Fridays: Unplugged

It seems that we have a slight technology addiction in our household.  I don't know if you're aware of this, but the author of this blog has a (cough) minor obsession with Facebook.  The eldest child in this house would, if permitted, bounce back and forth all day between computer games, video games, and television.  What happened to the days of eight year old boys getting dirty and having to be called back inside at the end of the day?

Well, this chick is putting a foot down.

Fridays, all summer long, we're going "unplugged."  That's to say, there will be no screens used of any sort during the day.  I'm excited about it!  So excited, in fact, that I haven't broken the news to said eldest child yet because I know he'll suck the joy right out of it.

The possibilities are invigorating, and since blogging at a computer screen counts as technology, don't expect real-time updates.  We've already got a few fun things in store for tomorrow.  We're going to get dirty, and sweaty, and try something new.  It's going to be great!  And for one of the few times in my life, I don't actually mean that sarcastically. 

We've gotten off to a good outdoorsy start this summer - we've done some serious hula-hooping, been to two playgrounds, taken a bike ride at our favorite park, eaten two picnic meals, and enjoyed some amped-up backyard fun.  That's in the first 3 days alone.

 

 Leah has joined us every step of the way.  She's even learned a new trick this week...doing abdominal crunches in her carseat and bouncer.  But that's really beside the point.

In our techno-innundated culture, we miss so much while we stare at those screens.  So for one day a week all summer, and hopefully beyond, we're turning them off, and enjoying the actual life right in front of our faces instead of a virtual "reality" that doesn't actually resemble reality.  At all. 

If it keeps up, man will atrophy all his limbs but the push-button finger.  ~Frank Lloyd Wright

In the interest of not being a hypocrite to my eight year old, I'm unplugging too.  See you on the other side of simplicity and relaxation.  (Let me be idyllic for once.)