I'm trying to come at this without judgment. I'm really thinking of the fact children grow up so fast. I want parents to know how fast it goes and how much they will miss if they have their faces in their freaking phones all the time.
What sparked it this time? The mom who paid ZERO attention to her excited 4th grader who was trying to show her what he learned in computer class because she was too busy texting the. whole. time. Nope. The 3-year-old who tried for 20 minutes to engage her mother who was to busy texting to give engagement to said 3-year-old? Nope. Those sparked THIS POST.
Today's concern comes from a Facebook post I saw where dad was filming the toddler who was trying to engage mom who was too busy on her phone to engage with the toddler.
I'm telling Y'all, I don't like this behavior. I can't help it, I do. not. like. it.
I get there are some parents who use their phones as a connection to their business. It's understandable these moms and dads have to respond to texts and emails from work. Phones are great when we have video chats with loved ones who live far away. Emergencies happen and we can connect quicker which is great. However, I still don't think we should be on our phones so long that it begins to take the place of engaging with children.
Is it becoming a cliche' to say we went out to eat and saw families sitting there on their phones instead of interacting with one another? If so, that's sad.
Yes, I am guilty of having my phone out when the grands are around but that's to take pictures and I do not keep it in their face the whole time they're with me. I will give a quick glance if I hear a text message come in but that's just to see if it was their parents if not, the text is ignored. One thing my grandkiddos do not have to do is compete with my phone for attention. But that's just me and I think I may fast becoming a minority on this issue.
So, what are some things we can do to help us put those phones down and pay attention to one another?
- Phone box. Get a phone box/bag and whenever the family is doing something together, all phones go into the box until the activity is over.
- Keep your phone in a different room when playing with your kiddos.
- Make a list of family cell phone use.
- Check yourself. Do you really need that much time on your phone? 99% of all text messages are not that important, Y'all.
- Have phone free time at least once each day.
- Enlist help from an app. Yep, there's an app for that. There are apps that will allow you to block yourself from other apps and websites. An app like, CHECKY will monitor how often you check your phone and could reveal some interesting information for you.
- Turn your phone off for at least an hour each day. You can set up an auto-responder.
- Challenge yourself with a social media free weekend. This might be quite revealing.
- Remember, you do not need to be available to anyone other than your family all the time. Everyone else can wait.
- Also remember, a phone is never a replacement for human interaction especially with those who are right in front of your face.
Come on, Y'all. Why is this even a thing? Why do we put our phone interaction above engaging with our family and especially our children? I see it nearly every day and yes, even within my own family. Are grandparents the only ones these kids are going to believe care enough about them to give them eye-to-eye contact? Conversation? I'll say this, I'm so glad my memories of my grandparents (and parents) are not filled with trying to get their attention. I'm glad they cared enough about me to put me ahead of watching television or talking on the phone which were the big technology distractions of that time. I knew they loved me and I didn't have to plead with them to find that out.
How do people even know their kids these days if they don't talk to them and actually pay attention to the conversation? It baffles me.
I'm very sorry for today's distracted parents who will wake up one day and wonder where their little kids went and then wonder why they have to beg for their children's attention.
Ok Y'all, weigh in!
Please visit CoasterDoodles!
