Getting Your Kids Away From TV & Video Games ~ Tori

In today's world there is a lot of controversy over kids and TV/video game time. From monitoring what your children watch/play to how much they are watching/playing. Wherever you go I guarantee you can always find someone to strike up a conversation on this topic.
This week we are talking about ways to get your child to turn off the TV and engage in other activities.

Before we go on let me first say that I hope nobody takes this as a lecture. I am in no way perfect, and I admittedly do allow my kids daily TV and video game time. They are given roughly an hour or two of television time per day (depending on school breaks, weekends, rainy days, etc) Those hours are for watching TV or playing video games not that many hours dedicated to each separate one. Some people think it's a little excessive, but I don't think it's that bad. That gives each child (I have two) thirty minutes each for a personal preference of show or video game. Usually I do time in the morning and then time in the evening. Sometimes they can earn movie's they are allowed to watch also. As a stay at home mom this can come in handy for me because I don't have anyone to help me with my children, and this keeps them out of trouble for a time when I need to get certain things done (mopping, scouring bathrooms, etc).
We also have family movie time once a week where we all sit down to watch a movie, have popcorn, etc.

But it is extremely important to get those kiddos out from in front of the television all the time. Here's a few things we do in our house that we have found to be quite successful:

• "Creative Time". We like to get this time in every day. Even if it's only for 15 or 20 minutes. This is a time when our kids can choose to either paint, color, draw, play play dough, etc. We always make sure to keep stocked up on these types of things. It's a fun time to stretch your child's imagination and they can create anything they want.

• Reading time. This is something we do every day. We sit down and read with our kids daily out loud and help them along. They learn new words, get to hear great stories, it helps build their vocabulary, and build their reading skills. After about thirty minutes of this (or more depending on the day or how much time we have) we try to get an additional twenty to thirty minutes of "quiet" reading time. They know during this time they can look at any books they want and look at pictures or read the books. This gives mommy and daddy time to also sneak in some quiet reading time, and it's something we always try to do together. The kids think it's great that we all get to sit on the couch and just look at books, read, and relax. So it's always good to make sure your child (and you) have plenty of books also.

• Outdoor activities. These are also a GREAT way to get your child out from in front of the television. What child doesn't love the outdoors? You can go to the park as a family, go outside for creative time, reading time, do some outdoor exploring, or just play games out in your backyard. Go bike riding, go swimming (if it's warm enough), go on a picnic. Anything to connect as a family and unwind. It is a great way to get your kids out from in front of the old tube, and they will undoubtedly burn off some of that extra energy. This isn't always the best to do on rainy days, but still an option. Even in the winter go out and have a snowball fight, build a snowman, make an ice castle. In the rain if it's warm and there's no severe storms or lightening go jump in a few puddles even if it's just for ten minutes. Sail a paper boat in a puddle. It may get wet and sink or not float for more than a few seconds, but it's still fun. :)

• Fitness. Get your child active. There are tons of things kids can do to be active. From things like yoga, jumping jacks, etc., you can also do a little dance party. It is so much fun, and something your kids will definitely remember.

• Cooking. Let your child help make stuff. My kids LOVE helping bake bread, muffins, cupcakes, cookies, scrambled eggs, cakes, spaghetti, etc. The list is limitless really. And there's tons of kid friendly recipes your child can engage in. There's tons of kid friendly cookbooks at your local library, or that you can order for you child. There's ideas on Google, Pinterest, and YouTube as well.

• Gardening. Even if you don't necessarily have a yard space to work in there are always potted plants. Start a little indoor herb garden or plant some indoor or outdoor plants in pots. We live in an apartment right now so while we don't have yard space to work in we are working on a balcony garden. Sure it's all in pots but it's tons of fun for the kids and us. Also we get our own homegrown fruit! Right now we have tomatoes and strawberry plants. We also have some potted flowers out there. We have bigger plans for next year but for the time being it's working out great with what we have. The kids take a lot of joy and feel very accomplished to see the actual fruits (or vegetables) of their labors. ;) It's a way to keep them busy all the while doing something big and productive. Or let them play in a pot of dirt. Build some mud pies or let them make a tiny fort or camp ground in a giant pot. There are tons of ways to have fun with this.

