Kristen Howerton, cofounder of Mama Manifesto, a very cool community blogs for moms, explains after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

Earlier this month, Debbie Bookstaber, who blogs over at the fabulous mamanista.com, generously wrote a great column for us on why parents should relax a little and realize that TV is not the Antichrist. (A paraphrasing.) Her well-argued points and recommendations for wise TV-watching really hit home. So much so that we’re still hearing from parents empowered to admit that their kiddo occasionally eats breakfast in front of Dragon Tales. (Um, that would be me. But the only thing I regret? Oatmeal is so not a good food choice for the living room couch.)
After the jump, feel the love for Debbie.

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If you’ve been watching the Olympics since you were a kid, you understand you’ll never see the same drama, tragedy and triumph twice. This year, one of the best lessons to be learned? That it’s very, very cool to put aside your political differences and concentrate on spiking the ball. Melissa DeFord, who blogs at melissathemouth.com, explains.

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Vowing that you’ll never, ever allow your kids to watch TV is a little like promising you’ll never, ever a) raise your voice or b) let your kids have a junky snack sometimes. Let’s face it, it’s just not possible. Gummy bears and shouting, “Get your sister’s face out of the toilet!” happen. And you know what, everyone survives.

So stop the guilt trip about TV already. Debbie Bookstaber, who blogs at mamanista.com, gives you many excellent reasons why after the jump. And look at her! She grew up watching He-Man cartoons and still went to Yale.

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Have a budding Jon Stewart or Tina Fey on your hands? We don’t know what TV they watched as kids, but after the jump are the shows we recommend to cultivate your offspring’s own funny bone.

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Cookie Magazine, if you haven’t yet seen it, is sort of like the lovechild of Vogue and Real Simple…for parents. Even if you can’t afford, say, the lovely $650 diaper bag featured inside, you’ll still appreciate the fantastically written articles and clever organizing/cooking/bday party ideas. Which is why, when we stumbled across Cookie’s online list of favorite classic family movies, we thought we’d pass it on. Um, yeah, so it is from last summer, but they’re classics, right? Just like that $650 diaper bag, these flicks really never go out of style.

Nothing on the list we’d take issue with, although do know your offspring’s tolerance for scariness (those flying monkeys in The Wizard of Oz certainly aren’t for everyone) and musicals (again, The Sound of Music may drag for wee ones more used to dancing penguins than dancing nuns.) We’d guesstimate none of these films are suitable for kids under 4. Get more specific age recommendations from the amazingly astute folks at Common Sense Media.

Any kids’ films you’re sad/surprised/outraged (hey, it happens) to see missing from this list? Give it up below. We won’t laugh. We’re fans of Heavyweights, after all.

TV Tres: In which we bring you three soundbites (screen bites?) from the world of kids’ TV, mostly because we’re pretty proud of ourselves for thinking up the name, “TV Tres.”

Four-time NBA All-Star LeBron James has joined Nickelodeon’s The Big Green Help enviro-awareness campaign. Charlie and Lola are headed to Africa (sort of.) And…if someone in your family has either been deployed or just returned from war (sorry – we’re not into delicate euphemisms), your kids may be having an understandably rough time. Sesame Workshop, as always, has your back.

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Have a toddler who just can’t stop singing "Wheels on the Bus?" Chag Holland, who writes about being a stay-at-home dad of two at cynicaldad.

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