If I had to pick a favorite holiday, I don’t think it would be one specific day on the calendar. For me, it’s the feeling of slowing down together—no matter what day it is…
If you’re a mom of teens, you know the battle—trying to pull them away from screens that seem permanently attached to their hands. Tablets, phones, gaming…it’s constant. And honestly, some days it feels like a losing fight.
That’s probably why I find myself thinking back to something so simple that used to work so well for us—the library.
When my kids were younger, we lived on or near different military bases: Naval Submarine Base Bangor (Washington), Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay (Georgia), Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (Hawaii), and one of our favorite things to do was visit the base library. It was easy, it was free, and somehow it always managed to pull them in. We’d leave with stacks of books about whatever their current interest was at the moment-dinosaurs, Pokemon, sports, Owl Diaries, Last Kids on Earth… And, for a little while, the noise of everything else faded out.
Those trips became our reset. No screens, no distractions—just quiet, imagination, and time together.
Now fast forward to the teenage years…and like so many moms, I’m competing with devices 24/7. The library doesn’t automatically win their attention the way it used to. But I still catch myself holding onto that routine in small ways—like checking out the latest Dog Man books, even though they’ve technically outgrown them.
And you know what? When they see one sitting on the coffee table, they get a big smile on their face and they still pick it up. Maybe out of habit, maybe out of nostalgia—but they stop and read it. In fact, just today I was gathering laundry and found the latest Diary of a Wimpy Kid book sitting on their nightstand bookmarked half way through. It warmed my heart instantly.
It’s a small win, but I’ll take it.
Because I’ve realized something:
it’s not always about completely replacing screens. It’s about giving them another option. A familiar one. A comforting one.
Because the library was never just about books for us. It was a place that created space—space to unplug, to slow down, and to just be kids for a little while. And even now, I think that still matters… maybe more than ever.
But, don’t get me wrong…books don’t always win their teenage attention. Our “quiet time” may not look the same as it used to. In fact, it’s often me curled up with a book on the couch while they’re playing video games next to me. But I’ve realized—it’s still our version of slowing down, just in a different season.
So if you’re in the thick of the screen-time struggle like I am, maybe it’s not about finding something new. Maybe it’s about going back to something simple that worked before.
Even if it only works for a few minutes at a time.
With Love and Aloha,
Lacy
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Yes, the library was always a big hit with our kids too when they were younger. Such a great space to relax, spend time away from screens and enjoy a variety of books and resources.