Happy August!

by Jesse Vivian

"The more you notice how happy or how grateful you are, the more it grows."

-Stella Grizont

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It struck me this week just how lucky we were to grow up in an age with almost no distractions. Besides the television (which had only so many interesting shows, all with commercials) or the neighbor's lawn mower, or the noises of neighbors or siblings, we lived in a quiet, relatively boring time. Summers were slow and uneventful and it really didn't take much to keep us happy! We had BIG imaginations and played outside all day long. As you all know, things are drastically different for kids now. Games at the ready, social media screaming the exact next video or post you want to see, on-demand television and endless hours of shopping/browsing right at our fingertips.  It's so hard to find real boredom. And I think it's sad, really. That we have to fight to create boredom, to spend time (sans phone) in nature and live wholesome life experiences without interruption. It's a battle I'll never stop fighting in my own head, because I'm raising kids in this world while simultaneously running a business from my phone. I'm always questioning how it could be done: the need for both phone-free time and the necessity of the phone. Jesse always says this is another time to use his favorite quote, "the unexpected consequences of the best intentions". We wanted life to be easier, faster, more available. But at what cost?

As a family, we created nature days this summer to help curb our media-neediness. I think we all knew it would feel good and we'd love the time together but we never imagined just how much our KIDS would anticipate these days. Yes, even our teenager who loves her phone looks forward to a lack of cell-service and fresh air. We recently went to Cook Forest (our favorite local getaway) on a 93F day to swim in the icy cold river waters and catch crayfish. That's it. We spent 5 hours walking along the river: swimming when it got deep enough, jumping off the rocks into nature's swimming holes and turning over rocks in search of a crayfish. No phones in site. As we were driving away, I talked about how good it feels to be tucked away in nature and my kids agreed.  I'm tearing up writing that. I felt so much more myself.  We all do. And all we had to do was put everything down and live a simple afternoon. So simple, yet the chokehold technology has on us! We're working on continuing our intentional media-fasting and nature days, but trying to find even a few hours each day to put it all away isn't easy. I get it. I'd love your tips and tricks, if you'd share in the comments. Because we know how dangerous these phones/ipads/tv/etc can be (especially for kids) but we're all in this together. Let's come up with a list of tips for less media! I'll love sharing what you guys suggest and learning from you myself. My first tip is one we've held to with 4 kids: no ipad. If you never give in, you never have to fight it away! We don't have one and my kids don't even know the difference. They are allowed to look things up on our computer or phones, and they love a chance to use someone else's. But if I had any parenting tip to give: don't get the ipad. Let your child be bored in the restaurant, car, sibling's sporting events. I'm telling you, I'm so glad we don't have one.

Next up: take your family to the Scoop Shoppe for gelato! But really, this week it's worth it! Let's look at this flavor list:

 

We're still scooping summer hours: until 9pm Thursday- Sunday! We hope to see you guys at the Scoop Shoppe on Main St in Brockway.

This weeks links + finds:

 

Have the best weekend! I can't wait to hear your tips/ideas for media-free time for families.

Best,

Lisa

 

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