RE: To T.V. or not to T.V......

PopUpTrio · Apr 02, 2003, 10:48 AM

JemJen24The first year, no TV, was completely against it. Now we have a tv/vcr and we take our satellite from home. (we keep an extra dish in the camper and unhook our home receiver). After playing games, etc. we all bundle up and watch latenight tv sometimes til 2 or 3 am. This is what we enjoy and by no means is it for everyone. We have camped both ways and the trips are more pleasant for us this way. I must admit, some people have given us " that look" when they notice our satellite dish but we camp for our enjoyment and as long as we aren t bothering others, it s all good!

GeneF · Apr 02, 2003, 10:50 AM

JemJen24

QuoteIf you have children, I guess it could be used as entertainment, but having children learn different ways to entertain themselves isn t all bad.

GWhiz

I really like your statement. Too often it is the adult that provides the entertainment when the kids could be doing it themselves.

We did a 49 day cross country trip when the kids were 6 and 10 without a TV. None of us missed having one.

DS did a lot of reading and played a strange version of double-deck UNO that he and dd had made up rules too.

We had other games on board also.

Ever wonder what happened to unorganized activities for kids or just letting them use their own imaginations to entertain themselves.

Somehow many of us survived without tv and just sandlot baseball and football when we we kids. I think our parents had more free time to themselves instead of always taking the kids somewhere to be entertained.

Camperroo · Apr 02, 2003, 10:56 AM

JemJen24Always bring a tv. It s never used during the daytime as we re out doing other things. But when it s time for the kids to go to bed, they can watch a video and as I like to stay up late, once we ve come in from the fire, I love to pop in a video of an old movie...it s so relaxing!!

g-whiz · Apr 02, 2003, 11:01 AM

GeneF

QuoteEver wonder what happened to unorganized activities for kids or just letting them use their own imaginations to entertain themselves.

Somehow many of us survived without tv and just sandlot baseball and football when we we kids. I think our parents had more free time to themselves instead of always taking the kids somewhere to be entertained.

You mean the " good ol days" ? [

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luvourjayco · Apr 02, 2003, 11:20 AM

JemJen24We have 2 kids and a dh that works shifts. Dh s sleep habits are a lot different them most, but if you are just finishing up 2 weeks of 12 hour nights its pretty hard to turn yourself around, this is the only weekend we have available per month that he is not on call. He uses the tv at night with a movie to have something to do when everyone else is sleeping. My youngest daughter is borderline adhd and we use the tv when she gets over stimulated. She will calm down in 10 minutes with a quiet movie and alone time and you can bet she only takes about 15 minutes and then its off and running again. The television is not for I m bored, it is a tool like everything else. Taught wisely, kids can and do still entertain themselves. It is a tough world we live in and like everyone else we camp to get away from it all.

jackgoesthepopup · Apr 02, 2003, 11:20 AM

JemJen24When we were kids we always played outside. Now days kids don t want to play outside because it s to hot or to cold. Aand when they do play outside we call the police because they might scratch our cars. We give them vidio games to play with. The shopping malls make thease nice video gane arcades. But if you are not playing or spending money don t come in. Some of the shopping malls in st. louis are now carding kids when they come in if you are not 18 you are not allowed to come into the mall after 5 p.m. or at all on weekends. without a parent. Kids now days have no place to play. If we see some of them in a group we sure it must be gang related. When we were young there was only regular TV anyway. And we all remimber how that was no fun to watch. So we went out and made our own fun. I may sound a little cynical but just think about how the world has changed from when we were kids and they way the world is today. But on the other hand it s hard to get my DGD inside when it s warm. But we have to keep a eye out for her. And yes we take a TV to camp. When it s time to goto bed we put a video or dvd and all watch tv together. It s one of the few times we do anything together even camping.

