I just realized that I know almost zero about what the good movies and tv shows are for kids these days. I feel mildly in favor of Dora the Explorer because I think it’s good for kids to learn foreign languages, but other than that, I have no opinions on any of those shows. I haven’t even seen hardly any of those Pixar-type movies, though I’ve heard good things about The Incredibles and Ratatouille.

Is there anything particularly smart for kids on TV these days? Is Sesame Street still good? I’m concerned that they jumped the shark when they made Snuffleupagus visible to everyone.

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ALSO: I’m gunning for one more mini-trip. We were kicking around the idea of Maui, but that’s awfully expensive and far away, and I don’t want to use tons of vacation right now because I’d rather save it for post-baby. Right now my best idea is Montreal (or Montréal if you want to get fussy about it. Or is it a grave accent? The acute looks right. My French is dismal.).

I’ve never been there, but it looks like a cool city, almost like leaving the continent but with reasonably short flights and an exchange rate that won’t make me keel over and die. Anybody been there? Any tips or recommended sights? We’d probably just go for a long weekend in October some time. I’d like to do grownup things, like museums and non-kid-friendly restaurants.