Super Why: A Lifesaver or an Excuse for Bad Parenting

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I have to admit that I am an awful parent, I let Michael watch TV. Not hours and hours on end, but more than the none that I thought I would. Before Michael was born I was committed to limiting his TV time before his second birthday... but like many of those things that first time parents expect will happen (sleeping through the night from day one, kids that dont throw tantrums, etc) things didnt work out as I had planned. I dont know how we stumbled upon Super Why, but somewhere along we way we realized that there were quite a few episodes on Netflix (I think it was after we watched a few episodes of VeggieTales), and from that point on Super Why has become a part of our life. Michael even requests it by name, he cannot be tricked, no other cartoon can be substituted, there is something about the Super Readers that he loves. No really he loves it. When he gets hurt, or tired, or angry his first request (after Daddy) is "Why!", always optimistic, always loving the show.

I feel like an awful parent, my kid can't use the bathroom yet but he has a favorite TV show. I am racked with guilt. I think about all those child development studies that tout the importance of reading and discouraged TV, but then here's the thing- he loves to read. He loves books, even has a few favorites, he doesnt spend all his time in front of the TV, and oh did I mention Super Why encourages reading in its' own annoying TV way. He loves the singing, the ridiculous dancing, and yes even the part where they tell you to put your arm in and say your name (he participates). So we are running with it. We arent watching Super Why 24/7, I would say we are probably at a grand total of 20 minutes a day if that (with the exception of the other day when he was throwing up and then it was an all day thing), and to be honest sometimes Super Why is awesome, like when you need to pull something out of the hot oven and he needs to be safe an away, or when he woke up at the crack of dawn and wont nap so you really need to shower, or when you are mopping throw up off the floor. And we have learned a few things along the way, things like the letters "O" and "S". So I am going to push the guilt off for a bit and say there are worse things that we could be doing, a little Super Why might be just the thing for both our sanity.

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