Quick and Dirty: How much screen time can you eliminate?

I got SO SICK of seeing nothing but the back of Captain's head this weekend.  90% of our family time is spent with him on the computer or his smart phone, while the kids watch a movie, and I read a book or putter around the house.

Being totally honest, during the week, that's what my kids see of me.  

Oh. My. Goddess.  

What have I been doing?!  What am I teaching them?!

This week I will be turning the computer off at 8 a.m. (excepting today, since I got a late start after Cabin Boy #3 gave us a rough night; today I will turn this thing off as soon as this post is done).  It will not be turned back on until 7:30 p.m., when we have a post-bath pre-story dance party with the kids.  The t.v. will not come on until Cabin Girl gets home from school so I can have 30-60 minutes of dinner prep and homework help time with her.  The e-reader and smart phone will only be used for music or actual phone stuff.

I'm not sure what we'll do come the weekend, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there.

Wish me luck!

It's funny, it's true, it's sad.

How much screen time can you eliminate from your house?

The lazy mom: This century's brand of feminism?

This is a subject that's been preying on my consciousness for a while.

While I totally agree that being June Cleaver is hardly the norm, nor should it be expected of women today, I feel like we're quickly sliding in the opposite direction.  Blogs about how few meals are cooked at home,  social media posts about drinking while kids are entertained by a screen, not giving a crap about a house that hasn't been vacuumed in months, contests to see who has the messiest house on the internet (which I voted on, because, let's face it, I need a handheld vacuum) are no longer few and far between, they're everywhere, and people LOVE them.

What with working parents, single parents, work from home parents, grandparents raising their grandkids, there is definitely a lot of redefining regarding the traditional household going on, which I TOTALLY support. 

BUT, with the stress of work, the economy, slipping school standards, public services being cut, should our rallying cry really be, "The standards of my home don't mean anything anymore, either!"?

I'm not perfect in the least.  I've never been tidy, organized, or a sparkly clean person in general.  I like sitting on the couch watching tv.  I like playing video games.  I like having fun instead of doing chores.  Our clean laundry sits in the basket for days.  Captain has pretty much taken over doing dishes, because it's something I just can't seem to get a handle on doing.  But I owe my kids more than being a lazy mom that won't show them how nice a home can be.

What happened to teaching our children pride in a job well done?  What better place to start than showing them that the accomplishment of having a dining table has a clean cloth, a swept floor, and knowing a space is usable without fear of stepping in a day-old dollop of yogurt is a feeling worth working for?  Why not show them that a home cooked meal that the whole family sits down to enjoy together is really where it's at; Not getting 8,000 'likes' on a status regarding having mac'n'cheese with your wine for the 5th night in a row.

I am guilty.  We all, at some point, are.  But let's leave it to the occasional "I do this sometimes, too.  You are not alone and it's okay," instead of something that all the cool kids are doing.  Let's stop the trend of  vilifying the parents that manage to maintain a clean house, cook their family's meals from scratch, and play with their kids outside.  Let's stop before the 'Super Mom' that used to be an awe inspiring term just makes other parents snicker with derision.

We're better than this.  Let's teach our kids that, too.