I've collected the headlines that really did it for me lately; the stuff that for no apparent reason may make you shoot milk out of your nose.

You're welcome.

What is the best headline you've read lately?

Image via Gamma Man/Flickr

The truth is, most of us moms don't want to piss off our childfree friends. We remember what it was like to be the woman without kids wondering why that jerk at the next table in the restaurant was letting her kids turn the place into a pigsty. We don't WANT to be her!

But now that we're parents, we see how some of it happens, and we also see ways to fix it ... for all of us. In fact, I'd wager making things easier for moms and their kids is actually the best way to bridge the gap between us breeders and the rabidly anti-kid.

More From The Stir: 17 Most Annoying Things About Parents (According to People Without Kids)

Just imagine if we had the following:

1. Changing tables on airplanes. This is what mom Rachel Simmons is asking for, and it would help mitigate the stench for all the other travelers, not to mention a diaper change usually quiets a baby down ... reducing yet another annoyance on airplanes.

2. Special spots for strollers on buses. If I've heard it once, I've heard it a million times: Folks are sick of the strollers always being in their G.D. way. So how 'bout we all get on board with creating places to stow them?

3. Kid sections at restaurants. They used to have smoking and non, so why not dining with kids and dining without sections? As a mom on date night away from my kid, I wouldn't mind the "dining without" section myself. I leave her with a sitter for a reason.

4. Breast milk pumping stations at work. Oh right, legally we're supposed to have these, but every other day, it seems we have a news story about a woman whose co-workers are just so mad that she gets a space all to herself. Those people might want to meet up with the folks who hate seeing a woman breastfeed in public and have a chit chat ...

5. Changing tables in restaurant bathrooms. We've all seen the (absolutely disgusting) photos of moms changing kids on restaurant tables. I'm not down with that, but I do remember what it was like sitting on a toilet and trying to juggle a flailing baby, a clean diaper, and a dirty one, plus wipes because there was NO PLACE provided to change the kid.

6. Bigger public bathrooms. I know, again with the bathroom thing. But it's not just diaper changes. It's having to share that space with a stroller. It's trying to find a private spot to breastfeed without stealing the sole handicapped stall. It's really all about getting out of people's way, y'all. But when there's barely any room for the toilet in that thing, it's not easy to hide mom and kid in there too.

7. Parent hours at the grocery store. They already provide special times for seniors and specific hours for business people. So why not for parents and kids? It doesn't mean other folks can't run in there, but they'll at least be warned in advance that we've got our screaming brats in tow (and maybe they'll think twice before doing 55 in the parking lot if they KNOW a woman will be carrying a baby and holding hands with a toddler around that time?).

8. Drive throughs. Drive throughs EVERYWHERE. I have kind of had it up to here with the drive through hate lately. It's not just lazy fat people who use drive throughs, y'all. It's parents who don't want to wake their sleeping baby and drag her inside where she'll annoy you by screaming her bloody head off.

9. Mom movie matinees. A friend actually shared that this is happening at a theater in her neck of the woods. To try to up their matinee attendance, they're making them Mommy and Me events, where the lights are turned up a bit so Moms can see, and crying babies aren't frowned on. The movies have higher ratings than something they'd go see with the older kids, but it's an opportunity for moms to actually get out and see a current movie once in awhile ... without disturbing other moviegoers.

What would you add to this list?

Image via gust.fischer/Flickr

Maybe. Then again, maybe not. 

The lead doctor on the study says we don't yet have enough information for what he called a "definitive" autism test at birth. But when researchers looked at the placenta tissue from 117 children born to families who already had a child with autism and compared them to placentas from 100 babies born into families in which no older children had autism, they found what are being described as "abnormal structures" were much more common in the high risk group.

If doctors can start examining placenta tissue and find those markers, that means they could get parents autism diagnoses earlier than the typical 3 or 4 years old. Even more importantly, that means parents could get their kids intervention services earlier.

It's those services, after all, that tend to make the biggest difference for kids on the spectrum. After all, there is no cure for autism, but therapies and assistive technologies help improve the quality of life for a kid on the spectrum. The earlier they start, the more effective those therapies can be, and the better quality of life you provide a child. 

