Strict Dad, Lax Dad

Will letting your kids sip wine decrease chances of binges later, Eric Asimov wonders in the New York Times . “I can’t help hoping that my sons might share my taste in ball teams and politics. Why should wine be any different?” writes Asimov, who imagined raising his children European-style to teach them “wine is a wonderful part of a meal.” More »

Young people have long fled recessionary job markets by moving back home, but the current crisis has a new demographic scurrying there: the middle-aged. "This is not like, 'OK, my son just graduated from college and needs to move back in' type of thing," says one financial planner, who has seen more adult children leaning on parents for everything from rent to groceries. More »

UK teachers complain that classrooms are getting tougher to control because kids throw more tantrums—and parents are to blame, the Daily Telegraph reports. A Cambridge University study says that parents are letting children indulge in video games, junk food, and TV. "Teachers described highly permissive parents who admitted to indulging their children, often for the sake of peace or simply because they had run out of alternative incentives or sanctions," the report said. More »

Parents' drinking habits can influence those of their children, but perhaps not how you might think, a study suggests. While kids are apt to mimic boozing elders, more than one action speaks louder than words: The lax monitoring and harsh punishment that go hand in hand with alcohol abuse can also drive teenagers to the bottle, Reuters reports. More »

The "meanest mom on the planet" has unloaded her rule-breaking 19-year-old son's car in a very public Des Moines Register classified ad: "Totally uncool parents who obviously don't love teenage son, selling his car. Only driven for three weeks before snoopy mom who needs to get a life found booze under front seat." More »

Nearly half the parents of severely overweight children ages 6 to 11 said their child was “about the right weight,” and only 13% recognized that their child had a severe problem, says a University of Michigan study. The results indicate parents think children will “grow out” of obesity or that something will change as they age, reports the AP. More »

China's new millionaires have ridden the waves of the country's transforming economy, but not so their children, writes the Washington Post . Raised in privilege and coddled by parents who obeyed the country's one-child policy, the nation's "little emperors and princes" have little experience of hardship and spend money lavishly. Now parents are trying to instill Chinese values in their Westernized children. More »

Lynne Spears might have been able to explain elder daughter Britney's head-shaving incident and even finessed the no-skivvies romp, but, People reports, news that younger daughter Jamie Lynn, 16, is pregnant appears to have derailed Lynne's book on … you guessed it, parenting. A spokeswoman for her publisher says the book, scheduled for release next spring, is "delayed, not canceled." More »

Christmas came early for a father who sold a rare $90 Guitar Hero III video game for $9,100 on eBay. He searched for "the Holy Grail of Christmas presents" for 2 weeks, he said in his auction description, and "couldn't wait to spread the jubilance to my son," AFP reports. But then he came home early and found the 15-year-old smoking marijuana with friends. More »

Think Britney is a brat? Blame her mom. That's what Lynne Spears is doing. The 52-year-old says her daughter has been falling apart for years and it's her fault because she wasn't able to go on the road with Britney when her career took off. "I wish I'd been there more, but I had the other kids to look after," said the mom of three. More »

A judge cut Britney Spears’ visits with her sons to one afternoon and one overnight visit per week yesterday. In addition to twice-weekly drug tests, Spears was ordered to childproof both of her homes by Friday. Her court-appointed parenting coach was underwhelmed by the troubled pop star's interactions with her kids, saying she rarely engaged with them "in either conversation or play." More »

A court re-suspended Britney Spears' visitation rights yesterday, the latest in an ongoing tug-of-war between the fallen pop star and ex-hubby Kevin Federline over their two sons. The court recently granted Spears a weekly chaperoned overnight visit, but rescinded it until she complies with outstanding court orders, including one to get coaching on parenting skills, Reuters reports. More »