Yo Gabba What?

image via: nick jr.

Today was my first experience with the Nick Jr. TV show Yo Gabba Gabba!. For months I have been hearing comments on the show. Comments such as "childrens shows aren't what they used to be" or "the writers must be on drugs while they think this stuff up." Having no desire to watch the show, I assumed it was wierd and dismissed the topic.

....that was before Mason was mobile. The past few days, between shower & bed time, I have been attempting to have Mase sit in my lap & watch about 15 minutes of TV as a "calm down tactic." Curious George and Dragon Tales each held his attention for maybe 5 minutes (which I thought was impressive)! Until...

Tonight, when scrolling through Netflix, I saw Yo Gabba Gabba! and decided to give it a shot. The show was an overload of colors, movement & techno music. I admit, there were several times when I couldn't help but chuckle at how ridiculous the show was (like when Elijah Wood magically appeared from Plex's magic antenna to teach his favorite dance move). Ridiculous or not, Mason sat in my lap without moving a single muscle for 14 minutes!! 

14 minutes may not sound too impressive to us adults, who can easily sit through a two hour long movie. But in the world of Momma, where snuggling on the couch with your active child seems light years away, 14 minutes is Heaven!

The verdict: Maybe the creators of Yo Gabba Gabba! are tripping acid, or maybe they devote hours of research to what will hold a child's attention... but whatever they are doing, it WORKS!