The NO TV Challenge: Think YOU Can Handle It?

Julie Heil- PHP Outreach Coordinator located in Buffalo

I am prepared for the BATTLE! My family has attempted and sometimes completed a No TV Challenge several times over the last three years that we have actually had cable television. There are lots of moans and groans for the first two days and then my two kids figure out that they have things they have forgotten about like…..

Bikes, Games, Books, Art Supplies, Pets, oh and those pesky adults in the house called PARENTS.

Really, it is amazing to me how my middle school son will be watching Spongebob when I leave the room and the next time I peak into the family room, there is some hot mess of a female on the scream holding a huge gun and killing a metal person/vehicle while screaming profanities. WHAT I scream- “mom its Megan Fox, relax” he says. “All my friends get to watch whatever they want and plus its only PG-13”. (I’m kinda stuck on the rating thing- PG-13 just means the absence of the F word- all else is fair game as demonstrated by Megan’s bodacious bod and use of weaponry while wearing a bikini)

I don’t like TV, I think it sends the wrong messages to our kids on so many levels, you have to be skinny, with perfect clothes, own the best cars and eat a ton of junk food (thinking of the commercial of the father and son standing in a beautiful wavy corn field taking about how high fructose corn syrup is natural and really good for you)  Plus, the kids in these shows talk so nasty to each other. Their dialogues are wrought with sarcasm and innuendo that children don’t understand. Oh, how I wish for the days when Dora the Explorer was the hero of our house. I loved her chubby little girl ways and mismatched clothes, her adventurous spirit and sweet Abula that gave wise advise.

I have hidden the remotes, unhinged the dish and I am ready for the fight! This week we are TV free, are you up for it?

Relieving Holiday Stress– with family time… no really

This is the time of year that family stress is high for me. My kids constantly asking for every toy in the store or that they see on TV. The stores are continuously busy, still running kids to their events and the biggest stressor of all MONEY, MONEY, MONEY!

With Christmas coming, it’s so overwhelming, how do I keep my sanity, my patience and my kids happy. I have found out that simply playing a few short games (Memory or Monopoly Jr) with my children is a great stress reliever for me and in addition my children are happy and content. I put off doing the dishes, the laundry and the things that will still be waiting for me when we are done. Most importantly I shut off the TV and the phones and take a half hour to an hour to sit and play a game with my family.

What are some activities that your family does to relieve holiday stress?