Our Shameless Social Experiment

We're not bad parents....really, we're not. But considering that Justin and I are both exhausted from the last few days of work and taking care of an extremely fussy, sick baby, we needed a bit of a rest. So we resorted to a trick Didi taught us over Christmas....we put Aubrey in his swing in front of the tv. (Insert feelings of guilt here.) Aubrey loves tv, and at this point I don't think it's a bad thing... the colors, shapes and sounds are stimulating (at least that's what I tell myself!) He has exhibited this excitement before, in particular over "Divine Design with Candice Olsen" (oooh, sparkly!) and "The Bachelor" (pretty ladies!) So when he got really excited over Disney Playhouse this morning, we entered into our first social experiment with our child.

First, here is how we quantify excitement:
1- Extreme kicking of the legs. He looks like he is riding a bike, furiously...think Tour De France through the Alps.
2- Arms in the air, to maintain balance while kicking. Think of the posture you would assume to ride a unicycle.
3- Vocalization, to include laughing and "talking" (vowel sounds and now "B" and "M" sounds).
4- Deer In The Headlights daze.

We observed this excitement over 3 different programs- Disney Playhouse with Mickey and the Gang; our regularly scheduled Sunday program, Meet the Press; and another Disney Playhouse show, Handy Manny. Here are our interpretations of Aubrey's feelings towards these shows:

Mickey and the Gang:
"Two thumbs up. That Mickey has huge ears.... I hear you grow into them. And look, Goofy has his own vegetable garden! Subsitence farming is the new rage."

Meet The Press:
On Bill Clinton- "I like his hair. Kind of looks like my Grandpa Doug's hair."
On George Bush- "That guy's funny. He has ears like Mickey."

Handy Manny (who appropriately was teaching about how not to spread germs):
"Hola amigo! Has anyone ever told you you sound like Caesar Milan? It must be cool to be friends with a talking wrench."

At least, that's what we think he was saying. But one thing's for sure, he definitely enjoyed himself. And it's not like we let him watch "Girls Next Door."