Dinosaur Shorts

The other morning I was getting the Pookie out of his crib and marveling at how much of a boy my 2 year old is. I said to him, "My boy, my boy! You are such a little boy now! What happened to my baby?"

He looked at me with his big, blue-green eyes and said the words I wanted to hear so badly, "I your baby."

"You are?" I just about squealed, as I nuzzled into his neck. "You're my baby?"

"Yeah," he nodded and he cuddled into me. "I your baby T Rex."

And you know what I said to that? "I'll take it!"

As my husband later pointed out, when the Pookie pretends to be Baby T Rex (a regular game of pretend in our house), he is especially cuddly. Also, I will take the cuddles and babying any way I can.

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My kids love dinosaurs, and not just as a rain coat. The kids regularly pretend to be dinosaurs, especially T Rexes and Baby T Rex. They like to stomp around and roar. They also have a couple of little dinosaur toys that they play with. We also have a really great dinosaur book that they, especially the Pookie, loves to read and push the button that makes the T Rex roaring and stomping sounds.

One morning over this last weekend, the Pookie brought me the dinosaur book with some other books, and I sat there reading out the names of the dinosaurs, which he and his sister attempted to repeat. Some of these names are so funny to me, because it sounds like someone simply added "osaurus" to the end of a descriptive term. For example, there is the giganotosaurus, who is one of the largest (or most gigantic) of all the dinosaurs, even bigger than the T Rex. And there is also the Spinosaurus, who had (can you guess it?) spines on his back!

The Pumpkin started telling me about other "dinosaurs," ones that she was obviously making up. There was the Circleosaurus, who was the shape of a circle! And the Dinnerosaurus, who really liked to eat his dinner. I of course added the Kidosaurus, which was my kids when they were dinosaurs!

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My kidosauruses have been loving that show Dino Dan. It's a cute show, although it makes me wonder if older kids hallucinate too.

Hallucinations or not, the show is actually making it tricky for me to explain that dinosaurs are no longer alive on this planet. We seriously have enough arguments about whether or not trolls and other monsters exist (and are in the Pumpkin's room at night when the lights are off). And I'm still working on how I know things don't exist or if I've just never seen one.

(By the way, THANKS Tinkerbell's The Great Fairy Rescue! No, I've never seen a fairy, and no, I don't really believe they exist. But just because I've never seen one doesn't mean they don't exist, right little girl in the movie Lizzie who proves to her father that they do exist and he feels bad for doubting her? This totally validates for my daughter her getting upset about going to school because she is waiting to see if fairies come to the fairy house she built them. Sigh...)

But the kids, they love Dino Dan. When it comes on, my son goes, "Eh Dino Dan! Eh Dino Dan!" And they've come up with fun pretend games based on the show.

I don't mind the show in half-hour doses, but Dan is so obsessed with dinosaurs, I'm not sure I could be around him much in real life.

Question of the Week - Next Level of Shows

Before I talk about the Pumpkin's developmental growth more, I want to clarify that reasoning doesn't always work. But I would say that over 50% of the time it does, and those are winning odds in my book!

Something else that has come along with her development spurt are new shows. My girl has always liked certain shows, but gets bored with the same episodes and even same shows after a while. She likes new, different and varieties.

So when she was home sick for two weeks and we watched a lot of TV (because she was too sick to do much else for a lot of that time), she got very bored with the same old shows. She had seen the Dora and Diego episodes that were On Demand way too many times. She was feverish and listless and BORED.

One afternoon, I realized that I had to find her some new shows to spark her interest and keep her entertained while she couldn't run around. It occurred to me that her recent development meant that she was probably ready for some shows at the next level. Remembering that I'd heard good things about the PBS shows, I checked what was playing on that channel.

And welcome to our world, Word Girl!

It's got language and vocabulary! It's got a female a superhero! It's got bad guys and a monkey sidekick! It's got fights (that aren't too violent) and witty humor! It's a win for everyone who has to gets to watch it!

This week's question of the week is:

What shows are your kids watching these days? Or what shows to plan to move to when they are ready for the next level?

