How Having A Baby Changed My TV Viewing Habits

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It is amazing how truly ignorant you are about the life of a parent before you have kids of your own. How many of us have watched our friends or random strangers with their children and thought “Oh, when I have kids I will never do that.” I know I did. One of my dumbest comments ever was “My whole life isn’t going to change just because I have a kid.” Oh, how I laugh thinking about that now.

“I will still make time for my friends, go out & do things for myself”, I said. Well part of that was true. I do still try to make time for my friends, but Oh how things have changed.

This is what a Saturday night out with one of my friends looked like before and then after kids. We went from nursing beers to nursing babies. What a difference a year made.

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This was just one of many changes in my life. I think one change that you will see in any household after having a child is the presence of cartoons & sing-alongs on the television set. I find myself at work singing the theme song to Little Einsteins, & humming the Hot Dog Dance. The Bubble Guppies & the clan at Mickey Mouse Clubhouse are regular guests in our home.

What I didn’t realize is how much it would affect my television viewing after she went to sleep. Programming that I once found desirable suddenly has become disturbing and offensive to me.

It was not unusual for my husband & me to have weekend long Law & Order marathons. Now I can barely watch an episode without cringing. I already have irrational fears when it comes to my child, so to see a program that centers around crimes that are often committed against children makes me sick to my stomach.

My husband & I were big into Breaking Bad. There was one episode that showed a 6 year old boy getting shot and killed while riding his bike. If you watched the show, I am sure you know the one. The image of it haunted me for days.

It is not just the crime dramas that I can no longer watch. I now find some of my old favorites such as Family Guy to be offensive. I realize many people have this feeling already, but the truth is even with all it’s political incorrectness & crude humor it was one of my favorites. I now have difficulty sitting through a full episode. Is it because I have so closely monitored inappropriate content for my daughter, that I no longer feel that I can watch it? I am not sure. All I know is that I am thankful for re-runs of The Big Bang Theory, because that seems to be the only thing that I find suitable for myself to watch these days, that and Sophia the First.

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12 comments

  1. I know exactly what you mean and I had read the book, The Lovely Bones before having kids and then I tried to watch the movie version after and couldn’t sit through the whole thing as I found myself crying about half way through thinking of my own girls. So, definitely have had those moments here for sure.

  2. So perfectly said!! I felt like I was the only one because my hubby doesn’t feel this way- but I do, and the same shows you mentioned! It must be a protective mama thing 🙂 I have opted for mostly PBS shows and even of those I am picky about what/when/how much is on.

  3. Every word you wrote is true! I cracked up at the comparison pics. “Nursing beers” vs “nursing babies!” Maybe have one beer while you nurse the babies? 🙂

    1. Lol! Maybe that would have been a good idea. She is 2 now, but I my girlfriend and I always would joke about what a difference the year made. Now I can barely drinking a beer without getting drunk. I don’t want to say how many it used to take. Oh how times change.

      1. I hear you! I drink a glass of wine (actually a coffee mug of wine—cabinets are too full of sippy cups to have real wine glasses) and seriously would not drive. 🙂

  4. I can relate to this so much. I tend to watch the singing reality shows like X Factor and The Voice (Australia) – lighthearted and fun. Having a child has not only altered my tv/ movie viewing but also the music I listen to – I am more careful to choose helpful lyrics. I know you are busy, so no obligation to participate of course (!), but I have nominated you for a Very Inspiring Blogger Award. Details can be found here: http://humbleheartscribbles.wordpress.com/2014/07/12/very-inspiring-blogger-award/ Merryn- (Humble Heart Scribbles)

    1. How wonderful. Thank you for the nomination. Congratulations to you. It is well deserved. I do love answering these questions. I think they are fun. I will try to do them. I hope you are enjoying your weekend.

      1. You’re welcome! And thanks for the congrats too :). I feel honoured – my blog started off as a place to dump poems lol and it’s nice that my writing is read and enjoyed! I love questionnaires too :). I have trouble thinking of my own random facts but I did enjoy a few tid-bit Tuesdays :). Had a busy weekend but it was good. Commemoration / naming of a laneway in Hastings, Victoria (Australia) in memory of a friend’s father who lost his life protecting his wife from an armed robbery a year ago then went out for lunch/ to the local park afterwards. In church this morning there were a few bars of music and my 3-year old son piped up, ‘That’s Amazing Grace!”. He was right! 🙂 So proud yet self-conscious because of the attention at the same time! We have a lovely little community there so I needn’t worry about what people think – E marches to the beat of his own drum and is quite the free spirit! He is very musical – I bought him a toy accordion today! 🙂

  5. The Disney movie, “Oliver” made me cry. And I can’t bring myself to watch much more than HGTV and BBC these days. Definitely no more Walking Dead.

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