news that one brave London restaurant charged one mother a small "baby tax" for bringing her spittle-strewn bundle of joy. Is this the closest thing to a compromise we'll get? more ›

A second boy has admitted to throwing a shopping cart, hitting a woman who has been in a medically induced coma since the incident. The boy had been at an East Harlem shopping center when he and a friend lifted the cart over the railing; in Family Court, he said, “Me and [the other boy] threw a shopping cart off the fourth floor of the mall." more ›

Seems like you can't make a doll these days without horribly offending delicate parents— just yesterday adults were getting all up in arms over a tattooed Barbie, and now, Toys R Us is in hot water for selling a talking doll that some say utters the phrase "Okay, crazy b*tch." more ›

As the dust settles on Occupy Wall Street's "day of action" on Thursday, allegations have emerged that some protesters harassed young kids as they walked to school with their parents near Wall Street in the morning. CBS reports that they saw one protester follow a father and his little daughter down one block, while others chanted "follow those kids!" One mother told CBS, "For them it’s horrible. They’re afraid of all the crowds. We’re not even able to get through. They’re just, he’s … very afraid now.” Watch their report below: more ›

Parents are not pleased with the latest Barbie to hit shelves, complaining that she's inappropriate for the delicate eyes of children. The tokidoki Barbie sports a neon pink bob, is covered in elaborate tattoos, and walks a spike-covered pet named Bastardino. Which actually sounds like...the coolest Barbie on the market in years! more ›

Man, Occupy Wall Street is really going after the youth! Say you're a parent, not quite ready to sign off on a Camp Zuccotti kids sleepover, but you still want Sally to vive la revolution firsthand. No problem! Schools across the city are taking field trips to OWS, where your precious can learn about pepper spray under the watchful eye of a trained educator. more ›

Four children, including an eight-month-old girl, were injured in an early morning Harlem fire yesterday. The fire broke out on the fifth floor of the six-story building at Manhattan Avenue and W. 115th Street. "My dog woke me up barking and when I went into the hall it was black with smoke. I felt the flames on my face. I was terrified," said resident Shaun Holbrook, who was able to escape down a fire escape with his dog in his arms. more ›

Today, Science tackles the topics of kids and sugar, and finds, perhaps unsurprisingly, that young'uns really like sweet stuff. But it's not just that they like it—they're biologically wired to love it. more ›

The FBI is now involved in the search for the seven brothers and one sister who were abducted by their parents during a supervised visit at a Queens children's agency earlier this week. The children, ages 11 months to 11 years, had been split up between three homes, and their mother Shanel Nadal allegedly texted one of the foster mothers, "I cannot live without my children. I cannot breathe without my children." more ›

Now that the city is a week into the school year and everyone's eardrums are growing accustomed to the early-morning shrieks of hyped-up children, it's time to play the classic back-to-school game "School Bus Horror Stories." more ›

The TSA may have lots of problems (drug dealer-enabling agents, for one) but at least they are trying to better themselves? Not only is the Administration now forgoing porno scanners for less-racy cartoon versions but yesterday, while testifying before Congress, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano threw a bone to the many parents who are wary of flying with their wee ones. Soon enough kids under 13 will no longer have to take off their shoes and will not be subject to pat-downs when going through security. Progress! more ›

Young bookworms who can't keep track of a deadline are no longer in danger of losing their borrowing privileges at the library, thanks to a new measure granting thousands of kids amnesty from late fees. Call off the book detectives! more ›

Some Hasidic families in south Williamsburg are upset that the new East River Ferry doesn't provide enough life preservers to handle the large families common in the community. more ›

There's been a big ole brouhaha about kids in restaurants in the past few days—specifically, about whether or not children and their big mouths and poor table manners should be allowed in restaurants at all. more ›

Kraft has started sneaking powdered vegetables into their classic macaroni and cheese in an attempt to get kids to eat healthier, company reps announced, a move that has some health advocates riled up. more ›

A seven-year-old girl in Rosedale, Queens was hit by a school bus after running into the street to escape a neighbor's dog. The girl, Destiny Louigene, is currently in serious but stable condition at Long Island Jewish Medical Center. more ›

A Jersey City mom was arrested this week after her six children were found home alone, running amok naked in the streets. Francine Davis, 40, faces child endangerment charges after neighbors discovered that her children, between the ages of 3 and 14, had been left alone for more than a day. She had left her autistic 14-year-old in charge. "They didn't know how to eat with forks," said Aaliyah Glover, the 16-year-old who took charge of the situation after she saw the kids nearly getting run over by cars. more ›

At this point, we've heard a lot about teenagers and their propensity for seemingly nonstop sexting. Well, those crazy kids are at it yet again, this time as a naked snapshot of a 13-year-old girl makes the rounds of a New Jersey middle school. And the authorities aren't taking the sexts lightly, even in the wake of efforts to loosen the rules against teenagers and their wildly out-of-control hormones. more ›