We've just traded our nightly routine of Dora and Diego for Super Why and Word Girl. Instead of WonderPets, we watch Animal Mechanicals (on The Hub). Rarely do we watch a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse when we could watch Sid the Science Kid.

What about in your house? Do your children become bored with the same old shows? Do they watch shows that you enjoy too? And any good recommendations for my daughter?

Question of the Week - Childhood Cartoons

It's amazing how much better one feels when one is on the correct dosage of medicine (and light therapy), plus a weekend of sleep and rest. I was having a tough week, but I'm doing better now. Hopefully I can get back into the bloggy swing of things.

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People on Facebook have been changing their profile pics to cartoon characters from when they were kids. I'm not going to get into urban legends about why this trend started or what changing your profile picture will do or won't do. I personally just thought it was a fun way to remember the cartoons from our childhoods. I especially enjoyed seeing who picked which cartoon. (I'm not alone in my love of Jem!)

Man, I loved cartoons when I was a kid. I was really into the action cartoons, although I also loved me some girlie girl cartoons as well. I wished that everyone had changed their profile pic, because there weren't nearly enough of my favorites represented. So I though this week's Question of the Week should be:

What were some of your favorite cartoons when you were a kid?

My absolute favorite was probably Voltron. In fact, I had changed my profile pic to be Princess Allura. A princess wearing pink and kicking butt with the boys? She was awesome. Along those lines, I also LOVED She-Ra, Jem, and Wonder Woman from Super Friends. I was also a big fan of G.I. Joe (Scarlet, Duke and Snake Eyes were my favs), Spiderman and Friends, Batman, He-Man and Thundercats. In the more tame areas, I liked Shirt Tails, The Warner Brothers (with Yakko, Wakko and Dot), Tail Spin and Smurfs (who didn't like the Smurfs?).

I told you I watched and liked a lot of cartoons! I have more, but I'm going to leave it off there.

What about you? What did you wake up for on Saturday mornings? What did you hurry home for after school? Did you go for the adventurous or the humorous cartoons?

Question of the Week -- Turning the TV Off

This week is TV Turnoff Week. My daughter's pre-school is encouraging participation, and I signed a pledge sheet for 6 days of no TV. Although the dates I've seen online say the week is April 19-25, the dates that the Pumpkin's school said was April 18-24. I've pledged 6 days, and we started on Sunday.

Although the kids don't watch a lot of TV (and the Pookie really doesn't watch any--just sometimes notices it if it's on a kids show), I worry that it's too easy to use as a distraction technique in our house.

I'm having a difficult morning juggling the Pumpkin and the Pookie and I just want to finish doing my make up? I put the TV on for the Pumpkin and set the Pookie in front of toys. The Pumpkin's having a break down because the Pookie is getting all my attention and she needs my help (like this morning)? I put on the TV to calm her down and buy me a few more minutes to concentrate on the baby. Or I need to run around and gather the last few things before we head out the door, and she wants to come with me but that will make everything take longer? I put the TV on to entertain her in the family room so I can run upstairs and down without her.

And those are just some examples from the morning. I won't even get into the afternoons when Londo watches both kids, takes work calls and sends work emails, fixes dinner and gets the kids to the table to eat.

TV does make our lives easier, and there are times I would not give it up (like last year during the winter with my difficult pregnancy). But I want to see what will happen if we keep the TV off for the week. Not only to force us parents to find other ways of dealing with situations, but also to see if there are any behavioral changes in the kid(s). So I pushed us to turn off the TV this week. It won't be easy, but I'm hoping it will be an interesting experiment.

But not only did I pledge to turn the TV off for the kids, but I've decided to try and do it myself. I honestly don't think it will be that hard for me. There are plenty of days I go without TV, instead opting to read in the evenings or go to bed early. I did not pledge to reduce my computer screen time, so I still have my blogs, websites and computer games. I will be missing some shows I really enjoy, but I'll catch them on DVR or in re-runs.

Which brings me to the Question of the Week:

What is/would be the hardest thing for you about going without TV for a week?

