Bob The Builder Gets Real

For awhile, this house was nothing but Thomas The Train or Bob The Builder. It was such a fetish that The Poo's grandmother sent her an entire set of Bob talking vehicles (um, yeah, thanks for THAT, mom) and a train table with the requisite train set.

However, after a month at the ocean with her decidedly girlie older cousin, The Poo abandoned her rugged friends in favor of My Little Pony and The 12 Dancing Barbie Princesses.

When The Parent Bloggers Network sent me Bob The Builder On-Site Roads & Bridges, you could say I was skeptical. After all, we'd just come off a nine-day jag of "My Little Pony And The Puppy."

That's not to say that I wasn't hopeful, as well. Ever hear that pony theme song? It's enough to make you stick a sharp knife in your own ear.

The new Bob DVD does have a cool twist, one I thought might catch The Poo's fancy - and I was right.

Bob and his Can-Do Crew of rugged machines visit real-life construction sites in this hour-long movie, and they show exactly how roads are made.

The footage of the huge diggers, graders and mixers working together to build roads and big bridges held The Poo in thrall during that ever-so-crucial time in our household that we call "The Witching Hour." Between dinner and bathtime, this entertaining and educational show kept her rapt - which gave me the chance to clean up the dinner dishes uninterrupted.

The kid stood in front of the TV and narrated for me what each machine was called, what it did, and what was being built. Of course, I wasn't really paying attention - but she was, and that's what counts.

The DVD teaches kids the whole process of road construction, from digging the first hole to the foundation and then, finally, laying the asphalt.

I just know that the next time we pass a construction site, the lessons she learned will come spilling out in a rush.

If your child already likes Bob The Builder, this DVD is a must-have. And for those who may be just mild fans, you might want to check it out. The novelty of watching real-life, huge machines digging in dirt is just too cool to resist.