Happiness is genetic. Sort of. According to this study, people who are predisposed to moodiness due to low serotonin levels are more susceptible to how parenting affects their outlooks. Positive parenting helps kids be more optimistic and vice-versa. Interestingly, the results were duplicated in three different studies, giving them more credibility than most.
From the parenting perspective, this is another affirmation that I need to try to be positive as much as possible. From the "Me Generation" perspective, this could also be another excuse for people to blame who they are on something or someone else.
What I am trying to say is, yes I may be genetically predisposed to ________, and/or I learned _________ from my parents' example, but I can (and should) still be trying to be a better person. So that I can steer my kids toward being even better.
Don't be afraid of down syndrome. This is a nice study that showed that families of people with down syndrome for the most part have a positive opinion of their experiences, and almost all people surveyed with down syndrome are happy with their lives. This fits with what I have seen (okay, I have only known two families, and not that well, so my experience on the subject is limited).
Forward-facing vs rear-facing carseats - This article gives an explanation about why rear-facing is so much safer. I have to admit we moved Beeper to forward-facing at 11 months. With Little Fish, we turned him around at about one, but then after talking to a highway patrolman and carseat tech, we turned him back around until he was almost two (and we needed to fit three carseats in together). With Baloo I expect we will keep him rear-facing as long as possible. Since he is so tall, though, I am sure his feet will start hitting the back seat earlier than most, and I'm not sure what we'll do then.
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