If these doctors can turn this into a test done in maternity wards across the nation (or heck, the world), they could change countless lives.

Would you have your placenta tissue tested if this went mainstream?

Image via Horia Varlan/Flickr

To their credit, the writers did right by the topic.

We've watched Ryder struggle with the fact that his new online confidant might be a fellow choir member who is Catfishing him, but tonight we found out why he's let himself be reeled in. Thanks to the anonymity provided by a computer screen, the newest New Direction was able to talk about being molested by his babysitter wen he was younger. But tonight decided to say the words out loud for the first time to his fellow choir members in part because he was afraid his Catfisher might spill the beans.

The power of the Glee treatment came from the response from the guys in the choir room. 

The New Directions guys scoffed at Ryder's embarrassment and called being violated by an older woman a real coup for a young stud.

And it turns out something similar happened to Kitty, who confessed to Ryder during a private dinner at Breadsticks that she too was abused -- this time by a friend's older brother at a sleepover. Kitty's trust was then violated by her own parents, who seemed intent on believing that the perpetrator was a "good boy" who just couldn't have done what she'd said. The bullying that came after her story spread around school forced Kitty to change schools, sending her to McKinley.

Both teens stories were pretty sad ... and pretty typical of the high school experience.

At first I was a little put off by how quickly the show jumped from these serious confessions back to the more superficial work Kurt, Rachel, and Santana were doing for the New York City Ballet's fundraiser or the Glee club perfecting its version of Queen's We Will Rock You.

But the more I think about it, the more apropos it was. This is what happens to real kids in real life. They say someone is sexually assaulted in some way every 2 minutes, but we probably will never know how often it happens to kids especially because they are blown off so often, they are treated as if they were somehow responsible or as if they should have enjoyed it. And if they aren't receiving that treatment, they're fearing that they will ... fearing it so much that they don't speak up.

Bravo to Glee for their treatment of this tough topic, especially for pairing up with the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) to give kids a place to turn if the episode hit home.

But I have to say I'm hoping for something a little lighter next week ... and they'd better follow through on the promise of some Klaine drama that we saw in the teaser!

What did you think of tonight's powerful episode? Did it ring true for you?

Image via Fox

Yes, oh parents with more than one kid, it's true, I think you have it better. Sometimes. Well, at least when it comes to the following:

1. There's Entertainment Value. When I was pregnant, I had a fear of giving birth to twins. My grandmother, who had seven kids, including twins (hence my fear that I could be carrying two!) insisted that they were easier because the two entertained one another. I thought she was nuts until my daughter started having playdates. My daughter is pretty independent, but I'll admit things are MUCH easier when there's another kid around to keep her occupied.

2. You're Not Always Defending Yourself. I've been called defensive about choosing to be one and done, and the critics are absolutely right. I am defensive ... because nosy and rude people MAKE me defensive. It's amazing how many people are willing to snark on my decision to stop at one child. Folks with two never hear "but she deserves a sibling" or "she's going to be so spoiled" or "he'll be all alone when you die." I'd love a life where people stayed out of my uterus.

3. You Don't Ask Yourself "What If?" OK, maybe you do. Maybe folks with two ask "what if" they'd had a third, and folks with three ask "what if" about a fourth, and so on. At the end of a wander down this path, I always come back to the decision that I'm happy where I am, but I've found that little monster in my head only starts talking when other people start criticizing my choice. If I wasn't hearing the constant criticism (see number two), I wouldn't ask at all ... 

4. You Aren't Alone. When a fellow one and done friend mentioned the possibility that she might try for another baby, it practically tore me in two. On the one hand, I'm happy for her as a friend should be. On the other hand, a piece of me felt like I was being left alone on this one and done island. When friends keep on having babies after you've stopped, you lose something that once tied you two together, something you related both related to. Not to mention your friend is about to go back into baby mode, a stage you're never going to have again. I don't want to feel like a bad friend here, darnit!

5. Board Games are Easier. OK, seriously, what is with the games that insist you have at least 4 players? My daughter is still pissed that we've never played Apples to Apples.

