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The Independent •

I’m done throwing birthday parties for my kids

A mother has explained why she’s had enough with children’s birthday parties.

With a video shared on TikTok on 24 March, Hannah Winslow sparked debate online, causing parents to deliberate on the merits of hosting regular gatherings for young children. The mother-of-three began the video, saying: “I think we’ve had it with kids’ birthday parties.”

The thought struck the young mother after having recently hosted a birthday party for her six-year-old son.

“Is this fun for anybody?” the 34-year-
The Independent •

Repairmen discover 100-year-old time capsule while renovating Michigan home

A repair project in the house of Michigan resident, Jesse Leitch, led to the discovery of a time capsule dating back to 1915.

When a boil water advisory in Grand Rapids caused a Leitch’s heater to fail a few weeks ago, the homeowner was forced to hire some repair people to fix the problem. However, as the repair people began to work on his pipes and heater, they started to cut through the bathroom ceiling only to discover a hidden 100-year-old time capsule.

“Just basically as they were cutting
The Independent •

Mother surprises son with Barnes & Noble shopping spree on his birthday

A mother has found herself celebrated on social media after surprising her son with a two-minute shopping spree at Barnes and Noble for his birthday.

In a viral TikTok video, Jaci Moore took her son, Bentley, to one of the bookstore chain’s locations in Illinois on his 12th birthday. She set a timer and gave him one bag from the store to fill up with as many books as he could carry.

“Be nice to the books,” she cautioned him in the video, to which he replied with a smile: “This is your idea.”
The Independent •

How to celebrate your gal pals on International Women’s Day

International Women’s Day is right around the corner, and what better way to celebrate than with your best gal pals?

Celebrated annually on 8 March, this global holiday champions women of all walks of life, and more specifically, the women’s rights movement that continues to fight for the freedoms many women enjoy today. From gender equality to reproductive rights, this holiday celebrates how far women have come and have to go.

There are many ways to celebrate womankind with your friends, incl
The Independent •

The battle against IVF isn’t protecting children. It’s devastating families

When you’re a teenager, you have a basic understanding of how you came into the world. You don’t tend to ask your parents questions about your conception. At least, I didn’t because I wasn’t inclined to die of mortification.

Growing up, I’d only heard that my parents had tried for a child for a long time, so when my 70-something-year-old grandmother made a passing comment about how I’d had a twin in the womb, I took it as another one of her jokes. Offbeat and out there, but classic grandma.

I
The Independent •

The Los Angeles edition of the Willy Wonka Experience was an absurdist fever dream

Standing outside a graffitied warehouse in Los Angeles’ Arts District, I didn’t know what to expect from a recreation of Glasgow’s disastrous Willy Wonka event. I had heard a lot about the bungled children’s experience, which included AI-generated characters, sparse and low-budget sets and costuming, and a sad Oompa Loompa who had become somewhat of a local celebrity since the event. Unlike what happened in Glasgow, this event was primarily marketed to grown adults, capitalising off of the meme
The Independent •

60-year-old lawyer makes history after winning Miss Universe Buenos Aires

A 60-year-old lawyer has made history by being crowned Miss Universe Buenos Aires.

Lawyer and journalist Alejandra Rodríguez challenged stereotypes and warmed hearts everywhere when she was crowned the winner of the Miss Buenos Aires pageant. She is the first 60-year-old woman in beauty pageant history to win the title, marking a departure from the ageist norms that typically put youth on a pedestal.

“I am thrilled to be representing this new paradigm in beauty pageants because we are inaugura
The Independent •

Family documents pet octopus giving birth to 50 babies on TikTok

According to the Clifford family’s TikTok account @doctoktupus, their Californian adult female octopus bimaculoide - called “bimacs” for short - named Terrance laid 50 eggs in December that began hatching in February. Patriarch Cameron Clifford - affectionately referred to as “octodad” by their 362,200 followers - bought the octopus for his son in October and has been documenting the family’s subsequent octopus-filled hijinks.

