Summer Family Tech Timeout

Only one week left until school is out for summer. As a stay at home mom summertime means that I have to come up with an activity schedule for my girls. Generally speaking I can find enough things to do during the daytime to occupy my kids. It’s the end of the day when the girls want to turn to the screens in our house for entertainment. Not only are my kids ready for a little screen time, but when my husband gets home from work, he’s ready for it too. This summer things are going to be a little different. We’re taking the Tech Timeout Challenge by life insurance provider, Foresters. We’re going to take a break from technology and spend more time hanging out together.

So, what’s this Tech Timeout Challenge by life insurance provider, Foresters all about? It’s about walking away from the screen (t.v, computer and phone) and making family time a priority. Our entire family has signed the official pledge form...we’re committed to spending 1 hour a day tech free all summer long. You can commit to 1 hour a day for a week, we’re just enthusiastic. Phew!

I have to say, completing this challenge during the daytime wouldn’t be that hard. We’re an outdoor play kind of family. However, to make this challenge really work for our entire family we have decided to commit to an hour in the evening. To be honest, my husband’s suggestion was to take the timeout between 1am and 2am. I really think my husband is going to have the hardest time with this challenge. He’s already informed me that legally he has to keep his phone “on”, but he can certainly put it down for an hour. Pretty funny, right? As for my girls, when I told them their initial reaction was “NOOOO!”. But, honestly it only took me one minute to remind them of all the fun board games we can play, the bike rides we can take and the books we can read together. By the time we ended our conversation, my youngest daughter asked “Can the break be longer than an hour?”

Let’s face it, kids (moms and dads) gravitate toward screens when they are tired, bored and their options for play have dried up. I suppose the real challenge is thinking up alternative play ideas...fortunately Foresters has put together a fun list of 50 things to do as a family without technology and they have created a great Tech Timeout Pinterest page. Think about it, how would you spend an hour tech free with your entire family?

So, the challenge is on! Will you join us? Be sure to head over to the Tech Timeout Challenge by insurance provider, Foresters site and fill out the pledge form. Throughout the summer I’ll be sharing our progress on our Facebook page and in September I’ll report back on how we did over the ENTIRE summer.

This post was generously sponsored by life insurance provider Foresters, but the opinions and images are my own. For more information, visit www.techtimeout.com