Toddler Obssesed with MJ...

I think it's cute that she likes "thriller" and what a great description...it also seems to me that she enjoys it and obviously understands it's NOT real...so I say go with it! As for night terrors(been there/done that) they are usually caused by stress...when my 3rd son was 16-20months he had them...we also had baby #4, moved and bought a new car and all new furniture for our home...he was stressed by all the BIG changes, I wouldn't worry about night terrors. Now this is comming from a mom of 5 boys...I am extremely overprotective and my first 2 kids never even saw Blues Clues till they were 4, now my 5th son who is just three has been exposed to every H.P., worse yet Lord of the Rings(which I can't even watch) and much more...and I have grown to believe they handle it all with what you give them...if you scream when you see a spider...they will be afraid of spiders, if you answer honestly(like you did with the v.game and say thats not real...) the best you can then she'll get it...and hey my lil walks around with one glove on all the time!!! Go MJ!!

my 2.5 yr old listens and watches a lot. He loves music. He also has a vivid imagination and is very smart (toddlers are!!!) and he has developed MANY fears recently. Personally I would not allow him to watch this video over and over again b/c I know him and he'd think of it later on. I dont' shield my son often, which is why I think he has developed fears, but he is two, thats what they do,its part of their development and their world, I try to explain and comfort. Right now he often tells me he's afraid of monsters outside when its dark (since halloween), sometimes certain things on his cartoons scare him. He basically watched Noggin all the time so its not like I'm letting him watch any age inappropriate. It depends on your 2 yr old and how much you think she will analyze something. My son is very analytical. I think that Thriller video is pretty graphic. Play the song. Tell her the DVD is broken. 2 yr olds and older are very smart but not fully developed yet, I just don't think I'd want to show something that my son even puts the word scary too - especially b/c she might be so interested b/c it is scary and her little mind is really taking it all in and trying to comprehend it.

N.-
When my son was 3 he watched the Harry Potter movies, much to my chagrine. "Thank you, Auntie!" I thought he would be frightened, but nope, he was fine with everything. He reenacted the quidditch match and Harry on the end of his broomstick and caught the snitch in his mouth several times a day. By the time the second movie came out he had changed enough that he was truly frightened by the scary images. I think there is a learned reaction and a level of comprehension that he did not have prior. He refused to watch Harry Potter for probably 4 years, because he thought of them as scary. Your daughter will let you know when something is too scary and don't be surprised if something that wasn't scary before becomes scary. You'll learn the first time or two when she's in bed with you after watching something that seemed fairly innocuous.
S.

What's scary to us is different than what's scary to toddlers. My son is nuts about dinosaurs, and I thought Jurassic Park would scare him. Not at all. He was sure the T-Rex would be his friend no matter if it ate anyone else. And once he saw the Spinosaurus in Jurassic Park III, he fell in love all over again. Everyone gets scared sometime or another. I don't like spiders myself. When she does get scared of something - the dark - monster under the bed - whatever, give her some sympathy. But don't worry about fears she doesn't have.

My oldest daughter use to dance to MJ all the time when she was a toddler. They are so cute when the dance along. If you are concerned about her watching the video just hide it and tell her you can't seem to find it. Get a CD or two and let her dance along to that instead.