LIttle faces staring at little screens

While we do not normally go out for black Friday sales, my family ventured to a few stores over the weekend to look at furniture. I knew this would be boring for my son, but I reminded him that not every moment of his life is going to be filled with excitement and fun. I still think he managed to find his own fun, as he asked to explore the children's section of the store on his own (and was allowed to do so). We caught up with him in the office furniture section (he was checking out the chairs).

As my husband and I were looking around the store, I saw several other families there and every single child had their head down in a screen. Even the children still in strollers.

While I've gotten used to seeing older children with screens, I will admit that I didn't like seeing all those toddlers staring down at little screens.

I, of course, do not know how long those families were out shopping that day and if this was a reward for being good. And, of course, I completely understand letting a child have some fun when they are going to be dragged around all day. Our son was allowed to use his iPad on the long drive up to the store and home again, and that was his only screen time for the day.


It's hard not to let your child exceed their daily screen time amount, which is probably why toddlers are currently getting too much of it. When you start adding up all those short sessions over the course of a day - before you realize it, they have gone way over the recommended amounts.

My son is old enough that he understands why his screen time is limited. Granted, he doesn't like it, but he seems to understand it. There are going to be times in his life where he will be bored, and that is OK. I want him to be able to find the worth in any situation without having to rely on a little screen.

Do you use screen time as a reward? Tell me about it in the comments.