Sure it's going to be difficult to not fall back into the easy TV routine of distraction and entertainment. But for me, the hardest part is not spending time I hanging out and watching shows with Londo... because Londo has not pledged to turn off the TV for himself. He is absolutely accommodating my pledge and our pledge for the kids, so if we are around, he turns the TV off. But the TV is the main thing he uses to unwind in the evenings. It's usually how he gets his brain distracted enough to fall asleep at night. His TV usage does not interfere with his reading, computer time, family time, work or socialization, so he is not concerned about his TV usage.

Londo pointed out to me this is probably not going to be that hard for me because TV is not how I unwind--the computer usually is. He challenged me to see if I could cut out recreational computer usage next week. I agreed with caveats. I will not use the computer outside of work except for emergency work that may come up. And at work, I will check some blogs and post on my own blog, because I feel those are more than recreational computer usage. I feel that the blogging with other parents is a social network in which we provide support for each other. In addition, posting regularly keeps me in the practice of writing, which is necessary for my sanity. Finally, I blog about our kids, and I don't want to lose the opportunity to record things that are going on with them.

You'll notice I'm not planning on going without both TV and computer at the same time. We're not crazy, you know!

What about you? If your TV broke or your cable went down for a week, what would be the hardest part? Do you use TV to unwind? Keep up with current events? Give you a break from the kids? Come on, share your pain!

Question of the Week - Kids Shows You Like

Over the last 2+ years, I've had the opportunity to enjoy (and really NOT enjoy) many different kids shows. When turn on a show for the Pumpkin, we generally put it on Noggin, which is now Nick Jr., and sometimes Sprout. Back in my day, there was Saturday morning cartoons and some on after school, but that was it. There were 4-6 channels (depending on the TV getting in Fox and/or UPN in addition to the networks and PBS), and you were lucky to get Sesame Street AND Mr. Rogers!

With all the variety out there, plus On Demand offering up so many shows with a push of a button, we really can pick out the shows we like and want the Pumpkin to watch, rather than just settling for whatever is on.

So this week's question of the week is:

What kids show do you actually enjoy watching?

I think my favorites are Backyardigans and Wonder Pets. I was not into Wonder Pets at first, but once I saw a couple episodes, I have really started to get a kick out of them. And Backyardigans is so well done and interesting! I'm fine with Dora and Deigo and Ni Hao Kialan. I still really like Toot and Puddle. Oh, and now I've discovered Jack's Big Music Show, which is great for us who love music.

How about you? Any that you actually leave on once the kid leaves the room? Do all the songs get stuck in your head like they do mine?

Question of the Week - Share a Story

The Pumpkin is having one of those weird mornings where she is having fun and we're laughing and then you ask her something, and there she goes. She gets her pout on, nothing is right and she refuses the thing she just wanted. I call The Twos (and I'm not the only one calling it that). I also call it not getting enough sleep.

Luckily, we did have a lot of fun for the most part. Partly that is because I have a doctor's appointment this morning and didn't have to hurry and get ready to go to work while watching her this morning. And Londo is working from home today. So we had time to let her fuss and cajole her out of it, as needed. We also had a few funny moments that I thought I'd share. Because when you are dealing with The Twos, you need to write down, revisit and hear from others all the cute moments you can!

Which is why this week's question of the week is:
Do you have a cute story to share?

Here are two of mine from this morning.

At one point, Londo and I were sitting on the couch with the Pumpkin between us drinking her milk. We were all watching a Blue's Clues, giving Londo and I time to drink a little coffee and wake ourselves up a bit. This morning, the clues were animal footprints, a tail and animal ears. We had the following conversation:

Londo, to me over the Pumpkin's head: It's Batman.
caramama: Batman doesn't have a tail.
Londo: We don't know what's under that cape.
The Pumpkin suddenly pipes up: I have a tail.

We burst out laughing. It was just so unexpected and cute. Then I said something about how she's good at wagging her tail. And sure enough, she started wiggling as if wagging her bottom while sitting. It was so cute.

The other story from this morning was me really entertaining myself while playing with the Pumpkin. I got her out of one funk by suggesting we build towers with blocks. We went from towers to a house to a car to a bridge. In fact, here was a cute exchange:

caramama: What should we build now? How about a bridge?
The Pumpkin: Good idea, Mommy! Good idea! Let's build a bridge!

