My kids are growing up before my eyes. I know all parents say that, but this is the first time I've felt it to be true. I'm starting to panic a little, feeling like my time with them at home is disappearing too quickly. Am I using that time as well as I could be? Or am I letting inconsequential things distract me. I know the answer to that, and I don't like it.
And so lately I've been trying to narrow my focus a bit, or be more aware of what I am allowing to influence me, I guess. Nothing is more important than what is happening in my own little home. I know this is true. So what am I looking for when I putz around on the internet, or check Instagram so often?
I needed to make some changes. We've canceled Netflix, again. Instead of trying to do things like Facebook less, I just removed them completely from my phone. I follow so few people on Instagram now, that it's hardly worth checking. I keep my phone on the kitchen counter and try not to touch it during the day. Mabel is getting nearer to the age where she will want to participate in social media, and how can I expect her to manage it well if I can't manage it myself? It's time to step away a bit. Blog less. Read fewer blogs. Put down my phone. Be more present.
Is this something you struggle with, too? The thing is, I don't want to look back to these good, happy years with my kids at home and think that I wasted them on something as ridiculous as social media. It's just not worth it.
Anyway, stay cool and have a happy weekend.
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Yes, I struggle with it, too. Very much. I keep saying I need to keep my laptop tucked away in my bedroom so I don't pass it a million times a day and "check it" every hour. Thanks for inspiring me to be a better parent--as you so often do.
ReplyDeleteYes, those have been my struggles among others, but the internet is a big time waster for me. It's difficult, since I work full-time outside the home on a computer all day, so it's just there in front of me for the asking.... I used to never even have my phone on - instead, tucked away in my purse, but that changed when I had a teenager and had to be available via text. Now my teenager is 18 and we are off spending the day together in a little bit.... a privilege and a blessing, because there's not a day that goes by where I don't pause and think "How did we get here?" It's as if I'm living my life on fast-forward, not by choice, but simply because that's how it all goes by.
ReplyDeleteHappy Weekend to you and yours,
Linda in Illinois :)
i keep thinking how can i soak up these precious ben moments better? they're too wonderful, and never seem to be enough. is it possible to fully appreciate it all? i feel i'll always come to the end of the day and think i didn;t appreciate the miracle of it all enough.
ReplyDeleteI have been feeling this too! I use the internet as my "escape". With 4 kids five years apart in age, and a husband who works out of town most of the week, I get a little overwhelmed with the "everyday"-ness of my life, and use the internet to escape. But I'm noticing that I'm not really escaping from anything, just delaying it! I need to remember that even the mundane and sometimes "annoying" things that go on everyday are still blessings to me!
ReplyDeleteI have pretty much quit Instagram lately and it feels so good! I have to say that I entirely agree with you and am trying to do the same thing. This is why I like you so much :)
ReplyDeleteEmma is already asking about a phone. so i feel the same way. I de-friended a lot of people from facebook and instagram. I hardly look at pinterest anymore because I started feeling like my home wasn't as perfect as they made it look. when I really am just fine and love my house. I don't need more stuff. I blog mostly when I'm at work late into the night, but even that i wonder if I should stop. thanks for the thoughts.
ReplyDeleteSteph, good for you. Time passes soooooo quickly and you want to keep and have those memories. Not ones of cell phones and computer time and instagram etc.
ReplyDeleteHugs
Hello! I'm old school and love the archaic ways of entertaining a toddler. My youngest turning five this fall I have learned to manage my time less on social media, and don't watch too much tv. My oldest is 19. I remember when we both got a Facebook four years ago, and how crazy it was. It was pretty cool how we all reconnected with friends from all over (we moved a lot), but after a while it wears down. I have taught my kids to manage their time wisely on the net & I notice my oldest & 14 year old hardly on the net. My 14 yr old just has an IG & uses it responsibly. She'll never get a Facebook (thank goodness!) Anyway time sure does fly and family time is the best! Have a wonderful summer, and your blog is quaint and cute! Take care!
ReplyDeletexo-Rose
I love your thoughts. I have recently been thinking the same things, my babies growing too fast and what am I doing on my phone all the time? If I leave it in another room, my two year olds feel compelled to bring it to me! Yikes! I recently deactivated my Facebook account, and while I felt initially "cut off" I also feel a bit "free-er" (isn't that kind of sad? ha!). And I asked my husband to change my Instagram password so I could only access it when my kids were in bed and the evening tasks were done. Sounds crazy, but I was in such a habit of checking it every time I touched my phone. I have begun to really love these days without social media. It is crazy how something with such potential to do good can so easily drag us down. But I still read a few favorite blogs of people I know. . . . yours is the only one I still read written by someone I don't. Thank you for your uplifting words and positive and simple example.
ReplyDeleteEveryone has their own insights on how to improve which is grand. I have an old school phone talk text that's it so not a distraction for me in fact I usually only have it f I am going somewhere. My blog is my photo journal of my kids and our life it forces me to take pictures and write about daily life so I will have those recorded memories later to look back on. They love to read my blog. I am sure there are other ways I can improve but I enjoy keeping up with distant family though blogs etc.
ReplyDeleteI love your mindfulness here. I started setting better boundaries about my phone/internet time several months ago. It's hard! and you're right: how can we expect others to do it when we can't? I want to be sure I am experiencing life and listening to people instead of being glued to my phone.
ReplyDelete