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Mom takes 5-year-old to tanning salon, makes court appearance

A New Jersey mother and tanning salon aficionado is in hot water after her 5-year-old daughter showed up at school with a severe sunburn.

Patricia Krentcil, 44, has been arrested for allegedly allowing her kindergartener to utilize the tanning booth at the tanning salon where Krentcil is a long-time customer.

She pleaded not guilty to charges of child endangerment in court on Wednesday.

Watch the news video below about her court appearance:

But Krentcil, who appears disturbingly over-tanned, says that the matter is simply a misunderstanding. She says that her young daughter accompanied her to the salon but did not enter the tanning booth.

"It's like taking your daughter to go food shopping," she tells MSNBC. "There's tons of moms that bring their children in."

She says that her daughter acquired the sunburn simply by playing outside.

"It was 85 degrees outside, she got sunburned. That's it. That's all that happened," says Rick Krentcil, the child's father.

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But Krentcil isn't the only mother who has recently been blasted for irresponsible parenting on account of her child's appearance.

When Mommyish blogger Lindsay Cross wrote about allowing her 4-year-old girl to wear make-up, she found herself at the centre of an online controversy, reports the Daily Mail.

Writes Cross on her blog:

Ever since she could sit in front of my vanity, my daughter has loved make-up. The entire idea of painting her face was pretty exciting. She's begged for blush and pleaded for a little lipstick. And for the past two years, I've obliged her.

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The resulting firestorm was more than Cross could ever have expected.

"I think this MOTHER needs some serious parenting classes," writes one commenter.

"NO 4 year old needs make-up to look pretty, they already are pretty. To me that is very sad ..this mother is making a terrible mistake in letting this little girl believe that she is only pretty when she has her face made-up," writes another.

"When I wrote the piece I didn't think it was that monumental of a deal. I didn't think that it was something that was just too out of the norm," Cross tells ABC News.

What do you think? Are these moms responsible parents?

In honour of Mother's Day, tell us the most important life lesson your mother taught you. We'll be compiling your comments into a blog story for Shine On. Leave your comments below with the words "Lesson From Mom"!