So I we built a bridge, and I pretended one of the single blocks was a guy going over the bridge. The Pumpkin looked around and picked up one of her little stuffed dogs to go over the bridge. As she made the dog start to go up the steps to the bridge, I pulled out a single yellow block, and I sang, "I'm the grumpy old troll who lives under the bridge. I'm the grumpy old troll who lives under the bridge.* If you want to go over the bridge, you have to answer the following question. What is your favorite color?**" The Pumpkin looked at her toy dog, and after thinking for a minute, she pointed to the dog's back and said, "It's brown." I chuckled, very amused, and let the dog pass.

So those are a couple of cute moments from this morning. It's often the little things that get me through the more frustrating moments. Three days in a row of no napping does take its toll on all of us.

But I could use more cute moments. What have you got?

Name That Reference game:
*Which TV show reference is this?
**Which movie reference is this?

Question of the Week - Changing Tastes

Toddlers. They are picky little people, aren't they? But then, so are many adults. What I have found, however, is that people seem to be more open to trying new things as adults and that our tastes change as we get older.

For example when I was elementary-school age, I didn't like tomato sauce on my pasta. My very Italian grandmother couldn't get over the fact that all I wanted on my pasta was butter. It wasn't until I was in junior high or high school that I started liking tomato sauce on my pasta. And now? I could eat it every day for every meal! I've come a long way, though I'm still picky discerning about many other things, not just foods.

This week's question of the week is:
What do you like or have discovered as an adult that you didn't like or weren't interested in when you were younger?

In a non-food area, I have discovered Bonanza in the last year (thank to Londo), and I really love that show! I don't remember ever watching it when I was younger, even though I did watch some western movies with my dad and other old TV shows. But I had no interest in Bonanza. Londo loves it and always has, so he has started watching it now that it is on TV Land regularly. I just barely paid attention to it at first, but I soon started getting interested. Now, I'm recording episodes that look interesting and am trying to be home in time to watch it!

My brother's answer would be guacamole. I remember about two years ago at a family dinner, my brother claimed he didn't like to eat anything green (yes, he is an adult and is even 6 years older than me!). Somehow, we convinced him to at least try the guacamole that was set out with chips and salsa. And wouldn't you know it? He LOVED it! Now he is often telling people about how he didn't think he'd like guacamole but he was so glad he tried it because it's delicious. He often uses this example to get his 14-year-old daughter to try new things.

What about you? Is there anything to eat, watch or do that you really enjoy as an adult but didn't like--or wouldn't even try--when younger? Maybe you'll open someone else's eyes by sharing!

Multi-Lingual Child

I love other cultures and languages. This is a love that runs in my family and has been cultivated by my family. For instance, my mother's father could speak 6 language fluently and could get by in maybe 5 or 6 more. My mother's mom's speaks Italian, and her mother came over from Italy. My mother majored in French in college and has picked up a decent amount of Italian, Spanish and German over the years. In my father's family, one of his sisters and his brother both married Filipino spouses. Although my dad struggles with languages, many members of his family speak English, Spanish and Tagalog with equal ease.

On all sides of my family, just about everyone has loved to travel. Londo's parents also love to travel and learn about other cultures, so there's definitely interest rom that side as well.

I can't wait until we are ready to travel to other countries with the Pumpkin and the Peanut. (What do you think? Is Peanut a good nickname for the boy?) I can't wait for them to understand and appreciate what other cultures and countries are like. I've already started introducing her to other languages and the idea of other cultures and countries. I've spoken to her some in Italian, read to her some Italian board books, sung nursery rhymes and songs in Italian and French, and played for her an Italian music and language CD for babies to toddlers. Our nanny is originally from Peru and teaches her some words and songs in Spanish. I must admit that TV has also helped, as she learns from Dora and Deigo, Ni Hao Kai Lan, and Toot and Puddle.

