Oh, the great TV debate. Libby LOVES Baby Einstein, but only the animal-themed ones. Each night before bed, watching one of those is her wind-down routine. But lately she has been requesting them during the day. I tried putting in a different movie yesterday - The Jungle Book - thinking that would be an acceptable alternative. She made it quite clear that it was not. She didn't settle until she saw that little computer generated caterpillar before the opening credits. Is she addicted? I think so. But what do I do about it?
Is it better for her to watch educational shows such as Baby Einstein and PBS cartoons, or Disney movies? Or should I have a no TV after 9 am policy (Sesame Street is over at 9, and I think it's the best show in the world)? In NC we didn't get PBS, so Libby watched no TV whatsoever and played quietly by herself all day. These days, if the TV is off, she runs up and turns it on. Do I enforce a no TV rule, or do I let her choose her form of entertainment? I have no problem with the PBS shows she watches, and love the lack of advertising for junk food and toys, but...
It's not like I use TV to get her out of my way. If I am doing laundry or cleaning or cooking, she still follows me around and wrecks everything I do. I'm not trying to keep her quiet so I can sleep on the couch. It's just that I can only color so many pictures of Winnie-The-Pooh and play so many minutes with Little People and sing so many rounds of Wheels on The Bus before I need to remind myself that I am 25, not 2.5. It's not like there's anything better to do around here. And when the TV is off, Libby entertains herself very well, and has a great time playing. I don't want her to lose that ability.
I just read an article that presents research showing a link between too much TV before age 3 and autism. The AAP says absolutely NO TV before age 2. I have always suspected ADD and ADHD to be sometimes caused by TV. But no TV at all? Ever? Where can a parent realistically draw the line? Where do you draw the line? And be honest - there are days when nap time rolls around and I realize the TV has been on since 6 am. Does that happen to you? Purposefully? What are your rules? What do you do when your kids ask to watch "just one more show?"
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Yes, isn't the TV a tricky things sometimes? The only one I have trouble with is Ian. With Elise's school schedule, TV for her during the week is just non-existent. Merry Grace is not even remotely interested in TV, at all. Ian, on the other hand, would watch TV from sunup to sundown if I would let him. (I know b/c there are days that has happened.) So we definitely have to have some limits for him. We have an empty mason jar that we let him place plastic food in (cookies, doughnuts, etc.) He has a set number of cookies that represent the number of shows he can watch. When those cookies are in the jar, he's done for the day. He's old enough that it gives him the chance to see what happens if he uses his cookies all at once or if he spaces them throughout the day. We vary allowing him 1-2 hours a day. Some days, if I have RS meetings or calls, I really need him to have those 2 hours. The older two also enjoy playing computer games (noggin or pbskids) so we have to set limits there too. And with Elise, even though her main TV time only comes on the weekend, our big concern is that she is progressing into the older shows like Suite Life, Hannah Montana, and ones like that. Sometimes I'm uncomfortable with the subject matter there, so there's definitely monitoring involved. There are just times I want to unplug it all. :) It can be such a hassle to keep it all sorted out and half the time I'm not sure we get it right. But there are certain shows I really love and am not quite ready to do without them yet. :) And I'm not sure no TV at all is really all that realistic. Where do you fall on the issue?
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