6. Family Four-Packs. I know, it's alliterative. And it's an even number. But do you know how much of a pain in the behind it is to miss out on the "deal" because really, I only need three tickets?

7. You Can Hand Things Down. I love hand-me-downs from my cousins. I love handing things down to my girlfriends with daughters. But gosh darnit, I would like to get a little more bang out of my buck too! I have dreams of a pair of jeans actually being worn until they're ragged, but it ain't gonna happen with just one kid who's growing like a proverbial weed.

Alright one and done parents, can you relate? Do you harbor a secret jealousy of parents with more kids?

Image via WarmSleepy/Flickr

Most "traveling and breastfeeding" tips I've read on the internet advise moms pump in the airport or buy a battery-powered pump just for the trip (or one of those hand-powered pumps). That's what the moms I know say they've done. But Moms, it could be a heckuva lot easier than that! 

It turns out American is one of those airlines that actually has pre-approved certain electric pumps for use on its planes. That means moms can go ahead and plug them in; not questions asked. There's even an approval process for getting other brands OK'd for use on long trips away from your baby.

In the midst of all the bad news about this mom getting kicked out of this place for breastfeeding or that mom being harassed there for feeding her child, I dare say this is actually a huge win ... and one we need to celebrate.

It's unfortunate that it came out because of something not so nice, of course.

Brahos, who was taking a rare trip with her husband away from their three kids, including baby Adrien, has said she managed to pump on two different flights. It was on the last leg of her trip, after her flight home got diverted because of a storm and she had to spend an extra night in a hotel, that Brahos encountered a flight attendant with a bee in her bonnet about breast pumping on the plane. She was berated for just trying to relieve her aching, engorged boobs, and you can guess what happened next.

American has apologized big time, and Brahos is accepting their apology.

Good for the airline, and good for her for making a stink. Good for her, too, for deciding to make the story public.

She just clued countless moms into policies that could make a huge difference in their decisions on how to travel ... and make them more comfortable to boot!

Do you pump on airplanes when you travel? Have you ever been harassed?

Image via Newtown Grafitti/Flickr

The story goes that the unidentified servicewoman (remember, this was a sexual assault attempt) was waiting to hail a taxi at the mall when a bus pulled up. She hops on, but 10 minutes later he pulls over, tries to kiss her, then pulls a knife on her.

Terrifying ... and terrifyingly possible.

According to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), there is a sexual assault every 2 seconds here in America.

Yes, this happened in the United Arab Emirates, but it happened to an American woman. And according to RAINN, 1 out of every 6 American women has been the victim of an attempted or completed rape in her lifetime.

One out of every six. That's a 17 percent chance of being assaulted. That means there's a higher chance that an American woman will be assaulted than there is that she will develop breast cancer.

This woman, this sailor, just became a statistic. 

But then again, she didn't.

Because the sailor managed to do something amazing, something that shattered her nightmare. She knocked the knife out of her would-be rapist's hands. She broke it in two. Then she locked him in a stranglehold with her thighs.

She worked her military training for all it was worth. She was completely badass!

And when it was all over, when the jerk was more or less rendered unable to hurt her, she went and reported the incident to her commanding officer. The bus driver is now facing charges of attempted rape, threatening to kill, assault, and consuming alcohol illegally.

She's a hero for women everywhere, and a symbol of just why women deserve their spot in the military right alongside our men. She was faced with the awful, and she didn't blink an eye. She did what had to be done.

What do you think of this woman's takedown of her rapist? Impressive, right?

There's a sad story out of Manchester, Illinois today. Five people were shot and killed, including two little boys and a pregnant woman. But in an odd -- albeit fortunate -- twist, Rick Odell Smith, the man police say committed the murders, is also being credited with saving the life of a 6-year-old girl.

How does one make sense of two such disparate versions of this man? On the one hand, cops say Smith, who died in a police shootout, gunned down an entire family. On the other, he ran a little girl who'd been shot out to a neighbor to make sure she got medical care.

