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By Mom Unplugged, April 16, 2008 8:24 pm

If any of you have been reading the posts by the TV Turnoff Week Blog Challenge participants, you might have noticed a common theme to just about all of them. It seems that most bloggers anticipate that unplugging the children will be far less traumatic and problematic than unplugging themselves from their computers!

I’m not sure if the reason we were drawn to blogging in the first place is because we like the connection we feel from being online, or whether the decision to write (or read) a blog created that need for connection. It is indeed a philosophical chicken and egg issue.

But regardless of the psychology behind it, the fact remains that most of us who use our computers on a daily basis are ADDICTED (myself included). If I had any doubts about my own addiction before last year’s TV-Turnoff Week Blog Challenge, the difficulty I had with minimizing my computer time that week made me realize that I am indeed dependent upon the computer.

I found that the computer sitting on the desk in my kitchen was silently calling to me: “Come on, turn me on…you can just quickly check your email then turn me off again. Where’s the harm in that? …do it, do it, DO IT!!” My goal of reducing my online time to one hour, gradually and insidiously increased throughout the week to more like and hour and a half (or maybe even two). It was torture.

However several days after TV-Turnoff Week ended last year, I had something of an epiphany about the whole computer issue:

I had a similar personal revelation today. Today I took care of a friend’s one year-old, so I was caring for two one year-olds (only three months apart in age!). Dueling babies. It was rather like having twins I suppose. I had decided ahead of time that I would simply have to stay offline. I did check email and comments once during their nap, but otherwise I really was not online.

Since I had already decided that I would not have time for the computer today, I was able to deal with the very mobile, busy babies with mindfulness. My mind was not on what might be happening online. As a consequence, the day went quite smoothly and actually seemed almost easier than some days when it is just me and my one year-old…and my computer!

It all went better for me than during the Blog Challenge where my mind was always half on my computer even as I tried to do other things. It seems to me that FOCUS is the key to success. My reader seemed to have this experience also. Whether it is a “PPP New Year’s Resolution,” or caring for extra babies, the ability to not just turn it off, but forget it, not even expect it, is the key to success.

This is an excerpt from a post I wrote about a reader who emailed me the results of her TV-Turnoff week. If you want, you can read the whole post here.

Mindfulness and focus are the key to success. Can I apply these principles to my TV-Turnoff Week this year? We’ll see!

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Here are a few tips that might help make turning off your computer a bit less traumatic:

• Mindfulness and focus (explained above)
• Move the computer out of your normal living space, especially if your goal is NO time online that week at all. Why have it there tempting and calling you?
• Try and have a list of goals to accomplish during the time that you usually are online.
• If you enjoy more spontaneity, then make a sort of “Mommy I’m Bored” Box for yourself. Put all your goals or activity ideas for yourself in a box or jar and just pull one out when you feel that need to check your email coming on.
• When you feel like blogging, instead read a book or try a craft or recipe that you can blog about after TV-Turnoff Week is over! Think of all the great fodder for posts you’ll have. (Is this just postponing your online time? Perhaps not truly in the spirit of the week, but that is for you to decide.)

Comments (12)

By Mom Unplugged, April 15, 2008 1:07 pm

So your usually wired children are bugging you during TV-Turnoff Week: “Mommy, I’m bored!” The dreaded words. If the obvious response of “go outside and play” doesn’t work, or you live in a big city apartment and “go to your room and play” doesn’t work, why not break out the magic “Mommy I’m Bored” Box?

Find a shoe box, paper bag, jar or coffee can and fill it with slips of paper listing ideas of things to do. Here’s how it works: Your child pulls out a slip of paper and does that activity quietly and happily for the rest of the day. (Is Mom Unplugged hallucinating?)

Well, if your child is just not that cooperative, why not let the little darling choose three slips of paper…the alternative to selecting one of the three proposed activities being “clean your room.” When issued this ultimatum, I bet he or she will suddenly find one of the three choices to be quite fascinating. If not, then at least they’ll have a clean room, right?

Of course the ideas that you put in there should be appropriate to the age, abilities, and interests of your child, but here are some that come to my mind -

Of course there is the Obvious:

-Read a book

-Ride your bike

-Play outside on the swing set

-Write a letter to grandma

The purely Academic:

-Read a book

-Do your homework

- Draw a diagram of the solar system

The purely Creative:

- Create a collage of magazine pictures depicting your favorite color

- Draw a picture of a new food that you have just invented

- Write a song or poem about broccoli

More interesting variations on the Obvious or the Academic:

- How many swings on the swing set can you do between the passing of one car and the next?

- Set the kitchen timer for 5 minutes: how many pages of your book can you read?

- Roll a dice 10 times. Keep track of how many times you come up with each number. Now roll it 20 times, how many times did you get each number? Is it what you expected? Graph this result.

The Old-Fashioned:

Hint - What did you like to play or do as a child? (not that I am saying that you are “old fashioned!!)

- Jumprope

- Hopscotch

- String-figures (Cat’s Cradle, for example)

But how about adding odd things:

- Write a list of every object in the living room that begins with “T”

- Make a sculpture of the dog out of Playdough

- Go outside and bring back five objects that are red

- Put your hand down on a random spot on the lawn. Study it very closely (with magnifying glass if possible). Draw what you find underneath your hand. (Grass? Rocks? Sticks? Bugs? Anthills?)

You get the idea. The “Mommy I’m Bored” Box could almost become a scavenger hunt type activity if you want it to. Or at least an exciting source of random fun activities. The possibilities are limitless, plus it could even be entertaining for you to create it!

