If you’re familiar with the Duggar family who stars on the TLC show, 19 Kids and Counting, you already know that Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar are parents to 19 children and the show follows their trials, tribulations and adventures as a large family.  In a recent interview with the staff of TODAY Moms, Michelle revealed that even in light of her recent miscarriage, she wouldn’t rule out having more children.Viewers and fans across the country grieved with the family who lost a child to a miscarriage in Michelle’s 18th week of pregnancy, who commented in the interview, “I would do it again.”

Bigger is better when it comes to building a family, or at least the media would have you believe lately as shows like Jon and Kate Plus Eight and 19 Kids and Counting saw ratings soar through the roof in recent years.  Even Nadya Suleman, better known as “Octomom” experienced a temporary burst of fame when she covered tabloids everywhere after giving birth to octuplets in January of 2009.

Large families are nothing new to the African-American culture, and even in many Latin cultures a strong emphasis is placed on building large, strong united families.  But could having many children be doing more harm than good to the family unit?   Nadya Suleman faced public disapproval when it was revealed that she was actually mother to fourteen children including her octuplets.  That disapproval turned to outrage when rumors ran rampant that she was unemployed and using public assistance to care for her children.  And although The Duggars provide for their family without the help of government assistance, they still find themselves dealing with many judgmental opinions.  Even in the difficult time following Michelle’s miscarriage, many had no remorse and lashed out with comments that included, “Her body is finally worn out.” “Something probably would have been wrong with the baby anyway.”  Some even blamed Michelle for other women’s frustration that faced difficulties conceiving.

It brings to light an unfortunately troubling fact: For some reason people still feel entitled to tell women what to do with their uteruses.  Like anything, there are pros and cons that are associated with any size family, but the topic of larger families seems to ignite some heated controversy.  Let’s explore some popular opinions:

Summer’s over, but white is still in season, sugar plum.  Real fashionistas are not boxed in by silly old clothing mandates that revolve around holidays. Plus, winter white is still….well, white. We want your whites to stay as pristine as you are, so we have a few tips for you in conjunction with our uber fabulous partner, Tide.

Check it out!

Throw out the plastic from the dry cleaners.
Your dry cleaner places all of your carefully pressed clothing on to hangers and dutifully protects your fresh clothes with a layer of plastic. How sweet. The problem is that those plastic coverings will eventually yellow your fav white button downs. Prevent that travesty by throwing out (or better yet re-purposing) that plastic as soon as you get your clothes back from the dry cleaners. What’s the use in having freshly pressed and yellowed clothes?

Use deodorant instead of antiperspirant.
This is when that periodic table you memorized in high school comes in handy. Antiperspirants typically contain aluminum based ingredients like aluminum chloride or clorohydrate and once that aluminum mixes with your body oils and sweat, it creates a yellow stain on your clothes that is tough to get out. How do you know if you’re buying antiperspirant or deodorant? It’ll say right there on the package, luv.

Say buh-bye to coffee and tea stains.
You’re wearing the most stylish, figure-hugging dress for brunch and of course the coffee in your cup somehow misses your mouth and lands right on your otherwise perfect outfit. Have no fear Tide to Go is here! It’s an awesome (and adorable) little thing that you can toss in your purse. Excuse yourself to the ladies room and give that big bad stain a once-over with the Tide to Go pen. Watch as that stain shrinks away to nothing! It also works on wine and food stains.

Like mom said, keep those whites separate.
Your mama was telling the truth when she said to keep your whites separate. When you’re at the laundry mat, it’s so tempting to just plop everything into one machine and be done with it, but unless you like having light pink or light blue “whites,” you’d be wise to take out your whites and wash them separately. Much better to spend those few extra dollars on another cycle of the washer and dryer than to spend a whole lot more money replacing those whites you ruined.

Use the right detergent.
This sounds like a no-brainer, but in these tough economic times you might think to just grab whatever is on sale. All detergent is the same, right? Wrong. Using a value detergent may not get the job done and could cost you money in the long run. Using a high quality detergent like Tide could help keep your clothes looking newer longer by fighting stains, fading, and dinginess.

What tricks do you have for keeping your whites nice and bright?

Watching all the teenagers and young kids in their cute uniforms walk to school again has for some reason created a feeling of nostalgia for me. I miss the days of lugging around a seemingly giant backpack to school, meeting up with my friends during passing periods and lunch, and taking part in group sports (how in shape were you thanks to organized sports??). Those days were extremely simple, right? Even if back then you couldn’t wait to be done with them and be a big, bad grown up. Overrated! So with all that being said, I thought I’d take a walk down memory lane and list the seven best things about being a kid. And not the super-obvious ones, but the ones that meant a lot more than taking naps, going to recess to play Red Rover and having play dates.

When you’re newly in love,  the birds sing sweeter, the sun shines brighter, and every love song reminds you of that wonderful gift of a man. You see the world through rose-colored glasses and nothing can change that, except… time. Once you get past the honeymoon phase you start to notice this man is working your last nerve. In fact, your last nerve quit months ago! Just when you thought things couldn’t get any worse you get some troubling news. Should you “Stand By Your Man” like Tammy Wynette or “Keep on Walking” like Ce Ce Penniston? Here are some love dilemmas and how you should handle them.