Elmo, PBS, the Economy

MSN.com is my home page; otherwise, I might never have seen this charming "right-for-now" Elmo clip from a Today’s Saturday show. If Elmo has had a huge influence on your kids, there is a new Elmo opportunity tool for kids and families.

What a helper Elmo can be for explaining what kids need to know and may be awkward for parents to approach with little ones.

Prime time on Wednesday nights at 8PM nation-wide on PBS stations tune in for a special series of Sesame Street shows. The target is families impacted by the current economic situation… the whole family not jus Mom and Dad.   Four real families plus Elmo’s family offer advice, concerns, personal survival stories and many laughs.

Even, in the Today Show clip Elmo teaches things not taught in many families these days. Elmo boldly states, “Elmo can’t have everything Elmo wants”.  What a concept for a child to hear from one of their idols.  What a concept for parents also to then reinforce, discuss, and guide.

We all know over indulgence is our mode of operating and has been for some time. A bummed economy is not something most folks know how to cope with at all.  Kids whose parents experienced the Great Depression might have a better chance of coping with economic downturns better.My parents fit the category and we absorbed a lot about frugal from them and managed to instill some in our children to a degree.

More than anything raising a family to be anti-instant gratification is a very good to do.