I regret asking for a Wii for Christmas. There, I admitted it. Or more accurately, I regret letting my kids know that we got a Wii. I'm really okay with having it around for me and Mark to enjoy.
Let me explain... On Saturday it was BEAUTIFUL outside. The temperature had to be near 70 degrees. Before the Wii, my kids would beg to go outside and play. They would love to explore the yards and play with their friends. Not anymore.
Saturday morning my kids begged all morning to play the Wii. I kept telling them no, but they were persistent. I don't know how many times I told them to get dressed and go outside, but they had one thing on the brain--the Wii.
Finally, I got their clothes and got them dressed (Elena was gone--I learned later that she was playing the Wii at someone else's house). Finally, I literally opened the door, picked up Micah and Christina, placed them on the porch, and then closed the door. I peered through the door hole and saw them stare at the door for a few moments and then slowly walk towards the other kids.
What have I done to my children! Last year at this time we had no video games and a 19" TV with a weird spot in the corner. My kids had no problem playing imaginative games and LOVED to play outside. Now they think that they have to be entertained all of the time. Right after Christmas I let them have fun playing on the Wii for half the day, but now even with the 2 hour TV limit reinstated, they still don't seem as excited about free playing as they used to. Now they act like going outside to play is some kind of punishment. After about 20 minutes they seem to remember how have fun, but getting them outside is painful for both of us.
I think I'll invest more time reminding my kids how they used to have fun just 2 1/2 months ago. Maybe I'll hide the Wii in my bedroom so Mark and I can play, but the kids won't know about it. We can play Super Mario Brothers while they rest up for their next fun day of running around outside.
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I say just hide all the games and keep the Wii out. I've wanted to do that so many times with our PS3. As long as the weather is nice, I'll continue to send my kids out to bug your kids (even if my kids just want to play on your Wii). Can't wait till we can start picnicking on the driveway, too!
ReplyDeleteI wish I had the discipline just to sell the television. We don't have a game system and this just cements my resolve never to have one, because it is so easy to be addicted and especially for kids. But screen time is still a problem. My oldest will sit and watch youtube videos for hours if I let him, and it's just too easy to pop in a dvd to be a babysitter when I need to get something done. Yet somehow a hundred years ago people managed to mind their children AND get their work done...and kids back then knew how to play imaginative games, and I bet they didn't have the rates of ADD and autism that we have, even without "proper diagnosis". Why is it so hard to do something that we KNOW is SO GOOD for them? sigh.
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