T.V. - Can't live with it, Can't live without it

We made it!!!  An entire 9 hours without tv today.  This was a HUGE feat, considering Rylee normally watches tv about 75% of that time.  Yep, I'm that mom that just lets my kid watch tv all day.  I admit -- it's a crutch so I can get things done around the house (and spend time on the internet - guilty!). 

I am a stay-at-home Mom, but I struggle with the "Mom" part of that.  When my husband agreed to let me quit work and stay home, we agreed that I would be the "house manager" (of course, I still have to report to the Director - whatever), which meant that I had to keep the house clean and all of the housework caught up.  James said he didn't ever want to have to put laundry away (something we both hate), vacuum, mop, etc because that will all be my responsibility.  I like a clean house, so this was an easy sell for me.  My "to-do" list every day consists of house chores and I sometimes forget I have kids to take care of on top of that (luckily, neither of them lets me forget about them). 

Well, now I have 2 kids and time for house work is much more limited.  It is still a priority for me though, as I feel less stressed if my house is clean and organized.  After Wyatt was born and I needed to devote so much time to him for feedings, diaper changes, cuddles, etc, I started letting Rylee watch a show every time she asked for one because it was just easy.  She didn't notice how much time I was spending with Wyatt because she was watching a show.  Since she was occupied I could get my housework done (and facebook/email checks) between tending to Wyatt.  I started realizing that Rylee pretty much watches tv all day.  She can watch the same Disney movie over and over all day long too --- and if I don't pay attention to the movie it starts over on it's own, which is not a good thing. 

Yesterday, James and I discussed the need to limit her tv watching time.  We knew it was getting bad when she started telling us, "I will after my show is over" when we would ask her to do something.  So I decided to try banning tv from 9-4.  This still gives her a couple of hours in the morning while I shower, get Wyatt up and ready for the day and get a few chores done.  Since today was going to be a rainy dreary day, I was afraid I would give in and let her watch tv.....but I DIDN'T!!  In fact, we turned it off an hour early and turned it back on after 5 and she only asked for it once in that 9 hours.  I wasn't sure what all we were going to do to keep busy all day since we couldn't go outside, but Rylee showed me that it's no problem to find things to do all day.  She pretty much ran the show and I enjoyed it.  We played in the basement (where most of the toys are) way more than we ever have, we read lots of books, painted pictures, played a few games, had several dance parties, took her baby for a stroller ride around the house and practiced somersaults.  I still can't quite embrace my "inner child" and really get into her activities, but I at least got enjoyment out of watching her have fun.  I'm sure I'm her least favorite play mate, but that's okay. 

While Rylee has to give up tv time, I'm giving up internet time (okay, I just found a different way to hold Wyatt's bottle so I can get on the internet while he's eating) and limiting the number of chores I do in a day, or trying to be more efficient so I can tackle them while playing with the kids (Rylee loves to help with laundry and emptying the dishwasher, so those can be worked into our activities). 

When we first moved out to the country we didn't have any tv at all for almost a year, while we were waiting for the local communications company to trench fiber optic cable out to our house.  We couldn't even get a single channel with an antenna.  We found plenty of things to do and never missed having tv shows to watch (but when we went somewhere with cable we watched the crap out of it!!).  I know that life can be enjoyable without the tv, and specifically for children, who have wonderful imaginations and creativity! 

I'm looking forward to spending more quality time with my kiddos(Wyatt is starting to interact with us so the fun is only just beginning).  Hopefully I don't give in to the tv when winter gets here -- ugh -- winter -- shouldn't even be thinking about that word.  As I'm typing right now I hear James asking Rylee who her best friend is and who she has the most fun with and she keeps saying, "Momma"  :)  Guess I'm not doing too bad. 

P.S.  Since turning the tv back on at 5, we have watched The Lion King twice....

P.P.S I hope no one is keeping track of how many times I use "" and ( ) in my posts -- it's bad, I know.  It's my blog though, I can write what I want :)