phasing out tv

[joyofmamahood]

My husband and I are trying to phase out what has become a bad habit. Our 3 year old girl has become more of a tv watcher than we would like. It became habit mostly because our 1yo needs to nurse in total seclusion from his big sister or he won't nurse at all. I'd turn the tv on for her so I could nurse him or get him down for a nap, which typically takes 30 minutes or so. Anyhow, she is now averaging about 1.5 hours of tv a day, which, in my opinion, is WAAAAAAY too much. I'm okay with a little tv, like 30 minutes. But not this 1.5 hour business.

My question is, has anyone else successfully weaned their kids off tv? How did you do it? My girl is the type who can't play by herself. She almost always needs someone to play with her, so nursing the baby or getting him down for a nap is next to impossible unless I can come up with a way to occupy Ana for 30 minutes straight.

Any advice mamas?

[lnitti]

How about some special activities that she only gets to do when you are nursing?

How is she about putting items in her mouth?

You could try things like sorting buttons. maybe a bucket of rice for some sensory time. Maybe new books. Maybe toys she is not allowed to play with when the 1 year old is around (due to choking hazards)? Maybe something like polly pockets? But my kids still need help dressing and undressing them.

I would say artsy type stuff, but if she is going to be unsupervised because of the younger one's need for seclusion, that may not work. But maybe color wonder markers that only right on the special paper. My kids love aquadoodles. Pens are filled with water.

Or you could rotate some toys out and rotate new ones back into play at nursing time. Maybe she would give a toy a 30 minute attention if it was something new to her (or seems new because it had been rotated out for a while).

[catinthehat]

That sounds tough. My dd is also three, and loathes being alone or playing alone. I have seen her play by herself maybe 10 times in her life. Can you send her outside during that time? Do you have a fenced in yard? My younger dd would hate that, but my older dd would have liked it. Or maybe she could call grandma sometimes. She is a little young for that too, but it might work. My girls love making necklaces. That is a nice quiet activity.
Good luck!

[joyofmamahood]

Thanks mamas! She does have a long attention span, so at least that is working for me. I wonder if I set up something for her to do right outside our bedroom door so she feels closer to us, yet is separate enough for me to do our business.

[hopefulfaith]

You could try x-posting in the TV-free forum, too. There are a lot of dedicated moms over there who have had good success with this.

We were TV-free, and then about a year ago I began permitting a PBS show here and there (Curious George, Sid, SuperWhy, Sesame Street...) a few times a week. Then, it was almost every day. Then, the kids started asking for more shows than one on a daily basis. I didn't want to be all "forbidden fruit" about it, but neither did I want them watching 60-90 minutes of TV each day. So, I started having to be proactive again and occasionally I've had to actually say "No, I think we're done watching TV today. Let's think of other things we can do." There were protests, but everyone's been mellow about it lately (I think they've heard it enough and know I'm being firm, although I do try to be pleasant about it).

When I think about the things that my 3 year old dd can do quietly by herself, I think about PlayDoh, art (paint pens/glitter glue/stickers have been the favorites here lately), Playmobil, Legos... Her endurance for our daily "quiet time" (alone in your room for 30-60 minutes after lunch) has been increasing, too. I think it comes with the age.

Good luck. I'm in a different situation than you, but I HTH.

[Curlyfry7]

how about books on cd? or at least as a bridge between tv and no tv? I'm not a lot of help as we watch more than i would like here, but i'm working on it-both on decreasing the amount as well as not letting it bother me as much.

[joyofmamahood]

I didn't know there was a tv-free forum! Thanks for the tip hopefulfaith! Thanks for all the ideas mamas! I like the art ones the best I think. she loves drawing little "cities" with bus stops and the like. They're quite cute.