Incideous Unwanted Guest

And I have kicked him out.

We have busy house with lots of people and lots of space.

We have one TV, no cable, no Tivo (I actually don't even know what that it, exactly), and pretty ancient guidelines/rules about watching only on the weekend.

Over the last year or so, the TV has been making a more and more invasive presence in our home. Borrowing movies from the library has become an almost weekly expectation. Teenagers like all kinds of crazy television. Saturday morning Yu-gi-oh turning into Saturday afternoon bad 70s movies, turning into baseball games, and now football games. I haven't liked the refocusing, but I have let guidelines be bent.

Until this weekend....when a disrespectful unload from a teenage mouth that had just spent hours in front of the television led me to walk to the box, unplug it, and remove it from the living room. I didn't have to or plan to offer an explanation.

You might be wondering what television has to do with a disrespectful mouth. Well, it's all attachment. Television disconnects from relationships and when our kids are disconnected from the loving people around them, they forget how to behave. Sounds simple...and in many ways it really is simple.

The kids were facing a Sunday through Wednesday holiday from school and were distraught...it seems they have completely forgotten how to make themselves happy without the plug in box.

"What do you expect us to do while you are at work all day?"

"You mean, after you finish your chores?"

"Uh, um, yeah...?"

"It's not my job to entertain you, my dear. I am sure that you can figure it out."

When I returned home on Monday afternoon, the house was quiet. I couldn't hear a peep. Only the dogs greeted me at the door.

Good golly, they ran away to a house with cable!

Actually, I found them. Quietly doing a variety of creative activities in their rooms!

I love when it is so clear that we, as parents, do the difficult, but right thing!