Love quiet time! I agree with pinkballerina that if you are a natural born introvert, quiet time is a life saver. Without it, I get crabby, and that makes for an unhappy evening :-(.
The benefits of an hour to yourself extend to each family member, however! For a large family, especially, it is nice for everyone to just STOP TALKING for an hour! And I think it has trained my kids to be a little more thoughtful, and a little more able to be alone – skills that are important throughout life.
What does it look like around here? One hour – generally 2-3:
12yo dd in her room, reading or sewing or crocheting or journaling or quilting….
10yo ds in my room or his dad’s office, reading, cracking a code, or writing….
9yo ds in the living room, reading for 30 minutes, and playing imaginary games with his hot wheels, legos, gi joes, etc. for the other 30
8yo ds in the study reading, drawing, and listening to music
5yo ds in his room looking at books (reading), making paper airplanes with elaborate designs, and singing, usually
Mom – generally eating something, and drinking tea ;-). And catching up with friends online or on the phone. READING, if I am lucky! I spent a wonderful 20 minutes with ‘Ivan Densovich’ today!
I think that’s the beauty of quiet time. It gives everyone a little space to work on what they love and think thoughts that are undisturbed or interrupted by the opinions of others. Essential in our home!