The demography of motherhood in the United States has shifted strikingly in the past two decades. Compared with mothers of newborns in 1990, today’s mothers of newborns are older and better educated. They are less likely to be white and less likely to be married.  (more…)

The iconic Girl Scout cookies continue to fall on hard times. News outlets are reporting that some boxes smell “stinky” due to denigrating ingredients (although the cookies are safe to eat). Just this week I brought home my usual 3 boxes of Thin Mints (hey they freeze well) and couldn’t help wondering if the cookie had gotten even smaller. It seems like every year the box and the product inside is a disappointment. Any product developer knows that cost optimized iteration after iteration doesn’t measure damage from the original. At some point, your loyalists will push back and find the product unrecognizable and the eating experience unsatisfying. For me, I have just about reached that point with my beloved Thin Mints. It will be pretty sad if this iconic part of American culture falls prey to poor strategic vision and planning.  

Congrats Saints!

Seasonal sales bumps are associated with products like sleds and air conditioners, but there is, oddly enough, an example in the cereal aisle too. About half of the total yearly sales of Chex occur in the final three months of the year. Looking to spice up sales and increase relevancy, General Mills is reinventing the classic party staple. While tossing together a few ingredients to bake for an hour may have seemed convenient during the Truman administration, it seems less so in the era of microwaveable popcorn. Besides, ready-to-eat Chex Mix, which was introduced in the snack aisle in 1987 and now includes more than a dozen varieties, is simplicity itself. So Chex has embarked on an effort to publicize new microwaveable recipes and, through a recipe contest, is adding spice, literally, to the snack.  (more…)

The dreaded OOS. Kellogg Company said that due to “a confluence of events” — including flooding at its Bucknell Drive manufacturing facility — Eggo brand frozen waffles will be in short supply for some time to come. Grocery store inventories, the company said, are expected to remain limited through the first half of 2010. The company reports that the shortage is nationwide. Brings new meaning to the famous tagline and another reason to be cranky about the great flood of 2009. (more…)

About two weeks after 9/11, I was in NYC with my husband and small children. The missing person flyers were plastered on every open space. The streets were so quiet except for the sounds of sirens. We walked through our beloved city like strangers — disoriented by the changes both physical and emotional. Eight years later, I rush down the streets yapping on my cell phone, cursing the slow tourists under my breath, watching my nine year old stick her hand out and shake her head no to the man passing out flyers. We are downtown about to show a visiting friend the WTC site. We walk quietly through St Paul’s church and in a moment I remember and the tears slowly run down my cheeks.  Afterwards, we head uptown and eat at The Shake Shake gossiping and comparing the days shopping booty. I pause and think about the words of Warren Zevon, “Enjoy Every Sandwich” — his advice upon finding out that he had terminal cancer. I dug into my burger, smiled at my girls, and did just that.

For the first time since the decade began, Americans are having fewer babies, and some experts are blaming the economy. In 2007, the number of births in the United States broke a 50-year-old record high, set during the baby boom. But last year, births began to decline nationwide, by nearly 2 percent, according to provisional figures released last week. The obvious culprit being blamed is the recession but other forces are likely at work too.  (more…)

I am choosing to ignore all the bad economic news and how it is negatively effecting celebrating the 4th of July.  All I need is some hot dogs on the grill (Bush’s Baked Beans on the side of course), good friends and family around, and a couple of fireworks (hey they’re legal in Georgia). Nothing fancier is necessary to have a great time and celebrate the birth of our country. Happy 4th of July!