If you try this during TV-Turnoff Week (or any other time), please report your findings: How old are your children and what ideas did you put in the box? What did your kids like and dislike about the concept? What ideas went over really well? Which were a flop?

Comments (1)

By Mom Unplugged, April 9, 2008 2:55 pm

Yesterday I received a great email from “Mom of 2″ who has no blog, but would like to join our TV-Turnoff Week Blog Challenge. Here are her goals for the week:

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“1) No TV, no DVDs or videos! Yikes! I’ve been relying on it to distract the kiddies so I can get ready for work (hubby’s already left in the wee hours) and he’s using it so he can make dinner in the evening (before I get home). Hubby’s said he’s on board, but I expect I’ll get some grumbling from someone other than the kids before the week is out.

2) No computer for me at home. I’m online all day at work and (obviously, since I’m writing this in the middle of the work day) have some free time to do personal stuff there.

3) No computer for the kids. Shouldn’t be too hard since they rarely use it. Although my 4 y.o. might turn his sights there when he finds out he can’t watch TV…

4) Time rescued from the TV will be spent
- playing with or reading to the kiddies. I hope hubby will join us!
- catching up on my magazines…so many piled up with articles I’d like to read but don’t seem to find time for.
- getting more sleep. Yes, sad to say, I sometimes opt to watch just one more show, even though I know I’ll be more tired and less patient the next day.”

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Thank you to “Mom of 2″ for joining in the Blog Challenge! If any other blogless readers out there are tempted to join, then please just send me an email like “Mom of 2″ did and I’ll publish your thoughts and goals on Unplug Your Kids too!

You can reach me at unplugyourkids “at” gmail “dot” youknowwhat.

Photo thanks to morguefile.com and photographer Clarita.

Comments (1)

By Mom Unplugged, April 8, 2008 6:46 am

Thanks to all so far who have taken the plunge and decided to join the 2nd Annual TV-Turnoff Week Blog Challenge. If you have ever toyed with the idea of unplugging, even just some of the time, now is a great time to try it out. As a group we can support each other and share our experiences. Plus, it just might be fun!

Everyone who has joined so far has put up their first post about the challenge, and their goals. I had better hurry up and make my goals public too, so here they are:

1) No TV (not hard since we receive exactly zero channels), no DVDs or videos (not hard since my children rarely ask to watch any, and I haven’t watched one myself in well over a year).

2) No computer for the kids (not hard since my daughter rarely uses it and my son is banned from the computer until he is 6 - he banged the screen of my old MacBook with a toy car and ruined it, the display looked like there was ink running down the inside, wild!).

3) Minimal computer for Mom (ie. me). What????? HELLLPPPPPP!!!!!! I would say NO computer, but I have the Blog Challenge to run, right? However I will write draft posts ahead of time so as to limit my online time to one hour per day after the kids have gone to bed. I will check my email in the morning and the evening. I will not obsessively check my stats.

4) Instead of being online, I will attempt to accomplish the following:

- Sorting and arranging that pit which we call “the playroom.” This shall include the elimination of many unloved toys who shall be sent to find better homes via the school garage sale fundraiser.

- Read one of the books that is gathering dust on my nightstand.

- Spend more time outside and begin to get the garden in order for the summer.

- Play more with my children: board games, art, read-alouds, etc.

- Study my aviation books (I am a pilot and am finally getting back into flying after a seven year hiatus).

- Get out my flute and recorders and play.

There. Easy right? I’ll be sure to let you all know! Check out the other participants’ posts to see what they hope to accomplish during TV Turnoff week.

Comments (62)

By Mom Unplugged, April 3, 2008 10:39 pm

So have you thought about my proposal? TV-Turnoff Week is April 21-27. Can you and your family turn it off for a week? Would you like to try? If so, then sign up for the Unplug Your Kids TV-Turnoff Week Blog Challenge!

Here’s how it works:

Phase 1 -

1) Write a post about the challenge that sets forth your goals, reasons for joining in, etc. The more people we can reach and get to join in, the more fun and educational it will be! Remember, it is not just about giving up TV, what about the “other screens” in your life? The computer is my personal downfall so I will be concentrating on reducing that.

2) Link to your post in Mr. Linky below (leave a comment too in case Mr. Linky goes haywire, as occasionally happens, and I have to take him off).

3) Steal the Blog Challenge badge and put it in your sidebar, linking to Unplug Your Kids. Let me know if you need help with this step.

Two sizes:

Phase 2 -

Do your best to meet your goals from April 21-27. If you aren’t successful, it’s OK. What is important is to try, and to learn something from the experience.

Phase 3 -

1) After TV-Turnoff Week ends (April 27th is the last day), write a post about how it went: the good, the bad, and the ugly! Sharing experiences helps everyone.

2) I will also write a “How it Went” post and I will put up a new Mr. Linky. Put the link to your “How it Went” post in Mr. Linky (plus comment just in case).

3) On Tuesday, May 6th I will draw a random name from among those who completed the challenge (whether you met your goals or not) and put up their final post. That person will win a $10 Amazon gift certificate.

No blog?

You can join in too. Email me your goals, hopes, and dreams before the TV-Turnoff Week begins ,and I will post them on Unplug Your Kids. At the end, email me your “How it Went” information, and I will post it here too. You will then be entered in the drawing for the gift certificate.

My email for questions or entries: unplugyourkids “at” gmail “dot” youknowwhat.