I think many schools have already taken a spring break. I know I have spring fever and I want to do very little that’s productive.

We’re taking a screen break this week.

The sun is shining. The birds are chirping. The bees are humming.

I need to enjoy it and experience it and we can’t do that while stuck, staring at a screen.

We don’t have a TV, so that’s easier. But lately, the kids have been glued to their iPads, watching Netflix, listening to music, playing games.

Attitudes have taken a nosedive, the house is a wreck, and school goes unfinished.

We need to refocus.

Here’s how our week went:

Saturday

I quietly collected the iPads and placed them in my bedroom closet in the morning.

We had a busy day, with one daughter’s piano recital, our son’s baseball game, preparing for Mother’s Day and a birthday!

We watched a Netflix movie on my laptop Saturday evening with homemade pizza, like we usually do.

But there were no iPads!

Sunday

We attended church, came home and grabbed lunch, then headed to the lake for a nature walk.

We had a lovely homemade steak dinner to celebrate motherhood and the birth of our youngest daughter.

We did presents and I baked cake.

We did our evening read alouds, Bible lessons, and prayers.

I feel kinda guilty that our Bible lessons are on an app on my iPad, but I haven’t used it except for that.

Monday

I woke up to breakfast, prepared by my new eight-year-old, Kate, and helpers: Tori and Alex.

We read our morning Bible lessons.

We did math crafts, played with Unifix blocks, completed some nature study pages from our walk yesterday, planted some new flowers, cleaned up the garden, watered the flowers, checked on the frogs in our pond, had a lovely lunch of leftover steak, swept and mopped the floor, and played at the park.

We had a family dinner of homemade hamburgers. Complete with homemade birthday cake.

Everyone pitched in to clean up.

I noticed attitudes seem much improved with plenty of fresh air and outside time.

Nightly read alouds, Bible lessons, and prayers.

Tuesday

Alex woke up and got mad at me that he couldn’t watch a show on his iPad.

We read our morning Bible lessons.

I warmed leftover muffins and bacon for breakfast.

I prepped pork roasts in the Crock Pot.

We finished another nature page about trees.

Kate sewed some on her new sock monkey kit.

Liz completed algebra notes – she uses Videotext, so she had to watch the video on the desktop computer.

Tori needed her iPad for her guitar app for her music practice.

Alex asked about 10 AM if he could play school apps on his iPad. He pouted when I told him no.

The girls swept their bedroom.

I remembered to turn on the Crock Pot! yay!

Liz lied about something stupid so she stayed home.

We spent the entire, insane afternoon at activities – rock climbing wall, art camp, and then track practice for Tori.

I even squeezed in a trip to the commissary before track practice!

Aaron brought Alex and Kate home to feed them their dinner. After track, Tori and I ate dinner.

Liz finished her math lesson with Dad.

Showers before bed help our mornings feel not so rushed.

Nightly read alouds, Bible lessons, and prayers.

Wednesday

Leftover French toast for breakfast. Alex and I made bacon and sausage links.

We read our morning Bible lessons.

I put away clean laundry and straightened my bedroom. It gets cluttered and dusty so easily.

Kate read some of her new Magic Tree House books. Tori played with her Spirograph. Alex played in his room with cars.

We read some science and then I released them to play outside in the sunshine.

I lost track of time with a quiet house. I got some work done and swept the entire house.

Alex came home for lunch and I sent him to retrieve his sisters.

We rushed through a quick lunch, then to music lessons, then to art class.

Liz and I went to the BX for new clothes.

I picked the kids up from art then we drove home for dinner.

We had grilled chicken and pasta. It’s a good night with everyone home together.

Nightly read alouds, Bible lessons, and prayers.

Thursday

I woke up with a splitting sick headache.

We read our morning Bible lessons.

I gave Alex the iPad for Netflix and a bowl of cereal. I went back to bed for an hour.

Tori and Kate made eggs for breakfast and played until I got up.

I was still sick. The barometric pressure was changing and affecting me badly.

The girls did math, with some help. We did science all day long. The girls kept getting distracted.

I did Bible, writing, and reading with Alex.

We had leftovers for lunch.

I took the kids to art camp, Alex to baseball practice, and Tori to track practice.

Liz prepped dinner (green beans, mashed potatoes, and salmon patties!) and Aaron finished it up. Kate ate six patties!

I was still sick and it was so late, so we all went to bed right after dinner.

Friday

We read our morning Bible lessons.

I gave Alex the iPad for one show while I made coffee and prepped breakfast.

I made scrambled eggs for breakfast. Liz had a grapefruit.

I cleaned up Alex’s room and told the girls to clear their floors.

The girls finished the science notebooking assignment.

We took Tori to the ENT to get her ears checked (only wax buildup! yay!). Then we had lunch with Dad, then went to a birthday party. I dropped Tori and Kate off at gymnastics. Dad brought them home.

I came home with Liz and Alex. I let Alex have the iPad to unwind from the busy day.

I made tacos for dinner.

Liz emptied the dishwasher and set the table.

I cleaned the kitchen and took out the trash.

We all ate as a family and it was a good evening.

Nightly read alouds, Bible lessons, and prayers.

I helped Liz with her Civil Air Patrol presentation. We emailed it to her so she could have it on her iPad in case something went wrong at the meeting. I also burned it to a disc.

Saturday

Aaron made steel cut oatmeal, bacon, sausage.

Alex had a teeball game and Tori had a track meet.

I took a picnic lunch.

We had homemade pizza for dinner.

We watched a movie on my laptop and the three kids fell asleep before it was over.

Liz rocked her CAP presentation.

Sunday

Aaron made a breakfast casserole.

We read our morning Bible lessons.

The girls played with Legos and wrote in their journals. They’ve been obsessed with WriteShop StoryBuilders writing prompt cards.

We had sandwiches for lunch.

Tori and Kate had a gymnastics meet.

I cleaned the kitchen when we got home.

We had grilled pork chops and cous cous for dinner.

Nightly read alouds, Bible lessons, and prayers.

It was a really long week filled a gazillion activities.

Conclusion

Overall, I think we did much better with priorities and attitudes, even though I slipped a few times with Alex.

They played with toys, colored, and helped more around the house.

I had some good conversation with Liz.

We were very busy, and most other weeks we are not, so it was an easier time to go screenfree. And the real challenge would be for both Aaron and myself to join the kids in a screenfree week!

But it was a success!

I hope to limit our screen time more this summer so we can grow in our relationships, have fun, and experience nature.

Resources:

• Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit by Richard Louv
• Simplicity Parenting: Using the Extraordinary Power of Less to Raise Calmer, Happier, and More Secure Kids by Kim John Payne and Lisa M. Ross
• Hands Free Life: Nine Habits for Overcoming Distraction, Living Better, and Loving More by Rachel Macy Stafford
• Hands Free Mama: A Guide to Putting Down the Phone, Burning the To-Do List, and Letting Go of Perfection to Grasp What Really Matters! by Rachel Macy Stafford
• American Girls: Social Media and the Secret Lives of Teenagers by Nancy Jo Sales
• Disconnected: Youth, New Media, and the Ethics Gap by Carrie James
• Alone Together: Why We Expect More from Technology and Less from Each Other by Sherry Turkle
• It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens by danah boyd
• iGen: Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy–and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood–and What That Means for the Rest of Us by Jean M. Twenge, PhD
• The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt