Scary Mommy {Blog Feature}

In honor of 2010, I thought it would be great if I kicked the year off with a bang.  That bang comes in the form of Jill, the Scary Mommy herself!  Can I just tell you, the thing that draws me to Scary Mommy is that Jill is real.  She loves her kids and she does a great job raising, but she is real, and I love it! Jill says this about her blog, “Someday, my kids can flip through these pages and get to know their mom. A mom, who despite cursing too much and feeling totally overwhelmed, loved (almost) every moment of their childhood. A mom, who wouldn’t trade this gig for the world. And, a mom who, thinks knows that they are the cutest/most beautiful/funny/charming/entertaining little people in the entire world.”

I know this blog is titled, “Making the Most of Family Time,” so featuring a post about letting the kids watch tv might not seem like a good fit, but I say your wrong.  Sometimes in order to truly make the most of time with the kids, we need some time for ourselves too.  If tv is a way to get that, then all hail the tv.  I also think that parents tend to get down on themselves for being human.  TV happens, kids turn out alright, the world keeps turning. I just applaud Jill for being the one to write it “out loud.”  I highly recommend that you take a little trip to the world of the Scary Mommy.  You won’t be disappointed!

TV & Kids: A Match Made in HeavenSeptember 30, 2009in Mother of The Year

If you’re one of those parents who don’t ever let your young children watch television, I have some news to break to you: You have no idea what you’re missing.

You probably also never feed your children cereal for dinner or skip the bath simply because you’re tired, or let them chew gum rather than brushing their teeth once in a while, so I really can’t relate to you in the least. But, I must know, seriously, how do you do it? How do you get your children to sit still and behave while you take a much needed and overdue shower? How do you bribe them to clean up their rooms and eat all of their dinner without the promise of a show? How do you occupy them when they are home sick from school and just want to lay on the couch and be entertained? How do you live like that? I simply cannot imagine.

Don’t get me wrong, I am very conscious not to let my children watch more than a couple half hour shows a day. I know it’s not the best thing in the world for them and would much rather they be playing outside or building towers or making art projects. Without a doubt. But when I’m alone with the three of them, TV makes a mighty fine babysitter when I need to get things done.

We’re embarking on a 22 hour drive this weekend with all three children. Two full days of driving for a one day wedding. (Aren’t you jealous?) While it won’t be fun, it will be infinitely more bearable with our car’s DVD player stocked with hours worth of shows and movies. And while the kids will still fight and whine and fuss, at least we will have a few hours of peace while they watch the magic box in the ceiling. I simply can’t imagine it any other way. And I don’t even want to try.