When America got all excited about Amy Chua and her "Tiger Mom" parenting methods, I cringed. Could people actually think belittling their kids, severely restricting their social lives, and a rigorous educational plan could create itty bitty geniuses?

If you're one of the parents who bought it, be warned: it's not going to work. And now we have the science to prove it.

Where do you think the U.S. ranks in terms of maternal and childhood care in the world? If you said number one, you would be wrong. By 30 spots actually. The Save the Children foundation released its 14th annual State of the World's Mothers Report and that global distinction goes to Finland, where mothers have greater overall health, education, and economic and political status.

The report ranks 176 countries in terms of maternal and infant health. This year, the U.S. lost five spots from last year’s 25th-place ranking. Still, we are lucky compared to so many other mothers across the world.

The reality is that, while globally, the number of children dying has declined by more than half, we still have a long, long way to go before newborn infants aren't at risk for dying from preventable illnesses and mothers aren't in danger just because they have given birth. The report highlights so much progress and also so many places we still have to go. See below:

The last two weeks have been all about standardized testing, as far as my kids are concerned.

My third grade daughter spent last week taking TCAP tests. My kindergarten son is taking the SAT-10 this week.The stakes for these tests seem much higher than they were when we were kids, and across the country parents are responding by calling for change and even opting their children out of standardized testing entirely.

A few writers from The Stir got together today in a Moms Matter Google Hangou to discuss standardized testing. One has even pulled her child from her neighborhood's public school specifically because of the focus on standardized tests. Here's the video discussion --

Here's a pop quiz for you -- in fact, let's make it multiple choice. Does the term "Super Drunk" refer to a.) a dysfunctional superhero b.) Lindsay Lohan's new alter ego or c.) an elementary school principal pulled over for allegedly driving with a blood alcohol content of more than twice the legal limit? If you guessed c.), you're correct!

44-year-old Kim Warren of Michigan was arrested on April 8 after two very concerned motorists called to report a driver who swerved all over the road before pulling into the Deerfield Elementary School parking lot. Little did those drivers know why Warren pulled into the school parking lot: Because Kim Warren is the principal of Deerfield Elementary School. Oh, no.

I must admit, before I became a parent, I didn't worry much about the educational system in our city. However, now that my son is headed to kindergarten, it's all I can think about. The classroom experience they have now could shape the rest of their academic lives. It sounds dramatic, I know, but it's true. Sadly, not every child will receive a good education, whether that is because of their struggling district or their own lack of motivation. It's a subject near and dear to Dr. Jill Biden, a teacher herself for the past 32 years. We sat down with Dr. Biden and the four finalists for National Teacher of the Year to find out how parents and educations can work together to ensure a better future for our children. What they had to say about the realities of the situation was both enlightening and alarming. It's a discussion no parent should miss.

When I walked into the White House Science Fair, I expected to meet incredibly brilliant kids. I was not disappointed. Among the budding scientists President Obama honored were teens who created a bicycle-powered, emergency water sanitation system, and another who developed a low-cost, robotic prosthetic arm. Though, the most impressive presenters may have been the youngest: Evan Jackson, 10, Caleb Robinson, 8, and Alec Jackson, 8. It wasn't just their project that impressed, it was the story of how they got there. There was no science teacher or school administrator who inspired these boys, it was their mothers. Women who work full time with no science background dedicated nights to encouraging their kids to invent something that was in league with much older students. It's just proof that we moms are more powerful than we think when it comes to giving our kids the best chances in life.

If I had to do it all over again just to make money, I think I would run an after-school program for grade schoolers. It's incredible to see the military-like efficiency with which parents and babysitters swoop in at pick-up to extricate their charges and re-route them to their next stops. Gymnastics, piano, fencing, karate, Kumon, soccer, yoga, robotics, tap, voice lessons, Italian ... you name it.

This is not a bad thing, mind you. I think it's great. Why not learn as much as you can always? And the kids love it. Except for one, that is: Mine.

My daughter has decided that after school she wants to do nothing. She is tired of having more classes after her long school day. She doesn't want to be signed up for another semester of ballet -- she's more of a hip hopper anyway -- and passed up architecture and drama, even when her pals were all in.

The assignment was simple: "Write one sentence about a family member and draw a picture about it." Now I'm sure this child's family has many interests and fantastic talents, but the kid zoned in on one of his mother's particular passions -- her wine drinking.

"My mom like's (sic) drinking wine," he wrote. The accompanying drawing shows a woman sitting at a table looking happy as can be in front of a glass of wine that's about half the size of her body. Busted, mom!