More Playhouse Disney

Well, a funny thing happened to me today. My somewhat massive post about preschool music attracted the attention of a publicist for Playhouse Disney. This was staggering for me, as I though only my parent friends were reading this blog. So, she read the post and suggested I check out The Imagination Movers. If The Wiggles are your kids first rock band, The Imagination Movers are your kids first Alt-Rock band. And admittedly, the tunes meet the criteria, which is "good enough for me not to hate it", and "safe enough for her to hear it". I'd be embarrassed to be listening to it without Katie around. But it's catchy, and the most important thing is, I wouldn't be embarrassed to be listening to it with Katie around, which I can't say for most of the music of my teens and twenties. I've just noticed, while they ALL contain music, of the 24 "shows" on Playhouse Disney, a full third of them are explicitly ABOUT music. I guess it is a pretty big part of your preschoolers life. Of course, Katie is a long way from being a preschooler. You be stretching credibility to call her a toddler at this point.

Anyway, since I've apparently become a spokesperson for Playhouse Disney, I thought I'd point out that there IS a section for parents on their website. And it actually does have a useful thing or two in it.
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And now for a diaper change....

Brian
muse.platypionline.com

The Entertainment Red Shift of the Stay At Home Parent

I had no idea just a few months ago what serious competition there was in the pre-school rock arena. The most exposed to this thing I had been previously was getting the Fraggle Rock theme stuck in my head (although to be honest, I watched Jabber Jaws and Josie and the Pussycats as a kid).I'd seen commercials for Kids Bop and stuff, but I really had no idea.

I thought I really disliked the Wiggles until I experienced the horror of The Doodlebops. Now the Wiggles don't seem so bad. I had barely heard of Yo Gabba Gabba (but then I'm more of a Playhouse Disney guy) and then I get start seeing Choo Choo Soul. The vintage gear guy in me likes Dan Zanes House Party, but I don't think emulating Keith Richards is the way to get me to let my kid watch you (and somebody get that man a comb). But I'll tell you what I do like. I like the band in Bunnytown, and I like the Happy Monster Band. And by like, I meant it doesn't make me want to claw my eyes out.

When I was first staying at home, I was watching my kind of TV. Law and Order, Battlestar, CSI... But as Katie gets older, if the thing is going to be on at all, I'd rather her stare at closer to age appropriate material. The thing is, as a parent, you watch this stuff, and it kinda sucks you in (because that's what it's DESIGNED to do) and next thing you know, you know all the words to "Hop Up, Jump In" from Handy Manny and the "Think, Think, Think!" song from Tigger and Pooh. And I say that I'm not going to get hooked on this junk, and then I go watch Happy Monster Band videos on You Tube. Between that and having had Laurie Berkner in the CD player of the Kia for, like, six months now, I wonder if I will ever have grown up entertainment in my life again.

If ever I needed a good Dr. Who marathon, surely it is now.

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And now for a diaper change....

Brian
muse.platypionline.com

Triumph of the Will (and the wallet)

Moving has enabled us to cobble together an actual nursery for Katie. I'm strangely proud of this, as when we first had her, the idea of her having her own room was a little far fetched. So, wanting to share, I set up the tripod and my little Canon Powershot A75. It's my old camera, relegated now to being the diaper bag camera, it doesn't get used much as even my phone comes close enough to it in quality and tops it convenience. Still, what it does that my new Kodak Z712is doesn't is it lets you take as many photos as you want in the panorama assist mode. So I believe this is about 17 or 18 photos stitched together into a 360º panorama of Katie's room. It was actually about 375 degrees as I started and ended with the door, but it looked funny having the door in there twice, so I cropped it off the right side.
Anyway, the last piece was the book shelf that sits on her dresser. I built that a couple of nights ago.

Oh, and I really don't care for The Wiggles.

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And now for a diaper change....

Brian
muse.platypionline.com