"You know Mom, 'inappropriate tv'"

I thought I'd always be the kind of Mom who didn't use the TV as a babysitter. I remember before having kids of my own thinking how Moms who let their kids watch TV just aren't creative or don't understand how TV can influence their kids. Yes, I was going to be the kind of Mom who would always be engaging my children in activities that make them think and ask questions. No - my kids wouldn't be watching TV.

Well, I think that lasted roughly about 5 months after my first son, Matthew, was born. It was about that time that a friend of mine hooked me up with the Baby Einstein DVDs. I say "hooked me up" because I truly believe that these DVDs are kiddie crack. From the minute I hit play, my son was hooked. He'd sit in his bouncy seat and just watch the images go by while listening to the classical music in the background. For a fleeting moment, I did consider that I could be sitting in front of my son with a hand puppet engaging him while Mozart played on my CD player, but the DVDs were so easy. And by 5 months in - the glory of being a new Mom has worn off - you still love your baby, but really, what you are craving is twenty minutes of peace - perhaps to eat a meal or send an email. And these DVDs give you that opportunity. And when you are a working Mom, you start looking at minutes as precious - you give up on thinking you'd ever have a day to yourself - so you begin to be excited when you get 5 minutes to yourself. A topic that I certainly will discuss in later blogs, especially since my two year old has taken to joining me in the bathroom because I sit with him when he is on the potty - at least that is what I think he was telling me in his two-year old speak.

So - fastforward now - I have four kids between the ages of 5 and 5 months. And they all watch the TV. But, given the age span, what was once kiddie crack for my now 5 year old son, now has become about 20 minutes of whining as he complains about having to watch the "baby videos". So - to compromise in this debate - which is clearly one-sided - I just don't want to listen to Matthew complain - I have decided to rely on the networks to provide entertainment for my kids. But, recently, I've realized that the individuals who are creating the shows for the many "kid-type" channels can't be parents themselves. If they were - they probably would be sitting on the couch going "huh?" as they watch their own shows. I just don't get it - how are these shows airing at times during the day when I most need a babysitter? So - I decided that inappropriate tv was unacceptable in my house, no matter how much I wanted my kids to sit numb in front of the TV so that I could get something done around the house. Yes, being a working Mom of four, you begin to lower your principles just for the opportunity to unload the dishwasher. But, even I knew that the dishes were not as important as my kids' minds. So - I lined up my three oldest children (Matthew - 5, Emme - 4, Nicholas - 2) on the couch and explained how some TV shows were inappropriate. I felt good about myself - I felt like I had taken a stand against bad TV and wasn't going to let it play in my house, no matter how much I wanted a break. And so, the days passed and we watched A LOT of Diego and Dora (with Matthew complaining again ...), but I would not give in to the inappropriate TV. And then it happened - I walk into the playroom and Emme and Nicholas were sitting on the couch watching one of the shows I despise. I couldn't believe it? Didn't they understand what I had told them about inappropriate TV - well, maybe not Nicholas, he's only 2, but Emme - she's four - and she had to get it, right? Didn't they appreciate that I went to bed at night with the theme to Dora the Explorer as a lullaby in my brain? Didn't they understand how much control it took for me not to feel bad about myself after realizing that my 2-year old could count to 10 in Spanish, but not in English? And so, in my exasperation, I looked at Emme and ask "Emme, what are you watching?" - and she replied promptly and assuredly, "You know Mom, that show you told us about, Inappropriate TV" .... and with that - they asked me to move because I was blocking the TV.