Screen Time Guilt

Am I the only parent who wrestles with guilt over screen time?

I am typically a bit of a Nazi about how much TV the girls watch. Or I try to be. Their TV time each day is pretty limited. And they don't get to play video games or on my phone or iPad unless its some sort of special event. The TV turns off at the same time every morning and we have plenty of non-tv time together daily.

However, I frequently worry about them watching too much television. Pediatricians recommend children 2 and up have no more than 2 hours of screen time per day. And we exceed that. Though that time isn't spent with them mindless watching television. I interact with them while they watch tv and they typically only half way watch the screen. Still, I worry.

On bad days, when the kids won't stop fighting or whining or I feel bad or none of slept the night before, the television is a great crutch. Turn it on and I can take a breath. There is thirty minutes of peace. But then I feel guilty about it. Should I have tried harder to make them play with some toys? Or sent them to their room? What could I have done differently?

Despite the guilt, sometimes you just have to do whatever you have to do for everyone to get through the day. Especially with babies, which I really feel both of mine still qualify as. Keeping everyone happy and healthy might balance out that extra episode or three of Dora.

And I certainly don't let my kids watch any "grown up" programming. So at least they aren't spending a couple hours a day watching violence or sex or learning bad language. So maybe it's not too bad.