The girl, who was not related to Smith or to the five folks found dead in the Manchester apartment complex, suffered gunshot wounds in a shooting that claimed the lives of Brittney Luark, 23, and James Ralston, 29, and their two children, Nolan Ralston, 5, and Brantley Ralston, 1. Also killed was Brittney's grandmother, Jo Ann Sinclair, 67.

It would be easy to label their killer as a monster. He killed kids, people, KIDS!

I know the death of little Martin Richard in the Boston bombing was the hardest thing for me to take. Images of the bombing suspect dropping one of the backpacks with clear visibility of children haunted me for days. He had to know what he was doing to those babies. He had to know they couldn't be held responsible for anything, really. Kids are innocent creatures; they haven't been on this earth long enough to do anything wrong.

And the people who kill kids are pond scum.

Period.

And yet ...

I'm wondering. Could the deaths of those kids have been accidental? Was there some good to be found in this guy? Was he more than your garden variety kid-killing pond scum?

Is he a prime example of the layers that exist in human nature? The good mixed in with the bad? We talk about psychopaths in America, about people who are just pure evil. But maybe there is no such thing. Maybe there's something redeemable even in the worst of humanity.

Perhaps I'm putting too much emphasis on his rescue of this little girl. After all, she wouldn't have needed rescuing if she hadn't been shot.

But it's been a rough month, America. We've had the very fabric of our nation torn apart. We've had horrific tragedies in Boston. In Waco. In Manchester, Illinois.

We need some light in the dark.

Do you find yourself looking for the good in people even when it's hard to find?

Image via Illinois State Police

Remember when your grade school teacher told you there was no such thing as a stupid question? Turns out there's no such thing as a stupid lecture for your kids either. No really, no matter how basic and common sense a topic is, you might want to talk to your kids about it. You don't want your kid being one of the 20 percent of teens who actually think drugs and alcohol make them better drivers, do you?

I read that little bomb dropped by SADD this week, and my head just started aching. Haven't we had SADD and MADD and all that jazz around for long enough now that kids should know better?

Apparently not.

But before you grab your can of Ensure and start barking on about "kids today," you might want to hear why the folks at SADD think our kids are idiots this is happening:

A lot of parents grew up on the don’t-drink-and-drive message. They figure, ‘Our kids hear this all the time,’ because they heard it all the time.

Got that, parents?

It's all on us.

So let's go back to that "no stupid lecture" theory, shall we?

Sometimes I feel like I have to tell my daughter the same thing 359 times before it will actually sink in. She should know by now that you need to put your plate up high so the dog doesn't steal your grilled cheese. I've said it enough times. The dog has stolen her food enough times. And she's NOT an idiot. She's a pretty smart kid all in all. But still, I repeat myself.

Over. And over. And over again.

And really, this is just a grilled cheese being stolen. It's not life changing. We can throw bread and cheese together pretty easily.

We all do this as parents. So why do we drop the ball when it comes to the important stuff? Why do we expect our teens to have any more common sense than they did when they were 8 or 9?

Because they're older?

OK, yes, they should have it. Should.

But that doesn't mean they do -- just look at this survey. The messages are just passing 'em on by.

Whether they're 7 or 17, you need to make sure your kid really "gets" what you're talking about before you stop hammering it home. It may be annoying (to them and to you). It may feel like you're wasting your time. It may even make you want to scream and cry that they're just NOT GETTING IT.

But trust me, you don't want to be the parent asking herself why she never talked to her kid about the dangers of driving drunk.

Do you expect your kids to know this by now? Have you talked to them about it?

Image via jonas_foyn/Flickr

The case of a missing mom in Michigan is now being labeled an abduction. The last time anyone saw Jessica Heeringa, she was working the late night shift at an Exxon all by herself. Then, 15 minutes before closing time, a customer called police to say he'd found the gas station empty -- there was no clerk at the till. 

That was Friday night, and Heeringa's missing persons case has quickly gone national as cops pull out all the stops to find the 25-year-old and reunite her with her little boy. But that hasn't stopped the critics from coming out to ask why a woman was working such a "dangerous" job.

I've got one word for those critics. OK, two: Stop. Now. 

