Screen Free Summer

First let me start by saying my kids are NOT having a screen-free summer. If you watch my stories on Instagram at all, you know that survival is the number one goal in The Gifford household. That being said, I am all about finding what motivates my kids, and using that to make them better humans.

When they were toddlers they were motivated by food and toys, someday it might be their friends or girls, but right now, at 6 and 8, it’s Minecraft and Roblox. And while I DON’T think video games are the root of all evil, I DO think they could easily spend 10 hours per day playing them if they had their way, which would inevitably lead to a whole slew of problems for us now… and down the road.

In the beginning of the summer, Chris and I strategized ways to keep our kids from turning into video game zombies.

We had a few great ideas, but when Gravady Sports reached out to Stay Fit Mom about attending their camp we couldn’t have been more thrilled! The boys spent 4 days at Camp Gravady jumping until they could jump no more!

I loved seeing their red, sweaty faces at pick-up, but I loved hearing my kids tell me they were sore even more! In addition to jumping, they made slime, colored bandanas, played games, ate snacks, and crafted. They even had a pizza party on the last day! I think the camp is very reasonably priced: $150 for 4 days of camp from 8am-1pm. The Stay Fit Moms (and Kids) are giving Camp Gravady rave reviews! Click Camp Gravady to register your kids now! I can’t tell you enough how wonderful it was to see my kids get all of their energy out every single day. It made for some very enjoyable afternoons.

Gravady Sports is also offering a summer sale on passes! For $59 you can purchase unlimited access to the park ALL summer! We hope to see you there so we can burn off our kid’s energy together! Sale ending soon! Click Gravady Summer Pass to purchase yours today!

There’s MORE… head over to @stayfitmomblog to enter our GIVEAWAY for an opportunity to win your own summer jump pass!

In a continued effort to keep our kids from killing each other over what level they get to play on Mario Party, we decided to GIFT our children 1 FREE hour of screen time play per day. Any additional time they want for video games after that must be earned.

We don’t have any issues with our kids enjoying their screen time, but you better believe we are a family that promotes exercise, socialization, reading, and responsibility.

Our kids (6 and 8) can EARN extra screen time by completing chores (pulling weeds, laundry, picking up the house, picking up the dog poop, carrying in groceries, setting the table, etc), completing summer workbook pages, reading (Dragon Masters is our current series favorite), and/or exercise (burpees, jumping on our new trampoline, riding bikes, scooter time, etc).

If you haven’t done this already, it’s not too late! Sit down with your spouse and brainstorm exactly what motivates your kids and then put them to work! Finding ways to teach your kids responsibility will always be a worthwhile effort. In this life, very few things are handed over freely and the sooner they learn this, the better off they’ll be in the long run. In fact, they’ll enjoy their opportunities all the more when it took a little sweat to get there.

Here’s to a fantastic summer that leaves your kids happy, healthy, and a little bit sweaty!

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