The Big Bird Obsession: Is it OK to hide things you're tired of?
May 6th 2010 14:00
As you may have guessed from the title, my son loves Big Bird. Loves, loves, loves him. We own three Big Bird movies. They're good movies for him. But he wants to watch them every night! Granted, we only usually have a half hour of TV time, but a half hour of the same movies every night gets old.
And the list goes on-books that he wants to hear over and over (as in, once we finish reading, he immediately wants to hear it again), toys that make tons of noise that he wants to constantly play with, things like that.
I almost feel bad saying it, but these things have a tendency to disappear after a while. Not permanently-they just take vacations. For a few months. Maybe six. I know Brown Bear Brown Bear took an extended leave in my wife's nightstand after being read about a thousand times in a one-month period. Then suddenly he remembered its existence and we had to get it out again. It was better this time, since he was older and could name the animals and colors himself. Thankfully this time, it's just another book, to be read occasionally. I think putting it away for a while got him out of his rut and interested in the many other books he has. Same goes for those loud toys-he owns plenty of fun, quiet toys, and just needed to stop thinking about the noisy ones to notice the others.
So, is it OK to hide the stuff you're tired of? My opinion is yes, at least when your kids are young and won't really notice. Any time something of our son's “went missing,” he usually didn't even notice the loss, or asked about it a few times and them moved on to another toy. He's getting a little old for it now, though things still disappear occasionally. Unfortunately I'm pretty sure he'd notice the loss of any of the Big Bird movies! Unless it's something that your child will be really upset losing, like a beloved stuffed animal, take it out of circulation for a while. It'll be good for your peace of mind, and they'll love it all the more when it's rediscovered!
And the list goes on-books that he wants to hear over and over (as in, once we finish reading, he immediately wants to hear it again), toys that make tons of noise that he wants to constantly play with, things like that.
I almost feel bad saying it, but these things have a tendency to disappear after a while. Not permanently-they just take vacations. For a few months. Maybe six. I know Brown Bear Brown Bear took an extended leave in my wife's nightstand after being read about a thousand times in a one-month period. Then suddenly he remembered its existence and we had to get it out again. It was better this time, since he was older and could name the animals and colors himself. Thankfully this time, it's just another book, to be read occasionally. I think putting it away for a while got him out of his rut and interested in the many other books he has. Same goes for those loud toys-he owns plenty of fun, quiet toys, and just needed to stop thinking about the noisy ones to notice the others.
So, is it OK to hide the stuff you're tired of? My opinion is yes, at least when your kids are young and won't really notice. Any time something of our son's “went missing,” he usually didn't even notice the loss, or asked about it a few times and them moved on to another toy. He's getting a little old for it now, though things still disappear occasionally. Unfortunately I'm pretty sure he'd notice the loss of any of the Big Bird movies! Unless it's something that your child will be really upset losing, like a beloved stuffed animal, take it out of circulation for a while. It'll be good for your peace of mind, and they'll love it all the more when it's rediscovered!
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