The age-old question:
"How much TV is okay to let my baby/toddler/child/teenager watch?"
And the answer you hear from every parent will vary. Some say "none". Some will say "too much".
But the TV/No TV debate is not the point of this post.
Whether you choose to let your babies/toddlers/kids watch TV is YOUR choice and WHAT you let them watch is also up to you. I'm Pro-Mom, remember :)
Anywhoooo - as a side note I will share with you that both of my children have been watching TV - meaning DVDs and age-appropriate shows on toddler-friendly channels - since they were young. My now 2 year old son was exposed to it earlier than my 3.5 year old daughter was at the same age, but that's just a result of being in the same room with the older sibling and being a work at home parent.
On to the point - the solution!
One day, when we were a one kid household, my daughter was asking for "Da-Da"- she was around 13 months old. As he works out of the home, there was really no way for this to happen (obviously before FaceTime on iPhones). And, since I work from home, something came up where I really needed to do something work-related that was time sensitive and needed my daughter to be entertained so I could just get something accomplished.
As I searched through the selection and debated which DVD to put on for her that would really captivate her attention for longer than the usual 5 possibly 10 minutes. Then, just as I cringed at idea of her watching more TV that day than had already been "allowed"- I came across a "genius" idea.
Genius I tell you!
It was our wedding DVD. It was perfect for a few reasons:
- It was something she had never seen before
- It had music, motion and people in it
- She could watch our wedding DVD and therefore see her Da-Da
- It exposed her to a new language (Hebrew) from the Rabbi who married us
With fingers crossed, I popped in the DVD and hopped on my conference call and she was mesmerized!
Aside from screaming Da-da at the TV every few minutes, I was able to get done what I had needed to do while she was entertained by the TV but with something that was family-related and a part of our family history.
Of course, now I'm even more glad we paid a bazillion dollars for the wedding videographer :)
Now, when I need to get something accomplished my kiddos are now older so it is easier to avoid using the TV as a distraction - but there are days when I need to do something urgent or cannot be interrupted every five seconds.
This is now one of my four go-to DVDs. Since our wedding DVD worked so well, it prompted my husband to create three additional DVDs of our kids and they are a compilation of everything from us in the hospital with each of them to themselves as babies playing with toys, taking their first steps, eating their first foods and enjoying cake on their first birthdays and beyond.
So, yes, it's watching TV. But they are watching and experiencing our family moments.
Also, watching their faces light up while watching themselves is just adorable, too.
No comments:
Post a Comment