Adriana Velez

I'm a transplant from the plains of Colorado, now raising a son in the wilds of brownstone Brooklyn where the buffalo mozzarella roam. Before joining The Stir I worked for a start-up grassroots organization and contributed to blogs like Civil Eats and One Little Bite (of the dearly-departed Cookie Magazine) -- all from my lovely window-seat office. Most of the time I'm contemplating my next meal. I love kale and doughnuts equally.

Sipping on:

Whole milk

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Adriana's Latest Posts

Hot List
Robert Pattinson & Kristen Stewart Need This Ultimate Playlist for Their New Karaoke Machine

posted by Adriana Velez Wednesday at 1:26 PM in Entertainment

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Here is why I need to make becoming friends with Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson a priority. Apparently Rob bought Kristen a karaoke machine a few weeks ago. Their very own karaoke machine! So they can have singing parties at Kristen's place without having to deal with those pesky fans always wanting to snap photos with them.

A source told The Sun, "They both absolutely love karaoke. They used to go to bars whenever they could, but more often than not they’d get hassled by people. So Rob surprised Kristen with their own machine. It’s top-of-the-range stuff with built in disco lights, a huge screen, and even its own mini stage." OMG! Count me in, you guys. I even have a playlist for you. Here are 30 songs Rob and Kristen's karaoke machine definitely needs.
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OMG
Toxic Chemical Found in Kids' Clothes & Pajamas -- Yikes!

posted by Adriana Velez Wednesday at 12:15 PM in Toddler

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Does your child's skin seem irritated? There could be truly freaky reason for that. A news station investigation uncovered formaldehyde in baby clothing. And now a senator is stepping in to ask the government to look into setting standards for chemicals in children's clothes.

Minneapolis Care 11 sent baby clothes to a lab for testing after a mother wrote in, complaining that her daughter's legs had broken out into a rash after wearing a new pair of leggings (she hadn't washed the leggings first). They sent different brands, and the results were disturbing.
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Moms Matter

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The Truth About What It Means to Be an Emancipated Minor

posted by Adriana Velez Wednesday at 12:15 PM in In The News

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I was as surprised as anyone when Jada Pinkett Smith's son, Jaden, asked to be an emancipated minor when he turns 15. You would think he would LOVE living with two of the coolest parents in the world! It's not like his parents are like Ariel Winter's mom. But it also got me wondering what the laws are about emancipation. How does this all work, anyway? Can a kid and his parents just ... you know, declare it and go from there?

Turns out it's a wee bit more complicated than that. Still, there are some 20 million emancipated minors in the U.S. Here's the 101 on becoming an emancipated minor and the most common reasons for it.
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Twisted
Farrah Abraham's Sex Tape: A Complete Guide to All the Cringeworthy Details

posted by Adriana Velez Tuesday at 8:04 PM in Love & Sex

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My eyes, my eyes! You guys. For scientific purposes only, I watched Farrah Abraham's sex video just now, and as soon as I file this post, I'm washing out my eyeballs and maybe having a nice, stiff drink. Did I say stiff?!? NOOOO!

It's going to be a long time before I recover from this spectacle. But I watched it for you, dear readers. We know you're wondering what actually goes down (oh geez) in this show -- but you reeeeeeally don't want to have to actually sit down and watch in order to find out. Never fear! We've got Farrah Superstar Backdoor Teen Mom by the numbers right here. Now about that drink ...
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OMG
Kristen Stewart’s Birthday Gift for Robert Pattinson Could Backfire on Her

posted by Adriana Velez Tuesday at 7:30 PM in Entertainment

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What kind of birthday present do you get the eternal vampire boyfriend-who-has-everything? That's a tough question for Kristen Stewart, especially since Robert Pattinson is such an unconventional guy. I mean, this is the man who gave her a pen for her birthday. So she had to dig deep and think big. Well fans, she searched inside herself. And then the answer came to her: Astrology charts for RPatz! But of course.

One of Kristen's friends spilled to HollywoodLife.com, "“Kristen is super excited to totally spoil Rob on his birthday this Monday. She is getting his charts done — his astrological charts from a really cool numerologist." Ah, the gift of self knowledge. Very wise choice, Kristen. Very wise choice. But are you really ready to let Robert plumb the depths of his soul?
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