I’m lazy today, so I thought I’d sift through some blog posts and put up some I thought were newsier, more celebrity-encrusted, or simply more amusing than anything I can come up with today, so here ya go!

MyLittlePony is a bit OCD, n’est ce pas? (Portraits of Canadians, via Bridlepath)

The Muppets vs the Fraggles (CelebrityScraps)

Gretchen Mol gives birth to ancient Egyptian (Babyrazzi)

Tori Spelling steals Denise Richards’ look! But the kid is a little monkey (CelebrityBabies)

Gwyneth Paltrow’s kids are so cute even SHE has to smile (JustJared)

Manny Ramirez is a Major League Dad! (CelebrityBabyBlog)

Ghetto pants: a bum rap? (Catalina tu Vecina)

Carrot juice is MURDER! (Seismic Twitch)

My wife likes to see me tied up (Charlie’s House)

May the prettiest and coolest child win! (Dadsmacker)

Showdown at the hoedown (MommyOffTheRecord)

Toddler has reached critical mass (TheBlogess)

Knitted baby butt cosy! (AwesomeMom)

Soap operas as study guides? (KvetchBlog)

Yard arting, empty nesting, and wishful thinking (SuburbanLesbian)

Optimus Prime is gay, too! (me!)

Now, it must be admitted that this comes to us from the conglomerate responsible for not a few of those frivolous products used as weapons in the gender and peer pressure wars. Nonetheless, it rocketh, so it gets posted.

I saw this new electronic banking version of Monopoly and I thought, how could that be as fun?  I mean, wasn’t the whole power trip of “I’m the banker” and trying to rip off your younger siblings a major part of the appeal?  Who didn’t love finding out three quarters of the way through the game that all the five hundred bills were gone and that you had to go and make a bunch on your own? Or how about my husband’s version of the game, in which it was a family tradition to try and steal money from each other.  I’m thinking I would totally miss stacking up all my hundreds and twenties and sticking them under the board so I didn’t lose any of them, whether to an errant breeze or some sticky fingers.

On Amazon, they list the features of the game, and one of them is “An experience that capitalizes on today’s trend of a cashless society.” While I agree that we are moving to a cashless society, I’m not sure I would promote that as a reason to buy the game.

What about you?  Is it not the same without the itty bitty monies, or would an electronic version just make life that much easier?

Nothing cements a parent’s Cool Status among a kid’s peer group like throwing a really, truly unforgettable party, even if the kids all go for naps halfway through and sleep through most of it. Note to the newbies: this only becomes truer as they get older, but it starts in preschool.

We here at TeenyManolo have scoured the Internets for the most original, the most daring, the most memorable and, because we are known to be tight with a penny, the most easily staged for less than twenty bucks, total.

We have found it.

Ladies and gentlemen, from the great RattlingTheKettle comes this brilliant plan for children’s entertainment. Ponies? Who needs ‘em? Clowns? Too scary! Gift bags? You can pick up theme-related items in the local Walgreen’s for less than a buck a kid, and practical too!

It is with great pride and some giggles that we present:

The Teeny Toilet Party!

From the post:

Although he certainly enjoyed the party amenities, I’m pretty sure Ronen’s favorite activity was going to the bathroom.

You see, this was his first experience with a child-size bathroom. At home, the toilet is too big for him, so he sits on a potty. The bathroom at Kids Klub, however, had five minaturized toilets lined up against the wall. It was bathroom heaven…

Once there, he pulled down his pants and proceeded to sit on each toilet, each time for about three seconds before jumping off and heading for the next one. When he finished that, he went around again, this time flushing each toilet and watching the water go down the drain (”bye, bye water! Bye, bye pee pee!”). And again. And again. It took me twenty minutes to convince him to pull his pants back on and wash his hands. In the miniature sinks, of course, which he also loved.

I’m thinking of scrapping our original low-key idea to have inflatable pools and a bubble machine for Ronen’s birthday party next week, and instead rent a bunch of child-size toilets for the kids to play with.

Sounds like a brilliant plan, but I really don’t want to see the pictures.

Even though I in no way consider myself to be a film expert, I am going to bravely go ahead and open myself up to criticism by listing the best movies for kids 14 and under. And before everybody gets all huffy, these are in no particular order.

1. To Kill a Mockingbird
2. The Iron Giant
3. E.T. The Extraterrestrial
4. Holes
5. Monsters Inc.
6. Spirited Away
7. The Sandlot
8. The Princess Bride
9. The Lion King
10. Star Wars (IV, V, VI) (yes I am cheating by including them as one.)
11. The Harry Potter Series
12. Babe
13. The Nightmare Before Christmas
14. The NeverEnding Story
15. Goonies
16. Stand By Me
17. Finding Nemo
18. Raiders of the Lost Ark
19. The Sound of Music
20. Toy Story

What did I miss? What shouldn’t be on here?

Fire away in the comments section.