Yes, Jessica Heeringa was working alone late at night at a gas station. From an outsider's perspective, it might sound like she was put in a position that allowed for this abduction to happen.

Might being the operating word.

Right now all we know is that she disappeared before closing time, leaving behind her purse and keys and the gas station wide open. There are reports of the missing mom walking willingly to a van but struggling with a man once she got there (there's no surveillance camera to back it up or help cops). 

How that all went down or why, we don't know. 

Could a second person working the gas station have helped? Maybe. Would a male attendant have been safer? Who knows.

Before we vilify her or her bosses, let's consider what else we don't know: why she was working said shift.

Maybe Heeringa was trying to do what every working mom does: balance quality time with their kids with time spent on the job earning the money they need to put food on the table. The night shift can be attractive to moms who don't mind missing out on the hours their kids are sleeping; and who plan to sleep while their kids are at school. It maximizes good mommy/kid time.

We do know her boyfriend was recently laid off, and she was working as much as possible to help support the family, so maybe the night shift was simply her best chance at getting more cash.

Who knows?

The point is, she was just a mom trying to do a job so she could care for her family. That something terrible happened is not her fault. It's the fault of the sick creep who has abducted her. 

At some point in America, we need to stop blaming victims for what happened to them and remember that without criminals there is no crime. 

Let's move past whether Jessica Heeringa should have been working a night shift alone in a gas station. It doesn't matter. She was, and she was abducted. Now she needs to be found, for the sake of a little boy back home who needs his mommy.

Will you share Jessica's photo to help get her home to her little boy?

What do you think of this odd disappearance?

Image via police handout

Reese Witherspoon's arrest for disorderly conduct during husband Jim Toth's DUI stop might have shocked a world convinced butter couldn't melt in the sweet actress' mouth, but it's starting to make sense now! Turns out baby Tennessee did a number on mama's brain!

The actress has gone mostly mute since the embarrassing "do you know my name" incident a few weeks back in Atlanta, but Red magazine has come out with an interview (likely done before the arrest) that seems to explain everything that went down.

Said Reese of her life since giving birth to Tennessee:

Ever since I had the baby, I can't remember anything. Serious, this child stole my brain. I'm losing friendships over forgetting to get back to people. But you can't keep up with everything.

Aha!!

She isn't a raving egomaniac after all! She's just a mom who sometimes loses it because her kid did a number on her ability to think, talk, and chew bubblegum at the same time!

Maybe it's because I -- and the rest of humanity -- have always liked Reese, but I buy this reason hook, line, and sinker.

Some moms will scoff at the baby brain excuse. Maybe they were a little addled during those sleepless weeks after the birth but got it together in a month or so.

Considering Reese gave birth to little Tennessee Toth back in September, they may say it's been too long to keep using that excuse. But just like losing baby weight is different for everyone, I've found that getting your brain back varies.

I feel what Reese is saying intensely. I gave birth nearly eight years ago, and I STILL think that some synapses simply do not fire the way they did before my body went through pregnancy. Could it just be aging? Maybe. But I saw such a distinct change after giving birth that I'm having a hard time letting go of the "baby brain" theory.

Scientists don't exactly help us out here. Some say that baby brain is most definitely a thing. Others tell us motherhood is good for the brain. And still more claim pregnancy and parenting have zero effect on the brain.

So who to believe? How about our own bodies? If Reese feels like motherhood is affecting her brain, I'm betting it is.

How about you? How long did you feel baby brain lasted?

Image via Red Magazine

Sharing photos of our kids online is a touchy issue for parents, and it's about to get a lot more complicated. A family in Tennessee says a photo of their teenage son, who has Down syndrome, became an Internet meme used to demean kids with special needs. Now Adam Holland's family is suing a radio station and other defendants who called their son "retarded," among other offensive terms.

I've said it once, and I'll say it again: lawsuits don't solve everything. But in Pamela and Bernard Holland's case, it sounds about right. And once you hear what was done to their son's image, you'll understand why.

The original photo of Adam showed the then 17-year-old holding up a sketch with the words "Go Titans One." Hailing from Tennessee, of course, Adam is a fan of the local NFL team, and he'd drawn a picture to illustrate his support.

