Today is Sesame Street Day! Children (and their parents) have been educated and entertained by Sesame Street and all it's delightful characters for about forty years. The characters, like Big Bird, Bert, Ernie, Cookie Monster, and Elmo, are recognized and loved by children all around the world.

I didn't grow up watching the show since I was in college when the show first aired, but my friends and I all watched it - even though none of us had kids!


The show's appeal to both children and adults is one of the many great qualities of the program. Some segments can be enjoyed on one level by children and on another level by adults, who understand the references that the kids don't get. For example, kids could enjoy watching Cookie Monster host "Monsterpiece Theater," but the adults could not only enjoy the segment, but the reference to the PBS show Masterpiece Theater.

Many of the characters are also cleverly related to people, real and fictitious, that adults could get, but kids couldn't. The Count is a reference to Count Dracula, for instance, and Sherlock Hemlock is Sherlock Holmes. But there is also Flo Bear (Flaubert) and Aristotle. This multi-age appeal of the show means that parents can sit down and enjoy it with the kids instead of just plopping the kids in front of the TV set.

When my son was young, he absolutely adored Sesame Street. It was hands-down his favorite show. We had almost everything we could find with a Sesame Street theme, including shoes and clothes, sheets, blankets, and wallpaper.

These were all in addition to games and toys! If your child loves Sesame Street, too, you can find some great Sesame Street themed toys and Sesame Street themed games.