Hannah Anderson is the daughter of a nutritional activist who created a game called Today I Ate a Rainbow that teaches kids about healthy eating.

At last week’s McDonald’s shareholders’ meeting in Oak Brook, Ill., there was an unlikely member of the audience—9-year-old Hannah Robertson. This bright girl, with a big smile and a thick pair of spectacles, wasn’t afraid to speak up.

Robertson, whose mother, Kia, is a nutritional activist, stood in front of the crowd and spoke her mind to Don Thompson, the CEO of one of the world’s most powerful companies, according to USA Today.

“There are things in life that aren’t fair — like when your pet dies,” Robertson said. “I don’t think it’s fair when big companies try to trick kids into eating [unhealthy] food. It isn’t fair that so many kids my age are getting sick.”

She went on in an unwavering voice to ask: “Mr. Thompson, don’t you want kids to be healthy so they can live a long and healthy life?”

Thompson responded: “We don’t sell junk food. My kids also eat McDonald’s.”

The CEO who also told Robertson that his kids eat a lot of fruits and veggies at home and talked about some of the healthier options McDonald’s is now offering: nonfat chocolate milk, apple slices, salads, oatmeal, smoothies.

I have to wonder if selling salads is the best approach to making McDonald’s a healthier option for families (and for all people for that matter). If you want your kid to eat a salad or an apple, does McDonald’s come to mind? Salad is something you eat at home or at restaurants where the lettuce is guaranteed to be crisp. An apple is something you buy at the market and stick in your kids’ lunch box. You put a bowl of crisp apples in your kitchen, hoping your kids will eat them when they’re hungry.

You go to McDonald’s because you want to treat your kids to a burger, fries and a shake. The food is fast, easy and cheap—and makes your kids happy.

Give my 8-year-old son the opportunity to pick a restaurant on a Friday night and he’ll always opt for a burger joint, and we often give in to his request because most nights he eats vegetable stews, kale salads, grilled fish, rotisserie chicken and a whole lot of cheese quesadillas, black beans and avocado (his favorite). But when we want burgers we never go to McDonald’s because many years ago I read Eric Schlosser’s “Fast Food Nation” and learned that McDonald’s burgers are made from old worn-out cows injected with antibiotics and steroids and fed animal remains. I also got an inside look at the multimillion dollar flavor industry that makes the complex chemicals sweetening strawberry shakes and flavoring most McDonald’s offerings.

But what if McDonald’s sold a higher-quality product? What is they made burgers from cows that haven’t been injected with growth hormones, put fresh bananas and strawberries in the shakes, baked fresh buns daily, pulled the beef essence flavoring from the fries? What if they ditched the super-size offerings packed with an inordinate amount of calories? What if McDonald’s focused on their core offerings—burgers, shakes and fries—and did them well?

I’d take my kids to McDonald’s on occasion—but this solution still leaves us with one big problem: Some families eat at McDonald’s several times a week and some parents put McDonald’s in their kids’ lunch boxes. Because even if the burgers are made from grass-fed cows, you shouldn’t be eating red meat every single day. How do we solve this problem? I still don’t think putting apples on the menu at McDonald’s is the answer because the fast-food chain is never going to sell the sweet, crunchy apples that will get kids hooked on fruit. If a kid is given a choice between mealy, uflavorful apple slices and super-salty french fries, they’re always going to choose the fries. (Hey, I would.) I think the answer is to educate parents on healthy eating and advise them to feed their kids less fast-food. If only we could get McDonald’s to create an ad campaign that encourages families to eat at their restaurant only once a month as a special treat. Something tells me that’s never going to happen.

NickMom put together this graphic depicting the most popular baby names by state.

For the third year in a row, Jacob reigned as the top male baby name in California, the Social Security Administration revealed last week. Jayden, Daniel, Ethan and Matthew were next in line.

On Golden State girls list, Sophia soared at the top, followed by Isabella, Emma, Emily and Mia.

Earlier in the year, the Social Security Administration released a list of the top baby names in the nation for 2012 and just last week they came out with lists featuring the top 100 names for each state. (Search the most popular baby names by state.)

William was hot in the south while Emma held court throughout the center of the country and Sophia was the favorite in the southwest and northwest. Florida was the only state to have Jayden at the top and New York was the only state with Michael as its number-one pick.

