Cell Phone Criteria

My daughter had a cell phone when she was 10 – mostly because I was researching a book on technology and was interested in getting some first-hand family view on the pros and cons of kids and cells. Did a young kid really need a cell phone? I was apprehensive.

I soon found the benefits of kids learning to use a cell phone were much more numerous than expected – not just for communication, but for learning responsibility, etiquette and demonstrating maturity.

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Plugged In Parent

We have a giant play structure in our back yard. We have loads of sports equipment. We have board games and Legos and more action figures than I can count. But, when my son has friends over for a play date, all they want to do is play video games. Sound familiar?

Video games are a huge part of our children’s social culture - 83% of kids have a video game console at home and boys ages 8-10 are the biggest players of all.

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Two Hands, Ten Conversations

While I was working today, I had almost a dozen conversations going at once. I was negotiating a writing job with an editor in North Carolina, brainstorming with a writer colleague here in town and advising a good friend of mine who just landed a copy editing gig with a big magazine. And along the way, I was chatting with my sister on the phone. Too much? It sure feels like that some days. But not today.

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Plugged In Dentist

I never remember my dentist appointments. Which is why I always appreciate the reminder calls when my six month cleaning comes around. But this month, as my bi-annual check up approached, I didn’t get a courtesy call from my dentist. I got something better...a text message.

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