Preschool Television

It is official, Madison and Peyton, have reached the age where they have begun to rationalize that preschool television is unrealistic. Allison, my two-year-old, has not. In fact, she'd watch it all day, if I let her. She adores Dora, sings along with Diego, dances to Little Einsteins, laughs at Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, points to The Backyardigans, answers the questions asked on Blues Clues. She is a magnet for Nick Jr. and Playhouse Disney, begging to turn on the television the moment she wakes up in the morning.

Madison and Peyton, on the other hand, have decided that although entertaining- these shows are not real...at all. These are the comments which can be heard as Ally watches her shows. "How come Dora's parents let her go places with a monkey? And there are no such things as talking maps and backpacks," "Why is Joe asking if we see a clue? It's right in front of him...geesh!" "It's so fake that Diego is able to play with wild animals and only needs a rescue pack to go places. You can totally tell he is related to Dora, because their parents let them do anything," "Mickey Mouse knows the answer to his questions. Why doesn't he just say it instead of waiting for a two-year-old to?" "Mom, there is no way the Backyardigans could have those adventures. It's not real at all."

Luckily, Madison and Peyton haven't lost their imaginations completely. They still play school, dig holes in the backyard looking for lost treasures, and coordinate plays that take hours to rehearse and only minutes to perform. Oh...and Star Wars isn't unrealistic at all...neither are the Transformers. Apparently there are light saber carrying robots maneuvering through our neighborhood on a daily basis.

My only question is this. Why do the Berenstain Bears never change clothes? Further, why are their names Papa, Mama, Brother and Sister? And they live in a tree house. Actually, that's pretty cool.