TV you allow vs. your ideal - Page 4

[Nicole730]

Originally Posted by apple o' my eye 

So Netflix users, what have you found to watch? Kipper is a yawn for us and kid movies are too long. We cancelled our subscription.

Unfortunately, PBS is spotty for us, the antenna only works some of the time. We are getting some Clifford DVDs for Christmas (we love that big red dog!)

TV is new for DD (usually 0-60 min per day depending how much time we are home) AND so is the begging for tv all morning! Ugh, makes me want to chuck the thing out the window! :-)  I guess it is good practice for learning about limits, *sigh*

On Netflix DS will watch an episode of Dinsosaur Train - 12 minutes.  Super Why - 22 minutes. Or the movie Babies.  He doesn't watch the whole thing.  We only use the instant play option for DS.  Oh and Barney every now and then.  For sure no Calliou.

DS also really loves trains and we got this DVD at Target that has segments on real: trains, garbage trucks, airplanes, bicycles, and monster trucks.  It was only $5, and it's definitely gotten it's use here.

[Louisep]

I feel good if it's 30 mins in the morning and 30 mins in the evening. Often it's more and I'm sad about that. But we also have good days when there is no TV. We had a zero TV policy until he was about 16 months, then it just started to creep in. It calms him down (we stick to PBS and mostly Caillou which is very calming) and he actually learns from it...I can't believe I just wrote that, but it's true! He picks up new words that can only have come from Caillou. We read a lot and have very active days, so I think it all balances out. He's pretty smart and speaking in 4-5 words sentences, so I guess I'm okay about it.

[Zimbah]

In my ideal world where I never get tired and need a break, DD (2yr2m) would watch no tv.  In reality she watched very very little tv until almost 2 - just the odd 10 min programme e.g. Postman Pat, usually with my parents who look after her some of the time when I'm at work, but it wasn't even every week let alone every day.  The past few months she's watched a bit more, she's starting to drop her nap and often ends up really tired and miserable by the afternoon and there's nothing that will interest her so I let her watch a couple of programmes.  They're ones on replay so I choose and there aren't any adverts.  I aim to limit it to 30 mins max although there's been the odd occasion where she's watched an hour.  And when she was extremely miserable with teething recently she watched tv almost the entire day but honestly I don't know how I would have managed to keep the screams at bay without it!

[anechka]

 We had TV on sometimes when my dd was newborn becase it helped me to cope with having a newborn who did not (and still does not) sleep well at night (she is two now). Afer she turned one, we banished TV to the basement and we have not watched it since. We get all our news and other info from the Internet; which we surf occasionally. So, we live in a TV-free home and are proud of it.

[Teenytoona]

At this point, I don't want to tally up the reality. It's gotten really bad, esp since both DH and I are job hunting. My ideal is little to none, the reality is soo very far from that.

[pisceanmomma]

I have been able to keep my ideal of no tv.  But---- my daugher is only 2, and I have more control shaping her world now than I ever will.  At this point she doesn't realize we own one, it stays shut in a cupboard.  We don't have cable, or get any channels, we never got the converter box.  The more I got used to not watching it myself, the better I liked it.  I do watch some shows online though, after DD goes to bed.  I let her watch on You tube, some music of my choosing, or 2 minute clips on an animal she is interested in (Chickadees are big right now.)  So far, I have been able to stick to my guns, I hope to keep it that way as much as possible!

[redvlagrl]

Originally Posted by pisceanmomma 

I have been able to keep my ideal of no tv.  But---- my daugher is only 2, and I have more control shaping her world now than I ever will.  At this point she doesn't realize we own one, it stays shut in a cupboard.  We don't have cable, or get any channels, we never got the converter box.  The more I got used to not watching it myself, the better I liked it.  I do watch some shows online though, after DD goes to bed.  I let her watch on You tube, some music of my choosing, or 2 minute clips on an animal she is interested in (Chickadees are big right now.)  So far, I have been able to stick to my guns, I hope to keep it that way as much as possible!

This is exactly us. DD is 2 and we don't have a TV (which makes things easier!). There is some youtube, but only short clips with active parental discussion.

[pisceanmomma]

And our DDs are the same age- 10/08.  I would love to chuck the tv, but DH *needs* it to play video games after DD goes to bed....

[entiti]

I'm glad this thread is here.

We have an old small tv on a tv roller that we pull out after dd is in bed. But since I've been hit with the morning sickness bug in my first trimester (the past 3 weeks), The t.v. has been out ALL DAY!!

It's the only thing I can do when I can't get off the couch (unless it's to the bathroom to puke), and I need dd to be occupied. But the thing is we only allow her to watch dave matthew's band concerts!! lol....and she loves them!

She sings, strums our guitar, and sometimes even takes the guitar stand and pretends it's a microphone! It's hilarious. But she has been watching alot of her favorite concert dvd. Does anyone think there is a difference between this and regular tv? I don't know, I do feel kinda guilty, and then I feel like it's only until I get over this hump, and then the tv is going back in the closet!! But is rocking out to DMB that big of a deal?

[starbuckmom]

My ideal and what I allow is pretty much the same.  We don't have cable/satelite.  We do have the converter box so we can get pbs kids.  My ds gets about an hour in the morning and then another hour in the afternoon.  When daddy comes home, he pretty much forgets about the tv.  There have been days when daddy turns on the tv in the basement while I am cooking supper but the kids are so busy playing they really don't see it.  The twins are a week shy of 2yrs old and don't care about the tv!  I am so happy about that.  They LOVE to play with big brother so tv isn't an issue with them.  I have to admit, there have been days in the past where we have watched more than we should have but I catch it and I learn to say no and leave the tv off.

My ds loves pbs kids, Thomas, Auto B Good videos.  I have some Cedarmont kid dvds that I am completely fine with the kids watching.  Its kids singing bible/Sunday school song.  We also like the truck/tractor info videos!