Experiment Three - Less TV

Our TV is almost always on. With difficult pregnancies and twins - being able to turn on PBS cartoons or a Disney movie was a life saver. My oldest daughter and I would spend our days on the couch watching TV while I was on bed rest. And while taking care of newborn twins, our beloved Disney movies kept our oldest daughter patient. 

Once the twins were old enough to have an opinion on what was on TV, things got challenging. Everyone wanted to watch something else. Sometimes I would have one movie on one TV, another movie on another TV, and PBS on another TV. Our family would be divided between three floors of our home, watching three different things. 

Finally, enough was enough. I didn't like that my three girls were spread all over our home. I wanted everyone to be together, enjoying time together instead of time apart. 

Winter 2014

At the beginning of 2014 we had three televisions in our home - one in our living room, one in our bedroom, and one in our lower level living room. Within a few months of entering 2014, we sold two of our TVs (they were also our largest TVs) and kept our smaller 32" with built in DVD player. We moved our one remaining TV from our bedroom to our living room and we haven't missed the other TVs one bit.

One thing that has helped this transition is a rule we have during Family Movie Nights: All three girls have to agree on the movie we watch. And now this rule always applies - When the TV is on, my girls have to agree on what they watch. It has also helped develop great negotiating skills! Whenever one of my girls wants to watch something, without hesitation or prompting she will go up to her sisters and ask if they both agree! 

Winter 2015

Now that my girls are a year older, my husband and I decided to try another experiment - Can we go without TV one day each week? We decided to make Sundays a NO TV DAY. After our first No TV Sunday, we realized how fantastic of a day we had - awesome quality family time. We played more with our kids, read more books together, and this Sunday my oldest and I made lunch together! The day seems slower and more peaceful. Our girls have not only accepted No TV Sundays, but are excited about it. This experiment was a total success and I am looking forward to more No TV Sundays!