No TV please!

My goodness. 

Boyboy woke at 5am this morning and insisted on waking up, talking about zebras and giraffes... "可以看 Lion King 呐呐狮了". Mummy tried to put him back to sleep, trying all the way to almost 7am before giving up. 

What is 'Lion King 呐呐狮'? It's the lion character in the cartoon movie Madagascar. The movie which he watches EVERY SINGLE TIME he is left at my parents' place. My Mum can let him watch this favourite both during lunch and dinner, as it makes feeding easier.

It gets even worse if my Dad is at home on the weekends. My Dad used to bond with me over TV, and is taking the same familiar approach with Boyboy. Dad has gone out and bought many movie DVDs for the boy, even recording some from TV on his harddisk.

So the boy can watch TV during lunch, go nap, wake up to TV, then more TV during dinner. That is what happened yesterday when he spent the day there. How horrible! The brain will be so zapped.

I have more than once emphasised to my Mum that Boyboy should watch minimal TV, and to keep within 1 hour is really necessary. Supported it with explanations of how it causes short attention span, ADHD and poor reading and listening skills etc. He doesn't even watch TV at home unless he is especially cranky and we need a life-line. 

But as always, parents think they know more than their children :p So why would grandparents listen to parents?

And I suspect, it's partially because my parents' new flat is small and there is not much space for Boyboy to run around. He has some toys, but won't play with them for long without company. Boyboy likes role-play, but that means my parents will have to be silly with him... and be totally attentive. 

Whereas with TV, Mum can still do her chores and Dad can still read his newspapers :p

This morning was so tortuous that when my Mum called, I immediately complained to her. She laughed as though it was a joke!!! Wah, then I was so pissed and lashed out at her for laughing. 

Was talking about becoming a more assertive Mum. Sigh, this might just be my training!