Unfortunately, the giant white piece of paper he'd used to draw his sketch was an easy mark for Internet bullies. According to the lawsuit, one Internet user altered the photo to read "I have a boner," and uploaded it to Flickr with a caption that read: "just a stupid photo of the sick retarded kid that lives down my street that my dogs hate." The lawsuit also alleges a radio station used an altered version of the photo to illustrate its disturbingly named "retarded news" section.

It's infuriating that people would treat a child this way and that such blatant hate exists for folks with Down syndrome.

But it's also a troubling reminder that this sort of thing can happen to any parent, anywhere.

As a mom and a photographer both, I know I struggle with what to share and what to keep to myself. I tend to share only photos that show my daughter fully clothed. I avoid any photo that shows identifying information (such as our home address). Still, we've had problems. My daughter has been called "ugly" (I'm just her mother, but I assure you, she is not). I've been forced to engage in battles over stolen photos.

More From The Stir: 13 Things Never to Say to the Mom of a Child With Down Syndrome

Being careful obviously doesn't keep all the bad people at bay.

But does that mean we should stop posting photos entirely?

The debacle over the photo of this boy certainly gives me pause.

We are trying to raise our kids to understand that kids with special needs may be different, but different isn't bad. We want our kids to look at a photo of Adam, smile, and move on ... not resort to hate speech and vile insults.

But evidently, that message hasn't settled in the brains of the trolls out there on the Internet. If a kid with special needs is still being subjected to this, is any child's photo really safe on the Internet?

It's with a heavy heart that I have to say no. Bullies are everywhere. Living in a digital society, we're going to have to risk them honing in on just about everything we do ... even posting nice photos of our kids.

What is your limit for sharing photos of your kids on the Internet?

Image via Annafur/Flickr

How's this for a crazy statistic? Approximately 1,300 new stepfamilies are formed every day in America. We've come a long, long way from the days when Ward and June Cleaver were "average" Americans.

But you wouldn't know to hear some stepmothers and stepfathers talk. Stepparents hear some real head-scratchers. And then there are the truly infuriating comments from folks who really should know better.

Afraid you might have foot in mouth disease when you talk to your friends who have stepkids? The Stir polled parents from blended families to find out what they're really sick and tired of hearing:

1. "Thank God they're not your real kids." I've been raising them since they were 1, that makes them "real" to me!

2. I told my mom that my stepkids are my kids and she dismissed me. I pointed out that my dad's parents included my older sisters (my dad's stepkids) in everything and she said "that's different."

3. Someone asked me if I had broken up my husband's marriage.

4. You wouldn't believe how many people will criticize my husband's ex in front of the kids. She's not my favorite person, but I try very hard NOT to criticize her in front of her kids!

5. People ask, "Aren't you glad he doesn't live closer to you?" It's so not the case!

6. People say, "So, you have two kids and your husband has three?" No, idiot. We have three children.

7. "You have no right to discipline that child. He/she isn't yours." So the child should run rampant (tearing my house apart, making messes, hitting their siblings, burning the house down) for the 24 hours he/she is alone with me and I am the supervising adult?

8. When are you going to have your own kids?

9. You must be glad when they go home.

10. I have a friend who seems really inconvenienced when I say we have the kids for the weekend. She is always asking me why I can't just change weekends so I can do something with her. Maybe because I don't want to?

Have you ever said anything on this list? What are the worst ones you've heard?

Image via Jeanne Sager

School shooting. Two words that put American parents into a panic. We're primed to expect the worst. What happened at an all-boys parochial high school in Cincinnati, Ohio this morning was bad enough.

It isn't a story of mass casualties. Just one student at La Salle High School was injured, and so far cops say the investigation indicates he shot himself.

At press time, the school shooting's sole victim was still alive -- thank heavens -- and was rushed to a nearby hospital. There's no indication that threats were made against the school or that the other students are in any danger (or ever were).

This school shooting seems to relate to the tragedies at Sandy Hook, at Columbine, at Chardon, at Virginia Tech only in that there was a shooting and it happened in a school.

