Losing cable, internet and my mind!!

Hello! I don't mean to pry in any way, but considering you already have a family of your own, a husband and 3 children, how come do you still depend on your parent's decisions for such things? Can't you afford to pay yourselves (i mean you and your husband) for these 2 services? I'm just asking because i don't know you financial situation (i believe what you wrote means that all of you are still living with your parents) Does a monthly internet and cable subscription cost so much in the States these days that it's a good money-saving option? In Romania we pay about 10$ for cable and another 7-8$ for optic fiber internet. From what i see you're an active member of the mylot society so it's a shame you'll be leaving. As for suggestions, i have one me and my family rediscovered some time ago and it's very fun :board games. They are a very fun and active way of spending time and for the kids to learn new things. My personal opinion is to try to fight for your internet as it keeps you up to speed with a lot of information, you can find jobs easier and even make money. There are a lot of opportunities for US residents (surveys , coupons, deals, etc) that are unavailable for many countries. You could actually make use of them to keep your internet alive. Good luck!

Well, renting movies would be a back up for that. I would say to get Netflix and an Apple TV and you could watch movies and TV shows on your TV. But since the internet is being shut off, that is out of the question. I take it that you and your family live in the same house. I am not sure of what the problem is but I am assuming that it is a money issue. Like I said, either rent some movies or have them read a book. Color, play games and things like that.

Can you go to your local library? Ours has a lot of movies and cartoons and things you can check out for free. I'd go nuts without cable and the internet too. If you went to the library you could also use their computer to get online.

Hi lovingMyBabies, Yes, When my kids were young, I couldn't afford cable and internet wasn't something everyone had anyway. We lived without cable for the longest time. It wasn't so bad. We found other things to do. Heck we didn't even have a phone for quite a while. We did have a VCR and some times when we had a few extra dollars we'd rent some movies and have a movie night. The kids loved it and so did I. Now it would bother me to lose internet but I am sure I'd adjust. Your kids will be fine and you'll have a problem for a while but I'm sure you'll get used to it.

I wouldn't like to do without my cable and internet. Reading comes to mind. Spend some time at the library and find some fun books. Probably the cartoon characters are in books too. More family time is always good. The library is a great place.

I am sorry to hear that you will be losing the cable and internet. I will miss your discussions and miss chatting with you. If you have a local library, they usually have computers that you can use. I guess instead of the kids watching TV before they go to bed, maybe you can read them a bedtime story. I hope your parents change their minds and keep the cable and internet.

You mention that your husband can not work due to his surgeries. Is he on any type of disability? If you want to try to keep the internet you should call around. Often you can get only internet for $35 (or less) a month. That way you could have the internet and your kids could watch their TV shows online. My husband is in a similar situation, but he is in the military so at least he is still getting paid. He has a year recovery from a surgery he just had in November which currently has his left arm totally useless. In April he requires a second surgery on his right shoulder which will have about a year of recovery as well.

i know several people that dont have cable and they watch a lot of movies. if you visit your local library you can get a plethora of movies. now will be a great time to visit the library for books, etc and pull out the board games.

I would go to the library and check out some cartoons for them..that way it won't cost you a thing...if you have a DVD player that is...hopefully! They also have the internet for you to use....why are they cutting it off?

I have not had this happen to me yet. Though we've come close to loosing our phone line and internet. I would say if anything you can borrow movies from the library. Get your internet fix at the library or if you have a laptop or net book you can probably use it there or even places like McD's & some coffee shops offer free Wi-Fi. I know especially here with us having winter and all that the kids spend so much time trapped in the house hiding from the cold it's something for them to do til spring.

Do you have a DVD player or something similar so the kids can still have their bedtime cartoons? What do they like to do? You could actually get into hobbies, reading, games or actually working on learning things instead of vegging in front of the boob tube (my father's name for tv). Although I haven't lost the internet, I have decided to start doing more than just sitting online all day so now I also work on my cross-stitch project in addition to my online class, entering shelter information into an online system and of course coming in here. I hope that you can get back online at least occasionally so that you are able to get in here.

If you just keep your internet then you can stream internet tv on a Roku. I have 4 of them in my house and save about 70 dollars each month! Turning off satellite was the best thing I ever did! I only pay 7.99 per month for Netflix as the other Roku stations are free. You pay a one time charge for the Roku box - lowest is 49 dollars I think. Check their website for all the channels offered.

Cable and internet are pretty much staples in our household. And I know what you mean about losing one's mind if we ever lost one or both. If that ever happened in our household, I would go looking for the few boardgames that we have in the house. I think we have a pictionary and a scrabble game somewhere. If you did loose your internet, start writing down discussion topics. Then when you get a chance to go online, you could blast it all out!

We have truely been spoiled by the advancement of technology. I feel bad for your kids because they have not lived in a time where there was no Internet and cable. When we had an ice storm I did a lot if reading. You might try making like it's not a big deal to them and make it exciting instead. Like telling stories. Reading stories to them and getting them involved with games and stuff. If you have a VCR or DVD player you can still use the TV. you might buy or rent some cartoons if you don't have any. When we have to let the Direct TV go a month without being paid we watch DVDs until we get it turned on again.