WIBU to not allow popular kids characters/music in the house?

[Elilanna]

No kids yet, but I'm hoping to have them in the near-ish future, work in the early childhood sector and have a young niece and nephew so I'm quite aware of what's popular with the little ones these days, but I'm personally not a fan and would rather not expose my own children to any of that media, at least not when they're very small - but I've heard a lot of criticism of this approach, that "only crunchy hippie mums do that!" and "it's part of our culture, you're depriving them of an important part of childhood!" Specifically I'd be avoiding Disney, Cocomelon, and the Wiggles, and even things I don't mind wouldn't be on baby's clothes & other belongings as I don't believe in turning your child into free advertising for a popular brand. I'm otherwise not very "hippie" or "crunchy", this is just the one thing where I'd like to limit their exposure.

So... tell me I'm not the only one who wants to do this?

I think it’s perfectly doable, OP. My children don’t actually know what the television does, and they are just fine. They also only play with handmade, sustainably produced wooden toys, or found objects. I hand weave their clothes using materials that I have foraged, and their favourite treat is lightly steamed kale or cavolo nero (when we are feeling decadent) with a tahini dip. The one ‘naughty’ thing I do allow is my two year old to read the guardian weekend supplement every now and again.

This

I see where you're coming from but then you have a kid who you love so much and you want them to be happy and inevitably they'll see peppa/coco melon somewhere then you'll see a peppa tshirt or jammies and think, "X will LOVE this"... and that's that.

This!!

My kids loved winnie the pooh and Peter rabbit initially due to the books they had.
Would you proscribe Beatrix Potter and A.A Milne?

Children gain a lot of comfort from familiar characters and as they grow, like a pp said, they show their personalities and their likes and dislikes in this way too.

Of course, I am joking. But in all seriousness you have less control as they get bigger and their lives and worlds extend beyond you. I also imagine you wouldn’t stop them from having or engaging with characters they like just because you don’t approve. When your little one is poorly and just wants to lie on the sofa you will sit and snuggle them and watch moana over and over and over just like the rest of us do, and you’ll most likely enjoy it.

Though I draw the line at Bing.

I remember saying "My baby will only have educational wooden toys."

There is a sea of plastic pink crap in their room.

You want to alienate your kids from their peers? Popular culture is actually a very important part of bonding with other kids.

You haven’t even had kids yet so what do you know????

I mean your kids your rules…

But honestly as PPs have said that level of Puritanism just won’t survive the rigours of having small children.

I don’t think kids are being deprived by not having access to these characters but why would you deliberately make your children’s lives this controlled and prescriptive over something so innocuous and which ultimately will make your life easier if you just roll with it?

its hard enough having small kids without arbitrary and punitive rules about things which don’t really matter.

I'm autistic and actually believed you till I read the foraged bit

I've always loathed them BUT can appreciate watching my grandchildren who sing and dance when they're on that it's good for body coordination and language development.

I was exactly the same OP.

It came back to me one day a few years later as I folded the Lightning McQueen bedding, boxer shorts, PJ's and socks. This was after I had removed the Lightning McQueen cup, bowl, cutlery water bottle and lunchbox from the dishwasher, and cleared away the Lightning McQueen cars and race track.

I'm not truly certain how the bastardly little red car made it into every facet of our lives though I'm pretty certain DM was a driving force initially but the utter pride and joy these items gave DS made me relent.

We're actually packing the house up in a major declutter in preparation for our new house to complete, and we are still carrying round a beer box full of chipped and well loved die cast Cars. DS is off to uni in September and has flatly refused to countenance passing them on 😆

I though like this pre kids. They are primary school and have a hand choosing stuff now. Nerf, Pokémon, lol dolls. Still not a fan but hey ho. Biden does lots of lovely appliqué t shirts for when they are small and biddable.

Don't really see the point in this thread.
You have no children and your saying what you would do with a hypothetical child.
No one would care if you don't let them watch Disney etc. (I love Disney btw!)
You do you in your hypothetical world, your house, your rules. Simple!

My son has never watched any Marvel, Spider-Man etc (he's only 4 and has never asked, we aren't fans) but the boys in his nursery always wore super hero t shirts. So now my son owns a few and a Spider-Man figure and costume. They just want to like what their friends like!

I think you'd be unknowingly depriving your children of access into worlds where everything is sweet and harmonious. I have very fond memories of my little boys watching postman pat and thinking the world was a helpful man pootling around the countryside with his cat!
So much of children's television is educational and helps them become interested in reading and independent play, because products are linked to the shows. They will bond with other children over a shared interest.
It's formative stuff - I look back on my own childhood and remember Floella Benjamin and the cast of Rainbow with great affection - memories of a simple, happy time!

You will also be making a lot of additional work for yourself in actively trying to avoid all this stuff. There's no harm in filtering out what you consider to be utter dross but if you ban everything you will be throwing the baby out with the bath water imo.

You can only control them for so long OP - by all means make this your hill but there will be bigger things to worry about as they get older

We have some lovely wooden toys such as cars and blocks which DS still happily plays with but when he reached the throwing stage of development they were all rather swiftly put onto high shelfs or in the cupboard out of reach.

Wood looks aesthetically pleasing but fuck me it hurts when launched at you with the impressive force and aim of a small human.

My best advice would be to take an open mind and deal with the situation you’re actually in at the time. I’ve always been pretty anti-Disney, so it isn’t something I’ve actively encouraged them to like. But if they ask to see a film, or want something that they’ve seen at school, then that’s fine - but it’s led by them rather than by me.

Yep, you're being massively unreasonable but you already know that or you wouldn't be asking.

It's the same as only letting gender neutral because you "want them to choose". How the fuck can they choose what they like if they don't have access to the other stuff. People are nuts.

I’ve never heard it till this thread🤷‍♀️

Bluey is popular and is a great tv show!

But I'm actually with you on cocomelon. I can't stand it so I blocked it on Netflix so it doesn't show up, and told my then two year old it must be broken (yes, I know I could have just told her no).

07:37 am.

A non-parent is here to pontificate about their imagined children’s imagined media diets.

in the meantime ……..

Perfectly possible. I don’t like all that branded stuff either and we didn’t have it (or watch it)

kids are end of primary now and don’t seem to be suffering due to a lack of tat in their early years.

Whilst I'm not a fan of character clothing, it does become difficult to avoid as they get bigger and can make their own choices. Its also quite easy to avoid the cartoons with your first but once they start nursery, then its game over. All subsequent children are exposed to it much younger.

Life will be so much less stressful if you just accept you can't control absolutely everything and a bit of Peppa pig won't hurt them.

Of course you are not the only one. I have friends who do not have TVs and their children are fine.

My child never gets TV from me (they are 18mo) and if I had my way wouldn't watch it for as long as possible. I almost never watch it myself. However, Daddy lets them watch Mr Tumble and Moon and Me when he's in charge. They love it and M&M is extremely gentle. We will allow Disney when they are older. I have very fond memories of a few favourite TV shows I watched as a child.

We don't allow Peppa Pig or Cocomelon or Telly Tubbies. I haven't heard of Bluey or Wiggles. We don't have branded clothing - it's easy to avoid.

I wanted a wooden organic nursery. It's very difficult because other people have bought them plastic tat and they loooove it. Sigh! So we have a mixture and compromised on buying secondhand plastic tat as much as possible (and asking relatives to do the same).