Aaaaand we're back.

Our family's week with no TV and minimal computer (sometimes you've just got to pay the bills) is over. These are some of the things I learned:

1. Getting through the day with no TV was a ton easier than I thought it would be. Clara never even brought it up! Granted, we usually watch just Sid, the Science Kid in the mornings and It's a Big, Big World in the afternoons (I just love that hippie sloth), with the occasional tune-in to Word World. But still--I can't tell you how many days (on any given day of the week before and including this one) I find myself just yearning for it to finally be time to watch one of our shows.

2. Sometimes T.V. is very nearly a godsend. For example, this week we have had sickness in our house AGAIN. Clara has another ear infection, and Jonathan is wheezing again. Jeremy has been congested all week, and I came down with a cough and fever yesterday. You may not be surprised that we ended Turnoff Week a little early so Clara could enjoy Smooch and Winslow while I took a much-needed huddle on the couch, covered with a blanket.

3. Going TV-less is way easier when the weather is good. We had great weather earlier this week, and I took Clara and Jonathan to the park twice--even though they were both under the weather--and then on a 3-mile-walk (by the way, after that walk I realized that I desperately wish the jogging stroller fairy would drop a double jogger on our doorstep; three miles with a heavy tandem stroller just about did me in, and I am pretty tough). Going without TV is also easier when your kids like to color and do art. Every time I would run out of things to do, I'd say, "Let's paint!" and out the watercolors would come. Since every finished product is followed up with a demand to "hang it on the 'frigerator," we are awash with masterpieces this week--including a couple of my own little gems.

That's pretty much it. Jeremy and I have decided to watch our three weekly shows (Chuck, Lost and The Office, if you must know) online on the weekends rather than during the week. We enjoyed having all of our evenings clear to read and play chess (OK--we didn't actually play any chess, but if we had a chess set we totally would have, on account of I would've smoked him).

Off the grid

We're going off the grid for Turnoff Week. In the meantime, here's a little something to remember us by:

Happy Easter!

Who has time for blogging...

...when it's 65 degrees and sunny? See you when the rain returns...

We are marching!

If you read this blog or know us, you know that we have encountered several challenges as we've had each of our children. Sam's birth was obviously a heartbreaking experience, but we also had quite a scare with Clara's unexpected premature birth. Despite the three weeks in the hospital and the stress of her early arrival, we were overwhelmed with gratitude that she was as healthy as she was. The advances in the care of premature infants have been exponential in my lifetime, and I often reflect on how different our family could be had Clara been born in a different time.

Clara's birth is not the only time that I have been touched by the dangers of prematurity. My aunt and uncle bravely brought four premature children into the world, including their oldest daughter, Erin, who died not long after she was born--not too many months after I was born. I have thought often of Erin over the course of my life, and I visit her grave, which is very near Sam's, every time I'm in Provo.

Jeremy and I have decided to honor Clara's health as well as to continue championing the healthy births of all babies by walking in this year's March of Dimes March for Babies. We'll do a six-mile walk with our kids six weeks from now, and we're excited! We hope to raise a total of $200 for March of Dimes, but even if we only raise what we're able to contribute, it'll be worth it. Because, really, we just love to walk, and we feel like our commitment might be just the karma we need to get good weather to finally arrive! If you're interested, please email us at theplenary@gmail.com for easy-peasy donation instructions. And if you're in the area, we'd love to have you walk with us. We're always happy to add more teammates!