Morning Sickness Sucks, Or Why I Heart Barney

Morning sickness - ha! A man must have come up with that moniker, because let me tell you, ladies - I don't know about you, but I feel like I'm on a rocking and rolling sailboat all the livelong day.

The worst part? It intensifies when I move. And I have a very energetic three-year-old to contend with, who wakes up each morning and says, "I love to play all day, dude!"

Yes, she really says "dude."

Let's just say I've been doing a lot of parenting from a prone position on the sofa. And sometimes, I even fall asleep there.

That's where Barney comes in. That big purple dinosaur so many people love to hate has become my savior.

Personally, I never had the same visceral anti-Barney feelings seemingly shared by so many other folks. In college, I earned my spending money as a nanny to five kids. The four-year-old once told me that Barney was "pafetic."

Barney may be a lot of things, but the show does teach simple concepts like sharing, how to deal with being angry, and music. Lots and lots of music.

Sure, the child actors are occasionally creepy, but they also do a lot of singing. According to the music educator and doctoral candidate who lives in my house, children thrive on hearing voices like theirs in song.

I know that is true for my daughter. When "Barney: Celebrating Around The World" arrived on my doorstep a few weeks ago, I almost collapsed with gratitude when I remembered that the Parent Bloggers Network asked me to review it.

That sucker went into the DVD player immediately, still cold from being on the delivery truck. The best part about this particular DVD is that it is an extended length. "Barney: Celebrating Around The World" has a run-time of 54 minutes.

That's 54 blissful minutes of naptime for mama.

I also liked the fact that the DVD explores so many different cultures' dance and musical traditions. The Poo especially enjoys the Irish dancers - she imitates The Lord Of The Dance right in the middle of the family room.

Which, I have to say, is totally hilarious.

As expected, the DVD also features plenty of music and singing, and most of the actors are children. So The Poo gets to hear other kids from different cultures singing. She picked up the tunes after one or two viewings, and I get a Barney-themed concert each night while she takes her bath.

Our copy is an advance one, but the rest of the world can get "Barney: Celebrating Around The World" on Jan. 29. I highly recommend you check it out - especially you ladies with a bun in the oven.