Due to scheduling issues, Time Out Kids Big Sex Talk event on November 18th has been canceled. We regret any inconvenience this has caused.

You may have heard a rumor that Time Out Kids is following in the steps of our weekly sister mag and doing a “Sex Issue.”  Well, yes and no.

Our November guide to at-home sex education will be visually tasteful—even cute!—so there’s no need to hide it from the fam. However, we will tackle some explicit topics that you won’t find in the national parenting publications (as you may have noticed, they target a largely conservative readership).

Why are we doing it? In August, the United Nations announced it’s working on guidelines for schools worldwide, suggesting that sexuality curricula begin at age 5. And yet sex ed isn’t part of the required coursework in NYC public schools. It baffles us that one of the most culturally enlightened cities in the world would have no standardized sex ed.

So we asked ourselves, how do progressive city parents talk with their kids about sex? We want our children to be smart, sensitive and satisfied—in every way. But where do we start? And when? Is there anything parents shouldn’t talk about with little ones?

We went to the top experts in the fields of child development and sex education, and learned there’s a whole movement afoot: sex-positive sex ed. The gist is that parents should create a foundation of positive feelings about sexuality at a very young age—that our bodies are lovely and amazing, that there are many kinds of families: two mommies or two daddies, a mixed set or single parents. (The bummer caveats about pregnancy and STDs and hook-ups who don’t call back are important, but they can wait a little longer.)

We just put the issue to bed on Friday, so I can give you a peek at what we’ll be covering:

• The Big Talk: What to say, and when, from birth (seriously) to age 12

This is where you’ll find all you need to know about awkward subjects like toddler masturbation, playing doctor on playdates and what not to tell your kids.

• Is my kid gay? A very New York story of boy princesses and butch little girls.

• Parents’ roundtable discussion

We invited six city parents into our office to chat about what’s normal, what freaks them out and how not to mess up your kids (at least when it comes to sex).

You’ll want to devour this issue right away, so stay tuned for more info on exactly when it’ll be reaching newsstands and mailboxes.

Today, the NYC Health Department started administering regular flu shots in six local schools as a test run for its upcoming swine flu vaccination program. Already controversy is brewing. Consumer Reports says 65% of U.S. adults polled are hesitant to get their kids vaccinated for H1N1, and there’s even gossip about “swine flu parties”, which sounds like a wretched idea to us here at the office! All the city parents I know are asking their peers whether they intend to vaccinate their kids. I admit, as mom to a four-year-old in public pre-k, I’m on the fence. So it’s opinion poll time: Do you plan on signing that consent form for your kids to get the shot at school, or are you planning on skipping it and hoping for the best?

I read two fascinating articles this week about how our generation of parents is showering kids with unconditional love…or are we? The first in the New York Times criticized the tactic of shaping kids via affection, i.e. providing conditional, as opposed to unconditional, love in order to get progeny to behave. Frankly, I’m not sure how one can always show kids uncondition love all the time. Parents have emotions too. If your kid hurts your feelings–or breaks something or acts sassy–you still love them, but it may not seem that way while you’re yelling. (Yes I yell. Not all the time. But sometimes.) The second piece in Salon also touches on unconditional vs. conditional love. NurtureShock authors Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman say that continually complimenting kids regardless of whether the praise is valid is our way of conveying unconditional love, but we’re actually corrupting it. (Supposedly some teachers and parents have been saying “good working” instead of “good job” to highlight a kid’s efforts instead of the actual result. Oy.)  Honestly my head is spinning, particularly from the Salon piece. My usual reaction to articles like these is to trust my instincts, but Bronson and Merryman insist what parents think are instincts are actually “intelligent, informed reactions.” Um, is that so bad? What do you think of the conditional vs. unconditional love debate?