But I can't help but note the visceral reaction to the words "school shooting."

My stomach clenches. Tears start at the corners of my eyes. My fists began to form little balls. And all this comes before I begin to read the details. All this happened this afternoon before I learned the sad tale of a child who is now fighting for his life at a Cincinnati hospital.

What happened at La Salle is a tragedy of a different sort from those other school shootings. They're both heartbreaking, but comparing them is impossible.

That we even think to is a sad commentary on what has become of our society. We are a nation where school shootings are so commonplace that we're primed to expect something more of the Newtown variety than the equally upsetting but very different suicide attempt that authorities indicate happened in Ohio this morning.

It wasn't always this way.

I was raised before any of the tragedies I mentioned had come to pass. We had a rifle range in the basement of my school. Classmates drove onto campus with guns in the backseat of their vehicles. School and shooting were not words strung together in the way that they are now.

I miss those days.

When the gun in the rack in a pickup truck on school grounds wouldn't raise an eyebrow, forget the SWAT team.

When the news that a boy had shot himself inside a classroom would have made us wonder more about that poor child and less about the risk he posed to other kids.

What comes to your mind when you hear the words "school shooting"?

Image via alamosbasement/Flickr

For a girl whose TV show went off the air nearly a year ago, Teen Mom star Farrah Abraham has done a pretty good job of keeping herself in the public eye. Maybe too good a job. Farrah has worked hard to squeeze every ounce of fame out of her allotted 15 minutes, and it's working. She was the third most searched reality star on Google in 2012 (even beating out one Kim Kardashian), and her porn video just sold for mega bucks. 

Of course, Farrah Superstar: Backdoor Teen Mom also made her already questionable status as a "star" that much more cringeworthy. Is there anything Farrah won't do to stay in the news? Weeeeeeeell...

More From The Stir: Jenelle Evans' Latest Arrest Gives Her Another Mugshot for the Scrapbook (PHOTOS)

After all, her life has become series of progressively bad public relations ideas, from tomato sauce that was supposed to make her a legitimate force in the food biz to doling out parenting advice.

Let's take a walk through Farrah's attempts to stay relevant, shall we?

Which idea is the worst? Where do you see Farrah going next?

Image via F1abraham/Twitter

The Teen Mom 2 season finale could well be the series finale too, and it was just as packed with highs and lows as expected. Unfortunately with Jenelle Evans, the highs were literal. Her already rampant drug use took a scary turn tonight that does much to explain how the North Carolina mom ended up arrested just this month on heroin charges.

Fortunately things ended on a much more positive note for moms Kailyn Lowry, Chelsea Houska, and Leah Messer Calvert.

We finally got to see Kailyn officially married to the man we know now is her husband, Javi Marroquin. The two got hitched in a short legal ceremony before he got his orders to leave for basic training for the Air Force. Kailyn's ex-boyfriend Jo took the news well, and the two seem destined for good things. Watching Javi break down in tears as he said goodbye to his new stepson may be one of the sweetest moments we've seen on this series. He's clearly got the best for Kailyn and Isaac on his mind.

More From The Stir: 'Teen Mom' Kailyn Lowry Isn't a Bad Mom for Taking Son Away From His Dad

Leah and ex-husband Corey Simms have also come to a point in their relationship where they can put their past differences behind them and be happy for one another. The two came together along with her mom and his dad, plus Leah's new husband, Jeremy, for three days of out-of-town doctor visits for daughter Ali. The bad news is the little girl does have a muscle and nerve condition, which could affect her heart. The good news is the little girl will eventually walk, and these young parents finally have an actual diagnosis of what is wrong with her after years of wondering.

Despite a morning of drama when little Aubree locked herself in Chelsea's bedroom and went back to sleep, leaving the teen mom to try breaking in with first a credit card, then a bobby pin, and eventually using a screwdriver, Chelsea had the most low-key ending of the evening. She's gone back to beauty school, and she's back on track to graduate.

Which leaves only Jenelle who was and continues to be her own worst enemy.

