Poetry Friday: Dirda (and Others) on De La Mare
April Carnival of Children's Literature

The (TV-less) Week That Was

TV Turnoff Week passed quickly, ending last night, and I realized that we must not watch as much TV as I'd thought. It wasn't very hard to make do without the tube. We were helped out tremendously by some beautiful, warm weather, so we were outdoors living it up every day. Biking, hanging out with the backyard chickens, grilling hamburgers (I showed Junior how to grill), and yard projects occupied our time. A little neighbor saw us in the yard after supper, and she came over and played with Junior for a while. One afternoon there was a Cub Scout hike at a local nature preserve, where the group spotted four turkey vultures. Inside at home we set up a jigsaw puzzle and got out the book of word searches. On Sunday Junior slept late, ate breakfast in bed, and read until noon. Noon! I'm not sure what he was reading, though it probably included Calvin & Hobbes, The Lorax, and other favorites. More and more his reading life is his own. I still read aloud to him, but I see bookmarks in various books around his room. He asked to watch television once or twice, and claimed to miss it. All in all, though, I thought it was a good week.

I did not get rid of cable, but I blocked a few channels. Junior can still watch shows on those stations, but only occasionally. He really likes Discovery's "How It's Made" and "Dirty Jobs," but doesn't need to watch them for hours on end.  Also, there are good videos at his school library that he can check out, and the public library has lots, too. With spring here and summer around the corner, I'm hoping that he'll be outside playing as much as he can.

I shut down the computer every afternoon before Junior got home from school, and that was a tremendous help. I wasn't trying to do too many things at once when the computer was off. That was a good thing that I hope to continue.

Find out how others coped during TV Turnoff Week at the blog Unplug Your Kids.

Comments

Feed You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.

We were blessed with good weather too and played outside every day. It wouldn't have been hard if I didn't want to blog in peace. LOL

Yesterday it was "TV turn on week" again but nobody asked for it. :)

I have been having random thoughts of starting to keep chickens. I am afraid my township has an ordinance against it but I am starting to really wish I could... Maybe I'll hit you up for advice.

Cloudscome, we love having chickens. All you need is two! (They're social & like company.) A lot of towns allow hens but not roosters; your town may be the same. I think chickens are good for kids, too. Sweet little pets.

Junior was home sick from school today (Tues.), so he watched a Scooby Doo movie. I was kind of sorry to see the TV go back on again. Thanks for posting about TV Turnoff Week at your blog. I think I first read about it at your place.

It sounds like you had a good week, I am glad! I really like your observation about not trying to do too many things at once when the computer was off. I had that experience also, and it makes a big difference. Thanks so much for joining in!

Verify your Comment

Previewing your Comment

This is only a preview. Your comment has not yet been posted.

Working...
Your comment could not be posted. Error type:
Your comment has been posted. Post another comment

The letters and numbers you entered did not match the image. Please try again.

As a final step before posting your comment, enter the letters and numbers you see in the image below. This prevents automated programs from posting comments.

Having trouble reading this image? View an alternate.

Working...

Post a comment

Your Information

(Name and email address are required. Email address will not be displayed with the comment.)