Media Monday (Tuesday) - Media and Our Homemaking

Today we will pick up with our social media series and discuss media and our homemaking.  Can media really have an effect on our homemaking?  Yes!  There are some good effects.  If you need to remove a stain, a friend always has a good solution so we can ask on Facebook.  If you need tips on decorating, you can check out some great decorating websites.  There are some good things for media and homemaking.

There are also some bad effects.  Someone very dear to me once told me of a time when her children were very young and she was a stay at home mom.  Her husband would leave for work in the morning and she would head off to the couch for some tv time.  Of course she took care of the children, but while they were napping or playing contently, she would catch her favorite shows.  A short while before her husband was due back home for the evening, she would click the tv off and do some quick picking up so it looked as though she did something that day.  Now this was a time before social media, but I am sure had social media been around then, it would have played a part.

Does this sounds familiar?  I can honestly say that I relate.  It is not something I do often but have found myself caught up in.  I am playing, ah-hem I mean, working on the computer and before I know it I look at the clock and it is almost time for my husband to come home.  So I do just what my dear friend did, hurry to pick up so it looks like I worked that day.

"...works with eager hands." Proverbs 31:13

"She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks." Proverbs 31:17

I've heard some say that social media is the biggest time waster.  I could argue that point, yet I could also completely agree.  I've said before, I love social media.  I am a Facebook junkie and I love being encouraged by reading blogs.  But if I am not careful the time quickly slips right by.

I choose to be a house wife so that I could care for my husband, children and home.  Not so that I could Facebook, tweet and comment all day.

So how do we enjoy social media without letting it effect our homemaking in a negative way?  Set time limits.  When my kids want to play on the Internet, we set a timer.  It is a simple kitchen timer that sits on their desk.  We set it for fifteen minutes or so.  When the timer goes off, they must walk away from the computer regardless if they are in the middle of something or not.  You can also visit Timer Tab.  It keeps track of how long you spend online.

At the beginning of this social media journey, I encouraged you to keep track of how much time you spend on the Internet for non-work related things.  Have you done that?  I always dangled around three hours.  Some days it was closer to almost four and some days it was closer to two.  I would love to cut my time to two and a half hours a day, no more.  That will take a strong commitment.  But it is well worth it to be the homemaker God intends me to be.  I want to play an active part in my family's lives not the one who sat at the computer ignoring everyone.

Think back over your day, is social media effecting your homemaking?  If so, pray about it and make a commitment to your family and your self to spend less time on the computer (or cellphone) and more time caring for your family and home.

Sweet Blessings~

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