Screen Time Standards During COVID-19 Captivity
The standards you live by are important. They are like the bones of the body, which keeps it supported and structured. Imagine the floppy mess we’d be without bones. While bones and structure are essential for a functioning body, they are not what keeps us alive. It is our relationships that is the heartbeat of […]
School Breaks: Keeping Technology in Check
As another school break rolls around, we’re answering some commonly asked questions regarding screen time when not in school. But in reality, these questions hold true for every day. My children are at home by themselves while I am at work. How do I keep them off the internet all day long? First, children should […]
Apple iOS 12 Parental Controls: Setting up Screen Time
Apple iOS 12 introduced the Screen Time features that can help parents and children with both limits and mindfulness. One new limit is “Downtime”, when a designated amount of apps are unavailable under password protection. Additionally, time limits for specific apps are also possible now. To promoting mindfulness, Screen Time tracks your phone usage – […]
Grandparenting in the Digital Age: What Grandchildren Actually Need (hint: it’s not your smartphone)
Earlier this year, I joined the ranks of the white-haired, wise sages who’ve gone before me: Grandparents. Except, I am neither white-haired nor do I possess the wisdom of a sage. I am a Gen X-er who is barely hanging onto my thirties and still raising six children in my home. Other than my thoughtful […]
Brave Parenting Q & A
On THURSDAY JUNE 28th at 8pm CST Brave Parenting Founder Kelly and her husband Ryan will be LIVE here at braveparenting.net and on Facebook [@braveparentingnetwork]. They will answer any of your Smartphone, Social Media, Internet, Boundaries, and Parenting questions. You can submit your questions in advance or during the live event. Kelly is the founder […]
Can I Have My Own YouTube Channel? 5 Questions to Ask Your Child Before Answering
Back in the early 90’s, I was a freshmen in high school and obsessed with the first reality television show of its kind, MTV’s: The Real World. One night my friend and I borrowed her Dad’s VHS camcorder and filmed our own version of this iconic reality show. Recorded entirely in my friend’s basement, it […]
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 […]
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. […]
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 […]
What Every Parent Needs to Know About Facebook’s MESSENGER KIDS
It’s widely known that tweens and teens aren’t on Facebook any more now that Great Grandma has a profile. From a business point of view, Facebook wants their share of the younger market back. Apparently owning Instagram and mimicking the features of Snapchat isn’t enough. Facebook has now introduced Messenger Kids: a safer place for […]
How Instagram Opens a Back Door to Pornography
The beloved photo-sharing social network our children love so much could be their first exposure to pornography. These aren’t methods promoted by Instagram, but kids are so tech-stealthy these days, they find ways around things. SEARCH: TOP PEOPLE TAGS PLACES The SEARCH feature is what turns your child’s small circle of peer influence into an […]
What Every Parent Needs to Know About the Updated Instagram
Battling For Souls There are a few gigantic corporations brutally fighting it out in order to win the souls of our children (and money in their pockets.) By ‘souls’ we mean their entire livelihood and by ‘money’ we mean many millions. Aside from Google, who is a clear pack leader with their efforts to take […]
Dear Youth Pastors on Snapchat
Not everyone has conformed. There are still some of us brave and undaunted parents who are fighting, against all odds and societal norms, to keep our children from being polluted by the world. We are the parents who do not allow our teenagers to use social media. Have you met us? Did you know such […]
A Simple and Effective Way to Protect/Monitor Your Child Online
*Disclaimer: My family purchased Circle independently and we use it as a primary internet control in our home. Because we love it, we have become an affiliate partner with Circle.* As a parent, do you believe you should monitor your child’s screen time but don’t know how to? Have you thought you were monitoring and restricting […]
The Home Smart Phone: The Better Alternative
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, either to eavesdrop or tell you to get off […]
Blindfolded Parenting and the Rise of Snapchat
A recent survey of American parents revealed that less than half of parents (40%) know the content their children are seeing through social media accounts. This indicates 60% of parents are metaphorically BLINDFOLDED to what content is being poured into their child. Not surprising considering Snapchat, the master Houdini of all social media apps, has taken […]
Before You Gift it – RESTRICT IT
What’s under your Christmas tree? Did you buy your children a device this year for Christmas? A screen of some sort? Something that connects to the internet, perhaps? A smart phone, iPad, or Xbox? The average age for ownership of these beloved gadgets are younger every year. NINE year old children now proudly posses smart […]
Digital Amnesia and Why You Won’t Remember These Moments
Have you been at an event and witnessed someone experiencing life and capturing the moment solely through their phone? The evolution from film to digital has changed our lifestyle and most importantly our memories. We photographically document our lives extensively and excessively. From “why is my toddler crying” (*snap*) to “this awesome meal we’re about […]
Losing Your Mind Over Media? 3 Quick Fixes You Can Start Today
All of the dishes rest clean and dry in the dishwasher while their dirty counterparts pile higher and higher in the sink above. The chore of putting away those clean dishes lies with the child, who, at the present time could be found hiding behind the sofa. As I softly coax him out from behind the […]
