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Celebrity kids: spoiled by default?
Suri Cruise has an iPad and a wardrobe that any A-lister would envy. Sean "Diddy" Combs gave his son a $360,000 luxury sedan for his 16th birthday. US Weekly reports that Gwen Stefani recently spent $15,000 on a birthday party for son Kingston.
When I read these tales of celebrity offspring excess I wonder, is it possible to be fabulously wealthy and also fabulously grounded and normal? Is giving a 4 year old a $499 iPad by definition spoiling her? Can a teenager have a car that costs more than my house and not be an entitled little snot?
Surprisingly, the answer from some child development experts is not necessarily. Spoiled comes from attitude, not things.
"The fact that Suri Cruise now owns an iPad doesn't necessarily mean she's spoiled," says Julie Hanks, clinical Director of Wasatch Family Therapy clinic, told E! Online. "It all depends on her emotional response to the expensive gift. Did the darling preschooler demand an iPad? Or throw a tantrum in a store if her parents didn't get her one? If so, she's spoiled."
Justin Dior Combs may have capped off the MTV-filmed, star-studded Super Sweet Sixteen party as the owner of a Maybach luxury car, but he also got a check for $10,000 from his father as a birthday present. Justin immediately donated the money to Wyclef Jean's charity Yele Haiti.
Even though I am nowhere in the same league as these beautiful people, my kids are growing up with more than I had and I sometimes wrestle with this issue. If you have the money and can give your kid the video game or the shoes they covet, how can you strike a balance between having fun with the hard-earned fruits of your labor without spoiling the little buggers in the process?
--Sharon Kennedy Wynne
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THE AUTHORS
Sharon Kennedy Wynne has sunscreen in her blood. She may have been born in Buffalo but she got here as fast as she could, in time for kindergarten. She grew up in St. Petersburg, graduated from the University of Florida journalism school, and even got married at Sunken Gardens. She's one of the few adults we know who actually loves taking her kids to the beach. She has two sons and with 10 years of parenting under her belt, she's starting to feel a little less out of her league. She comes from a large family and loves to debate, so brace yourself when the hot topics come up.
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Freelance writer Courtney Cairns Pastor wasn’t so sure about having kids and how she would balance child-rearing with her journalism career. It turned out that her journalism training went to good use. As the mom to a funny, active toddler, she learned to handle him like she did her sources. Never ask yes or no questions (the answer will always be no), get him to be specific (are you crying because you’re wet or your tooth hurts?) and be prepared for anything because no two days are the same. When she’s not playing trucks, Courtney crams for her book club, trains for races and occasionally bursts into showtunes. E-mail her at 
Suzannah DiMarzio has it bad for the Mouse. Although she grew up outside of Boston, she took her degree in tourism management down to Orlando just to work at Disney and the travel industry. Of course, when she married her high school sweetheart, the reception was at Disney. She’s now a seasoned stay-at-home mom to two tweens and a toddler – and yes, that is as crazy as it sounds. Suzannah has her own blog, Comment Policy
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