childhood unplugged: february

“Remember growing up? Playing outdoors while using our creativity and imagination was the norm. I don’t really ever remember saying, “I’m bored” very often! Our children have every source of technology available to them, and although technology is great and we cannot be without it in today’s world, it has really stolen so much of our children’s ability to be creative, to play without being entertained, and the use of their imagination. Children have lost the ART OF PLAY.” These are the words of Monica Calderin, the woman behind not only the blog, but the “movement” of Childhood Unplugged. She joined together with 10 other photographers and committed to unplugging alongside the kids to remind them (and ourselves ultimately) what pure unadulterated play could look like.

Now check this out: they’ve asked me to join them. What an absolute honor and a privilege to be a part of a community of women who are raising their children to be…kids. Not that we don’t want them to grow and mature (even though we kinda don’t sometimes), but I love the idea of just letting our kids be kids, nurturing their imaginations without the constant influence of computers and phones and movies and and and…

One of the things about all of us unplugging and REALLY engaging is that sometimes I’m tempted to control their play. We had the chance to go to 4Cats Arts Studio to participate in a paint splatter class, the very nature of which is to: splatter.paint. And yet both Cliff and I still wanted to control where the splats landed and how the squirts dripped. We’re talking in hair, on clothes and on my camera (ahem). It wasn’t until we stepped back and let them be that we could truly enjoy and appreciate the beauty they had created. Childhood. Unplugged.

Check out the Childhood Unplugged blog! At the beginning of every month, each contributor submits a post. They also have an inspiring Instagram feed and you can follow them (us) through Facebook too. They’re going to start accepting outside submissions, so please contribute pictures of your family unplugging!!

This entry was posted on Monday, February 3rd, 2014 at 2:39 am and is filed under childhood unplugged.