I think I have been successful.
The Nuggets don’t watch TV.
It was my goal was to limit their TV to zilch. I’d say I did pretty well.
They’ve been in the living room with the TV on (especially since football season started) but they aren’t really watching it. They look at the screen for a minute and then move on to other things. Like climbing the fire-place. Or opening the cabinets. Or their personal fav, trying to turn the blue-cable-box-button on and off 9875768 times. Especially during a nail-biting moment of the game.
I read a bunch on how TV under the age of two can be detrimental to development. Of course it’s probably not as a big of a deal as it’s made out to be (as is most things regarding children…why do they try to scare us?). But I took it to heart.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that kids under 2 years old not watch any TV and that those older than 2 watch no more than 1 to 2 hours a day of quality programming. The first 2 years of life are considered a critical time for brain development. TV and other electronic media can get in the way of exploring, playing, and interacting with parents and others, which encourages learning and healthy physical and social development. Read more from the AAP here.
I, being the sleep Nazi queen, also read that it can affect their sleep. SOLD. No TV if it means it affects good sleep. Because good sleep means happy and healthy and smart babies. The Hubs agreed and supported me. Was he upset during baseball season? Maybe.
Next, is the fact that I want to actually play and interact with my kids. As full time working parents, we literally have 30-60 minutes with them in the morning and 90-120 minutes with them after work, during the week. And a, way too short, 48 hours with them on Saturdays and Sundays.
Example: My nieces and nephews were in town. We turned on Frozen (never seen it) and I was completely sucked in. Did the boys watch? Nope. Did Weston almost fall off the step because I wasn’t paying attention. Yep. Quality parenting right there.
To each their own on parenting styles and decisions made for their kiddies. I am proud of sticking to my guns and actually preventing the boys from being sucking into the boob tube. XOXO Lindsey
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