Entertainment Without Electronics

We live in an age of electronics. There are apps for everything and computers everywhere. You can bank, order food, get directions, and send emails from your phone. 

With all of the electronics in this world, it’s sometimes nice to get away from it all. We need to remember what it’s like to have non-electronic entertainment.

 I’ll wait a moment while you remember to breathe from shock.

Yes, there are still ways to be entertained without electronics.

For example, my family just moved to a new house last week. It was pure chaos for a few days while we tried to unbury the floor from all the stuff that we’d collected over the years.

That meant no electronics. We couldn’t get to the fireplace where we were going to put the TV so we just lived without it. The kids didn’t care because they had too much fun finding the toys that had been packed up for six months while we waited for our other house to sell.

It’s been heaven.

This weekend we had a chance to go to Idaho for a few days. It has been awesome. Why? Not many electronics. There have been a few times when the kids got away with playing on their phones. And I’m obviously on my computer. 

But the basketballs have been pulled out of the garage at Grandma’s house. Not just once. But at every possible opportunity. The sun has been out, the wind has died down, and it is gorgeous.

Even better, the grandkids got to go on a tractor ride with Grandpa. They didn’t just ride either. He let them steer. It didn’t take much to talk the kids into going. There was a line.

There are a few other things that I like to do with my kids to keep them from being glued to their mobile devices.

Writing:

 My kids have wonderful imaginations and I love to write stories with them. My daughter has a story she has written about a witch who loves to play soccer. My son comes up with fun stories for school. And my youngest? She just helps inspire new books for me all the time.

Reading:

We had our books packed up in the garage with everything else for months and it was killer for me. I missed having them on my shelves. I didn’t realize until Wednesday just how much my kids missed the books as well. My four year old sat in front of the bookshelf pulling one book down after another, begging me to read them. Sometimes I’ll read to one child at a time or I will read a chapter a night to the whole family. We made it through the whole Percy Jackson series and I want to keep going with others.

Sports:

And this can be dancing, hiking, skating, or whatever fits your family. For my family, we love sports. Getting out the basketball, soccer ball, or bike is fun for everyone. It makes for good exercise and bonding. 

I have learned that if I stare at my computer all day every day trying to edit or write, my brain goes fuzzy. I need to get out there and experience life in order to come up with better ideas. Remember that sometimes those looming deadlines are helped sometimes by walking away and spending time outside instead of staring at your computer screen.