This past week was a week of No’s – no sugar for us parents, and no screens for the kids. Both were impulsive decisions late Sunday afternoon, and both were made as a result of overindulgence these past few months.
Going screen-free was painful the first day or so, but the kids figured out new things to do with their time. Instead of a show first thing in the morning, they went outside and checked on their garden and danced in the rain. Instead of asking for a show during quiet time (a bad habit I’ve slowly let them slip into), they used wooden blocks to make stalls for their horses and set up a “bookstore” to be patronized by siblings after quiet time.
There were a few rare exceptions to the screen-free week, like when Katie had a 3-hr long assessment via Zoom on a rainy day and older siblings’ availability to babysit was limited. Even then, the kids still spent a good part of the time outside.
What have I learned as a parent during this week? Not to underestimate the creativity and resourcefulness of children when given plenty of time to be bored. Most often it’s my lack of patience to deal with a little bit of front-end whining that leads me to turn on the TV, when what’s best for my children is to give them the gift of free time.
Autumn's Writing 