Laura Wattenberg, the baby-name expert behind the book and blog “The Baby Name Wizard,” says that more liberal states opt for more conservative names. Huh? In states like California and New York moms tend to give birth later and older moms are drawn to safe, traditional, less creative baby names.

Wattenberg says California is one of the more complicated states when it comes to baby names. “It’s so big and diverse,” she says. “I wish they could break the baby names down by region within the state, and then I think we’d better understand the trends.”

What baby names are hottest out of the gate for 2013? Nameberry, a site where expecting parents go for baby name inspiration, has compiled a list of 13 unusual and surprising names attracting significantly higher views in the first quarter of this year versus the same time period last year (see above). In other words, these are up-and-coming baby names that parents are considering right now.

A Utah fourth-grader named Kaylee was forced to wear unstylish thrift store clothes as punishment for bullying another student. (KTSU-TV/Fox)

When a woman from Murray, Utah, learned that her stepdaughter was criticizing a classmate’s wardrobe, she made a trip to a local thrift store.

Ally* purchased dowdy, ill-fitting outfits that she knew her stepdaughter, Kaylee*, would never choose, and she forced the fourth-grader to wear them to school as punishment for being a bully.

What do you think, is Ally’s idea a brilliant way to teach a kid a lesson or is this woman an evil stepmother?

Kaylee was relentlessly harassing one of her classmates over the course of three weeks and verbally tearing apart the girl’s clothing, according to KTSU-TV/Fox. Kaylee’s stepmother, Ally, told the Salt Lake City TV station that Kaylee went as far to call the girl a “sleaze” and a “slob.”

When Ally received a note from the school alerting her of Kaylee’s bullying, she talked about the issue with her stepdaughter and was perplexed when the young girl seemed apathetic to the damage she’d caused. The bullied student was so hurt that she wanted to leave the school.

Ally decided to get creative to teach Kaylee a lesson. The stepmom spent about $50 at a thrift store and purchased clothes she knew Ally would be embarrassed to wear. The clothes were poorly fitting and dated. (Anyone with a daughter might know that fourth grade is often the year when a girl starts to show interest in fashion and care about what she wears to school.)

“I thought this was a perfect moment for us to really teach her, this is right, this is wrong, which path are you going to take? And then it’s her choice,” Ally told KTSU.

In the past couple years, the media has covered many instances of parents publicly shaming their children as a way to teach a meaningful lesson. Parents have done everything from force their kids to stand on street corners holding signs reading “I am a bully” to posting humiliating images on their children’s Facebook pages. A debate is unfolding over whether this type of punishment is effective.

Child psychologists most often advise against it. “Public shaming may be effective in teaching our children what specific behavior they should stay away from in the future to avoid future humiliation,” Jennifer A. Leigh, Psy.D., told She Knows Parenting. “However, shaming can damage the parent-child relationship. Children quickly learn they cannot trust their parents. Children need to feel safe and secure and to be able to trust their parents.”

KTSU asked Dr. Douglas Goldsmith of Utah’s Children’s Center about Ally teaching her daughter a lesson through humiliation and he said, “What happens with that is the person walks away at the end saying, ‘Now I’m really angry, that was humiliating and now I’m angry.”

How did Kaylee react to her public shaming? When her stepmother presented her with the thrift store outfits, she cried.

But the fourth grader followed her stepmother’s instructions, wore the unstylish threads for two days, and put up with her friends saying meaning things about her clothes. In the end, Kaylee admitted that she learned a lesson, has decided that teasing other kids is mean, and promises to be more kind to her peers.

How’s the relationship with her stepmother? Only time will tell.

Publicly shaming kids is the latest parenting trend. Take a look at these examples that made national news.

(*Ally asked media to keep her last name and her daughter’s anonymous.)

Eesha Khare is the brilliant teen behind an itty-bitty device that could supercharge cell phones. (You Tube / NBC)

Now here’s the invention that we’ve all been waiting for: A device that instantly charges our cell phones.

A gadget like this might soon be on its way thanks to a bright 18-year-old from Saratoga, Calif., who was recently honored at an international science fair.

Eesha Khare is the mind behind a super-powerful and tiny gizmo that packs more energy into a small space, delivers a charge more quickly, and holds that charge longer than the typical battery. Khare showed off her so-called super-capacitor last week at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Phoenix, Ariz. In her demonstration, she showed it powering a light-emitting diode, or LED light, but the itty-bitty device could fit inside cell phone batteries, delivering a full charge in 20-30 seconds. It takes several hours for the average cell phone to fully charge.

