Getting Disconnected: Making the Journey Back to Life

Recently, I disconnected myself from electronics. I found myself checking Facebook while taking a bubble bath on my iPod touch, or even my Nook color and, yes, my Android cell
phone. I wasn't relaxing at all!!! I was also playing digital games like video poker, blackjack and dominos. Seriously, couldn't what X, Y and Z where doing on Facebook wait until after my bath??? Couldn't I leave the electronic gadgets alone for 30 to 45 minutes? The sad but true answer to that was no.

So I remembered seeing this episode of "Oprah" where a family disconnected themselves for a month from anything electronic: games, computers and the beloved cell phone, which would of course include texting, unless it was for work or school. Now this was a while ago but for some reason it stuck with me. 

I could see myself in this family. Me watching a show I DVR'd early in the week on the couch while on my laptop talking to someone on Facebook or playing a game. Husband downstairs watching TV since I took over the upstairs TV because that's the one with the DVR. So now we are on separate floors, kids are doing their own thing, but all of us separate and disconnected from each other in every way.

The Plan:

Sell Droid on eBay. 
Put laptop in spare room upstairs and only use it when necessary. No electronics other than my Nook while in the bath to read. Check email, Facebook and surf the net three times a day.

Now this was hard for me, BIG TIME!!!

The Result:

Droid sold on eBay for $140, I got it for free almost two years ago. I'm also saving $29.99 a
month on my cell phone plan because I no longer have a smart phone. I have what I like to call, a not so smart phone, but it's smart for our bank account!!!

I'm actually reading and enjoying books again.

Hubby and I started working out in the basement together every night and the first week we are both down in our weight!! We are also planning healthy meals together (more on that in another blog post later), and we are eating together again as a family, something I always did growing up as a kid and so should my kids!!

With making myself only go on the computer three times a day, I am getting so much done around my house. It's not that I couldn't keep up with the housework, I was spending too
much time on the computer, so I wasn't getting anything done ...

And where else does this help?

My hubby is happy, he gets to spend time with me (bonus), and the house is being kept up.  We are setting an example for our children. One day they will look back on their childhood and think about family dinners and spending time together, not apart. And yes, writing this post was part of my three times allowed on the computer ...

Have I had the urge to go back to my old ways, have I faltered? Yes. My cell phone carrier Verizon started carrying the iPhone 4–I thought seriously about getting it. But I stopped and said to myself, I have the iPod touch, only thing it doesn't do is make phone calls. So still saving the $29.99 a month and just saved the $$$ on getting a new smart phone. Have I gone over my said allotment of three times a day on the computer, yes, but not a lot, which is a considerable improvement!!! And I'm back to relaxing in my bubble bath as I have a glass of wine with a locked door and fan on so I don't hear the kids :)

So are you overly connected? Do you think about disconnecting yourself? Have you tried it and failed? I think I've come to a great middle ground :)

You can also catch my blog on http://constantmom.blogspot.com/.