Some thoughts on screen time.

Our kids are 100% screen-free.*

* By “screen free” I’m referring to personal devices like phones, tablets, or handheld gaming systems.

You knew there had to be a caveat, right?

Screen time is an incredibly divisive topic in parenting circles, on social media and off. Some parents prefer to have Ms. Rachel or Fortnite babysit their kids while others prefer to raise their children in a home completely devoid of fun.

As with most things in my life, I’ve strived to strike a healthy balance.

The negative side effects of excessive screen time are well documented, especially smart phones. Our children won’t be getting an iPhone until they're in college, nor will they ever have a TV I their room or their own personal computer while they live in our house.

Having unlimited and almost completely unsupervised access to the internet is a recipe for for disaster. My wife and I have more than enough experience to know that kids these days can be subjected to on social media.

Will these principles lead to to teasing from friends? Possibly. Children can be brutal. Making hard decisions for your children’s well being is a part of parenting. Unfortunately, many parents would rather take the path of least resistance. We have no problem with a little discomfort because we’re confident in our values. We know that we’re making the best choice for their development, even if they think it sucks.

That being said, we live in the real world. Kids love watching movies and playing video games. I couldn’t imagine raising my children in a house where we didn’t watch football, pro wrestling, and Disney movies. As a lifelong gamer, it’d be pretty hypocritical of me to never let my kids play video games, too.

We apply the same principles to screen time as we do hypo caloric, sugar laden foods.

Everything in moderation and nothing in isolation.

What I mean by that is this: Screen time is a family activity for us, just like eating. In our family, we don’t eat by ourselves. Meals are communal in our household, whether we’re eating chicken and rice or a pint bowl of ice cream. It’s a chance for us to connect, converse, and share something we love.

Of course there will come a day where our kids have their own devices and they’ll have to make their own decisions in terms of their usage. Just like with food, the only thing we can do until then is educate them and model healthy habits. Hopefully theyfollow in our foot steps.

If they don’t? Worse things could happen. I mean, I once played GTA San Andreas for 8 hours straight and I turned out okay.

-Eric