Childhood: Take Two!

Who knew that having kids would be like reliving your childhood. I always thought that having kids meant 'growing up' and being the authority and helping to guide and shape your child's life. Perhaps that is true but these first few years are like having a second childhood! Maybe not all of it but definitely a lot of it.

When I go to Target or am out shopping, I'm looking for toys and stuff that not only my boys will like but that I might like too...I'm always trying to find things that will stimulate their minds but be fun at the same time. I worry that I'm not doing enough to help their early development...should they really be licking and gnawing on their stuffed animals? That just seems gross to me (hello, cotton mouth!) but sometimes I have to remind myself to just let it go. There will probably be a lot more worst things heading into their mouths in the months and years to come.

These are all the 'grown up' things that run through my mind when it concerns my kids but the other part of raising my children has involved watching cartoons, playing their games and purchasing fun outfits for them. The boys watch a lot of Noggin during the day - they're starting to understand what's going on and even chuckle along sometimes. Among the shows they watch - 'Ni Hao Kai-Lan,' 'Max & Ruby,' 'Wow Wow Wubbzy' - okay - those are my favorites among the shows that they watch. I actually get excited when those shows come on. When I'm in my room, late at night, getting ready to hit the sack, I actually turn to Noggin to see what's on...part of me thinks this is force of habit...the other part is just enjoyment. I don't watch it, because it's usually just a repeat of what was on earlier.

My husband remarked the other night that he couldn't wait for the boys to get bigger and come into our room on a Saturday morning and watch Saturday morning cartoons with us in bed - too bad Saturday morning cartoons are just not what they use to be. And when we were playing with the boys while Ni Hao Kai-Lan was on the TV once, I said, 'Oh, I don't think I've seen this one.' He responded with a summary of the episode including the moral of the story and the song that they sing at the end. I couldn't help but look at him all funny and chuckle. You'd think he was telling you about an episode of Law & Order! But you know it's pretty sad when my husband and I are sitting in front of the TV, each holding a sleeping child, with Max & Ruby still on in the background....boy, I haven't watched Access Hollywood in MONTHS!