I've read that it is good to introduce other languages to children at a very young age. Not so that they can be child prodigies who are fluent in many languages. But for me at least, it's so that she hears the sounds of the other languages and becomes familiar with the idea of other languages. I was reading that often adults can't hear differences in the way some words are spoken in languages they haven't heard until they were adults. The ear loses the ability to distinguish certain sounds that it hasn't heard or needed to use before. So by introducing different languages and sounds to the Pumpkin at such a young age, she will hopefully have the ability to pick up languages later in life, if she so chooses.

She really seems to be enjoying and picking up on the other languages now. She seems to prefer the French "Frere Jacques" version to the "Are You Sleeping" English version. She also loves to sing a Spanish song the nanny taught her to the same tune. She cackles with glee and joins in a bit when I sing her the Italian song (I forget the name)about winter ending and May returning with the song of the coo coo--she loves the coo coo part.

Then one morning a few weeks, she was pretending to need help getting up while I was talking to the nanny before I left for work, and all of a sudden, we hear her go "ayúdeme" (Spanish for help me), which she obviously learned from Dora and Diego. The nanny and I just burst out laughing.

She also says "ni hao" (Chinese for hi) and "xie xie" (Chinese for thank you) to us, which she learned from Ni Hao Ki Lan. She knows some other Chinese and Spanish words for things like push and pull that she randomly throws out there. I need to keep working on Italian words, but I've kind of been slacking on that for a while. I used to tell her "nella bucca" when I wanted her to put her spoon/fork/food in her mouth instead of playing with it, and the Italian "bucca" for mouth sounds the same as the spanish.

As for English, my supergenius is exceeding in that communication for a 25 month old, so I'm not worried about any language delays or confusion due to introducing other languages.

Mostly, I just think it's fun to learn languages and have her learn them. And apparently, she thinks it's fun too!

TV Usage in caramama's House

I'm glad to know I'm not the only one using bribes and TV to get through the day. A few things came up yesterday about TV that I wanted to delve into further. So let's talk toddler TV!

Up until this winter, the Pumpkin probably watched a 20-30 DVD on TV every few days (as far as I know, although the nanny might have put something on also, but not often). She mostly watched Baby Signing Times (which I can't rave about enough!) or little shorts of books like Cordury Bear or Goodnight Gorilla or a Baby Einsten Nursery Rhymes. She was happy with them and the amount that she watched them.

Then came this winter, with my Seasonal Affective Disorder and the pregnancy creating crazy low levels of energy for me, while her energy levels stayed in her normal hyperdrive. Also, she started getting bored with the same DVDs. So I finally turned on Noggin (we are lucky to have extended cable) and discovered (and in some cases rediscovered) what I consider to be good quality shows that have the ability of holding the Pumpkin's attention on a station with no commercials. And thus began our foray into toddler television.

Cloud asked if I like Dora. I really do! I wasn't sure I would, but it is cute, helps language development (including teaching some spanish words) and teaches problem solving, following maps and remembering details. (Although I don't like that Dora's shirt doesn't always cover her belly. I have no idea why they wouldn't draw her shirt long enough, but her belly is always peeking out.) They go on missions that follow the same pattern every time. And there is Swiper, the fox, who tries to "swipe" or steal things, which I have been able to transfer to our real life.

When the fox tried to swipe something that Dora and Boots have, they (and the TV audience) say "Swiper, no swiping!" (as La Folle Maman mentioned yesterday). Well, the Pumpkin is very grabby and lately is into taking things and saying "mine." I know the grabbiness (with low impulse control) is part of her personality, and the "mine" is a developmental stage, but it's still frustrating. So now when she goes to grab something off the counter or take from me, I say "Pumpkin, no swiping!" I'm not sure she get's it 100%, but she does stop and think about it. And that my friends, makes it educational TV.

We watch Blue's Clues, a show I have enjoyed since babysitting days. This one also teaches problem solving, looking for things, remembering details and putting pieces together to form a larger picture. Of course it's also cute and has songs. The Pumpkin calls it "Bloos Boos" and she loves to ask "Where is Bloo doggie?" and we pretend to go looking for her behind the chair and other places.

