Top 4 TV Moms

Television has provided the public with a variety of TV moms to choose from for the past 60 years. In the 50s, we had perfectly coifed mothers who had dinner on the table on time. As time progressed, a more diverse representation of motherhood began appearing on television. Today, many TV moms reflect many of the challenges facing modern motherhood. Here are four of my favorite TV moms.

Phylicia Rashad as Clair Huxtable (The Cosby Show)

In the 80's and early 90's, Clair Huxtable was America's image of the perfect mother. She is a successful lawyer, but she still manages to make time for her children. She tempers her discipline with love and wisdom. Clair has to be the disciplinarian at times because sometimes Cliff, her husband, acts like a big kid. For African Americans growing up during that time, Clair was the first time they saw a successful black family on television.

Esther Rolle as Florida Evans (Good Times)

This 70's sitcom portrays a family living in the Cabrini Green Projects in Chicago. Florida and her husband James raise three children amid a life filled with economic hardships in the ghetto. She's the voice of reason when her husband yells and encourages her children when the world tells them that they would not succeed. She was an example because she shows that struggling is no excuse for neglecting motherhood.

Felicity Huffman as Lynette Scavo (Desperate Housewives)

When "Desperate Housewives" premiered, I thought it was your standard, cookie cutter nighttime drama. It was around the time my daughter was born, and I happened to catch reruns of the show. Lynette is a professional woman who decided to become a stay-at-home mom with her four children. She makes my list as favorite TV mom because she is one of the first mothers to show that being home with the kids all day is not all it's cracked up to be, especially when you have three boys that challenge everything you do.

Patricia Heaton as Debra Barone (Everybody Loves Raymond)

On "Everybody Loves Raymond," Debra, a housewife and stay-at-home mom, is often stressed because she has to do everything around the house. She's not perfect. A running joke on the show is her inability to cook. To make matters worse, she lives across the street from her in-laws, who barge in when they want. Her mother-in-law frequently criticizes everything about her from cooking skills to the cleanliness of her home and her husband rarely stands up for her. Yet, her love for her family makes her patiently accept the blows she receives.

There are a number of other moms on television, but these women on my list of favorite TV moms because they are an example of the diverse cross-section of motherhood.