Can I make a confession? With the exception of my own mother, the mom who has influenced my day-to-day parenting style the most thus far is a cartoon tiger from Jungle Beach, Land of Make Believe. If you haven’t had the pleasure of getting to know Mom Tiger, let me tell you a little bit about this feline Super Mother of two. She loves sun flowers, Hawaiian print tunics, dancing and fresh baked banana bread. She takes wonderful care of her family- Dad Tiger, Daniel and Baby Margaret, and extends the warmest of welcomes to her father-in-law, Grampere Tiger (even though he often arrives unannounced). She sounds pretty nice, right? Well, her charms don’t end there. Here are just a few of the reasons Mom Tiger is a hero in my book…
- She Has a Song in her Heart
Whether Daniel is dealing with a case of separation anxiety, or he feels soo mad that he wants to roar, Mom Tiger always has a catchy jingle to perfectly resolve her preschooler’s problem. Her little diddies are easy to remember, and have legit helped me potty train my kid, navigate our first days with a new baby, and get my picky daughter to try new foods (’cause they might taste goo-ood!).
- She Keeps the Love Alive
Mom and Dad Tiger don’t just netflix and chill. No. They go out for dinner and dancing. It’s on my to do list, but I haven’t been out dancing with my husband since that second pink line appeared 5 years ago. She and Dad Tiger help each other out, and even plan fun surprises for each other. They exchange love notes, flowers, and baked goods just because. Mom Tiger’s name might literally be “Mom”, but she has an identity outside of that, too! She makes time for her man- she strikes a balance that I’m constantly trying to achieve.
- She’s Involved at School
It’s Daniel’s teacher’s birthday? Mom Tiger doesn’t just send a card. She goes to the school, helps to decorate the classroom, and plans a party while Teacher Harriet takes a load off. You know she offers to bring in extra supplies for the class, serves as homeroom mom and president of the PTA.
- She’s a Great Friend
She’s the kind of mom who will have your kid over for dinner on a weeknight. She knows parents need some time off, but instead of just commiserating with her girlfriends about it, she volunteers to take on an extra kid or two for the evening. And you don’t have to worry what your kid will be eating. She’ll be serving up healthy meals like veggie spaghetti, salad, and banana swirl for dessert (and I think I can confidently assume it’s all non-GMO and organic).
- She’s the Ultimate Peaceful Parent
Daniel is an overall good kid, but he has his moments. Even still, mom Tiger does everything right. Mom Tiger never loses her cool. So what if he brought a truck load of sand into her living room to make an inside beach? Mom Tiger recognizes teachable moments. She appreciates his creativity and ability to problem solve while she successfully redirects him to a sand colored blanket as he happily shovels his sand back outside where it belongs. Yes, she’s home alone all day with two little people and their little people problems, but she keeps herself in check. No Yelling. No “mean mama glaring”. She doesn’t even really need consequences to instill obedience in her son or stop a tantrum in its tracks. She just sweetly parents her little tigers like a boss.
Mom Tiger is just plain grr-ific. Admittedly, though, she has a bit of an advantage over us real world mothers. She parents for about 20 minutes at a time with built in breaks. She has a team of parenting experts feeding her lines, and no one seems to judge her for letting her preschooler go out in public pants-less. I’m not here to say her life is easy. I haven’t walked a mile in her cute, yet sensible, purples shoes. All things considered- I’m still a huge fan. I’ll happily take all the tips I can get and be forever grateful for the lessons my daughter and I have learned from my special striped mom hero, Mrs. Tiger.
Who else loves the Tiger family matriarch? Do you have another favorite TV mom? I would love to know!
[…] of her favorite people for her to look through if she missed us. We turned to our trusty friend Daniel Tiger to remind her that “gro-own ups come baaaack”. We even planned a fun princess picnic […]