How do I become Daniel Tiger’s mom?

[Anonymous]

They clearly have inherited money so I’m sure that takes a strain off their family.

“Hi, I’m Dad Tiger, and I’m an artisanal clock-maker.”
“Hi, I’m Mom Tiger, and I’m a handyman.”
“We’re looking for a beachfront home. Our budget is 1.2 million.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
When you get so mad that you want to roar, take a deep breath and count to four.

Start there, maybe?

Yes! My 3yo sang this to her dad the other day. Priceless.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They clearly have inherited money so I’m sure that takes a strain off their family.

“Hi, I’m Dad Tiger, and I’m an artisanal clock-maker.”
“Hi, I’m Mom Tiger, and I’m a handyman.”
“We’re looking for a beachfront home. Our budget is 1.2 million.”

Ha!! Grandpere has a yacht or something.

[Anonymous]

I noticed the other day that in the one when baby Margaret is born and Daniel is jealous, Mama Tiger tells Daniel she will pay attention to him after she feeds the baby, then calmly feeds the baby, then listens attentively to Daniel's story. ALL WHILE HER FOOD IS SITTING IN FRONT OF HER AND SHE DOESN'T EVEN TOUCH IT.

My conclusion: Mama Tiger is another impossible standard of selflessness and patience for women to measure ourselves against and inevitably come up short.

[Anonymous]

I must be awful because I don't like that show. Too boring!

And not everything has to be happy. If your birthday cake gets mushed it's okay to be upset about it.

[Anonymous]

Let your kid wear no pants?

[Anonymous]

Find your inner Elsa and sing it with me........ "Let it goooooooooo!" Embrace the absurdity, insanity, and utter mayhem that is this age. Adapt to the kid you have.

Okay, part of it is having a halfway-easy kid. Another part is after a decade of high pressure work, I quit and worked at preschool for the entire year before DS was born so I had a decent idea of what I was getting into.

I just keep our schedule very minimal. We don't do classes; we attend gymnastics open play or go to the low-key music get-togethers at the church behind our house. If we're late, no one cares because the whole point is you can come and go at any point. I go with the flow: if DS is in a good mood, well rested, fed, we can get lots done. If he's not.....well, usually we can get at least one errand done, so I am planning for one outing a day and anything else is gravy.

We play outside ALL THE TIME. Get weather-appropriate gear. Being outdoors is like magic with my kid. Yes, some times I would rather not be running circles in the yard for the 7th day in a row. Oh well. And fortunately he's still at the age where riding the bus or metro qualifies as "coolest thing ever" and so he behaves (and we can kill a bunch of time riding to no where in particular).

If he wants to tantrum that his favorite dinosaur socks are dirty.....have at it. The end result is still going to end up in the red socks. Sometimes offers of hugs and snuggles fixes things. Other times I just have to ride it out and do my best not to acknowledge the little petulant terrorist.

[Anonymous]

I admit that sometimes I pretend I'm an actress being paid to be the calm cheery mother in an irritating sit-com.
Some days that helps.

[Anonymous]

This is the best darn thread I've read on DCUM in a while. I had a good laugh. Especially at the HGTV riff. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Find your inner Elsa and sing it with me........ "Let it goooooooooo!" Embrace the absurdity, insanity, and utter mayhem that is this age. Adapt to the kid you have.

Okay, part of it is having a halfway-easy kid. Another part is after a decade of high pressure work, I quit and worked at preschool for the entire year before DS was born so I had a decent idea of what I was getting into.

I just keep our schedule very minimal. We don't do classes; we attend gymnastics open play or go to the low-key music get-togethers at the church behind our house. If we're late, no one cares because the whole point is you can come and go at any point. I go with the flow: if DS is in a good mood, well rested, fed, we can get lots done. If he's not.....well, usually we can get at least one errand done, so I am planning for one outing a day and anything else is gravy.

We play outside ALL THE TIME. Get weather-appropriate gear. Being outdoors is like magic with my kid. Yes, some times I would rather not be running circles in the yard for the 7th day in a row. Oh well. And fortunately he's still at the age where riding the bus or metro qualifies as "coolest thing ever" and so he behaves (and we can kill a bunch of time riding to no where in particular).

If he wants to tantrum that his favorite dinosaur socks are dirty.....have at it. The end result is still going to end up in the red socks. Sometimes offers of hugs and snuggles fixes things. Other times I just have to ride it out and do my best not to acknowledge the little petulant terrorist.

Agree with this.

I read a book once on how kids need “good enough” mothers. Not a zillion classes, or organic food, or academics starting at age 2, or structured activities. I used to drive myself insane trying to “enrich” my kid’s life but it just made us all miserable. Now we don’t do anything that requires us to be somewhere at a specific time, and we get outside as much as possible (wears them out plus no messes to clean up!) Most days we walk up to the same playground and see the same people, and that’s totally fine with us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is the best darn thread I've read on DCUM in a while. I had a good laugh. Especially at the HGTV riff. Thanks!

+1000

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They clearly have inherited money so I’m sure that takes a strain off their family.

“Hi, I’m Dad Tiger, and I’m an artisanal clock-maker.”
“Hi, I’m Mom Tiger, and I’m a handyman.”
“We’re looking for a beachfront home. Our budget is 1.2 million.”

I’m dying.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I must be awful because I don't like that show. Too boring!

And not everything has to be happy. If your birthday cake gets mushed it's okay to be upset about it.

It's ok to feel sad sometimes, but little by little, you'll feel better again!

[Anonymous]

I really think there's something to their unstructured lifestyle. As PP's noted, they sorta just let Daniel explore, do his thing and help him when he needs it. He doesn't go to karate, doesn't have a Spanish tutor, etc. They let him be a kid, and they're patient with him.

My DH always says Daniel Tiger's dad is his father role model, which yes it's silly but there's something there.

[Anonymous]

It’s a show for preschoolers. Not an accurate representation of what parenting in the modern world entails.