Tag: Mother’s Day

The best TV moms are…

This blog was originally published on elkharttruth.com on May 8, 2014.

In honor of Mother’s Day 2014, I thought this would be a good opportunity to pick the best TV moms.

My top picks are:

Lorelai Gilmore, “Gilmore Girls“

I’ve already talked about my love for  “Gilmore Girls” before, but I am a big fan of the character Lorelai.

She’s a fun mom. Who wouldn’t want to be a part of the Gilmore Girls movie nights or the all-night junk food binges?

But she’s also a tough mom. Lorelai could be blunt with Rory, her daughter whom she had at 16, and she wasn’t afraid to tell her to be careful.

Clair Hanks Huxtable, “The Cosby Show“

Clair Huxtable balanced it all. She was a lawyer, a wife and a mom to five children.

The Cosby Show was one of those great, almost timeless family sitcoms. And Clair was a mom who kept everyone together.

She laughed with her children, taught them life lessons and still made time to poke fun at her husband, playfully, of course.

Rebecca Katsopolis, “Full House“

Rebecca Katsopolis was the woman needed to balance out all the men on this ’90s family sitcom.

Before she was a mom to twins Nicky and Alex, she became a stand-in mom for D.J., Stephanie and Michelle, her co-host Danny’s three daughters.

Rebecca taught D.J. how to properly apply make-up and offered to take Stephanie to a mother-daughter slumber party.

She was the mom they needed when Danny was unsure how to proceed. And viewers loved her for it.

Amy Matthews, “Boy Meets World“

Amy took care of three somewhat-wild children, and her husband, who sometimes made rash decisions. And she managed to be honest with her children about growing up.

Most of all, she took Topanga and Shawn in as her own.

Other notable mothers include:

Obviously there are many more great TV moms. Let me know your favorites in the comments.

Also, don’t forget to tell the mother in your life how much you appreciate her.

Mother’s Day 2016: 5 TV moments when moms don’t have it all together

This blog was originally published on elkharttruth.com on May 4, 2016.

While moms are sometimes expected to be superheroes, it’s not always the case.

Moms are only humans, so even they mess up, freak out and/or need help some days.

Here are five moments where TV moms did just that:

RACHEL, “FRIENDS”

Episode: “The One Where Emma Cries,” season 9

First-time mothers learn a lot as they go. For new mom Rachel, that included letting her daughter sleep.

The day she brings home Emma, her newborn daughter with Ross, Rachel is so enamored that she decides to hold her sleeping baby, which wakes her up.

She should’ve listened to Monica, who’d advised against it. Emma wails for hours, and Rachel can’t figure out how to calm Emma down.

Fortunately she has friends to help, especially Monica, who seems to have the way to make Emma sleep.

 

CLAIRE, “MODERN FAMILY”

Episode: “Under Pressure,” season 5

Sometimes a reality check can be good.

Out of the three Dunphy kids on “Modern Family,” Alex is by far the smartest. But she’s also a perfectionist, and SAT prep gets to her so much that she decides to see a therapist after a birthday meltdown.

On the same episode/day, her mom, Claire, goes to parent-teacher conferences. By the way, Claire is the type of mom who wants her kids to have fun … and maybe didn’t do as well as Alex in school.

While Alex realizes she works so hard to be noticed, Claire realizes Alex’s classes are a lot to handle … and then stresses out in front of teachers.

The mother-daughter pair meet up after the therapy session, and Claire tells Alex how proud of her she is.

 

DJ, “FULLER HOUSE”

Episode: “Our Very First Show, Again,” season 1

Raising three kids with someone helping you is hard enough … imagine handling that on your own.

After her husband dies, DJ Fuller has family and friends help her raise her three boys. But they all have other obligations.

When they have a goodbye party and Jesse sings “Forever” to his wife, Rebecca, she tears up a bit.

Then, the next day, she has a sick child, work, a dog who’s about to give birth, and more.

So when she goes to take care of her baby, she talks to him, saying she’s scared and unsure because she doesn’t know how she’ll handle everything.

Little does she know her family and friends, who are about to leave, can hear her through the baby monitor.

Of course, this sets the reboot in motion, as sister Stephanie and best friend Kimmy decide to step up for DJ.

 

KITTY, “THAT ’70S SHOW”

Episode: “The Kids Are Alright,” season 6

When Red Foreman has a heart attack, he’s forced to rest and not work.

That means his wife, Kitty, has to pick up the slack. A lot of slack.

While Eric, their son, is preparing to leave town for college, Kitty picks up extra shifts at the hospital to help pay for everything, on top of taking care of her husband and the house.

But once Eric realizes Kitty can’t handle it all — he catches her doing laundry at about midnight because she’s between shifts and it’s the only time she can, and then finds her asleep on laundry — he agrees to stay home to help out.

 

LILY, “HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER”

Episode: “Band or DJ?” season 8

While most of “How I Met Your Mother” revolves around Ted and his love life (this episode is no different), there are moments where other characters get some focus.

In this episode, Lily and Marshall are dealing with the struggles of having a newborn, their son Marvin. In this episode, he’s crying … and producing empty diapers.

So Lily takes Ted up to the roof to talk. And she admits she wishes she wasn’t a mom sometimes, and that she hasn’t painted in months because she’s busy taking care of Marvin.

But she pulls through for her son, just like Ted has to move on from Robin. See, it all ties together!

 

So don’t forget to thank you mother or motherly figure in your life this weekend. Happy Mother’s Day!

CBS’ ‘Mom’ shows the crazy side of family life

This blog was originally published on elkharttruth.com on May 7, 2015, in honor of Mother’s Day. Season 4 of “Mom” premieres at 9 p.m. tonight.

Why do so many TV shows portray messy yet perfect families?

Even “Modern Family,” arguably one of the more realistic family sitcoms in the last 10 years, has happy endings every week.

The old saying is don’t go to bed angry, but is that reality? Not for all.

But “Mom” is different. It shows ups and downs and everything in between. And even though it’s a comedy, some episodes end with sad or frustrated characters.

The CBS show focuses on a three-generation family struggling to survive after the mother, Christy (Anna Faris) and grandmother Bonnie (Allison Janney), finally get sober. Its season two finale aired April 30, and the show was renewed for season three in March.

The former alcoholics are by no means perfect; in fact, they are far from it. They aren’t role models, but they’re trying.

On “Mom,” Christy’s daughter Violet (Sadie Calvano) is hostile toward her family because the two mothers are former alcoholics. Violet had a baby, which she gave up for adoption to give the child a better life, in season 1, and while Christy and Bonnie supported her, she struggled to move on in life. Then, Violet got engaged to an older professor in season 2, much to Christy and Bonnie’s dismay. They want better for Violet, but they haven’t provided enough reason to prove what’s better.

Christy’s son Roscoe (Blake Garrett Rosenthal) decides to live with his dad, who has turned his life around, at the end of season 2, which breaks Christy’s heart after she tried to turn her own life around by going back to school and getting a promotion at work.

Bonnie falls off the sobriety wagon after taking painkillers for a back injury, causing a riff between her and Christy, who celebrated two years of sobriety at the end of season 2.

They’re a broken and exhausted family. But the show provides laughter and heart as the family continues on in life.

They may yell or fight, but with love and support from friends (featuring Octavia Spencer and Jaime Pressly), they remember they are family, and continue to work through life’s challenges together.

So on Mother’s Day, even though it’s not easy, it’s important to remember that no one, not even your mother, is perfect.