Khare also pointed out that the super-capacitor “can last for 10,000 charge cycles compared to batteries which are good for only 1,000 cycles.”

Khare’s invention is flexible and could be used in roll-up devices and might even have applications for car batteries.

The judges at the science fare were wowed by Khare’s brilliant invention and the senior at Lynbrook High School in San Jose received the Intel Foundation Young Scientist Award and $50,000.

“With this money I will be able to pay for my college and also work on making scientific advancements,” Khare told a cheering audience after receiving the prize money.

I’m sure her parents are proud and thrilled!

[NBC and DNA India]

“As a mother, you have to do what you have to do. Wherever you have to do it,” Ruth told 9News. “I just kind of wiped him off, cleaned him off as quickly as I could.”

A Starbucks employee was displeased by the Burgos’ choice and tossed a rag at the couple while shouting out rude comments. “You better clean that seat,” the barista said, and then proceeded to laugh with fellow employees.

The father Alex was irritated by the employee’s demeaning tone and dumped his drink onto the floor and said, “You make sure you clean that up,” according to USA Today.

One of the employees called 911 and cops came onto the scene. No arrests were made. Starbucks has since apologized to the Burgos family.

This story raises the question, What is appropriate and inappropriate when it comes to changing diapers outside the house? I think it all depends on the situation, the severity of the diaper (wet or dirty?) and how discreetly it can be changed. Parents need to use their best judgement. But generally, I think you should always aim to change a diaper in a private place and it’s an especially bad idea to change a dirty diaper in a public place where people are consuming food and beverages.

Does this billboard make you laugh or make you mad? (Cougar Life)

A new billboard  rising above Los Angeles’ glamorous Sunset Boulevard is stirring up some controversy.

The advertisement for CougarLife, the largest dating site for pairing younger men with older woman, features a bare-breasted woman nursing a newborn. A conversation bubble above the baby reads, “Jealous?”

The billboard sits in the middle of the 90069 zip code, which supposedly has the highest concentration of cougars in America. Cougars are often defined as women 35 and over who like to date younger men and one-third of CougarLife’s 4 million members are single moms, according to CBS, so the ad is meant to tie in with these women who might still be nursing.

What do you think? Clever or tasteless?

A blogger over at LAist.com gives the billboard a big fat fail. “We are not quite as comfortable with sexualizing such an intimate, natural stage in motherhood and babyhood,” Lauren Lloyd writes.

Miss CougarLife Marlo Brandon defends the billboard and told CBS that an eye-catching image was necessary to cut through Tinsel Town’s billboard clutter.

While I can understand the Last’s concern that the billboard sexualizes breastfeeding and the idea of a cougar dating site using this image seems tasteless, I can’t get that worked up over the billboard. I actually find it a little funny and if anything it’s helpful to get more photos of women breastfeeding out there so people become more comfortable with the sight of a nursing mom (although I understand this wasn’t CougarLife’s intention). What do you think?

Rich moms are paying disabled guides to get their kids to the front of long lines at Disney World. (Paul Thompson / Getty)

What’s the latest indulgence for wealthy parents? A day at Disney World with a disabled guide who can help you and your precious saplings jump to the front of long lines, according to the New York Post.

These parents are taking advantage of Disney World’s policy that allows guests in a wheelchair or motorized scooter, plus up to five members of their party, to use auxiliary entrances intended to offer disabled guests “a more convenient entrance to the attraction.”  While the auxiliary entrances are “not intended to bypass waiting lines,” they are known to get guests on a ride much faster.

“My daughter waited one minute to get on ‘It’s a Small World’ — the other kids had to wait 2 1/2 hours,” one mom, who hired a disabled guide through Dream Tours Florida, told the Post. “This is how the 1 percent does Disney.”

The guides reportedly cost $130 an hour or $1,040 for an eight-hour day. This might seem high, especially since you’re also paying entrance fees, but Disney World’s comparable VIP service that gets groups to the front of lines costs $315 to $355 an hour.

The New York Post doesn’t quote any named sources in its article and messages left with the tour company singled out in the article remained unanswered, but Disney is still investigating the situation.

