Suri Cruise is nearly two and a half years old. Heaven knows you couldn't forget that if you tried. And while she has more fashion sense than pretty much any other tot on the planet, there is one thing that seems to still give us all pause. No, it's not how her celebrity parents could have actually spawned her, nor is it how much is spent keeping her best-dressed and -tressed. Nah--it's that thing where she's still carrying around a baby bottle.

Yes, still. It seems like this first made the news when Suri was more than a year old and still using a bottle. Like sippy cups are so great. Now she's making headlines again for still sporting the baby bottle--when she's not even really a baby. My question is this: what is the big deal? My kid is nearly seventeen months old and he still occasionally uses a bottle. We've tried really hard to break him of the habit, but, for a while, he simply eschewed the sippy cup. He could use one, sure, but he couldn't get the same amount of milk from the sippy as from the bottle. So, we let him roll with it. Eventually, he switched over to predominantly using the sippy.

I know there are standards and practices for how we're supposed to raise our children. I know that guidelines have been set to help us make our way through this crazy maze called parenthood. But with issues as large as world hunger, violence, abuse and immunizations out there for us to tackle, why does anyone give a rat's butt about whether or not Suri Cruise still uses her baby bottle? I feel sorry for Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes--they're busy people who are trying to raise a kid and have full-time jobs too. it ain't easy. And not every kid fits the model she's supposed to. Is it really the end of the world if Suri still uses a bottle?

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As many of you may know, I have a sixteen-month-old-son. When I first became pregnant I never thought whether I wanted a boy or a girl. I was simply thrilled to be having a child at all, and wanted only a happy, healthy child--the sex of the baby was inconsequential. Then, at one point I found out I would be having a son. I was an only child and a girl and knew not the first thing about having, and raising, a little boy. Now I'm on track with my second child, a little girl. I'm nervous and flustered and wondering just how different raising a child of the opposite sex will be. After all, I've had experience raising a baby, but he is all boy, all the time.

Is there such a difference in raising children of the opposite sex? Ask anyone, whether or not they're parents, and they'll have a pretty strong opinion about the world of boys vs girls. For example, when I found out I was having a girl, the pink clothing literally started pouring in. Everything is pink! When I was pregnant with my son I received clothes in all manner of colors, but not with my daughter. People also always comment that boys are much more rambunctious than girls in the beginning, but that girls are ever so much harder to deal with as teenagers--and that as the would-be mother of a teenage girl I have a lot of drama to look forward to.

The only real difference I've come across in my research is how you change a diaper. For girls you simply wipe in a different direction than with boys. Perhaps there's a little more clean-up involved as you're dealing with internal parts as opposed to external parts, but really that's the only difference I can discern. All of my friends who have two children, oddly enough, started out with a boy and then followed up with a girl. They all say that there is a real difference, even if it can't be defined in words, to raising a boy vs a girl.

Thoughts? Is there any real difference? Is it just society straining its concept of norms over us? Or is there more to raising girls than pink clothing that makes them intrinsically different than boys? After all, aren't little boys made of snails and puppy dog tails and such, while girls are made of sugar and spice?

In what shouldn't surprise anyone who has thought even the least bit about these sorts of issues, a lack of positive role models in their lives is leading to gang membership for many British kids, according to the Prince's Trust, an organization that works with young adults. According to a survey, the group found that kids were turning to their peers for support because they felt there were no adults they could turn to.

"All the threads that hold a community together -- a common identity, role models, a sense of safety -- were given by young people as motivations to join gangs," said Martina Milburn, chief executive of The Trust. A third of the youth surveyed said they did not have a parent they considered a role model and nearly a quarter of kids in gangs joined in order to find a role model.

Still, it's not all bad news for the UK. Less than one in ten kids admitted to having been part of a gang (although one wonders how many serious gang members fill out surveys). Even the nine percent reported, however, seems too high and should serve as a reminder to parents how very important it is not only to be involved with and available to their kids but to set a good and proper example as well. I know that's something at which I certainly need to work harder.

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Schools have banned tag and other chase games. Playground equipment is safe and non-threatening. Swings are short so they can't swing too high. Climbing a tree is a lost art. Keeping kids safe is important, but are we protecting our children too much? There does seem to be a bit of a backlash against over-protection. First, there was The Dangerous Book for Boys, then Gever Tulley's TEDTalk, and now a new study from Play England, part of the National Children's Bureau in England says that children are missing out on an essential part of childhood -- risk.

The study found that half of all children are not allowed to climb trees and one in six is not allowed to play tag or other chase games. Adrian Voce, director of Play England, says that kids "are not enjoying the opportunities to play outside that most people would have thought of as normal when they were growing up." He also noted that nearly three times as many kids ended up in the hospital after falling out of bed as after falling out of trees.

Now, I know it can be difficult for parents to watch kids get themselves into dangerous situations and the natural reaction, when they get hurt, is to ban the activity that caused the accident, but the truth is kids can run into poles walking through the mall (as my son did the other evening) just as easily as playing "tickle pirate" at the playground.

Sure, you don't want your kids to suffer serious damage, but a few bumps and bruises, if you ask me, builds character. My kids are forever running into things and falling down and they've learned you just get up and get on with it. That seems to me like a good attitude to take.

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With all the hand wringing and obsession over children, it's amazing that summer camp has survived the Helicopter Parent Era. But counselors and cabins and bunk mates are still available, but there have been some changes.