• Board games & Puzzles. A bit old fashioned? Maybe, but also a lot of fun. We are huge into board games and puzzles around our house. The kids love them too. We do puzzles, play card games, board games, and it's so much fun. Sometimes the kids don't even want to watch TV or play video games because they want to play a card or board game. And don't forget you can set up dominoes and knock them down and build card houses too! Don't let the electronic filled modern world take away some of the old time favorites. :)

And those are just a few of the things you can do at home. There are many other ways to pull your kids out from in front of that TV and take that game controller out of their hands. If it's something fun enough you won't even get any complaints!

Now some of you may be thinking of how in the world you could come up with tons of ideas for these types of activities. What if your kids get bored with these things, and how do you make them more interesting?
Well that's where the world wide web comes in handy. As bad as the web can be it can also be a wonderful resource. If you find yourself running out of ideas, or just looking for something different and fun to do with your children get online and search it.
There's Google, there's YouTube, there are tons of blogs out there, and best of all there is Pinterest.
Pinterest is chock full of thousands of ideas. I am a huge Pinterest fan. I don't get to get on there as much as I use to but it is so easy to use and if you haven't tried it yet I highly recommend it.
Just go to Pinterest and type in the search bar what you want to know:

• Rainy Day Activities
• Fun in the rain
• Kids DIY Projects
• Painting with kids
• Make your own play dough
• Outdoor activities to do with your child

You get the picture I'm sure. There are tons of ideas, and you will be so glad to have it as a resource. We have had a lot of fun with Pinterest, and it has also been a life saver when the norm becomes a little dull or boring now and again.

With that I will leave you. I hope you've found our articles and advice to be helpful too you. Feel free to share how you get your kids from out in front of that TV. What are some of your children's favorite activities to do indoor and/or out?

Getting Your Kids Away From the TV~priddymomma

Hey guys!  Nice to have you tune in again.  I know you are just chomping at the bit to know what the topic is this time.  We have for you our tried and true suggestions for getting your child to put down the remote (or game controller) and do something else for a while!  Yay!  Awesome!

Okay, truth time.  I am not the best person in the world to offer advice on this topic.  We do not have cable in our household.  I don’t tell you that because I’m all goody goody about it.  We just decided we couldn’t afford to have cable about five years ago and never looked back.  We don’t miss cable.  We get our news and weather from the internet.  Shows we “have” to watch are eventually available on DVD, and we do own a DVD player (and television.  Don’t be weird.)

That being said, I plop my kids down in front of it daily.  I am a stay at home mom.  I am a homeschooling mother as well.  If you work 9-5, you get a lunch and breaks.  Afterwards, you get to go home and presumably stop working (or at least work on something different).  If you are a stay at home mom or dad (and do not homeschool), you likely send a kid or two off to school during some part of your day.  Me?  My job is 24-7.  I have both my kids ALL the time.  Kids are fighting with each other or bombarding me if I have to pee, I’m the one to get up in the night if the kids need me, and my lunch is usually an after thought when I realize I haven’t eaten and that is way I’m feeling sick to my stomach.  While my kids mean the world to me, they are not my entire world.  I need some time for myself as a person too.  I challenge anyone to listen to as much high-pitched screaming as I do on a daily basis and not want to throw in the proverbial towel.  I will let them watch a movie to save my sanity, yes yes yes.

Cheerio Champ gets video games as well as a movie each day.  *gasp*  The horror!  Yes, well…not every day.  He earns them.  You heard me.  He has chores and knows that we expect a certain caliber of behavior from him.  If he doesn’t keep up his end of the bargain, too bad so sad.  That means if there is a movie that day (and usually there will be at least one), it is mom’s pick and it will be educational.  (Sometimes that is a good thing, sometimes not so much.  There was a recent “naughty” day in which his movie was a lecture on DNA.  While he did take away a bit about protein bonding, he would have much rather watched Frozen).

