IT'S NOT VIOLENT, MOM

     Older kids have lots of ideas about gifts they’d like. The problem, for them, is to find something that presumably will not damage their youthful psyches. Here are some helps:

     The COMMON SENSE MEDIA website reviews games, music, and movies from a parent’s point of view. Parents are also encouraged to add their own reviews.

http://www.commonsensemedia.org/

     And here's the official website of the SOFTWARE RATING BOARD:

http://www.esrb.org/index-js.jsp

     And, as a finale, here’s GAMESPOT, a gamers’ site, which gives you an actual taste of the plot and action of a game. So you don’t have to take your child’s word about the amount of violence in a game.

http://www.gamespot.com/

iPARENTING MEDIA AWARDS

     An iPARENTING MEDIA AWARD is apparently the Nobel Prize of the children’s products world. I’ve been doing my usual Google search for negative information, putting about iParenting Media Awards into Google search. And all I get are breathlessly thrilled press releases from firms whose products have been given one of these awards. I don’t know how far down I’d have to scroll to find a criticism, so I give up. These awards are thrilling, wonderful, and splendid, because this is the only consumer awards program certified by ISO 9001:2000, the internationally recognized standard of quality assurance.

     Which means that children’s products given this award are wonderful, thrilling, splendid, and exactly what you want to buy or give as a gift. Okay?

http://iparentingmediaawards.com/winners/index.php