Sarah, the Thrifty Decor Chick, wanted to find a good use for an empty closet for her house. With some careful planning and carpentry, she turned it into a reading nook for her son. Now the little reader has a special place to go to enjoy his books.

Link -via Erin Adam

Etsy seller Barbara Hanna got this little mermaid dressed for adventures under the sea. She also makes hats, hammocks and sleep sacks for babies.

Link -via Brittany Johnson Cobb

It's common for fathers to take their sons to the range and teach them how to shoot. But firearms instructor Lynne Finch noticed that antiquated, sexist attitudes about guns sometimes inhibit women from participating in the shooting sports. So she and her colleagues formed a non-profit organization to encourage men and women to take their daughters to gun ranges and teach them how to handle and shoot firearms safely and effectively:

And whereas men have typically taken their sons out to hunt or to the range with them, many times daughters (and moms) have been left at home – but not anymore! National Take Your Daughters To The Range Day co-founder and firearms instructor, Lynne Finch, believes it’s time to tear down the stereotypes and get those young ladies out to the range where they belong.

“Boys learn to shoot in Scouts or with their Dads,” Lynne said. “Often, the girls are left behind because shooting isn’t ‘girly.’ Well, we can, and do shoot, and well. Learning to shoot gives young women confidence, helps to build self-esteem, and introduces them to a sport they can participate in their whole lives.” [...]

“I have grown since I started shooting,” she said. “I’m more confident, it helped my sense of self-esteem to learn a new sport, and I know I can defend myself. More than that…it is fun! More women are coming to shooting, [so] wouldn’t it be wonderful to encourage parents to teach their daughters to shoot? A family bonding experience, a great experience for young girls, maybe even introduce someone who is new to the sport to something they can enjoy the rest of their lives.”

June 9th is their target date to introduce thousands of young ladies to the shooting sports.

Link -via Say Uncle

When I participated in the Pinewood Derby as a Cub Scout, the winner was determined (I think) by snapping a string at the end of the track. Now a company called BestTrack has brought the race into the 21st Century. Its track uses an infrared beam to determine the winner. This system is accurate to one half of one hundred thousandth of a second.

Link | Photo: Eldon Asp

Suddenly I feel like a bad father. My daughters don't have cyclops costumes. How have I neglected this essential life experience?

Link -via io9 | Photo: Danny Choo

The best friend of redditor newsblues teaches the second grade. She received this, the greatest handmade child's valentine ever.

Link -via Blame It on the Voices

No, not Batgirl, but a Batman Princess. It makes perfect sense to me. When my three-year old is dressed in her Dora the Explorer shoes, shirt, and jacket, she says "I'm a Dora Princess!" Once she called me a princess simply because I was wearing a hat. "Princess" just means "fancy". Can you be a Batman Princess? Yes, of course. The crafting blogger Donkey's Alright understands this.

Link -via Comics Alliance

One of Mark Rodriguez's daughters was into ladybugs. The other loved Superman. How were these ancient enemies to be reconciled? Well, they were not. But the father divided the room between them and decorated the halves in great detail, thus stalling any immediate conflict. View more pictures at the link.

One of my favorite parts: the wings of the wall-mounted ladybug, which is actually a custom lamp, unfold.

Link -via Nerd Approved

Michele would like to get a higher allowance. She's tried asking. Now it's time for more assertive methods.

Link -via Geekosystem

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"I tripped a kid in preschool/just to watch him cry." Reece and Levi, who are nine months old, are getting ready for a hard life in their jump-ups.

-via Blame It on the Voices

Fork, you're a father now. Maybe you didn't plan on it, but you are and that entails certain responsibilities. Man up. Or fork up. Whatever.

-via Nag on the Lake | Photo: unknown

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I guess that's not saying much. Jamie is still in diapers, but he's already playing well. I'll arm wrestle the tyke to prop up my ego.

-via Blame It on the Voices

A Facebook friend of mine who recently became a father wrote "Oh, so that's what a poop explosion is." He didn't have to go into any detail. All parents know exactly what he experienced. Part of parenthood is caring for a creature that can excrete twice its own body weight daily, sometimes all at once.

Poop explosions can get ugly -- and smelly. And apparently bad enough to take down a jetliner in Australia:

Qantas Flight 825 was forced to land at Mount Isa on Sunday after passengers and crew complained of a "strange smell" wafting from the front of the cabin.
But a commenter on the Aviation Herald website, calling himself "Frank Smith," revealed the culprit.

"Unfortunately the fumes turned out to be a very smelly nappy [diaper] dumped in the forward toilet," he said.

"Procedures dictate to land as soon as possible. [It's] very embarrassing for us all at [Qantas], but, better safe than sorry."

Link -via Dave Barry | Photo: Flickr user ewen and donabel

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The band OK Go is known more for its clever music videos than its music. The group is especially fond of stop-motion animation. In this video made exclusively for Sesame Street, the band members are globs of human paint explaining the concept of primary colors.

-via Geekosystem

These lamps by the design house CrousCalogero will be the balloons on your child's ceiling that never deflate. They come in wall and ceiling models and fit into standard electrical outlets.

Link | Studio Website