Into the Void
Bek decided that last night was, having just arrived home pretty late after a 10 hour drive from Michigan, the perfect time to announce to the boys that next week, according to Catonsville Elementary, is "No TV Week". This means no TV, no computer, no DVDs, no video games. You can imagine the enthusiasm of the boys for this idea, especially at such an opportune time. After Bek shifted blame onto the school, I said I thought it was a good idea, and indeed I do think it's a good idea, but that doesn't mean I'm not now terrified of the coming week. So we need activity ideas. We've got to keep these guys happy, so please post your ideas sooner rather than later - No TV Week is coming up fast!
posted by public_sjj at 12:11:00 PM
11 Comments:
You two are brave, brave, brave!! Suggestion #1: Go out for a walk... look for wildlife... and take pictures... Develop a "wildlife walk in Catonsville" slideshow. Sell it on eBay for a million dollars.
Oh shoot... I guess that part about making a slideshow would require a computer. Dang... messed up on my first try! Well, you can make the slideshow the following week. ;)
Tami suggested a home improvement activity (paint a room) or a "clean the house" day. Food preparation is good, too... think of a reason to make some cupcakes together. What about gardening? Is it warm enough to go out and plant some flowers or trees around the house (I suggest trees, personally). The world is your oyster!!!
Get outside with Max's camera and take pictures all around the house. Then do some gardening and have Max take more pictures. Actually, have him take pictures of everthing you do. Then make a book titled "What the Jonkes did without tv".
And if you don't like that idea, go to the movies :)
Excellent opportunity to learn some model building too. How bout those Lego Star Wars models?
I also think the garden idea is a good one. Plant a few green bean plants, zukes, and a tomatoe (Republican spelling) plant. If it's still cool, plant them in a pot. Make it a scientific experiment and put one plant in a sunny window and the other in a not sunny window. These thing might even carry over past "no TV or computer week" assuming Steve can handle it.
Mary makes the same mistake as Andy (aka "David") - using a digital camera implies using a computer, so it's effectively out. Well, if you leave the pictures on the camera until after No TV Week is over then it would qualify, but that seems like shaky ground. Oh, and we aren't suppose to watch movies either. At least I think not - it just says "no movies". Perhaps they meant only no movies on TV. I don't know.
Keep the ideas coming!
I think taking pictures of what ya'll did during no tv week is a great idea even if you can't "develop" them until the following week. I wouldn't worry about whether you should or shouldn't use a digital camera, it's up to you to decide where to draw the line. It's too early to plant tomatoes, but cool weather plants like lettuce or pansies would be okay. And mulching the flower beds can be done anytime. How about art? I've gotten art work from S & C over the years but don't have anything from Max and Emmett yet. :-)
Or sports - play badminton or soccor in the back yard.
How about being a tourist in your own city - go someplace you haven't been in a while or the boys have never been to -- maybe Ft McHenry or the shot tower or to the top of the trade center in the inner harbor.
And your friendly neigborhood library is always a good idea.
I'm with Anne -- I think using a digital camera is fine. Just download the pictures the following week. I suspect that is still well within the bounds of the "goal" for this exercise.
You could take the boys on the Duck Tour of the inner harbor - the amphibious vehicle that goes from being a bus to a boat - they supposedly give kids on the tour a toy that sounds like a duck. Or there is Port Discovery.
Lock them in a closet. Kids love that sort of thing. :)
Check out the website
www.factorytoursusa.com
This website lists factories that still give public tours in the US. There are only 4 in MD but one of those is the Moore candy company. But in VA there is the "Enchanted Castle Studios which has been creating attractions, displays, and fiberglass figures of all shapes and sizes for the amusement and entertainment industry since 1982.
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