The Truth About My Little TV Junkie

Sugar Bear is a TV Junkie! Yup...there it is.....I said it! Don't get me wrong, I have known this for quite some time, but I just have a hard time really admitting it. My daughter loves her some TV viewing, and to be totally honest, her mama loves that she will watch TV at her age. Some kids won't attend to a TV show for longer than 5 minutes. Not my girl....she'd watch it all day if I let her. Now we both know I dont' do that, right? Okay, so maybe on sick days....but not usually!

I think to get a real understanding of how this Junkieness came about, you need to realize that for much of my girls first two years I was a single mama. My husband is a commercial fisherman that not only works off the Oregon and California coasts, but he spent close to 9 months of the year in Alaska the year Sugar Bear was born. It is also worthy to note that even when my husband is home, I have 100% of care duties. That was all part of the negotiation in whether we would have a child. I took on all the work. I am cool with that. So, from these two pieces of information, and the fact that I work 30 hours a week outside of home, you might realize that I can be pinched for time, and desperate for just a 10 minutes to myself.

I don't fancy myself a bad mother, but despite research that suggests children under the age of 2 should see NO television, I made good use of the worlds best product ever.....BABY EINSTEIN! Starting at 3 months of age, I could pop one of these fabulous videos in the machine, and set my little pumpkin in her bouncer in front of the TV and have 25-30 minutes to myself. Sometimes I showered, sometimes I cooked, sometimes I just laid on the couch and went into a short,yet well earned coma. It all depended on what I needed at the time, and my little Sugar would watch those videos in awe. It was a win/win situation.

As she grew, I began to notice the things she had learned from those sessions. By the age of 18 months, she knew most of her shapes. Soon she knew her colors also. She knew the names of all sorts of animals that I never even introduced to her. At the ripe age of 2 years she was proficient in her Shapes, Colors, Numbers 1-10, and nearly all her Letters and the sounds they make. WOW, all this and very little effort. It is apparent to me that my daughter is s visual learner. She is showing little interest in the potty though.....so in a few weeks she will be viewing Potty Power, and we'll see how it goes.

I still worry that the researchers are correct, and I have somehow damaged my daughter. According to them, she should soon be hyper active, aggressive, and FAT! Well, the girl started out with some serious "junk in her trunk" and is slowly thinning down. She is far from aggressive and so far is typically active for a child her age. The research says that no matter what the content, any TV is NOT GOOD! I beg to differ. I ease my worried soul knowing that I don't let her watch all day, and I don't let her watch non-educational, and most importantly, I try to watch with her or at least talk with her about what she has watched. I have no doubt that without those moments of time when I can do what I need to do, and know that she is safely watching a good show, I would not be the happy, loving,and rested mama that my daughter needs. I am grateful that this day and age provides so many choices for great, educational TV viewing.

I'd like to share some pictures....I know you are shocked! About 2 months ago, Sugar Bear's favorite book was this box that her Baby Einstein videos came in. She loved to look at the cover and the picture inside of her favorite characters. On this particular day she insisted that "they" go outside with her. These pictures are so HER. She is a fun girl!

Taking her book swinging.


The book goes for a slide.


The book in the playhouse.




The book at the picnic table.




And a quiet moment with her book.


Don't tell her that outside time can't be alittle about TV watching too. Silly silly girl!