Proposing a new Sub-Forum: TV-Free Families - Page 8

[prettymom]

Maybe we could start posting our threads in the Television subforum. We could try to keep our threads active enough that the first page would always be about tv-free stuff, and threads on ER and whatever could be on the following pages.

[Shell]

Originally Posted by esteg0

I'm just adding my vote for a tv free forum! I grew up in a tv free world and want to someday do the same for my children. What a great resource it would be!

Boy! I wish I had the opportunity to hear more about what it was like growing up TV-Free! What great insights you could provide to us all!

[zinemama]

Wow, after reading all the folks on this thread, I'm revising my original opinion that this wasn't such a necessary forum, after all.

Like I said earlier, having grown up without tv, it seems totally normal to me, not much to discuss. But I can see now that there *is* an awful lot that people want to talk about relating to not owning a television.

And I completely agree that if MDC can host discussions of "Survivor" they can certainly cobble something together for us.

[beka1977]

Please, please, please...!!!

[tifpaul]

I think I'd be interested in hearing why exactly people choose to be TV-free.

For me, it started off just me being cheap and not wanting a cable bill. Then I married a man who is ambivalent about sports. Then I didn't want my children subjected to advertising or product placement. Because that's our reason, and because my two older ones are 4 and 6, we do occasionally watch videos.

Clearly, though some families don't have any screen time at all, and I'd be interested in hearing why that is.

[nik_907]

I agree 100% re: tv-free forum! Just look at the support we are all getting for this forum to be created. Although I am not 100% TV free yet me and DH have spoken about it since DS was born (back in the spring) and then once the news broke about how children are in fact affected by watching multiple hours of tv. I realized we are all effected!
DH watches ALOT of documentaries which I consider alot better than regular tv. but at the same time I want my children to learn from the world around them. Not whats placed in society as the 'norm'.

I ask that whoever opens forums please please reconsider this option.

We need support for eachother who are thriving to make this change in our lives for the better. And with the help of so many topics of natural living, isn't it just expected that this forum would exist even if it doesn't have a high traffic flow from time to time?
Looking at the current 8 pages and overwhelming response regarding this its obvious we are all mostly like minded mama's who do support the right to being tv free if not already reducing usage & wanting support on this issue.

PLEASE RECONSIDER For us, thank you!

[Jen+2monkeys]

Hey, just seeing if this was still going and double voting as well.

[quelindo]

Originally Posted by Jen+2monkeys

Hey, just seeing if this was still going and double voting as well.

:

[cancat]

Originally Posted by tifpaul

I think I'd be interested in hearing why exactly people choose to be TV-free.

For me, it started off just me being cheap and not wanting a cable bill. Then I married a man who is ambivalent about sports. Then I didn't want my children subjected to advertising or product placement. Because that's our reason, and because my two older ones are 4 and 6, we do occasionally watch videos.

Clearly, though some families don't have any screen time at all, and I'd be interested in hearing why that is.

Basically because my child plays very well by herself and has a great imagination and I don't want TV do interfere with that - why mess with a good thing? Being TVfree is actually easier for me...I don't know that many 3 year olds who can play dollhouse for two hours straight...

[nova22]

Adding my vote, even though I haven't seen a mod post here for a while so I wonder if this thread is being watched anymore?

Anyway, i think it would be an awesome forum. We are not TV-free right now. At our last home we had TV, then I watched The Plug-In Drug and started the transition to TV-free. We cut off the cable and the kids were only allowed to watch pre-viewed videos so I knew they weren't seeing anything questionable. We got a TiVo for Christmas and the kids now watch commercial-free TV instead of videos. Our TV isn't working so it makes limited TV a lot easier.

Our biggest hurdles:
- trying to convince the kids and my husband that we should watch less TV in our home
- finding things to do when the TV isn't on, and I'm nursing the baby and can't offer a lot of my time to the older kids
- the kids rarely know what their friends are talking about when the subject of cartoons comes up
- dealing with people who don't understand why in the world you would want to LIMIT television

...and I do NOT want to sift through over a thousand posts to find that info in the FYT area.

[ldsmom]

I'm going to add my support for a TV Free sub-forum! IT would be useful for me as a TV free mama, but I think it would also provide a place for people to learn more about it and that it's not as crazy as they may think!

[Needle in the Hay]

I'm in support of a forum like that. I think it would be interesting to read. I do not think it's appropriate to try to take over the television forum here and it's a bit hypocritical to imply that a television forum has no place on a NFL website.

