Happy 40th Birthday, Sesame Street

My kids grew up on Sesame Street. Back when they were little, living in Joliet, Illinois, there was no such thing as cable TV, Direct TV, satellite dish, etc. We had the major three networks, a few Chicago stations, plus Public TV. Oh, there may have been others, but I can't recall what they were.

Early on, Hans loved to sit and watch TV. I could trust him to stay in the living room and not even move when the TV was on. He really liked Sesame Street, Mr. Rogers, Electric Company and Spider Man. I don't know his or Peder's favorite Sesame Street character, but for Heidi, I know she loved (still does) the Muppets. Mine has always been Big Bird.

One year on the day after Thanksgiving, Heidi, Steve and I were one of the first to enter Target so that Heidi could get a Tickle Me Elmo doll. At the time, she was a student at UND.

A few weeks ago I took Aurelia to church with me. The introduction to the sermon started with a picture of one of the Sesame Street characters on our video screens. Aurelia announced, "There's Oscar the Grouch! There's Oscar the Grouch!" Indeed, she was right. So this is now a favorite program including the third generation of our family.

Today marks the 40th anniversary of Sesame Street. "A realm of sunny days where everything's A-OK, the series starts its new season with episode 4187, which features the letter H and, naturally, the number 40. With it and the 25 new hours that follow, 'Sesame Street' will continue to explore its chosen habitat - and experiment with how it does the job."