Last week, the Internet heated up with outrage as Disney seeemed to turn the rebellious Princess Merida into a sparkly, thinnified, more mature version of herself. A petition and many blog posts later, Disney pulled the images from their website and denied the makeover happened at all.

Catherine Connors, Disney exec. and Editor-in-Chief of Babble.com (and former Canadian mom blogger extraordinaire) writes:

 ...the original Merida hasn’t, actually, been made over: there are a few pieces of iterative artwork out there that were created for the purpose of celebrating her coronation, but these are fancified depictions of Merida, not a new Merida (who in any case is defined by far more important things than what she wears.) 

The idea that the people who were upset about the changes were the ones guilty of making a big deal about appearances is a Disney spin (and also disappointing coming from Babble). Her gown was much less of an issue than her apparant rib removal.

Photographer Jaime Moore wanted to commemorate her daughter's fifth birthday with some photos. When she searched for inspiration she found a lot of little girls dressed up as princesses. But she wanted to do something different, so she posed her daughter Emma as five inspirational women who have made a difference in women's lives.

We've all done it.

Told a little too much about our kids online. Not just me as a blogger, but anyone who is on Facebook or Twitter. There is a very fine line between providing information, broadcasting great moments and oversharing. So, I have a little empathy for the updates that cross the line, once in a while. 

But sometimes there is something so egregious, so ridiculous, that I stare at my screen in disbelief. There are the braggers and the sanctimommies, the oversharers -- they are the parents who believe that the world revolves around them and their children's small achievements. 

STFU Parents is for them (yes, stands for Shut the F*ck Up). Or at least it is to make fun of them. And in doing so it also reveals a little bit of ourselves. 

Blair Koenig is a childless writer who has been keeping up the blog for four years. She gets over one and half million views per month and has just released a book, STFU Parents: the jaw-dropping, self-indulgent, and occasionally rage-inducing world of parent overshare.

Emma Willer has three boys, a dog, husband and a full-time job. She recently returned to her government job after her one-year maternity leave. Emma writes the honest and lovely blog: Where There's A Willer...or five. Never sentimental, Emma admits that there is no perfect answer to the universal question: "Can women have it all?" I asked her for her tips on returning back to work after maternity leave.

Guest Post: Tips For Moms Returning To Work

One of the great frustrations of parenting a toddler is the amount of unexpected, unpredictable crying. A typical toddler will cry because their shoes are blue, not red; the cup is green, not blue; and that the grass is  muddy. Car seats, diaper changes and all safety concerns may all be met with a few tears and possibly uncontrollable sobs.

A clever dad created a Why Is My Son Crying Tumblr. He posts a photo of his cute child in tears along with a sardonic answer to the ubiquitous 'why is my son crying' question. Answers range from: "the car seat, always the car seat" to "I told him not to drink the bath water" (pictured below).

Image credit: http://reasonsmysoniscrying.tumblr.com/

To be honest, I sort of imagined my Oscar debut to come with a rush of excitement and a thank-you speech in hand, with me saying something like: "Thank you for loving my script. I can't forget my husband and kids who have stood by me," blah blah blah.

But instead, I was talking about quinoa with Sharon DeVellis, and Galen Weston from Loblaws and on a national commercial. But that's okay because it was still on the Oscar broadcast. And it was a really exciting experience to be in some commercials too! (You can see them here.)

But how did it happen?

A UK mum watched her son play with a water gun on a beach holiday over Christmas and made a realization -- and a vow. She would take a stand against "kiddy consumerism" and not spend money on her son in 2013 (except for on medicine).

His clothes will be hand-me-downs, his diapers with be reusable, he will eat the same food as the rest of the family and his activities will be play-based with friends. Hattie Garlick is nervous, but she is even going to cut his hair herself.

Was 2012 the year of the celebrity mom? Every time you looked at the news, or glanced at a magazine or even stumbled upon a gossip website (totally inadvertently, obviously), the celebrity mom was all over it. From Jessica Alba's green baby company, to Beyonce's Blue Ivy, to all those bodies bouncing back after baby. We are inundated with images that celebrity moms are just like us.

Today's Parent recently released a poll that listed Jennifer Garner as the year's Top Celebrity Mom because of her relatability; frumpiness to glam quotient; and the fact that she does crafts and shops at the farmer's markets. Top Canadian gossip blog, LaineyGossip, had some very pertinent thoughts on that decision, as well as the growth of celebrity mom culture. 

Babble.com, the parenting website that many bloggers love to hate (but also secretly want to appear on their Top 50 lists), has released their Top 50 Dad Blogs. (With run on sentences like that, I will never appear on another list.)

The list is not as controversial as last year, but I'm sure it stirred up some turmoil in the dad arena. All rankings are by their nature arbitrary there are must-read blogs on the list, and probably some that have been left off. (One of the things I find most annoying about the list is that, in true Babble fashion, they don't always include outside links to the blogs.)

Nonetheless, there is some very powerful writing out there by male writers. And the Babble list is a good place to start if you are looking for some more blogs to read, or need a little more testosterone on your list.

Last week I saw a Facebook update on my page that made me smile: a toddler nursing while holding a piece a bacon. The update from The Feminist Breeder read: