No Screens After Dinner
One of the things that Lindsay and I take very seriously in our post-divorce world and life is parenting. We continue to parent together despite not being together. This, in addition to many other aspects of our lives, is one way we are striving to ensure that the many faults in our relationship do not have a direct negative impact on Mozzie. I will most likely share more and more of what this looks like in greater detail, but that’s for later.
Over the weekend we both realized that we were relying on screens of many shapes and sizes to occupy Mozzie’s brain when we “needed a break.” In the past, we have attempted to establish a routine of reading silently together as a family before Mozzie went to bed. That didn’t last long before Mozzie found the weaknesses and expertly exploited them, his tired parents giving in. While it lasted we loved it though, and have wanted to get back to it.
Another indicator for me was that when I come “home”1 from work Mozzie is typically on the TV, watching some garbage on YouTube. We’d have dinner together, he would quickly eat and ask to be excused, and then would immediately go right back to the TV. Lindsay and I would finish eating, talking, clean up the kitchen, and before we knew what happened Mozzie had been watching TV for hours. This didn’t hit us until it hit us. And so we’ve made some changes, all for the better if we can stick with them.
- He’s allowed an hour of screen time (across all devices) each day. Not before school, and not after dinner. There’s a window of time in the mid/late afternoon where he can scratch this itch.
- Dinner is time as a family, everyone stays put until everyone is finished eating.
- Cleaning up is also time spent as a family.
- Evenings are typically Mozzie and I doing stuff together, the only difference now is that I won’t have to battle him off of the TV to spend time with him. Last night we passed football, used a tree swing we have in the back yard, did some woodworking, rediscovered his BB gun.
The key for all of this is that Lindsay and I stick to it. If we remain united on this front we will succeed. Encouraging him to use his mind will take upfront effort on our part before it becomes something he is able to do on his own. Investment that is 100% worth our time and energy.
I’m eager to continue this and hope we are able to make it become
an established routine. It helps to make time together as a family much
more focused.
Have a great day!
~ Aaron
Grateful log for Wed, 13 Mar 2024
- No screens after dinner was a success!
- Will be selling my leather oven mitts at a local farmers market beginning this weekend!
- My sleep schedule for the last few weeks has been phenomenal.
- I’m at their house, which used to be my house, but blah blah blah blah, just about every day of the week. I kiss Mozzie goodnight after tucking him in (doing this for as long as he lets us) and then get in my car to head back to where I work and sleep. ↩︎