Parenting Fail: A Smartphone Will Make You Happy

“If you loved me, you’d want me to be happy!” How many parents throughout the generations have heard their child cry this desperate song? It is a whine as old as time and one that parents have wisely dismissed. But then the smartphone was released. Around 2012, the age of ownership began a steady decline […]

10 FORTNITE Facts Every Parent Should Know [VIDEO]

There seems to be some new viral trend captivating our kids every six months. Whether it be a dance move (Whip Nae Nae), toys (fidget spinners), crafts (slime), or apps (Pokemon Go) – kids today love to jump on the bandwagon and ride it all the way to obsession. The current obsession: FORTNITE. Epic Games, […]

Screens and Summer Webinar Recast

Do you long to feel like you have control over the screens in your home? SCREENS & SUMMER will teach you how to reclaim control of the screens and internet! This video isn’t about theoretical parenting. It’s not about having brave conversations with your kids (although those are important). It’s about how to actually safeguard, […]

Home Smartphones: The Better Alternative For Young Children

Remember the days when you stretched out every curl from the tethered phone cord in desperate attempt to talk to your friends away from listening ears? Or maybe you recall arguing with your sibling as they continued to pick up another house phone during your call. These are the sweet and precious memories of home […]

The Growing Trend of “Random Video Chatting”: What Parents Need to Know

Everything online is moving towards video. Perhaps this is due to our plummeting attention spans or our lack of desire to read on a screen. More likely, however, it is because our brains are wired to appreciate and engage with moving, talking, breathing, humans instead of edited selfies. For children spending an increasing amount of […]

5 Reasons Why No Child Needs Snapchat

Everyone parenting in our Snapchat society can probably identify with one of these FOUR places: You are preparing for the adolescent/teen years when your child will ask for Snapchat. Your child has already asked for Snapchat and you are currently debating whether to allow it. You’ve allowed Snapchat, you don’t like it, and you need […]

A Parent’s Guide to Shared Data (Not Just on Facebook)

Facebook has been collecting, using and selling our data. This is the new outrage. After discovering the data abuse of nearly 50 million Facebook profiles for political ends by Cambridge Analytica, the blind trust in the Social Networking giant has ended. News of Facebook’s practice of collecting phone and text data on Android phones added […]

LEGO Life App and The Slow Death of Childhood Play

Late one evening in 1999, I made a late-night Wal-Mart run with some college friends. This trip is only memorable because it was the first time I saw a man ecstatic about buying LEGO sets. His smile spread and his eyes glistened with joy as he found the display of newly released Star Wars LEGO sets.  […]

How to Wean Your Child Off Social Media

You said yes to the social media app. So many of your kid’s friends use this app so it seemed like the right thing to do (I’m the only person in the school without it!), but now you regret allowing it. The constant selfies, the never-ending checking, viewing, responding, checking, checking, checking. It’s like they […]

Love is NOT an Unrestricted Smartphone

A recent study by Pew Research Group showed that only 16% of parents use parental controls to restrict their child’s cell or smart phone. To restate this in a more obvious and ominous way: 84% of parents DO NOT USE parental controls to restrict phone usage. As a parent in the 16% I assume this […]

How To Deactivate/Delete Social Media Accounts

Just recently, it was reported as “news” that the soon-to-be-wife of Prince Harry deleted her social media accounts. This is a woman who understands there is a time and place for a social media platform and that, ultimately, these accounts are not near as important as personal relationships. You don’t have to be marrying into […]

What Every Parent Needs to Learn from Recent SWATting Tragedy

In late December 2017, a news story out of Wichita, Kansas brought a growing issue into full light: SWATting. While this may seem like an issue for large cities or a crime-riddled subculture not affecting the average family, there are valuable lessons every parent and child can learn from this story. “SWATting” SWATting refers to […]

The Doctor That Helps You Recover Deleted Data

If you have a child with a smartphone, then you need this Doctor. In the teenage subculture where sexting and nudes are now “first base,” wouldn’t you want to know if your son or daughter was partaking? In their world, where vicious words and unkind accusations flow fast and free from their fingertips, wouldn’t you […]

Part IV: Parental Controls for iPhone, iPad, and iPod

Apple products have fantastic parental restrictions built into the operating system. These restrictions are the same across all generations and regardless of which iOS version is running. These Allow Changes parental controls is Part IV of password-protected parental Restrictions for a child’s iPhone. If you haven’t already, you’ll want to set up the Part I: […]

Apple iOS 11 & Earlier Parental Controls: Part IV

Apple products have fantastic parental restrictions built into the operating system. These restrictions are the same across all generations and regardless of which iOS version is running. These Allow Changes parental controls is Part IV of password-protected parental Restrictions for a child’s iPhone. If you haven’t already, you’ll want to set up the Part I: […]

Part III: Parental Controls for iPhone, iPad, and iPod

Apple products have fantastic parental restrictions built into the operating system. These restrictions are the same across all generations and regardless of which iOS version is running. Privacy Parental Controls is Part III in setting up password-protected parental Restrictions. If you haven’t already completed the Part I: Basic Restrictions and Part II: Content Filters, you’ll […]

Apple iOS 11 & Earlier Parental Controls: Part III

Apple products have fantastic parental restrictions built into the operating system. These restrictions are the same across all generations and regardless of which iOS version is running. Privacy Parental Controls is Part III in setting up password-protected parental Restrictions. If you haven’t already completed the Part I: Basic Restrictions and Part II: Content Filters, you’ll […]

Part II: Parental Controls for iPhone, iPad, and iPod

Apple products have fantastic parental restrictions built into the operating system. These restrictions are the same across all generations and regardless of which iOS version is running. Content Filter Parental Controls is Part II of setting up your password-protected parental Restrictions on an iPhone. You should have already completed Part I: Basic Restrictions and then, […]