6Quigs · Apr 02, 2003, 11:30 AM

JemJen24I resisted bringing a TV when camping.
We now have a 9" TV/VCR that we use in the Van.
With 4 children, we have no problems doing a 4 hour drive.
We rarerly bring it inside the Popup when camping,
and even then, it is only our 2 and 4 year olds that watch it.
I have never watched the TV when camping.
I go camping to get away from the TV.
I would much rather sit by the campfire, talking with my wife,
than sit watching a TV, but that s just me[

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Cheryl · Apr 02, 2003, 12:14 PM

jackgoesthepopupWe ve camped for 13 years now in a pop-up and we DO NOT bring a T.V. with us. Even when the kids were young we spent our time enjoying the areas we camped in and in inclement weather we played board games, read a good book, our just enjoyed time around the campfire (my DH calls it CAVEMAN T.V.!). We carry a small radio with us for weather alerts and news updates when something is happening we want to keep in touch with. My kids are now grown up (youngest will be 15 this summer) and on all of our trips I never heard them once say " wish we had a T.V." . Our camping time is our family connection time and now when it s more often just DH and I it is our time away from it all! I still think that everyone finds their own comfort however they may when camping, and as long as I m not kept awake during the night by someones noise box, I think it s great.
Happy camping to all,
Cheryl

2Lobos · Apr 02, 2003, 12:17 PM

jackgoesthepopupI always bring my laptop. Not to work but because it has a DVD drive. We pop in a DVD before going to bed and relax. AHHHH. Nothing better than watching a movie cuddled up with your sweetie in front of the fire.[

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hbfc6 · Apr 02, 2003, 12:50 PM

JemJen24We take a 13 inch combo with us. The boys take along their video games and play them while we travel. It helps keep the peace in the van. Last week I made them keep the tv in their tent. They had some other kids come over and play video games that they met in the campground. I like watching the beach channels at Mytle beach kind of gives ideals as to where to go and eat and things to do.

Kelly · Apr 02, 2003, 01:02 PM

jackgoesthepopup[font=" comic sans ms" ]You can put us firmly in the no TV/VCR/DVD camp. We have 4 kids who have no idea that you can actually do that!! We ve been road tripping with them since the oldest was about a year old. (The youngest went on her first trip when she was 2 weeks old) Our oldest has been to 17 states so far and the youngest to nine....all without benefit(?) of a TV in the car. Last year we could cover about 400 miles before they were done in the truck. This year we ll push it a little farther. We started when they were young and now this is the only way they know how to travel. We do bring a radio and a weather radio for emergencies. I keep a special box of books, games, toys, card and art supplies hidden in the PU for rainy days.[/font]

Jeffrey · Apr 02, 2003, 01:57 PM

jackgoesthepopup

I always bring a T.V. !!!!

I have no trouble pushing it around in the garage.
But pushing it all the way to a CG is out of the question.

Gatsmommy · Apr 02, 2003, 03:53 PM

jackgoesthepopupWe have one ONLY For the car rides, and ONLY for DS. I like to have the time when I m out camping to be away from the world, and actually <gulp> Talk to DH beyond what DS is doing. If Dh s not there or busy, I like the time to read or do other things I normally can t anymore. TV s just too much of a distraction.

The only exception is I did let DH watch the Coleman s new owner video on it when we were at Inks. We were having a disagreement about order of things [

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ShirleyT · Apr 02, 2003, 06:40 PM

JemJen24Yep you betcha! We have a 13" TV/VCR combo, bought it especially for the cabin. The 3 campers also have TV s, two with the combo thing. Sure makes it nice when it is rainy or too hot to sit outside. We even have memberships to rent movies in town so we can always pick up a movie if we need too!!

jawilson · Apr 02, 2003, 06:53 PM

GeneF

QuoteORIGINAL: GeneF
I really like your statement. Too often it is the adult that provides the entertainment when the kids could be doing it themselves.

We did a 49 day cross country trip when the kids were 6 and 10 without a TV. None of us missed having one.

DS did a lot of reading and played a strange version of double-deck UNO that he and dd had made up rules too.

We had other games on board also.

Ever wonder what happened to unorganized activities for kids or just letting them use their own imaginations to entertain themselves.

Somehow many of us survived without tv and just sandlot baseball and football when we we kids. I think our parents had more free time to themselves instead of always taking the kids somewhere to be entertained.

Amen to that. When I was a kid all I needed was my bike and then everything in the world was good.

We don t allow any modern amenities when we go camping. That includes TV s, VCR s, laptops, video games, etc. AAMOF, last year was the first time I allowed the girls (11, 13 and 15) to bring their portable CD players. For us, camping means hiking, fishing, swimming and leaving the stress of the real world behind. No artificial stimulation allowed. Just nature, and all that goes along with it.

I ve filled some of the time that they would have used with those other things on some life lessons. All of them know how to chop wood, build a fire, stake down a tent, cook over the open fire, etc. We also encourage them to find a " buddy" from amongst the other kids camping.

Darn, now that I ve said all that I want to leave for the woods right now! [

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