It was my hubby's idea, and at first I thought it was ludicrous. He suggested that we remove the TV from our living room and commission it to the basement. The more I thought about it, however, the more intrigued I was to see what would happen. Would our kids cry? Would some sort of rebellion rise up from my girls when I removed such a beloved item from our main floor? Let me share with you what happened when we took the TV away from the living room, and some things that the girls love to do now in this space that include Little C's newest favourite toys - My Mini MixiQ’s!
The girls would often spend quiet time on the sofa watching their own shows or playing video games. The living room had become THE TV room. The TV had become the focal point. Toys were dragged up from the basement "play room" (play room is in quotes because it's more like a half-finished disaster) and left haphazardly on the living room floor. We spent a lot of time in here simply staring at the TV and cleaning up messes.
Since moving the TV, when the girls want to stay on the main level near me, they'll now read books in the living room, or play with their favourite toys. This past week they got to play with the new My Mini MixiQ’s from Mattel and they were so excited!
These are the cutest mini collectible figures! If you're a mom to a seven year old like I am, you KNOW they love little collectible things. My Mini MixiQs are teeny tiny and they have individual personalities and themes that are super fun to collect. Little C's favourite part of these little guys was that you can swap out their hair and outfits to create unique characters which is unlike any tiny collectible she's ever seen.
My Mini MixiQ’s are perfect for kids Little C's age (6-8) and she had such a fun time opening up the surprise boxes to see which new characters she was going to add to her collection. You can find these little guys at Toys "R" Us in Canada. They're a great toy that helps encourage imaginative play in a TV-free space!
The best part about removing the TV from the living room? My girls didn't even complain when we made the change. My Mini MixieQ’s have given them hours of fun together and encourage them to express their personalities with the POP and SWAP options that allow them to customize and add their personal flare. They happily tromp down to the basement when they're allowed to watch the TV, and they're super-comfy and relaxed in the TV-less living room. So am I! I wish I would have made this change sooner.
Special thanks to My Mini MixiQs for making our TV-less living room transition so easy!
Now tell me: Where is YOUR TV? I'd love to hear how you manage having a TV (or not!) in your home with kids.
Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by My Mini MixiQs. As always, all of the ideas and opinions here are my own. I only recommend companies that I use and love myself.
We actually removed the iPad and iPhone use from our kids, and where they normally would be watching movies or playing on devices, they now PLAY! I actually have more free time because they're having so much fun playing with each other.
Hi,
Our t.v is in the lounge but I only let my children (aged nearly 2 and 4) watch it when they get up till breakfast time and again while i'm cooking tea till dinner time. On Saturday the can watch 2 dvds, one they have each chosen during the day when normally the aren't allowed to watch tv. If they are sick I let them watch a bit more tv than usual. I have toy boxes in the lounge and the tv cabinet has become another place for books, knitted toys, puppets and soft toys. Along with the train table in the lounge, they play in the lounge mainly or my oldest will play in the playroom and bring toys out to the lounge.