Her mom Barbara told a story tonight of stopping by Jenelle's house with her boyfriend, Mike, only to find her daughter stoned out of her mind with a syringe and what Mike calls a bag of heroin in plain sight. Barbara and Mike blame Jenelle's boyfriend, Kieffer, for dragging her deeper into drugs, and she tries to have Jenelle committed to a psychiatric facility to keep her away from Kieffer.

The commitment doesn't work. Jenelle is released, but the move empowers her to take Kieffer to the magistrate to file charges against her mom and Mike for trespassing.

Barbara hasn't always been the best mom to Jenelle, but you could tell she is a mom who desperately loves her daughter but doesn't know what to do to keep her safe. To be fair to her, I don't think she really can do anything.

At one point, Jenelle andKieffer are so strung out that as they carry on a slurred conversation, the two fall asleep ... mid-conversation ... while still sitting up.

Her drug-addled state is so well-documented, it's not hard to guess why MTV chose not to continue filming her after some of the images on camera tonight.

Are you sad to say goodbye to the Teen Mom 2 crew? What do you think will happen with Jenelle?

Image via MTV

Here's a story that will leave a smile on your face all day. Seventeen-year-old Mariah Herron desperately wanted a camo dress to wear to prom, but she couldn't find one the family could afford in stores. So her doting dad made her a prom dress.

Go ahead and just let it out ... awww! The story comes out of Wisconsin, but it could have happened anywhere.

Doting dads are everywhere. I saw a few dozen of them here in New York over the weekend when I was hired to photograph some local prom-goers. Our local park was filled to capacity with girls in gorgeous gowns and gawky guys in tuxedos and, of course, their parents. The mothers were more likely to be front and center, fussing over their girls' hair. The dads tended to be quieter, but the way they stood said everything. Their chests were puffed out, their feet never standing still. They were proud ... and anxious ... and head over heels for their kids.

More from The Stir: Military Dad Surprises Son at School Because That's What He Needed Most (VIDEO)

That pretty much sums up David Herron too. He wasn't about to let his little girl -- his youngest child -- be disappointed on her big night. He used sewing skills he learned in the military to turn some winter white camo fabric into the prom dress of her dreams.

And by the looks of it, they must do some pretty nifty sewing classes in the military ... this dad managed to turn out a dress complete with a gauzy tulle overlay, ribbon sash, and a sweet A-line skirt. Check it out:

Awesome job Dad!

Does your girl have an awesome dad? What's he done for her lately?

Image via Green Bay Press Gazette

It was a typical Monday afternoon. The big kids were in school. The little kids were home with mom. She was standing in her doorway, her baby in her arms, when the air suddenly filled with bullets. And Sheri Williams died in that doorway, this mom shot to death while holding her baby on a typical Monday afternoon.

Sheri Williams did nothing wrong. She was just a mom at home with her two youngest kids and her sick mother, waiting for her eldest to come home from elementary school. And she was shot. Dead.

Cops say the volley of gunfire came from two as-yet-unidentified men who'd gotten into an argument at a restaurant near the Birmingham, Alabama housing projects where Williams lived with her three kids, where she cared for her mother who suffers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Her 6-year-old was at school, but Williams' 4-year-old was in her home, and she was holding her 10-day-old son in her arms when she was shot.

The men were shooting at one another right out on the streets in broad daylight, clearly disregarding where they were or what they were doing.

They were in a housing project around 1 p.m. in the afternoon on a Monday. It's a time when little kids are out playing in the yard. It's a time when moms are standing outside with their babies in their arms. It's a time when people should feel safe.

And then came the guns.

These men were so wrapped up in an argument that they couldn't -- or simply didn't -- see the risk their selfishness created for countless people who had nothing to do with it. 

Their argument killed a mother. It left three children motherless.

It turned a typical Monday afternoon for a mom home with the kids into a tragedy.

Cops are still searching for the two suspects involved in the shooting. Even if they find them, there's no way to undo the fatal consequences of their thoughtless actions.

But somehow we must send the message that this kind of behavior isn't acceptable. Whether it's shooting on public streets or driving drunk, crimes often have unintended and completely innocent victims.

If a mom holding her baby isn't safe, who is?

Image via CarbonNYC/Flickr