I do my best to make sure they have other things to occupy their time.  They do a pretty good job of keeping themselves busy (when not demanding things from me of course).  Even when there is a movie playing, the kids like to run off and do something else before making their way back to whatever was on.  I like to think they occupy themselves in part because I have never been one to plan their entire day.  Certain things are set in stone (bedtime, lunch, etc.), but outside of that, whatever. 

I told you all that so that you would know more about the reputability of your activity planner.  Take or leave what I have to suggest to you here, and feel free to comment about some of your favorite busy-making for kiddos!

Princess Cheerio and her art

• Art.  I completely agree with Leslie here.  Cheerio Champ has never been much for drawing or coloring, but he loves to paint.  Princess Cheerio loves everything to do with art, but she doesn’t enjoy coloring books.  She likes to have a blank sheet of paper to put her scribbles to, and as a result, she has a massive amount of fine motor skills.  She is two and regularly holds a writing utensil correctly.  I highly suggest leaving out paper, pencils, markers, and crayons where your kiddos can get them, preferably on a little table or something of that nature.  Insist that the supplies stay there if you like the current color of your walls, floors, carpets, and furniture. 
• Reading.  Again, agreeing with Leslie.  My kids have loads and loads of books.  They spend hours pouring over them.  Cheerio Champ can read and has recently picked up chapter books.  Princess Cheerio can’t read yet, but she loves turning pages, looking at pictures and words, and having someone else read them to her.  Sometimes her bubby even reads a book to her, which melts my heart.  Use your local library if you don’t have a lot of books at home, or if they are getting tired of the same books.  We get each kid ten books a week.  They love it!
• Go outside.  This sounds like a no brainer, but many families never do this.  You don’t have to plan an activity!  When we first moved to our new house, my mother wanted to buy the kids a swing set.  I didn’t want to get one just yet, as I hadn’t planned out where my garden or shed or anything was going to be and had no idea where I wanted a swing set placed.  She exclaimed, “But what will they DO?”  Um…play?  Outside?  While enjoying nature?  Why is this so hard to comprehend?  That floors me.  I played outside for hours on end as a kid.  Granted, I did have a swing set.  While all of us kids spent a lot of time on it, I have more memories of chasing each other around, looking for bugs, and exploring.  Cheerio Champ spends time in his garden patch, watching birds, and playing with designated outside toys.  Princess Cheerio looks at everything.  Our neighbors have horses, she loves bugs, and she likes to pick dandelions.  During the summer, kids can have fun with water.  Snow is great in winter. Leaves to play in during the fall. There are countless things to enjoy.
• Cooking.  My kids love to help cook anything at all.  Great jobs for them include whisking, adding pre-measured ingredients, slicing things with a plastic knife, counting, and getting out ingredients from the refrigerator or pantry. 
• Get them active.  Okay, so this may or may not be away from the tv.  We have some exercise DVDs aimed at kids that we let them watch, but you can also show them how to do it without the movie help.  We also have a home gym, but you don’t need one to share fitness with your kiddos.  Any kid will dance along if your Zumba song comes on the radio.  Our kids love the trampoline.  Jump ropes are super fun and a learning experience.  My family had several pogo sticks when I was growing up.  Go for a walk or a hike or a bike ride.  Try a yoga DVD together (we love Gaiam’s YogaKids series).  Play tag!  Play Simon Says or dance the hokey pokey.  Go swimming or sledding.  Have a tickle fight!  The sky is the limit (unless you are into hang gliding, and then I guess it isn’t).

Here, hubby is teaching Princess Cheerio and Cheerio Champ about tai chi posture

That’s it for me!  If you have any topic requests or comments, we would love to hear from you!  Comment below, or email us at thecaseofthemissingcheerios@gmail.com .

Don’t forget to like us on facebook! https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Case-of-the-Missing-Cheerios-blog/317836935013256