Ok, this election is just getting downright weird.  First we have a VP candidate running just months after the birth of her special needs child.  That has never happened before.  Then we learn that this same candidate also has a 17 year old pregnant daughter.  I don’t think that has happened before, at least not in a modern election.

And now this election campaign takes an even stranger twist.  It seems a plot that may rival a Desperate Housewives story line ties these two children together in a way never before seen in American politics.  Did Sarah Palin pull a Bree and stuff a pillow in her shirt to cover up her daughter’s pregnancy?

I guess time will only tell what the truth of the matter is, but one fact remains: the Palins are people who need lots of baby gear.  So, I’d like to introduce them to today’s Stroller of the Day: the Combi Double Stroller.  Combi strollers like the Counterpart 2 double stroller have large canopies to keep all that Alaska snow off of babies’ faces and rear wheel shock absorption for smooth rides on country roads.  A great stroller to face the wilds with!

Wow, 2008 is really turning into the Year of the Pregnant Teen. First the girls from Gloucester, then Jamie Lynn Spears, and now Bristol Palin, daughter of Republican VIP Candidate Sarah Palin. While I think it’s great that the parents of many of these high-profile pregnant teens are supportive of their daughters, I am a bit freaked out by how these young girls seem so anxious to be mothers. I guess they weren’t paying attention to the message of The Baby Borrowers.

I have heard of people blaming the movie Juno for giving kids the idea that being pregnant at a young age is cool, but who knows if that is the singular cause of this alarming trend. It does seem like teenagers have a very glamorized image of pregnancy and motherhood and almost no information of why pregnancy is so much more dangerous and difficult for young adults. So here is a rundown of some of the issues teens parents have to face:

• Babies born to teen mothers have an increased chance of health risks. Teen dads also have babies with more health problems that babies with older dads.
• Only around 50% of teen mothers go on to graduate high school. Child poverty is closely linked to teen pregnancy because teenage high school dropouts generally have lower-income jobs.
• Children of teenage parents tend to do worse in school and on developmental tests, and are more likely to drop out of school.

So while pregnant teenage girls may be dreaming about dressing their babies up like little dolls in designer baby clothes, the reality is that most of them don’t have a Governor mom or their own show on Nickelodeon, and will barely be able to afford feeding and diapering their kid. Not a happy future.

The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy offers some tips for helping children avoid teen pregnancy, because a little prevention is better for everyone.