Playdates: Laissez-Faire Or Organized Fun?Playdates or "mom dates" as I call them become part of our weekly or even daily routine once we have kids. We want them to interact with others after spending every breathing moment on or next to you. Besides, we need some time too - to get out, share a cuppa with a fellow mama and swap spit up stories and indulge in actual adult conversations.

You might meet at the park to let the kids go wild, brave a group of kids at your own place or you meet at a local kid friendly café (I haven't come across too many in the US, but in London my local Starbucks had a play area and they even made babyccinos). You catch my drift. But then you realize that just letting the kids sit next to each other isn't enough and you take your playdates to a whole new level. You send out Evites, you require RSVPs, you buy snacks and drinks and have an agenda, you may even ask for a donation. I've experienced it all as the playdate guest - I call it it the ULTIMATE PLAYDATE.

I prefer the "laissez-faire"

It may seem like a stretch to tie the Star Wars franchise to the struggles and importance of parenting, but a new exhibition called Star Wars Identities does just that. Using the characters in Star Wars, the exhibit shows how the choices we make in life shape who we are. Think about it: Anakin and Luke came from the same planet, and similar stocks in life, but when you look at the end game, things turned out differently. Choices they made, how their parents and caregivers raised them, and their chosen mentors played a role in who ended up on the dark side. I took my kids to the Star Wars Identities exhibit, and as you walked through the exhibit, you made similar choices to the characters in the movie. In the end, you ended up with who you are and there was no hiding it - was I raising Darth Vader?

-By Buzz Bishop

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Caitlin Tiller/FacebookJust like any other high school student, Caitlin Tiller of Trinity, North Carolina was excited to take her official senior portrait in the summer of 2012.

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That year, Wheatmore High School students were allowed to be photographed with a prop of their choice. Their only directions: "Bring something that represents you and helped you achieve something." For Tiller, then a 17-year-old junior, it was a no-brainer: She brought her 3-month old son, Leelin.

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"I picked my son because he's helped me be a better person," Tiller told Yahoo! Shine. "By having him, I grew up quickly but I learned how to be responsible."

Although Tiller didn't tell anyone that she was planning to bring Leelin, the photo shoot, which took place in the school cafeteria, went smoothly. "Lots of kids were there and the photographer thought Leelin was so cute. Everyone was asking to hold

Here we go again. As if our daily encounters in the comments sections of the internet aren't enough to convince us that people are strange, the government of New Zealand goes and releases an updated list of banned baby names. Oh, people. What are you thinking? According to the New York Daily News, people pretty much aren't thinking at all. No, you may not name your child "Mafia No Fear." V8 is also a no go. So are punctuation marks and symbols. If we have to tell you, then you probably shouldn't be having kids. But okay, we'll break it down for you. Click onward to see the names that parents in New Zealand have tried to name their babies and have since become against the law.

-By Monica Bielanko

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By Alyssa Goldman, Cheapism.com

Whether your graduate has completed high school or college, he or she should be equipped with certain tools for the next chapter in their lives. We've compiled a list of cheap graduation gift ideas that will help your soon-to-be college student survive the dorms and help your new adult survive the real world.

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1. Toolbox. Because grown-ups are responsible for fixing things in their apartment or dorm room, the first item on the life-kit list is a toolbox. A hammer will come in handy for hanging artwork, a screwdriver is perfect for assembling furniture, and a wrench will stop that leaky sink. A 53-piece tool set from Apollo Precision Tools includes all the essentials for home repairs and costs less than $30.

2. Shower caddy kit. For a high school graduate heading off to a college dorm room in the fall, a shower caddy is a must. Make the pre-college shopping a bit easier by stocking the caddy with personal

Photo: Laura St. John/Courtesy Renee Glick PhotographyToday my second-grade son told me that there was a boy in his class that bothers every single child in the class -- except for him. "Every single kid?" I said, "...but you?" Maybe that's an eight-year-old exaggeration, but it still was enlightening to me. So I continued our conversation, dug a little deeper, and reflected on how and why my child may be more bully-proof than some of the twenty-something kids in his classroom.

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He must be doing something right, but as parents, we can take a little credit here and there along the way -- right?

1. Get Them to Open Up to You
Curious minds (that's me) want to know what truly goes on behind the closed doors of school. Don't just stop at, "How was school today?" or you'll probably get the typical, boring old, "Good." Instead, probe like a detective: "Was everyone nice to each other in class today... and at recess?" This opens up the door, and you get the lowdown of who did

Send Us Your Bad Mother's Day CardsIf you have a Mother's Day card that's so bad it's good, we want to see it! Whether it has spelling mistakes, strange drawings or it's just plain weird, send it to us! Turn your Mother's Day mistake into a Mother's Day win!

Is there anything better than a mom? Now that I have two children of my own, I feel more grateful than ever for my own mother. I spent some time recently looking through the pictures we've taken of our girls and I noticed how rarely I appear in them - I'm almost always the one behind the camera! I need to be better about making sure other people snap pictures of me with my children, since I love looking at the photos I do have of me interacting with them. These quotes about motherhood, some funny, some sweet, really summed up all the different kinds of love I have for my sweet little daughters: By Janssen Bradshaw

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