Cell Phone Parenting

Years ago when I got my first cell phone, I got it mainly for emergencies. It gave me a sense of security knowing I could call for help if I had car trouble or call to have my grocery list read to me if I forgot it. Just for that reason the cell phone is a great invention. I think back to when my sister and I were attending Snow College, a 5 hour drive from home across the middle of nowhere, and wonder how my parents ever dared send us alone. A cell phone would have been great back then.

Now as a parent, the convenience of a cell phone means something entirely different to me. I can speak to my kids whenever I need to. I can remind them to come home for dinner, or tell them someone will be there to pick them up shortly, or they can call to let me know they will be a couple minutes late or that they've run out of gas on Hwy 18.

It not only gives me peace of mind that my children can reach me (and me, them) in an emergency, but it has brought us closer together. A few months ago I posted a blog about the picture game our family plays with the cell phones (Fun & Games). That's one way, but let me tell you about the biggie: Texting. This single feature has done more for our relationship than any one thing ever invented. My kids will tell me things in a text that they never would to my face. It's so sweet to get a text message at lunch time from school saying "I love you mom!" or, "Hey whatsup?" It's so great to know they actually think about me when they're away!

When Valerie went to college I got to talk to her pretty much every day, whether it was on the phone or by text. A lot of times the conversation would begin with, "Hey Mom, you wanna hear something really funny?" Now that she's home we don't use the cell phone much between us and I miss it.

Last night at midnight, Riley texted me from West Yellowstone where he was camping with the scouts. Everyone else was already asleep and he couldn't get to sleep. He was a bit spooked by the sounds so I kept a text conversation going with him until he eventually fell asleep. (At least I assumed he had fallen asleep. He could have been eaten by bears.) It was a sweet time even though he was 100s of miles away. This morning he told me he was turning his phone off to conserve battery power in case he needed me again. Awwww!

Gotta love those cell phones. For parents of teens, I would say they are a must. I'll bet whoever invented them never thought of his invention as a parenting tool. This could be a whole new line of marketing! If you ever see a cell phone commercial where a mother is texting her boy to sleep, you'll know where the idea came from!