As kids grow up, they inevitably have endless questions about how the world works. Some you can’t answer (why is the sky blue?), some you don’t want to answer, yet (where do babies come from?). Now, a new Web site called whyzz.com can help you give Junior the info he’s looking for. The site is designed to let kids ask any question they can think of (except just plain old “why” which yields no results. However, I asked “Why does poop smell?” and “What is love?” and both ended up with awesome answers), or they can contribute their own answers to any of life’s queries. Don’t expect any unfounded responses; the site uses expert resources like NYU Child Study Center and the National Association of School Psychologists so that the 411 your child receives is accurate (at least for the more fact-based questions). Head over and try it out with your little one. Don’t have a query? No problem: You can browse by topic to discover the answers to thousands of kiddie conundrums.

Our friend Brett Berk, a.k.a. everyone’s favorite gay uncle, alerted us to this opportunity for opinionated parents which, being New York moms and dads, we’re going to assume you are (I know I am!) A writer named Heidi Stevens has launched a new column for the Tribune papers, The Parent ‘Hood, in which real moms and dads write in with questions, and get answers from their peers. That’s right: You no longer have to quietly cluck at the bad mommies in your neighborhood. You can tell them what you think (well…if they happen to live in an area that’s serviced by Tribune publications). If you have a succinct solution to any of the issues listed below, e-mail your answers to parenthood@tribune.com. Be sure to include your first and last name, your hometown and a mention of the question you’re responding to.

Upcoming topics:

1. You’ve gotten in the bad habit of buying your child a “special treat” every time he/she behaves at Target. Now he/she expects a gift every time you enter a store. How do you break the cycle?

2. Your tween daughter came home from a friend’s house wearing heavy makeup. It looked atrocious and she seems too young. But she, of course, loves it. What do you do?

3. Your child’s pal gets everything she asks for (think multiple American Girl dolls) and your child wants to know why you won’t offer up the same. How do you handle?

4. Your son chews his nails incessantly. You’ve tried the nasty-medicine-on-his-fingers trick, rewards, punishments, ignoring the behavior. Nothing makes it stop. What should you do?

5. Meals have become less-than-nutritious endeavors at your house, with your kids demanding hot dogs and chicken fingers or nothing. How do you get them to stop the junk food gluttony?

The King of Pop is dead, so it’s understandable that most news reports are concentrating on his musical legacy. And yet, as was the case with the coverage surrounding Natasha Richardson’s death, as a parent I have to wonder: How are his kids faring right now?

It’s easy to forget he had children. When most folks hear the words “Michael Jackson” and “kids,” they very well may think about his child-molestation trial, which ended in acquittal. But Jackson was a dad: He had three kids, Prince Michael I, 12, Paris, 11, and Prince Michael II, 7.

What do we know about them? Not much, not even what they look like. Most of the time, Jackson insisted on shrouding their faces in public, allegedly to protect their identities, and there were certainly no interviews with them. We know he dangled a then-infant Prince Michael II over a Berlin balcony, which kicked off a media storm (but strangely, no child protective services investigation).

In a way, worrying about his kids now seems to be too little too late. Although there’s no proof that he mistreated his kids (guess we’ll have to wait for the inevitable tell-all memoirs), I think it’s fair to say that they weren’t reared in the most functional environment. But no matter what went on in the Jackson home, the fact is three young kids just lost their father, and the story (and death videos and pics, thanks a lot, TMZ.com) is plastered all over the news.

Unlike Richardson, whose husband Liam Neeson became a single dad upon her death, Jackson’s kids have no second parent to comfort them. Prince Michael I and Paris’s mom, Jackson’s ex-wife Debbie Rowe, (rumored to have been artificially inseminated, perhaps by a sperm donor), gave up her parental rights and doesn’t seem to have a relationship with the children. Prince Michael II was birthed by an unnamed surrogate.

Presumably, someone from Jackson’s family will step up and take them in. Already there are rumors of a custody fight brewing–between Jackson’s mom and the kids’ nanny no less! Whatever happens, I doubt they’ll end up in foster care. And yet, as everyone else mistily reminisces about Thriller and his other musical milestones, all I can think about are those kids. I just hope they’re able to find some kind of peace and stability.

Update: Looks like Michael Jackson’s mom is getting temporary guardianship of her late son’s children. Let’s hope she keeps husband Joe away from them!