I've also discovered Handy Manny and Diego, which are both occassional shows. She's only partially interested in Diego because of the animals, but I think most of it goes over her head. Handy Manny, however, is one she enjoys. She also likes Wubbzy, which is cute and entertaining.

My favorite is Toot and Puddle because they go to different cities on adventures and teach about other places and cultures. Londo's favorite is Oswald. I'm not sure why... I should ask him.

With this list, it sounds like we watch hours of TV a day, which is not always true. But we do turn it on when we need a break or need to calm her down from a tantrum and nothing else works. Or sometimes so I can clip her nails or put her clothes on. If any of these shows is on, we will let her watch them. Dora and Blue's Clues used to come on right as Londo was making dinner and I'd get home from work and need some down time, so that's why she's probably watched those the most. (I think they've changed the scheduling for the new year, but I'm not positive.)

The study that Cloud talked about in her comment yesterday is really interesting, and makes me feel better. It basically says that TV is not the devil and can actually help pre-schoolers learn skills (these are completely my words, and I must fess up that I didn't finish reading the study because it's long and I haven't had time to finish it). But what I've noticed is that what the Pumpkin sees on TV exposes her to more of the world than she gets from just Londo, the nanny and me. Even more than books can in some ways, because there is action to go along with the words and pictures.

About two weeks ago, when the Pumpkin would. not. lie. down for her nap, I sat in the glider and she sat on the ottoman and she was talking away. I realized she was talking about Dora and Boots. So asked her what they were doing. She said, "Dora and Boots fall!" I have no idea which episode she was talking about or if she was just making it up. But I asked her what happened next, and she said, "Dora and Boots fall! Crash! Into the water!" And after a little more, she mentioned a witch. (I finally figured she must have been referring to the Snow Princess episode which we had seen recently, but I didn't watch the whole thing since I was cooking, so I can't be sure.) I found this story telling ability incredibly cute. Her ability to recall and tell me what happened in such detail is a new development, and maybe TV helped her with that.

Anyway, I'm not 100% comfortable with the amount of TV she sometimes watches, but it doesn't seem to be harming her development. In fact, it seems to be helping in some ways, as she talks about things and concepts that are new to her which she learned about on TV. And the TV is helping Londo and I get through a very difficult time for us.

Question of the Week - Geek Out

I'm a geek. I totally admit it. I don't think I look like a geek or usually act like one. But once you get to know me, it's not long until you realize it. If you know me in real life, you've known it for a long time. If you've been reading me for more than, oh, a day, you probably have already realized it.

I'm a geek. But not just because I can be a general geeky person. I am a geek because of the things I like and do. Want to hear all the ways I'm a geek? Sure you do!

-Blog Geek: I believe going to a blogging conference has put me firmly in the category of Blog Geek. Not to mention that I coordinate DC Area get togethers of bloggers and commenters. (Stay tuned, because there will be another one VERY SOON!)

-Science Geek: I love science and read science books and magazines. In fact, my thesis for my Masters pertained to Mars, which included analyzing history, science and pop culture pertaining to the Red Planet. Also, I recently made a geeky reference to Schrödinger's cat which was quite amusing to me and the other science geek.

-Sci-Fi Geek: Oh, I am. I am. Big time. My favorite show of all time is/was Farscape. I love the Star Treks except Enterprise (but no, I'm not a Trekker) and other sci-fi TV, movies, books, you name it. Although I have never been to a conference, but I would totally go to one. I would not dress up if I went. I'm not quite that geeky (not that there's anything wrong with that). But I have dressed up as sci-fi characters for Halloween, including Princess Leia and Chiana from Farscape.

I'm sure I've got many other varieties of geek in me. In fact, if any of you know another one, feel free to put it in the comments. But for now, let's get to the Question of the Week:

What kind of geek are you?

I mean, we all have a little geek in us, right? Be it technology, animal obsession, blogging, just about everyone has a passion that puts them right into the geek category. What is yours?

Question of the Week - Retro Re-Makes

I will start by saying that my weekend without baby or husband was fantastic. Wow! I didn't realize I needed that break, but I really did. Fortunately, Londo realized I needed the break and not only encouraged it but came up with the idea and planned how it would work. That man is the best, and my sanity thanks him for all that he does.

