4/8/10

Dinosaur Train

Dinosaur Train my boys' most recent craze.  We accidentally found this cartoon which airs on PBS the other day.  In the opening sequence a Pteranodon mother's eggs hatch.  The fourth egg hatches and Buddy the T Rex is born.  The song lyrics are "The last little baby was a different size, with teeth and a tail and big green eyes. He didn't look anything like the rest. . . . But dear old Mrs. Pteranodon said this is your family and I'm your mom. You may be different, but we're all creatures, all dinosaurs have different features."

Buddy, the preschool aged T Rex and his adoptive Pteranodon family board the Dinosaur Train each episode and embark on discovery adventures.  Adoption themes run throughout the cartoon.  In one
episode Buddy searches for his species with the help of his Pteranodon family.  To read more about this cartoon visit this website.




The cartoon began airing in September 2009 and I wish we would have found it sooner.

11 comments:

Elizabeth @ My Life, Such as it is... said...

Charlie likes Dinosaur Train too. I like that it addresses adoption in a normal, non-hyped up manner. Plus the usual PBS educational stuff too.

Adoptive Momma said...

Couldn't agree more Elizabeth.

Swinging On Small Hinges said...

My daughter likes this show too. The very first time we watched it- it was all about Dino poo. Ugh! :)

Von said...

Adoption is not normal, neither is embryo adoption and there is something deeply disturbing about this attempt to sugar-coated and make normal and acceptable something that is so unacceptable to many;relinquishing mothers, adoptees, those who do not know their ancestry and have no rights to know.
Look deeper, it's not subtle and the message is blatant, all things have other sides.

eureka said...

I don't think adoption is normal either, because that's not what most people do. BUT I think it is great that you have saved the lives of your children. Adoption is one of the most selfless things a person can do and I am personally in awe that you and your husband embarked on this adventure.

Anonymous said...

Von, the nicest way I can say what I'm feeling: Get a damn life. These kids are loved, adored, and wanted-there is nothing disturbing here.

Andy and Kiara said...

WOW. I am amazed by those comments! Von, I hope you realize that adoption has changed A LOT in recent years. I don't know Adoptive Momma's kiddos' stories, but I suspect they are similar to my children's stories. Birth families choose adoption for a variety of reason, but usually these children are very loved by their birth families and the adoption plan is very much voluntary and for good reasons.

Adoption has existed forever. Yes, there was a time when adoption was treated as secretive, shameful, and something people only did if they had to. But that is not today! Our children's birthmothers chose adoption due to circumstances and life experiences that were out of their control, for the most part. And they chose adoption out of love -- wanting more for their children than they had themselves growing up, and more than they could provide at that point in time. There was no secrecy, shame, or rejection. We know their birth families, interact with them, and they are like extended relatives. Our children know their stories and health histories. No rights taken away here.

Also, families who adopt are not usually saving their children's lives, and prefer if people don't imply that. (The exception may be in some cases of international adoption from poverty-stricken orphanages where children have very little chance w/o adoption). They are simply growing their families, and their children may live a different life than with their first family, but in most cases their children would have been loved and cared for either way. I know mine would have.

Now I wonder if I just wasted my time in bothering to write this here..... Von doesn't sound very open-minded to this kind of stuff, does he? ;)

Andy and Kiara said...

My kids love this show, too!

I just wrote a long comment, but it disappeared. Hmmmmm..... Basically I wanted to point out that adoption has existed forever, and there is nothing abnormal about it. Not every family can raise their children, and people have been helping each other out, through formal or informal adoption, for hundreds of years. And yes, there WAS a point in time (and a relatively short period of time, I believe) when it was treated as shameful, secretive, etc. But that is no longer the case!

Our children know their birth families, their stories, and we know their health histories. To varying degrees, this is now the norm. In our case, their birth families are like extended relatives.

Von, I'd encourage you to re-think your view. Or at least figure out why you feel so strongly about this. Things have changed, and that doesn't mean that some of the stories from the past aren't sad -- even tragic -- but that does not have to define adoption today.

S.I.F. said...

That is adorable!

And I LOVE the new layout!!

Adoptive Momma said...

Kiara both your comments appear and you've said what many of us were thinking.

Thanks SIF!

Mary said...

I saw that episode of Dinosaur Train where he found out his species- I LOVED it!