Watching the Bluey episode “The Sign” in April was an emotional roller coaster I was not prepared for. I cried (starting at the beginning when Bluey’s school friends started howling), I screamed (the surprise pregnancy reveal!!!!!), I laughed (Boba’s plot hole is hilariously resolved!), and then I cried some more (basically the whole rest of the episode). My kids and I recently rewatched the episode, and months later, from when I first watched it, there I was, crying all over again.
There is so much to love and take away from this episode (as is true with EVERY episode of Bluey)—for kids, for adults, and for families. With so many Easter eggs and callbacks to other episodes and jokes, it could not be more perfect for fans. As a mom, there are two lessons in particular that hit me hard: you are not alone in the anxiety and uncertainty of making parenting choices, and you might need to shift your perspective on what’s the “best life possible” for your kids.
Throughout the episode, Chilli (Bluey and Bingo’s mom) and Bandit (Bluey and Bingo’s dad) agonize over whether they’re making a mistake or not to move their family to a different city. Their friends and their family question the decision. They question the decision. They don’t feel peace or, in Chilli’s case, especially, any excitement about the move. They press on because they feel like they’re making the best decision for their kids because they want to give them a better life. Even that is questioned, though. What if the move isn’t good for the kids?
Isn’t this so, so relatable? How many times have I also agonized over decisions, uncertain of what would truly be best for my family? Making decisions as a parent is hard. You don’t know the outcome. Plenty of times, you feel like you don’t know what you’re doing. It could end up great! It could end up terribly wrong! And you have no way to know ahead of time. As a parent, you’re not just making your own choices about your own life—you’re making choices for a family. Your kids are impacted. There’s pressure with those decisions. And anxiety. And uncertainty.
As I watched this episode of Bluey, I kept thinking: all parents feel this way. We’re trying our best, and we just don’t know the future. Sometimes we make great choices, and sometimes we make mistakes. But we are not alone. Every parent can relate to this on some level. I hope we can give ourselves grace and find others to walk alongside as we make big life decisions for us and for our family. I wish all of you the type of community Chilli and Bandit have. We need it.
The second lesson that hit me hard was the concept of “the best life possible” for kids. Anyone watching Bluey would not hesitate for a second to say that Bluey and Bingo have THE BEST LIFE POSSIBLE already. They have parents who adore them, play with them, comfort them, and are there for them. They are surrounded by love, community, friendship, and family. Every day is an adventure for them, even if they’re just at a local park or playing with felt pens in their backyard, or taking a trip to Hammerbarn. The girls don’t want anything more. More money isn’t going to give them a better life. We all know this watching the show. We can see it so clearly.
But isn’t it just like us to believe this about our own lives, too? “If only we had more money. If only we lived in a different place. If only I had a different job. If only the kids went to a different school” and on and on and on. In the end, maybe those things would make a difference, and maybe they wouldn’t. Maybe you and your kids have everything you already need for the best life possible right now.
I believe the best life possible comes through intentional time together, not more things. It comes through laughing and playing and true connection. It comes from being seen and loved by your family. We don’t need to give our kids more things—we just need to give them more of us. Our time, our attention, our love. Maybe that’s all we need for the best life possible. It’s so easy to see that’s true for others, like Bluey’s family. We need to understand that it’s true for us, too.
As always, I walk away from another episode of Bluey feeling emotional, seen, and shifting my perspective about what really matters. Parents, we are not alone. We are doing our best. And when we give our kids more of ourselves, they have everything they need. I’m so thankful for these reminders from the most unlikely source—a wonderful, animated dog family that I think we all wish we could be a little more like!
