Some of our devices.
We have a rule in our home about cell phones and iPods at the dinner table, or at any meal time. We leave them behind. No texting, FaceBooking, Tweeting etc at the table. Period. I actually love that these devices help us connect so easily with our friends and clients, but there are certain precious times of day that we need to set them aside and focus on each other. Our dinner table tends to be pretty raucous, especially considering there are only three of us. We always sit at a set table and eat together, and my daughters keep me well entertained. It’s a small ritual, and it’s important to me. Sometimes we’ll grab the iPhone to Google the answer to a question, but then it’s set aside again.
We also turn off the wi-fi at 9pm. The phones get turned-off then too. It’s easy to fall down the rabbit hole of the internet or get caught-up in a lengthy texting conversation at night. And this interferes with sleep and rest. And that effects health. So again, we disconnect. This doesn’t always make me popular in our home, but we all recognize that it’s good for us.
So in the name of connecting with each other, of family, and also of health we disconnect every day. How does your family cope with the onslaught of electronic devices and the internet? Please share.
Mandy Meyer-Hill
Stairway Healing Arts Center 
When my girls were at home our dinner table rule was “Meal time should be fun time.”
We also sat at the kitchen table and had family dinners at least five out of seven nights. Often old stories would get told (usually of one of us doing something silly or stupid) and we would end up laughing. It was a settling, bonding time for us. Now when they and their families visit this ritual is often repeated. I applaud your no phones, etc rule at the table. I believe that a daily family meal is one of the most important times in family life, especially as our kids get older, busier and more independent. Keeps us connected.
Your note made my night, Donna. Can’t thank you enough. Plus, I love hearing people’s stories and the details of their lives. So you enriched my evening in a few different ways. Thank you for sharing, and for your support.
Everyone is grown up now, but its still the rule when the kids return that we all eat together, only now we cook together too. And, although none of them HAD cell phones or other devices when they were growing up (not that long ago mind you) we don’t have them at the table now that they do. Sometimes when it is just Ed and I we break the rules : )