No TV, No Video Games . . . No Problem!

So, this past Sunday, the Lambert's unplugged.  After an entire Saturday of sitting on their behinds, playing Minecraft, you could practically see my boys mushy brains dripping out their ears.

Alex after too many video games

So, I decided that there would be no tv, no Wii or Wiiu, no iPods, no laptop, iPad or computer.  No nothing.

Did the boys freak?  No really.  They know me.  They knew there was no way they were gonna get to play video games for an entire day and not have to pay for that eventually.  They groaned a bit, but otherwise they understood.  In their defense, I could have told them to turn off the game, but they were getting along sooooooo nicely.  They were playing together, laughing, helping each other.  It was so nice just listening to them, I didn't want to wreck it.

So what to a 6 and an 8 year old do nowadays with no electronic stimulation?  Well apparently they don't get dressed.  The boys were running around in their undies all day.  They did however make it through playing Legos and Trios and Transformers, all before asking if they could please play Minecraft.  When I suggested I could get out their homework, they immediately found something else to do.  They played with the dogs, played Power Rangers, Furbies and chased each other around the house for a bit.  When they asked me again if they could please, please play some Minecraft, I suggested that if they were bored they could put away their laundry and make their beds.  They decided to do some crafts instead.

Now they day was not without a hitch.  There was a period of about an hour and a half, when I was upstairs working, that I noticed the kids were being awfully quiet.  I thought they were in the basement making forts out of the couch cushions.  I went down to take a peek and caught two boys red handed with Wii remotes in their hands.  They were smiling until they saw me.   Then they new they were screwed.  Each made a big production of how they had just forgot, (yeah, like I just fell off the turnip truck or something), and how sorry they were.  The good part was that they wasted at least an hour crying in their rooms, the bad part, they lost their electronics for Monday too!

So, after the toys and the tears have all been exhausted, and your little child brain has been without electronic stimulation for 9 hours, what do you do for fun?  Please try and picture this in your brain.

The boys come downstairs in Dad's boxer shorts, which they have stuffed full of stuffed animals.  They look like Kim Kardashian on butt steroids.  Then they proceed to bounce around the living room, shaking there booties to, "I Like To Move It, Move It".  By the time they were done, the floor was littered with stuffies and we were all busting a gut.  Swing over to my Facebook page to see the live video, (can't post it here because of all the pervs out there), or I can e-mail it to you.

So there you have it.  Two children in 2013 can survive a day, (and now 2) without electronics.  They played with toys, (you know, those things they begged you for at Christmas).  They made up some very creative dance numbers, and they got along together all day!  Life is good!

Give it a try.  I'd love to see what your kids come up with!  Maybe, one day, I'll be brave enough to try this with Jake.  I promise, if he stuffs his pants and dances around the living room, THAT video IS getting posted!!


Michy

Me So Crafty!!

Check out the latest addition to my living room.  Plenty more pictures still to be added!

A REAL Family Tree!

Happy, Healthy, Prosperous New Year!

I cannot believe another year has passed.  What the heck?!  Today Alex said to me, "I'll turn nine in a few months".  Nine!!!

"Spring is just around the corner", I told him.  And it's true!  The days are already getting longer.  This year, in only it's first day, is already slipping away.   I think, therefore, it is a good idea to resolve to live each day as it's own special blessing.  Think, "one day at a time", or "living in the moment".

That doesn't mean I'm not gonna keep a calendar up upcoming events, it just means I am going to focus on the here and now.  If I find myself stressing about things that are coming up, or the long list of things I have to do, I'm going to stop, take a breath, and focus on the task at hand.  I'm going to really enjoy the walk to the store, without worrying about all the things I have to get when I get there.  I'm going to focus on the joy of cooking and not on the pile of dishes I'll have to clean later. And later, when I'm washing those dishes, I'm going to try and think about how nice the dish soap smells, how well my micro-fiber cloth rings out and how good the music on the kitchen radio is. I can get into a very zen place folding laundry.

Since I can sense the seasons slipping by already, I have also resolved to try and do more things to enjoy this winter.  It's a very special season.  Half the world never even gets to experience it!  When I think about people who really enjoy winter, I think skiers, skaters, hockey players.  I am none of those things.  Especially after last years skiing calamity.  But I love seeing other people's excitement about winter.  I've been reading my friend Mike's posts on Facebook.  Here is a man who seriously loves his job, taking skiers on helicopter trips up into the Rockies and guiding them down.  His excitement about his job is infectious.

There's also my own children.  They absolutely love winter.  Thanks to our location on a cul de sac, every year the snowplow makes a monstrous mountain of snow in the center of our street.  Kid paradise!  They happily spend half the day climbing, sliding and building on this heaping mountain if snow!

The Boys on the Snow Mountain

My favorite winter activity?  I'm doing it right now.  Snuggling up in front of a roaring wood fire, sipping some leftover New Years Champagne and writing.  I can hear the boys upstairs running around and giving Jake a hard time about brushing their teeth.  It makes me smile.

I do have some other resolutions this year.  I want to improve my health and fitness, of course.  I want to get a few big projects done around the house.  And I'm going to be throwing myself into my new Arbonne business full tilt. I want to volunteer more.  It's a great way to get out and meet people.

I also want to sit a whole lot less.  Oh my gosh, I spend so much time on my kiester, and I don't even have a desk job.  I watch a little bit of tv, but not much by average standards.  All of my hobbies though are done sitting down.  Cross stitch, knitting, scrap-booking, puzzles, reading, writing.  All sitting.   I absolutely must move more!!  I have no excuse!

So, that ought to be enough to keep me busy for the next 12 months.  I wish everyone out there in the blog-o-sphere a happy, healthy, prosperous new year!

Michy