I'll go on (and on) about the weekend in another post, but I did want to mention that I got to go out to dinner and a movie with my SIL and parents. We ate a fantastic meal at a nice restaurant, where I didn't have to worry about anyone eating but myself. Then, we saw Get Smart, which was really a great movie! I was worried Steve Catrell would be over-the-top or the humour would be all slapstick, both of which would have just frustrated me. But it wasn't either! It had good action and was actually REALLY funny! I can't believe how much I laughed and enjoyed it.

And it made me want to see the old TV show episodes, which I used to watch on Nickelodeon. Just like the new, really well done Battlestar Galactica got Londo and I to watch the old episodes, which were pretty campy but fun. Or the new Transformers movie made me want to watch the old cartoons.

So the question of the week is:
What show or movie would you like to see come out as a re-make?

I have so many I'd like to see, but I'm going to have to think about what my final answer(s) will be. I'll post it later. For now, tell me what you'd like to see!

Update:
I figured out my answer. I want a remake TV show of The A-Team. And I pity the fool who doesn't agree with me!

Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out

Yesterday evening, Londo called me up right as I was leaving work. The babysitter had left and he was watching the Pumpkin. And he told me the following story:

The Pumpkin walked over to the TV in the family room. She turned it on. Then, she turned on the DVD player. (The way the DVD player is set up, if you turn it off without stopping the DVD, it will start back up when you turn the DVD player back on, however you have to have the TV channel on the right "input.") Next, she started changing the channels until she got to the right input. In fact, Londo said she initially went past the right input but went back when she saw Baby Signing Times playing. Once she had it on the right channel, she stood back and watched her favorite DVD.

Isn't that amazing? I'm very impressed with my Supergenius's ability to figure all this out. Londo said she did it all very deliberately, and I believe it. There are a lot of specific steps you have to do to get the DVD to play, especially finding the right input channel. In fact, I'm not sure if my mom or my MIL could do it! But my 15 month old? No problem. Anything for Baby Signing Times.

But that's the part that scares me. I'm not sure I'm comfortable with her ability to put on the TV and her DVD any time she wants. That way lies addiction! Trust me, I know. We have really limited her TV so far, which has been easy because until recently she wouldn't sit still and watch anything for more than 5-10 minutes. But now she will sit there like a fidgety zombie and watch the whole DVD. Then want to watch it again.

I'm not against some TV. But I'm concerned about the amount and the programs she will be watching, especially at this young age. To be honest, I'm especially worried about the example that Londo and I set. I don't want the Pumpkin to feel the need to constantly have on the TV just to be background noise or a slight distraction (yes, Londo, that's your example). I don't want the Pumpkin to zone out when she's watching something so that she doesn't hear a word of what real life humans are saying to her (yes, that's totally me).

TV is a useful tool, both for teaching kids (with the right programs) and for giving Mama and Daddy a little (and much needed) break. But I want the ability to limit my child's use of the TV. I want to be (and want Londo to be) a good role model for my child's future TV-watching habits. I want TV to be a treat or a reward, not something that is always on and considered a prerogative.

At 15 months old, she already has the ability to turn the TV on, she's starting to tune in... I just worry about the third item in the Timothy Leary quote. Because it's never too soon to get that mommy guilt working!

Maybe instead I should be concentrating on how amazing she is with her ability to follow steps she sees and figure things out. She's really quite brillant, isn't she? She gets that from her parents, too. hehe.

Question of the Week - TV Mom/Dad

Let's get right to it... This week's question of the week is:

Which TV Mom or Dad are you?

I'd like to think I'm Clair Huxtable of The Cosby Show, but I don't have enough kids or experience to claim that yet. She is my role model, though, and has been since I watched the show every Thursday night growing up. She was a thoughtful and caring mom, and a successful working woman who was married to a very involved and loving husband. Hmmm... Maybe I am like Clair!

I think I might also be like Elyse Keaton from Family Ties, because of my hippy tendencies... But let's face it. Right now, with this lack of sleep, I'm feeling most like Lois on Malcolm in the Middle. hehe.