Back in March last year, Clifford began sharing their journey to bec
The Independent •

What is ‘CrowTok’? The influencers rehabilitating the misunderstood bird’s reputation

TikTok users have built a niche online community dedicated to normalising humans’ bond with crows.

Nicole Steinke, who posts as @Tangobird on TikTok, has taken her habit of feeding crows and turned it into video content - showing people how to interact with the chronically misunderstood birds. Steinke provides treats for a family of six crows called Waffles, Doc and Dotty, and their baby DocTok - the latter of which was named by Steinke’s 284,000 followers.

She reportedly feeds the family twic
The Independent •

What are carefluencers? How influencers are inspiring a generation of caregivers

Carefluencers are highlighting what it’s like to take care of elderly relatives by sharing their day-to-day on the internet.

Grandchildren are increasingly making content on social media showing their grandparents enjoying their old age and going about their lives. Francesca Falzarano - an assistant professor at the University of Southern California Leonard Davis School of Gerontology - told The New York Times that her researchers have coined a term for people who are giving a behind-the-scenes
The Independent •

What are ‘friendship snacks’ and why are they important to our relationships?

Researchers have found that adult friendships are often maintained through “friendship snacks”.

With busy schedules often making it harder to spend quality time with friends as an adult, sending quick how-are-you texts, adorable animal videos, or memes can be a simple way for friends to maintain their relationships. Even if these interactions tend to ultimately be unsatisfying, they’re not meant to meet the complete needs of a friendship, and instead act as a stopgap for when plans will ultimat
The Independent •

Bridal parties are increasingly choosing wellness retreats over boozy benders

A new trend points to bridal parties increasingly choosing wellness retreats over boozy benders.

More and more brides are foregoing the rowdy Bachelorette parties of yore, and instead, they’re opting for healthy, calming wellness retreats. According to one bride, a physician’s assistant named Margaret Wilson who spoke to The New York Times, she and her bridal party were drawn to the idea of “a unique experience that wasn’t solely dependent on partying”.

“I had been through a lot of life change
The Independent •

Punxsutawney Phil becomes a father as he welcomes two newborn groundhogs

Punxsutawney Phil is a new father as he welcomes two newborn groundhogs with his partner Phyllis.

On 27 March, the famous groundhog’s Facebook page announced that he and his wife Phyllis recently welcomed two new additions to their family. In the post, they wrote, “We have Babies!! The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club is very excited to announce that Phil and Phyllis have given birth to two healthy baby Groundhogs!”

They shared photos of the adorable baby groundhogs with their mom and dad. A video
The Independent •

Washington DC’s beloved cherry tree Stumpy among 300 trees set to be chopped down

Washington DC’s beloved cherry tree Stumpy is set to be chopped down.

As part of a multiyear restoration to replace the crumbling seawall around the Tidal Basin, an area surrounding the Jefferson Memorial that famously has a high concentration of cherry trees, social media phenom - the weathered cherry tree Stumpy - will reportedly be cut down along with 140 other cherry trees.

Crews are expected to begin the chopping process starting in early summer so that the seawall deterioration can be re
The Independent •

‘Grey divorce’ poses higher financial risk for women than men

Divorces among middle-aged and elderly people pose a higher financial risk to women.

In stark contrast to reports indicating that divorce rates among young adults are on the decline, researchers have noted that divorce rates have alarmingly increased among the middle-aged crowd. “Grey divorces” – defined as divorces among those age 50 and older – have skyrocketed in the past 30 years, according to a 2022 study from The Journals of Gerontology by I-Fen Lin and Susan L Brown.

Typically, divorces
The Independent •

Parents pledge to ban children from using social media until eighth grade

Parents are pledging to ban children from using social media until the eighth grade.

In an interview with NBC News, a mother from Indiana named Emily Meyer spoke about the “Wait until 8th” movement, saying that she’s pledging to only allow her children to have phones when they reach the age of 13. Meyer said that she and her husband had already agreed to wait for their own family to give their children phones.