Many summer camps have had to add a counselor to the staff in order to handle the calls and emails of frantic parents concerned that the tone of the child's letter was melancholy or who wasn't smiling a picture at the camp's password-protected site, ironically that created for the purposes of reassuring parents.

"I have parents calling and saying they saw their child in the background of a picture of other children and he didn't look happy, or his face looked red, has he been putting on enough suntan lotion, or I haven't seen my child and I have seen a lot of other children, is my child so depressed he doesn't want to be in a picture," said Jay Jacobs, who runs Timber Lake Camp in Shandaken, N.Y.

Another tactic parents have employed in order to remain in close contact with their children is helping their kids smuggle in cellphones, an item commonly forbidden at summer camp. Norman Friedman, a consultant who does training at nearly a dozen camps finds this parental behavior alarming.

"They'll give their child two cellphones so if they get caught with the first one, 'Just give it up and you'll have the second one to talk to me,' " he said. "That's widespread, not isolated. I call it fading parental morality. What they're doing is entering into delinquent behaviors with their children. And what kind of statement is that to a child?"

It's common and understandable to miss your kids when they are gone for extended periods of time, but in order to raise independent, self-sufficient children, it's important to step back let them have their own experiences without a parent standing by. Summer camp is a great and safe place for these experiences to start. It's disturbing to hear that parents are ruining that for some kids.

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Remember jump rope? Some of you, as I did, may have spent hours if not the equivalent of days hopping up and down between two friends and a couple of ropes, trying not to get tangled. Some of the more adventurous (and graceful) spent their time perfecting moves that would rival the coolness of breakdancing.

Now, it looks like jump roping may move from outside of the playground and into the spotlight. The sport, which has been referred to as child's play, a hobby and a past time, is going varsity. At least Double Dutch will, and at least it will in New York. I don't know if you've ever participated in this particular kind of jump rope, but it ain't easy! Double Dutch requires a lot of skill, timing and flexibility, as well as fancy footwork.

The innovative school set to take the plunge is Brooklyn's own Boys and Girls High School. A demonstration was held to determine whether or not there was enough interest. Jumping rope, which has been traditionally seen as a girls' pastime, is being considered as a way to draw girls to the field of athletics, which have generally been dominated by boys. I'm sorry, but this is SO COOL!

Pic by sun dazed.

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Welsh actor Sean Connery has left his son out of his will. According to his ex-wife, the reasoning behind this is that his son, Jason, should provide for himself.

Jason is now forty-five years old, so one would hope he indeed is able to provide for himself. And, in fact he is. According to reports, the father and son fell out after Jason threatened to drop the family name--the reason behind the fight in the first place. Jason works as an actor and director, gigs his father claims he got only because of his name.

According to Connery's ex-wife Diane Cilento, the relationship became strained after Connery cut off the money to his son. What would you do? If you were in a position of power or influence, would you open doors for your children, or would you make them work for it all? Or, would you do something in between?

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My son attended a birthday party where guests were asked to bring an unwrapped toy to donate to the fire fighter's toy drive rather than a present for the birthday girl. She had plenty of toys already and liked helping those less fortunate. Halfway through the party we all traipsed down the block to the firehouse to donate the toys. I thought it was a fantastic idea.

Apparently, my son's friend was quite the trendsetter. Parents are eschewing the traditional excess of the child's birthday party, simplifying and greening the events. "We're not saying children shouldn't celebrate," said Alison Smith, whose company, ECHOage, helps parents organize less wasteful, more philanthropic parties. "It's just about making it more meaningful."

If you ask me, there's another advantage to donating gifts instead of keeping them: you avoid having to deal with toys that don't match what you think is appropriate for your kids -- the toy guns, the Barbies, and, yes, the toys that make way too much noise.

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He may be the presumptive Democratic nominee, but Barack Obama is also a dad to Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7. And while he may be able to make inspiring speeches that cause his supporters to cheer, he's also really, really good at embarrassing his daughters, reports Malia.

His crime? Shaking her friends' hands. "You don't really shake kids' hands that much," she told him, "You just wave or say hi." I can relate, Malia. My dad used to tell really bad jokes when I was your age.

The Obamas typically keep their girls out of the media, but they've allowed Access Hollywood a glimpse into their lives as a family. Malia reports that she was excited to see her mom in a tabloid magazine like Angelina Jolie, and wonders what decorating her room at the White House might be like. The show airs tonight, but you can get a sneak peek here. The Obama girls are not only utterly adorable, it's nice to see them all interact as a family.

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A while ago now I read an article, found here at Pop Sugar's LilSugar site, about Vespas for children. I didn't react to it right away because I wasn't sure I had an opinion on the subject. Still not sure that I do!

A Vespa, for those of you unfamiliar, is like a motorized bike. They run on gas and come with helmets and are in the same vein as motorcycles, only not as fast. They also tend to come in pastel colors and aren't ridden around on by Hell's Angels clad in black leather (most of the time). Vespas are great for city driving where they can get through narrow, crowded streets and the like. They are not designed for the highway.

Now the Vespa folks have come out with a mini-version for kids. At $450, the mini-Vespa ain't cheap. Sure, it's less expensive than a regular, adult-sized Vespa, but I don't think you could pull buying one for your kids and then riding it yourself. The minis really are smaller, designed for kids ages three to seven (not the kid in you).

Would you buy one of these for your child? Are they no harm, no foul and all in fun or are they unsafe and do they promote the possibility of them riding around on motorcycles when they're older (black leather optional)?

Hysterical pic of God creating a Vespa by giopuo.

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