Well, I have to say that Sesame Street gave me some big surprises this week. Now, I'm having a little trouble admitting this in public, but I let the toddler watch some tv pretty much every day. Yup, the 21-month-old gets to camp out in front of the tv each morning for 30-45 minutes to watch Sesame Street. I'm so defensive about this, I feel the absolute need to explain how this came to be. The baby has begun to follow a slightly skewed version of a regular schedule. In the morning on school days, he's been staying awake when we take the big kid to the bus stop, (sometimes with a little help from mommy's voice saying his name over and over). He used to zonk out as soon as his car seat was attached to the stroller, and he'd stay asleep for a while after we got back. As he is now officially 3 months old (!), he's staying awake a little longer in the morning, so after we unload everyone from the SUV-stroller, we go in and play together for a bit (or the toddler plays while the baby is propped on Mommy's lap watching her wolf down a breakfast that she's starving for!). After a while, I start to notice the redness creeping around his eyes, and he shows all those clear signs of being hungry- rooting around, little whiny cries, sucking the skin off my cheek as I hold him. So, I need to take him upstairs to nurse him and lay him down in his co-sleeper. No problem. Except.
"I want come!"
"I want come Baby C night-night!"
"Mommy, I want help!"
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"
That's what I have been confronted with as I try to bring the baby upstairs and get him settled into a quiet, let's-take-a-nap-now mood. Let's just say that the ensuing environment is not so conducive to getting a baby to sleep. And seeing the toddler screaming at the gate at the bottom of the steps as I bring him up to bed is heartbreaking.
Enter the square babysitter.
One day, on a whim, I tried to quell the storm that is the toddler at this time by asking, "Maybe you could watch a little show while I put baby C to bed?" This was met by an immediate pause of all crying, screaming and thrashing about, and my little redhead responded, "Otay!" (Yes, she channels a young Eddie Murphy.)Well, that's how it all got started. Now it has become a bit of a routine thing. I have tried to get her all into some neat toys just before I take him upstairs, but as soon as I say, "I'm taking baby C up for nap," she makes herself all comfy on the couch and states as matter-of-factly as possible, "I want VV."
That brings us to this week. The timing of the baby's nap has become pretty consistent, and it coincides with our local PBS's showing of Sesame Street. I've taken to watching it with her when I come back downstairs, and I have to admit that I've been quite entertained. (I always have been a fan- member since 1979!) There were two particular segments that got me going this week. One was from an episode that first aired last September. I can't believe that I'm typing these words, but... I looked at the tv as I came downstairs and saw Ice-T on the screen. On Sesame Street. Ice-T. You know, one of the creators of gangsta-rap-of-old, Ice-T. Detective Tutuola. On Sesame Street. Am I conveying just how bizarre this seemed to me? Not that I'm saying he shouldn't be on Sesame Street, just that it was quite surprising to find him there. He expressed his love for the word "rhyme," and I guess he's the perfect candidate for that. I'm having trouble finding any online video of this that actually works, but maybe you're a better Googler than I am.
This was followed by a skit on the show today that interestingly enough did NOT include Ice-T(this episode apparently first aired back in August 2006-- so may be old news to everyone else!), called Law & Order: Special Letters Unit. This was so good I made the whole family watch the video on youtube after dinner tonight. I could wax on and on about why this just slayed me, but I'll let the video speak for itself.
Tell me that didn't crack you up. You may have to be a L&O fan to truly appreciate all the parodies in this piece (which I admit to being-- they just can't make enough spin-offs for me!), but anyone would have to admit that those puppet creators TOTALLY got Richard Belzer down pat! This was just too much for me- totally made my day.
CHUNG CHUNG!
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