Well, the Babylon challenge ended today. It was supposed to demonstrate how you can be, "IN the world, but not OF the world", if you have ever heard that saying. It also was to demonstrate how you could replace some of the time with electronics with better activities. I learned a lot from the challenge and I'm glad that I did it.
Sunday night as we drove home from a family dinner, we explained the rules of the challenge to the kids. Reece completely lost it. He was crying, and very angry. We let him voice his concerns and then we explained that we would be replacing all the TV, computer, and video games with other fun activities. Mason kept asking me, "I still play Power Rangers?", I had to continually explain to him that, "yes, he could still play with power rangers." Maya of course, was in her own little world.
I prepared myself for Monday morning to be terrible. The kids normally wake up around 6 or 6:30 and watch cartoons till their lazy mom pulls herself out of bed at around 7:15. To my surprise, Reece and Mason slept in until 7:15, and I had to wake Maya up at 8. Without the draw of the TV, there was no reason for them to wake up before the sun was out. So, I was already seeing benefits, the kids got all the sleep active growing kids need.
By 9:00am, the house was clean, beds were made, dishes were all put away, it was great. The lure of checking emails, blogs, and such was there, but I stayed away and was amazed at how much I was able to get done without stopping to check for a recipe here, email this person there, etc. Mason was playing Power Rangers on the floor, I sat down and played with him for 10 mins. and had the greatest time with him.
For lunch I normally make the kids lunch, grab something from the fridge for myself and plop in front of the computer and catch up on whatever I feel like looking at online. This week, I sat with the kids and ate with them. I was surprised at how talkative they were and how much fun I had spending just 5 mins to eat with them.
Throughout the day, it got a little difficult and I realized that I would use a movie in the afternoon as a crutch for when I had had enough of the kids. I realized that I didn't really need it, engaging them in an activity works even better than a movie. When Reece got home from school, he rode his bike or shot baskets, in my book that is better than watching an 'educational' afternoon show.
When it comes to TV, Michael and I definately do not have a problem (except when it comes to the show Lost) so it wasn't really difficult to give up TV in the evening.
During this challenge, I had explained to Reece that one of the reasons we were doing this challenge was to receive blessings. There were times though that I had to get online like to pay bills, get a recipe, check my emails (for work), or check mapquest. I had gotten online to pay a bill, and Reece walked in the room and said, "We aren't going to get any blessings because you just got on the computer." It was nice to have him keep me in line in case I slipped up, and I explained that there are certain things that I needed to get on the computer for, and we were just going to have to make exceptions.
All in all, this week went really smooth, and it wasn't as difficult as I had anticipated. I learned a lot about myself and my children, and I was able to enjoy them more when I wasn't constantly drawn to the computer. Maya even said to me one of the days, "You are such a nice mommy!" I felt like a better mom, and it was easier for me to enjoy my day with them.
I will be making some changes in my internet habits such as not getting online until the kids are in 'rest time'. I will be turning the computer off at night so that when I wake up, it isn't as accessible. As for TV, I'm going to slowly phase out TV before school, and now that it is spring, I will be encouraging outside play rather than afternoon TV watching. I will also be eating lunch with my kids each day, maybe it will help me remember to eat lunch.
As for the radio, it wasn't very hard to go without unless I was in the car, then it was difficult. Today, I did have my itunes playing on my computer ALL DAY. I think I missed it more than I thought. I won't be making any changes in my normal music listening.
Like I said, I'm glad that I took the challenge and was able to see how some of my habits could be changed for the better.
Does this look familiar? Bowls of cereal this large are common in our home. With the massive amounts of cereal being consumed, you would think the kids could make it till noon before they eat again. Not so, by 9:30 the kids are claiming they are starving and must have a snack. Healthy snack around our house is at 10:30 and I endure listening to whining for an hour.
I swore that leggings would NEVER make a comeback, but I am eating my words. The saddest thing about it all is that I actually think the leggings are cute. Just shoot me now.
I am now officially registered for the Salt Lake City 1/2 Marathon scheduled for April 19th. Maybe I should start running, what do you think? Actually I have been training for the last 2 months. I've only gotten up to a 10 mile run, but I figure that is close enough right? If I can run 10 miles, what is another 3?
