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Kids, Motherhood

Saying Goodbye To Florence Henderson, My Favorite TV Mom

  • 2  Minute Read

I am an 80’s kid and one of the Latch Key kids, well, not exactly. I lived in the country and we locked nothing up, but I did have the TV after school to occupy my time after the chores were done. My favorite, the Brady Bunch. Who doesn’t love a good family show? Honestly, reflecting back, it was cutting edge with the definition of family and transitioning into non-traditional ideas of what a family is.

We never really knew why Mr. Brady was raising three boys on his own, or why Mrs. Brady was raising three very pretty girls. We just knew they came together and had a lot of fun and learning moments. “Mom always said, don’t play ball in the house.” What a concept that the mom had help, loved Alice too, I imagine they are in heaven plotting the family meal as I type this. With Christmas around the corner, I will always remember the Christmas miracle that Carol got her voice back just in time to save the day at the church service.

Florence Henderson was the role model of moms, honestly, she was so amazing, you had to be reminded that she was not the biological mom to the boys. This whole sitcom could truly be a training guide for how to blend families without causing damage. Yes, they made it look flawlessly perfect, but this is what the American family should strive for. Even after the show was done, Florence kept up with her TV kids. As a matter of fact, when Maureen McCormick was a contestant on Dancing with the Stars, Florence was there to cheer her on.

When you read Florence Henderson’s bio, you learn that she was not just the model mom, she had a cooking show, a variety show and she completed on Dancing With the Stars in 2010. I think one could write a book on the virtues of Florence Henderson.

If we could all just watch one episode of the Brady Bunch and set goals on how to improve our parenthood, what happy kids we would all have. Rest in peace, Florence and your memory for me will always remind me to love unconditionally and utilize those God given talents that we have all been given. 

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Ranae Aspen profile image Articles by Ranae Aspen

Ranae Aspen

Ranae Aspen lives in the middle of Nebraska in the heartland of America. She shares her home with her husband Dan, and teens Daniel and Leslie. Sunset Acreage is home to fruit trees, chickens, cats and rescue dog Sampson. Ranae is passionate about sustainable living and sharing her life’s journey to help others thrive in this crazy thing called life. She loves writing!  You can connect on Facebook at  https://www.facebook.com/ranaeaspenwriter/  You can also find her blog all about Sunset living at https://raspen2.wordpress.com/ .

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