As for me, we've been without TV reception since before DS was born. When he was 2.5 yrs old we bought a DVD player. Now we have lots of DVDs and DS does not have screen-time limits.

If we are somewhere that has TV (like my parents' house, whom DS and I will be visiting for a month very soon) he can watch TV. I do pay attention to what he watches though. Last time we were there he was watching something for kids and after that some crime show came on and a woman (who was supposed to be dead) fell out of a locker. I was in the shower and my mom was distracted for one minute (I'm not blaming her, just explaining how it happened).

It's for reasons like that and the commercials that I don't want tv reception in my home. For me it's too invasive. I prefer to seek out the best of what is on TV and bring it into my home on DVD. So my DS can still benefit from shows like Cyberchase and Popular Mechanics for Kids. He can be entertained by shows he loves (like Scooby doo) without commercials or feeling glued to the TV to see what's coming on next. He can even rent a spongebob DVD now and then.

So I really don't fit in well with TV-free or free-TV camps! I don't think Spongebob is evil and I don't think regular exposure to TV ads is harmless.

Hope you guys get the forum.

[<~*MamaRose*~>]

[Momma2SoSweet]

I'm chiming in to add my support for a tv free subforum.

My dp is very into technology, so getting rid of the entire tv would just never happen- plus we do enjoy movies from time to time. DD doesn't watch tv (she's only 13 months anyway) and I hardly watch tv except the news occasionally.

My entire family and many friends seem to use tv as a babysitter/crutch and I have no support in my decision to not have dd watch tv. (Apparently it's ridiculous that my one year old still needs to nurse to sleep, but it's okay that my sisters' 6 and 11 year olds need a video to fall asleep every night.

[goldfinch]

(Apparently it's ridiculous that my one year old still needs to nurse to sleep, but it's okay that my sisters' 6 and 11 year olds need a video to fall asleep every night. )

:

Great, great point.

[paphia]

Just thought I'd come back to this thread and see how it was doing. Lots of good ideas.

Another one: I am currently getting ready to move in with my elderly in-laws. They both watch TV. FIL is okay, he mostly likes to watch a couple series on dvd so he will just pop something in before bed. He also watches chinese opera on vhs or dvd (they're chinese). My MIL, on the other hand, watches chinese soap-operas (I have NO idea what is going on in them, other than some kind of intrigue and sword fighting and bickering, etc. I don't speak chinese). And then she loves to obsessively watch the local news, and then freaks out about crime and diseases and never fully understands what is being covered because her english is limited, being like her fourth language.

Personally, I HATE the news. I would be so scared growing up that my house would be invaded or burn down in my sleep. I would have dreams of being shot while at the bank. Just horrible stuff that I completely got from TV. And I don't want any of those shows on around my kids.

But how am I supposed to blend our tv habits? It's not like they're disrespectful of my decisions, but if they don't understand the "why" of my decisions (dh and me together) they just make a big deal out of it until we find a decent way to explain it to them, which is really hard because of the language barrier. I'm hoping they won't want to get cable and will agree to keeping tv in their room where the kids won't be allowed anyway because they have medicines and other things they can't be around. But they aren't my kids or my dh and I can't make unilateral decisions for them or treat them like they aren't allowed to live in their own house.

So maybe we could talk about how to get others to be respectful of our decisions even if they don't agree with them. Whether baby-sitters, in-laws, reluctant DHs, etc.

[maygee]

This is a good idea.

[althara]

I'm all for a tv-free forum. It is challenging to wean away from tv and it would be great to be able to discuss various issues surrounding living without tv in such a tv saturated society. Honestly, I wasn't even aware that there was more than intros on the FYT tv free thread. :

[spudmum]

I agree that if there are this many people wanting a tv-free forum it would be nice to have one. I'm not sure we could be tv free...but would certainly visit & read to get tips to cure our addiction .

I quite like reading about parenting practices that I don't do, but admire or would consider doing in the right circumstances and find long threads like those on the tribes board really hard to get into or keep up with...much easier to dip into individual threads on a board.

[momma4fun]

We are tv-free and I would love to have a forum to support this!
.
Besides many of the possilbe topics for discussion already mentioned here, the first thread I would post would be to invite discussion on how TV can inhibit the soul and morals, not necessarily in a religous way (although I would have to say that my religous beliefs definitely coincide with being TV free) but moreso in a energetic and e=mc squared kinda way.