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Momma Question #2

With summer approaching, I've had this nagging feeling that my girls are simply going to plop in front of the tv and watch stare with a glazed over look at the screen.  They normally play well together, but lately I've been watching them pair up and leave the littlest one out.  The other occurance that has been happening is that either one or all will get bored too quickly.  This leads to migration towards the tv. 

With the gas prices escalating, we will be hard pressed to be able to go anywhere, which means finding things to do around the house. I've already informed them that once we are done with school for our summer break, they will only be allowed 1 hour of tv time per day.   Is this too much, am I being too reasonable?  We have toyed with getting rid of the cable, but my dear husband enjoys his shows too much to make the big plunge.  So, onto other ways to curb the appeal to the tv monster.

How do you all handle tv watching during the long, hot summer days?

Untitled Comment

06:07, Thursday, May 15, 2008 .. Posted by gokings13

1 hour a day is fine.

In the summer, the tv doesn't come on until after 8 pm, unless it is raining, then on those days, we do watch a bit more.......
Like, 3 or 4 pm.
Rainy days are cleaning days (inside)
Pretty days are go out side, work and play days.

Laura

Untitled Comment

08:34, Thursday, May 15, 2008 .. Posted by erkopp98

That's not an extreme request of them at all. I have three daughters who tend to pair up and leave the youngest girl out...not intentionally. I just think that they forget that she's old enough to play with them now. But their youngest brother is getting old enough to play, so he plays with the youngest daughter...if that makes any sense. :)

We've had the TV on more than usual lately. I'm not sure how that started. Thanks for the reminder that we need to cut down the TV time too.

Hmmmm... *grin*

08:45, Thursday, May 15, 2008 .. Posted by mulberrylane

We live in the country and I would always say it is TOO nice out to sit INSIDE and watch TV... out you go. They got used to it. On rainy days, they might watch a special show, but then I would remind them to play a board game, write a letter, make cookies, etc. My kids get owly when they sit too long, so they need exercise and work to wear them down. It's the rainy days that are harder, especially when DH loves his tv and has no ambition at all to limit the tv of the girls. Although he gets upset when they get owly, however he never puts one and two together! *sigh* I've realized this is a struggle with many families, so I just try to do what I think is best without being an angry harping mom. When you do it happily and go outside yourself... the kids seem to enjoy being outside JUST as much.

When I lived in town, I sat on the porch alot, read books while the kids played in the yard or around me. I got a hobby of working in the garden, so I was out in the yard with the kids when they played. In town I had "3" raspberry bushes, about 20 strawberry plants, and about 10 rows of others.... I had time to have a very neat garden... no weeds... I'm not that lucky with my 1/2 acre garden I have now! LOL.

Also, I always thought I had no time to play outside with the kids.... but I found when we were outside... no one messed up the inside of the house, so my work decreased, actually. I added daily walks to my day with the kids (helped me lose alot of weight). I walked to the library, walked to the park, etc. Now I have to drive to do those things, so they don't happen as often. But being in the country a walk can take quite a bit of time... explore your area, we found a creek the kids like to visit. In the country, I still enjoy sitting on the porch and reading a good book while the kids play. I even make real lemonade or special drinks for the kids. Picnics outside are an almost daily event... they don't care we have sandwiches alot... they're eating outside! We have assorted outdoor games available for them to play. Enjoy summer, you don't need tv to do that. The kids will learn to entertain themselves when they realize they are outside for such a long time. And one hour of tv is about right... I find my kids will often give up their tv in the summer. Woo Hoo! They were outside playing basketball in the dark last night!

Warmly, ~Melissa

keep them occupied in projects

09:02, Thursday, May 15, 2008 .. Posted by Illoura

I'm all done with child-rearing (for the most part), but I went thru lean times during their rearing and have many memories of 'hard times' when I wanted to give the kids something more than a life of passively watching others' lives (TV).
Cheap or free things to do involve a process- projects like making bowls, toys, animals and even furniture from papier mache, creating sidewalk chalk games and art, Christmas ornaments (in June), forts and castles from cardboard boxes and duct tape, a playhouse (fully painted and decorated) from 4 pieces of plywood and a tarp roof (stapled on and held up with a thick dowel rod), making Barbie houses out of boxes and decorating the floors and walls with glued-on magazine pictures. I suppose the list is really endless, (get a childcraft encyclopedia from the library, or a book on making dolls, or using scraps of tiles, or whatever you can think of). Add water play, gardening, watermelon seed spitting, and outdoor games (create an obstacle course, have contests, have other kids over, collect & press flowers) and you've got a lot of long-term projects mixed with intermittant vigorous play that keeps them very busy, teaches industrious-ness, and gives them an end product they can use.
Good luck- can't wait to see what you come up with!


Edited by Illoura on Thursday, May 15, 2008 at 08:03

"Mom, I'm BORED"

09:27, Thursday, May 15, 2008 .. Posted by CarrieAnn7

My children have learned to entertain themselves because everytime they tell (or whine to) me that they are bored I find something that they can do: clean the backyard, wash the car, organize their dressers, pick weeds, etc. I have more than I can accomplish around the house and so I am delighted to hear those words: "Mom, I'm BORED!"

We are not big tv fans. We feel it builds unity and lasting family relationships better to jump on the trampoline; have bike rides together or play a board games. I try to keep the children busy a good part of the day. They enjoy having the feeling of accomplishing something. They certainly need to have down time also. But if they have enough time on their hands that they resort to tv, we need to find a project for them to do. And the list of possible summer projects is endless.

I pray that this summer is filled with many sweet memories.

Blessings; Carrie