Saturday, June 16, 2012

unplugged...well sort of...

it's been about 2 weeks since we got rid of cable. and by get rid of cable, i mean no cable, no tv service at all, not even one channel, there is only black and white fuzz when you turn on the tv. we took back the comcast box with its magical dvr and instant information guide and the on demand access. back to the dark ages? ha not quite, we do still have Internet, obviously, and we have our tvs but now the only option is dvds. it may seem a bit odd in this day to be getting rid of such a thing. believe me i think it might be harder on me and jerm than ella. our reasoning, just in case you are curious...for one the cost!! just by cutting out cable, our bill went from about $140 to about $20 per month! that is a great benefit but the biggest issue was the girls and what is on tv and what tv was doing to our relationships. ella was seeing/hearing things we weren't ready for her to experience. tv was also becoming something she asked for constantly and we don't want to fight that battle. tv stole alot of our quality time as a family. when the tv was on, no one talked, everyone just stared at it. we want to be able to cultivate our relationship with the girls and at the same time help them to cultivate their minds and bodies. now don't get me wrong, the tv is on at some point most days but we are able to choose what ella watches and when she watches it. so mostly that means shirley temple, veggie tales, mr. rogers, etc. so that i can actually get a bath that day! it has been amazing to see how in just 2 weeks, ella's general behavior/attitude is better, she more eagerly plays and colors, bedtime usually goes smoother, at night after dinner we are spending more time together talking, reading, and cuddling, and I don't know if it's coincidence or not but i have read 2 books and almost done with a very long 3rd--and i only had 2-3 tv shows i "had" to watch. it's nice not to have to think about when am i going to watch my shows or our shows together or jerm to watch his shows. in our already hectic life, with little family time, i see now how much time and energy was wasted on the shows. i love the shows, still do, but it's a nice relief not to have to think about them. we are praying that this will draw us closer as a family and that our relationship with the girls and each other will grow stronger. and of course we are not judging anyone that has cable; this was just a personal choice that works best for our family. and to my friends who have cable...rest assured i will expect you to fill me in on the world...with no cable, no news, no newspaper and only facebook to keep me informed of latest goings on, i will surely have no clue (:

Friday, June 8, 2012

summer fun

i am so excited about this summer!!! i feel like it is my first summer at home with the girls. i was at home last summer but with sophia's birth in may, the summer was a blur of sleeplessness (o: i want to take advantage of this time with ella especially since sophia is older and doesn't need quite as much attention anymore. it i has been great fun to peruse pinterest, facebook, and blogs for ideas. some of the activities i have been wanting to do for a long time and others are things i just found recently. hopefully i can incorporate a little learning into each activity! ella is usually full of questions and interested in everything so that shouldn't be too hard! i put our list over on the right side of the blog to help me keep track and also to share with whoever might want some ideas! please share some of your ideas with me!