Well, here I am, the stinking would-be high priestess of media issues in kids lives, and I have dirty laundry. Here is my Dear Abby moment (Is Abby out there? Anyone wanting to pretend to be Abby? We need advice!)…
Dear Abby,
We recently started my youngest in a family care center (the day care centers locally are pretty lousy for kids younger than 2.9 - the state preschool age) with a care giver that we really like a lot. She is warm, experienced, and has two sensitive, playful boys of her own, which made us feel good about leaving ds in her care, since we are sensitive to gender issues, blah blah blah
I asked about use of TV when I visited and she said no. Ahem. Every day when we drop him off or pick him up - it’s on. Spongebob, Blue’s Clues, whatever, it’s on. AND IT IS MAKING ME CRAZY. Dh and I don’t feel like there is any point in talking with her about this because 1) she has a center and cares for many children, and clearly this is how she does things, and 2) since she is very responsible about keeping the doors locked for security - I’ll never know if she listens or not. She can turn it off before she opens the door. My little goo goo ga ga baby certainly isn’t going to tell me.
So, we want to pull him out, but don’t have a great alternative until December. The waiting is eating me alive! At this age it isn’t the tv per se that bothers me, its what that tv time replaces — is he getting enough stimulation? I keep picturing that Shel Silverstein poem about Jimmy Jet and his TV set where the little boy turns into the television. We could pull him out and try another family care, but I don’t have a way of knowing it would be better, and we can’t afford a private nanny on our own (with dd in FT school, which she needs and deserves). What should we do?
Suggestions and/or anti-anxiety meds welcome.