Today we bring you the Pony Up Daddy, another toy to add to the endless list of devices that are replacing the benefits of “free time”. Who needs to fill their downtime or boredom with no-cost creativity or spontaneity when they can pay money for manufactured fun? (Oh, and don’t worry moms, the shrewd marketers at PUD have taken the time to make sure you, too, know you’re welcome to use this must-have item).
Will my kids one day have to admit to having unprotected horseback rides with their dad? Will I get to tell my grandchildren one day, “When your dad was a toddler he actually had to ride on my bare back when we played horsey!”? Safe and easy to use, with the Pony Up Daddy, you no longer have to dread the all-too-enjoyable spontaneous playtime.
Perhaps the toy’s purpose it to help parents prepare kids early for the inevitability that whims and impulsive ideas sometimes get interrupted (“Stop trying to play, kid! I need to put on my PUD!”)? And what if your PUD is in the wash? Don’t worry; just give your kid an iPad, and remind him what real fun looks like. Horsing around can wait.
Available in leopard, zebra and solid colors, the toy’s website states, “It’s time to play with your kids again,” apparently operating under the assumption that without a manufactured saddle, parents wouldn’t want, or be able, to play with their kids. If that’s the case, the problem is even more dire than I suspected. Fortunately, the hosts of NBC’s Today show seemed to agree with me. Kudos to at least four of the hosts for taking the discussion of this ridiculous “toy” down the drain.