“We are thoroughly reviewing the situation and will take appropriate steps to deter this type of activity,” spokesperson Bryan Malenius, Yahoo.com. ”It is unacceptable to abuse accommodations that were designed for guests with disabilities.”

The New York Post was tipped off to the scam by social anthropologist Dr. Wednesday Martin, who learned about the underground network while doing research for her upcoming book “Primates of Park Avenue.”

“It’s insider knowledge that very few have and share carefully,” Dr. Martin told the Post.

While some New York Post readers are pointed out that the scam is a good deal for disabled people who are making some good money, I find it disgraceful. These people are clearly taking advantage of Disney policy. Plus, as someone who took her kids to Disneyland for the day last year, I don’t think the lines are that bad if you’re smart about planning out your day and using FastPasses. And if you have to wait in a 45-minute line, what’s the worst thing that might happen? You might have a conversation with your teenager or play patty-cake with your toddler.

Disability scams to make life a little easier aren’t anything new. The Wall Street Journal recently reported on the trend of travelers faking a disability to get a wheelchair to speed through security. Officials at Los Angeles International Airport say that 15 percent of wheel chair users are phony. In San Francisco, drivers are known to “exaggerate injuries to convince doctors to sign documents” so they can obtain handicap placards that give them special parking privileges. In a city where street parking is scarce and meter rates high, these placards can save someone a lot of time and money.

As adults we often struggle to fall asleep in our own beds, but tired toddlers can doze off almost anywhere—in the middle of a pizza party at Chuck E. Cheese, in the front row of the Nutcracker Ballet (my son did this), at an outdoor rock concert. And the toddler pictured above nodded off in a shopping cart at Ikea. The head resting on the cart handle and the missing shoe are classic! (Where is that shoe? Hmmm…maybe she stuck it in a Birkeland dresser drawer?)

This hilarious image recently attracted a lot of attention on Reddit. CeriLKilla posted it with the caption ”Ikea is like a triathlon to a toddler.” But a blogger wisely pointed out over at the Huffington Post, Ikea is a triathlon for everyone.

We love this image so much that we thought it would be fun to create a photo gallery of kids and babies sleeping in crazy places. What’s the most unusual place your kid has ever fallen asleep? Did you capture the moment with a photo? If so, please add it to our Sleeping Babies photo gallery. Or you can email images to moms@sfgate.com; please include “Sleeping Kids” in the subject line. Thanks!

[Huffington Post and Houston Chronicle]

But what about all of those women who choose not to have kids? Do non-Moms also deserve a special day? Is it unfair to put moms up on a pedestal for a day without designating a day for women without children?

The idea of a Non-Moms Day came up in yesterday’s San Francisco Chronicle. Katherine Seligman wrote a story about the new anthology No Kidding: Women Writers on Bypassing Parenthood that features a collection of stories by 36 women who opted not to (or couldn’t) have kids. Seligman writes that these writers hope to “spark conversation and perhaps consideration of a new holiday tradition, Non Moms Day.”

My reaction to the idea: Really? It’s silly because Mother’s Day isn’t about putting down or alienating women who aren’t moms. Some people are way too sensitive. Mother’s Day is about families coming together and saying a simple thank you to the mom in the family who has dedicated a huge part of her life to raising and supporting her children.

My opinion: We don’t need a special day for non-moms, but we should take steps to encourage a culture that accepts women (or couples) who choose not to have kids whatever their reason.

What do you think? Does the holiday calendar need a Non Moms Day?

A 12-year-old’s tribute to his mom

Me and my Mom

Moms are so important that we should have mother’s day everyday, but of course we can never really pay our moms back just hope they are proud of us. Ever since I was born my mom has given my learning toys, taken me to museums and has always enlightened my mind. One example is she would take me to junkyards and we would see cars get smashed. Another is she would take me skiing, to boy scouts and even horseback riding every once in a while. She has always encouraged collecting (for me it’s collecting guitars and swords) and she has even encouraged me to get into motor cross.

She as well has taken me to places less for learning and more for fun such as She has brought me to motorcycle races, Disneyland, Discovery Kingdom, 49er’s games, Giant’s games and even brought me to see some of the best bands in the world including The Who, Rush, and The Monkeys.

My mom showers me with love hugs and kisses, and she likes to read to me at night. I believe she is the best mom in the world!

And I truly believe that we should have Mother’s Day everyday.