Search Results for: blog cell phones and single parents

Tethered To A Cell Phone

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I don’t know how mothers did this single mom thing before cell phones. I’m tethered to mine and so is Hailey. I don’t know what I would do if I could not reach her at any time. Being a working single mother meant that Hailey has always been on her own a lot. Thanks to cell phones she could call me anytime she was frightened and I could call her anytime I just wanted to know she was ok. Hailey got her first phone when she was twelve. Lots of people told me that was too young but for us, … Continue reading →

Kids and the Internet

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Do you know what your kids are doing online? Our kids are exposed to so much more than we were at the same age, it’s important to be aware of what they are doing and who they are talking to. As a single mom I’m always short on time, finding time to check up on Hailey online was hard, but it was necessary. On Facebook I see so many young girls posting pictures of themselves that would make their parents furious, if their parents were aware. You have to be aware. It is so easy for online predators to target … Continue reading →

Time for Cell Phone?

In this day and age it seems like everyone has a cell phone, children and teenagers alike. I recently was student teaching in a sixth grade class at a local elementary school. Nearly all of the children had cell phones, and most of them were much nicer than mine. Children as young as kindergarten are feeling pressure to get a cell phone and cell phone companies are responding to their plight. They even have cell phones designed for toddlers now in case of an emergency. Cell phone companies such as Firefly Mobile have cell phones designed specifically for children’s needs … Continue reading →

Cell Phones

Today as I was teaching my 8-11 year old girls in Sunday School the issue of cell phones came up. When I was in elementary school I never would have even thought to ask my parents for a cell phone. In my mind it was like asking for a car, it was an adult thing. None of my friends had cell phones and I don’t even remember my mom having one until I was in middle school. As a kid I remember when my grandpa came home with the cool “car phone.” We all thought he was so high tech! … Continue reading →

Cell Phones and Single Parents

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How did single parents survive before cell phones? My mother was a single parent for several years when I was a teenager, she had four kids at the time and we were always going in different directions. How did she maintain her sanity? Within two years of getting divorced I got my daughter a cell phone. I saw it as a way to prevent arguments and keep my heart from exploding. The first summer that she was home alone just about did me in. My child is impulsive, a friend comes to the door, they play at our house for … Continue reading →

Do You Keep Track of Your Cellphone Better Than You Do Your Kid?

Cellphone. Check. Wallet. Check. Luggage. Check. Five-year-old daughter… hmmm… now where did I leave that kid of mine? Those might not be the exact words used by the parents of the little girl left sleeping in a Boston taxi cab earlier this week, but I’m sure they’re darn close. What’s more, I’m even more confident that thousands of absent-minded moms and dads around the world can relate to the Massachusetts’ family’s heart-stopping incident. The frightening tale began when the family of six took a cab home from Logan International Airport on Sunday. Apparently, the clan had just returned from a … Continue reading →

Does Your Child Have a Cellphone?

According to the Center on Media and Child Health, 54 percent of 8- to 12-year-olds will have a cell phone in the next three years. So by 2011 more tweens will have cellphones than they will dictionaries, calculators or any other handheld device—-electronic or otherwise. Scary. Is life really unimaginable without these handy devices? For some parents the answer is a wholehearted: “Yes!” A recent survey found that most parents who bought their kids cellphones say they did so for “convenience” and “safety” reasons. In fact, some parents revealed that the allure of GPS tracking capability inspired them to purchase … Continue reading →

Locked Out Part I

I hate to admit it but it is one of my biggest fears to find myself locked out.  I am horrified that I might lock my keys in the car or that I might close our locked front door, only to discover that my keys are still inside, which would prevent me from getting into my car with young children (especially in this cold weather).   My three year old son usually does a good job reminding me to make sure that I have important things before we leave the house: “Mom do you have your phone, keys, water, grocery list, … Continue reading →

Does Money Make You a Better Parent?

When you become a single parent you quickly learn that there is never enough money. Your kids learn this lesson too, much earlier than you want them too. It’s hard for your kids not to have the things everyone else has, it’s also hard when you are the one who always has to tell them no. Many studies that are done on single parents focus on income as a reason children from single parent households struggle. This may be true, but not having everything handed to you and learning the value of hard work gives our children life skills they … Continue reading →

Preparing Your Kids For An Emergency

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It’s scary to think you might be separated from your child in an emergency. All the fires we are having here are making me think about our family emergency plan. When I got divorced one of my biggest fears was that there would be some sort of disaster and I wouldn’t be able to get to Hailey. She went to school on the other side of town from where I worked so if there was an earthquake I probably would not be able to get to her. Once she got a little older and had a cell phone I took … Continue reading →