So, a few weeks ago, Monkey3 destroyed our TV on purpose. Well, I don't think she knew she would destroy it, but she was definitely doing something she knew she should NOT do and it destroyed the TV. She got a spanking and she got grounded for a week [which is a long time when you are 4...]
But really, I think she did us all a favor. I had wanted to get rid of the TV for years [I never owned a TV in my adult life until I got married - the TV moved in with the husband ;) ]. My husband was a bit resistant to the idea [though at certain intervals he agreed with me...LOL!]. My children were completely resistant to the idea. Now, lest you get me wrong, we tightly controlled what the kids watched and the TV was only allowed on at certain times [like when I was getting the baby to sleep]. So, the kids weren't sitting around all day long watching TV or anything, but they WERE addicted to TV.
Now, since we've had no TV, several things have happened. First, I discovered that my 2yo/now 3yo will play quietly down stairs for half an hour while I get the baby to sleep for the price of a mere 3 M&Ms. [Yeah, go ahead and email me about how I'm giving her an eating disorder using food as a reward....] I have also discovered that when there is no TV, my son spends more time building with legos and more time designing space craft and weapons of mass destruction. [When asked recently what he wanted to be when he grows up he said he wants to design new weapons for the Army... sigh. WHERE did I go wrong? The real crux of the matter is that he'd be *excellent* at it too....] I have watched my oldest go from reading 2 books every day to often reading 3 or 4. She's read everything we have in the house [that she's allowed to read] several times at this point - and that is saying something. We are book nuts and I've been buying kids books for my children since before I HAD children LOL! More art work is being done [what on earth am I going to do with all that paper?!].
Monkey3, the little culpret in this tale, actually has not appeared to miss the TV at all...
ALL the kids behave better now that the TV is gone. They have a more positive attitude and they obey faster when there is no idiot box on.
So, from Mom's perspective, this has been a total win.
However, certain other people are really having a hard time with this.
My husband goes back and forth from "Yeah, not having TV has been really great" [he also sees the positive difference] to "But, how soon can we buy a new TV? You know prices are coming down in the Fall, we can buy one then...." He is also very concerned about what to do with the kids when/if I'm on bedrest with the pregnancy for weeks and weeks [which is our usual scenario, though I hold out hope for a miracle....] My answer is that they can do the same things they are doing right now.... this does not seem to satisfy him though. He feels it will be absolutely necessary to have TV if I go on bedrest....
My father however is the one who is having the hardest time with this. He seems to feel that I am withholding something as vital as food and affection from my children. Every time I see him he asks if we've bought a new TV yet. Now he is saying HE wants to buy the kids a TV and we keep telling him not too. [He is a wonderful, doting grandfather - so don't get me wrong!]. Last week he said to me "It is time to forgive Monkey3 and move on - it is time to replace that TV and stop holding it against her!" Which, of course, has nothing to do with why we haven't bought a new TV - we are just flat better off without it and Monkey3 understands this I believe - we are certainly not using it as an ongoing punishment or guilt trip for her!
So, I don't know how long we will be TV free nor how long I will manage to stem the tide of the men in my life who feel that TV is vital to our survival.... but for now, I am really, really enjoying being without it!
7 comments:
I would wish that something would happen to my tv but my husband would (and has in the past) just go out and buy a new one. But, like you, I notice a major difference when there is no television. Over the weekend there were more than double the children around my house since I kept a friend's kids while they went out and I just didn't turn the tv on. They didn't even notice and had so much more fun playing outside and with board games at the kitchen table and reading in the living room floor. It was practically *magical*. = )
Well, there's always the TV-but-no-cable-or-satellite compromise.
Having to rent something (or check it out from the library) means that the instant-gratification bit is eliminated. Plus, there's even more control over what comes in. This is what we do and frankly, we don't even bother renting stuff for the kids any more. There's a decent number of movies and musicals on the shelf already for their rainy-day or sick-in-bed perusal, and their grandparents are always adding to the library.
Then, the money you save on the cable or satellite sub can go towards a Blu-Ray player.
The NetFlix subscription is really for The Grown Ups, and it's let us catch up on all of the old classics that we've managed to miss - Casablanca, A Man For All Seasons, and the like.
(Who am I kidding? Firefly and Battlestar Galactica, too.)
We went tv-free (lol) two weeks ago and have noticed very similar changes. Our tv still works, we just pretend that it doesn't. We've never had cable/satelite and we live in the country and only pick up three stations on a perfectly clear day. I never wanted my kids to watch tv (before I had them) and got SO much pressure from my in-laws (particularly my MIL about the complete deprivation my children faced) that we caved.
We were dealing with some typical three-year-old issues, and I told E that it was time for the tube to go. No one has missed it yet!
We wnet TV free for a week and I wish we never went back. My husband keeps threatening to take it out but the Hockey season lasts forever and now we're in the playoffs.
I've read and seen plenty to know it's evils far outweigh it's value...but being attached to is another thing. Maybe ours will all be "killed" too, GOd willing.
I am in the same boat. I wouldnt' miss it at ALL, but the dad would go out and buy a new fangled set within days.
Good for you! Love your peace, my professional organizer suggested that we consider closeting the TV. No cabel just videos. Wheel the puppy out when we're interested.
Ya know, I joked with my dh before Christmas that what I really wanted was a huge tv. (I thought he knew I was being sarcastic.)
Bam, I got one. So I leave it on EWTN when I'm cleaning up to get some decent adult catachisis and possibly to scare the devil away. Fr. Corapi on a 57 inch screen should do the trick.
+JMJ+ It's all about the hockey season with my dh. I really could get by with my short wave, but the hockey season is the main crux of the matter here too.
My mother told me after the fact that I should never joke about cars or tvs with a husband.
We turned off our TV several months ago. Sometimes I do miss it. I was thinking about how in December when I have the baby it was nice to watch nonsense at 2 am. But things are so much better without it!
We do watch movies on our computer and even some TV shows. I love watching the TV shows on the computer because you get almost no commercials, which has a shocking effect on the kids, I think.
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