How about you?

(Can't think of one? Try checking out this site for moms and this one for dads.)

Question of the Week - Reality TV

It's been a long, sick weekend. The Pumpkin and I are both feeling better, but we are both still a little sick and not sleeping well. I did not blog all weekend, and I'm sorry about that. Tonight, I'll have to go to bed early, so I'm not sure how much I'll be able to blog tonight either. I will catch up with everyone eventually.

For now, let's just get to the question of the week.

If you could be (or had to be) on a reality TV show, which would it be?

Now, I would not willingly go on one of those shows, but if I had to be on one, I would want to be on one of the design shows like Designers' Challenge (for our kitchen/family room), Cash in the Attic, Trading Spaces or something like that. Yes, they totally do count as reality TV, and I'll not hear another word about it.

How about you? Would love to be on one? Which would you pick if you had to be on one?

Question of the Week - Guilty TV Pleasure

Well, I hear the writer's strike is over. That means that TV will be back soon! I'm really happy about that, but I have to say that the writer's strike gave me time to catch up on my DVR recordings. I don't have much time to watch a lot of TV lately (I wonder why). When I have any free time, I typically spend it on the computer or reading. But I record a bunch of TV shows, most of which Londo watches with me usually after the Pumpkin goes to bed.

There are some shows I record that he has no interest in whatsoever. There are some shows which I am a bit embarrassed to admit I really enjoy. These are the shows that sit on the DVR for long periods of time, for the rare times when I am free to watch TV but not with Londo. I am slow to catch up on these shows, and some I just have to delete because I run out of room on the DVR.

So, the question of the week is:

What TV show to you like that you are a bit embarrassed to admit you even watch?

I'll tell you mine. It's Kyle XY. That's right, me and the pre-teen girls love the show. Londo has even seen some of them and admits it's a decent show. You know, for an ABC Family type of show. I also love Army Wives on Lifetime, but that's been in hiatus.

Your turn to fess up. What's your guilty TV pleasure?

Speaking of TV, check out the new quote at the bottom of the page. It happens to be one of Londo's (my hubby's) favorite quotes.

Question of the Week - Superbowl Commercials (and My Weekend Woes)

Hey, internetters! Sorry I've been neglectful. It wasn't on purpose. My internet went down sometime on Saturday and has stayed down. So I didn't get to do a Cara Mama post yesterday, but it would have gone something like this "Cara Mama, wah wah wah... But I wanna play with the trash bag... ha ha ha... I love to be tickled... wah wah wah... I don't wanna go back to sleep... The clingiest, fussiest baby in the world (I'm too tired to figure out the Italian for this), Pumpkin"

But this is nothing new. In general, we had a really good weekend. My niece's birthday party was so much fun, and water babies on Sunday was a ton of fun. The mornings were very good, and she had one long nap each day. BUT she had only one nap each day (can you say transition time?) and had a melt down each night in the evening. She seems to be so tired--she has been a bit klutzy, especially yesterday evening. Each time she get a little bump, she gives some heartfelt crying instead of the usual brushing it off with nary a thought. I will save this morning's issues for tomorrow's post. For now, let's just move on...

Did everyone enjoy the Superbowl? I did not stay up for the critical 4th quarter, and missed quite a bit here and there because of Pumpkin-care. I'm not heartbroken, because I'm not a fan of either team. But I saw a lot of it, and some funny commercials. I caught commercials I missed this morning online (I love the internet). Which leads us to this week's Question of the Week:

What was your favorite Superbowl commercial?

You don't have to limit your answer to this year. But if you want to see some of this years best commercials (which were only okay overall), click here.

This year, I enjoyed the Bridgestone with the squirrel in the road, the Tide with the screaming stain, and (even though I can't stand him) the Will Ferrell Bud Light commercial. Last year, I LOVED the Taco Bell lion commercial. Of course, the best Superbowl commercials were Apple 1984 commercial and the Budweiser clydesdale 9/11 tribute (snopes.com is apparently the only place on the internet where I can find a video of that one). Oh, and speaking of Budswiser clydesdale commercials, I also loved this one from 2003.

How about you?