“We have made kids grow up in this society way too fast,” the mother of three said.
The Independent •

Woman says those experiencing pregnancy loss need separate waiting rooms

A woman has called for hospitals to have separate waiting rooms for patients experiencing pregnancy loss.

In a TikTok video, India Batson candidly spoke about how she wished there were special waiting rooms for people like her who have suffered pregnancy loss. She reflected on her experience at a recent Ob-Gyn doctor appointment, in which she noted how heart-wrenching it was to be surrounded by pregnant women so soon after having a miscarriage.

“Sitting in that waiting room next to tons of pre
The Independent •

Influencer divides viewers saying men ‘should pay on the first date’

An influencer sparked a debate after saying that men “should pay on the first date” because women spend a lot on makeup.

In a viral TikTok video, beauty influencer Elle McNamara - who goes by BambiDoesBeauty on the platform - took part in an ongoing trend in which content creators break down how much their make-up routines cost. As she did her makeup, McNamara off-handedly said that because the total cost of her look came to £233.07, men should foot the bill on the first date.

Her expensive be
The Independent •

Mothers are normalising messy homes on TikTok

Mothers on social media are trying to normalise having imperfect homes and lifestyles.

In a viral TikTok video, 29-year-old substitute teacher and mother of three Katie Ziemer candidly spoke about the pressure to be perfect as a mother, saying that she often compares herself to the put-together mothers she sees on social media.

“I used to think I couldn’t be a content creator because I don’t live in a pretty house…I mean, look at me.” In the video, Zermer notably kept things lowkey in black sw
The Independent •

Wedding guest accidentally shows up wearing same dress as bridesmaids

A wedding guest has recounted her embarrassment after accidentally wearing the same dress as the bridesmaids.

In a viral TikTok video, unlucky wedding guest Taylor Fogarty (@taylorfogartyy) shared on the platform that she showed up to the wedding accidentally wearing the exact same dress as the bridesmaids. The clip shows Fogarty donning a pale blue gown before panning the camera up to reveal a row of bridesmaids rocking the same thing.

“My Roman empire is the time I showed up to a wedding in
The Independent •

Pregnant woman sparks debate after crying over gender reveal

A pregnant mother has sparked a debate after she was filmed sobbing when her gender reveal did not go to plan.

In a viral video on TikTok, Michigan-based mother Autumn Freeman shared with her followers her reaction to her “gender reveal” after she and her husband Andy popped a balloon only to have pink streamers come out instead of blue like they wanted.

She stitched footage from both her first and second gender reveals, contrasting the different emotional reactions in both clips. Freeman wrot
The Independent •

Parents are ‘pre-folding’ their toddlers before car rides on TikTok

Parents on TikTok are “pre-folding” their toddlers before putting them in the car.

It can be difficult for parents to wrangle their children into their car seats, and nothing encapsulates the struggle quite as well as a recently viral video of a young mother trying to put her child in his seat. In the video, Lauren (@laurarbs1) struggles to get her 17-month-old son, Emmett, into his car seat.

Many took to the comment section of the video to give Lauren advice, with a large number noting that t
The Independent •

Influencer rescued pigeon and trained it to go out for martinis

An influencer rescued a pigeon and trained it to go out to restaurants.

In a viral series on TikTok called “Purse Pigeon,” party products developer Abby Jardine lets viewers in on her nights out on the town in New York City along with her faithful companion, Pidge, a pigeon she carries with her in her cream, leather purse. Together, they paint the town red, hitting one NYC hotspot after another.

“If I want to go out for drinks or dinner with friends, I just put her in my bag and she’s down to
The Independent •

Mother born on Leap Day gives birth to baby on Leap Day

A mother born on Leap Day has given birth to a baby on the same day 40 years later.

On Thursday 29 February, Dr Kai Sun - an assistant professor of medicine and a rheumatologist at Duke Health - rang in her milestone birthday welcoming daughter, Chloe, with husband Michael Paik. The baby girl is the third child for the couple, who already share Charis, five, and Caleb, three.

“My husband and I were just saying how cool it would be if she were born on the same day as my birthday. And somehow, i
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