One evening, about a year ago, my family went to dinner at a popular chain bar and grill.  Next to our table sat a family of two adults and two teenagers.  All four of them were staring at their individual phones, eating quietly.  About 20 minutes in, my oldest son said “Mommy, why aren’t they talking to each other?”  I thought it was a little sad that they were not communicating, but I had no idea what was going on in their lives behind the scenes.  There are 1000 reasons why they could have all needed to be on their phones – angry boss, work deadlines, friend in need, group project for science class, sick parent… maybe one or all of them had just returned from a trip, their fridge was empty, so they went out to eat to make their lives a little easier.

Our food came and we were enjoying our meal when out from the kitchen came a clapping and singing parade of servers.  They clapped and sang all the way to that table.  All four of the guests, for the first time, stopped looking at their phones, smiled, giggled and watched the servers as they placed a lava cake in front of the youngest girl.  As the waiters walked away, all four of them picked their phones up again, took a picture of the dessert in unison.  Then, as quickly as the girl blew out the candle’s flame they all went back to staring at their phones, eating the gooey chocolate cake without another word spoken.

It was depressing to see a child’s birthday celebrated in complete silence.

This is obviously an extreme scenario.  I am sure all of us have seen families or friends or dates eat in a restaurant without talking, their phones taking center stage to the connection they could be making.  It happens all the time.

I am certain that, on occasion, we find ourselves sucked into the social media vortex or a black hole filled with emails only to realize that 50 minutes of time has been sucked out of our lives.

I have heard my own son say “Mommy, stop texting” more than I care to admit.  

Our kids become holy terrors after playing on the PS4 for a mere 30 minutes while we are trying to text other parents to set up play dates and collect money for the upcoming dance.  Our partners come home and zone into their cell phones in an attempt to empty the last lingering work emails.  We stare at screens because we have to get it all done.  But, in the process, we are losing our connection to each other.

The tagline for Pineapple and Loaves is “Less Screens, More Pineapples.”  It is a way of reducing screen time and getting back to having dinners together as a family.  It is not about Pinterest worthy perfection.  It is about spending time intentionally with the ones you love most, even if you only have PB&J in the fridge and 9 minutes before you have to run your kids to drama club.

Visit us for solutions to your hectic schedule including recipes the whole family will enjoy, DIY projects so easy a 7 year old can create them, movie reviews (because who wants to waste time and money seeing a flop), and recommendations for anything enjoyable and worth your energy. We are here to help you simplify life and connect with less screens.

Watch for posts every Tuesday and Friday! 

Photo by Artem Bali on Unsplash