The Age of Electronics

I'm thinking that the generation of today's children is pegged as the e-generation. Back when I was a kid the GameBoy was one of just two handhelds to have. Now, our kids can have a range of handheld electronics (not just games). Let's see, we have the ipad, the ipod, an array of cell phones, the Nintendo DS to name one handheld video game player, I'm sure there's more but I don't have all night. I think if I could have had a cell phone when I was a kid, I'd probably pass on the bagphone.
I admit that I use the DS or my cell phone to keep a situation under control during what I like to dub the "chaos hour on-the-go". Let me clarify. There's a time of the day I like to call "CHAOS HOUR!!!" dun dun dun! This is the time of day that my children decide to compete in decibels and energy levels. It's also a time of day I like to call "Daddy's Home!" because they usually coincide with eachother. There's a little switch that flicks when Daddy enters the house and in the depths of my kids brains they ultimately have to make Daddy believe that it's been like this all day and mom really has no control whatsoever. The worst part? The dog loves to join in on chaos hour. This 10+ year old dog becomes a puppy for chaos hour and for some reason snorts and sneezes repetitively. So, take Chaos Hour and take it on the road, or to a football game, a restaurant... you get the picture. Thank you Nintendo for taking a video game console and making it portable. Sorry, Sega.
My opinion is that my generation is well aware that our children could easily become a generation fully dependent on electronics. Seriously, I saw a commercial where a kid was happy to watch a movie on his device while he was at the beach. It made me sick to my stomach. But, I think many of us are up to the challenge of not limiting our children's worlds to 4 inches in front of their face. I've been paying attention to children and their devices. I've been to soccer games, a college football game, malls, grocery stores, parks, restaurants, etcetera, etcetera. I'm pretty impressed that most kids are still reading books made from trees, they are throwing wood chips and playing tag. Kids are talking to eachother, running amok, talking out of turn and not watching where they're going (because they have too much energy, not because they have their heads in an electronic).
I can't give myself credit for setting limits and using electronics as a reward, not a babysitter. I give many people credit for being aware. Sure, there are those who give electronics a bad name. Why else would there be movies showing teenagers mass texting or texting from the next room? It's true to a point. But you can't say we are not aware. You can't say we rely on electronics to find serenity in our day. We still find happiness in doing it "old school" with books and paint and kites. However, I do enjoy humor about kids who are confused when they see a rotary phone or a phone booth. Still, kudos to us! Kudos to us.

Making the Kid Cry

We recently decided to watch a classic by the name of "Where the Red Fern Grows" with our two boys. We were both pretty excited to introduce a movie based on literature to our kids. I think 50% of the family is finally done with "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs" which is just fun to request because the kids call it "Cloudyballs". The best part of watching a scary movie you've already seen is watching it with someone who is seeing it for the first time. You can't wait to see their reactions to your favorite parts.
In the event of a drama, I think it's the same. This may be a confession, or it may have you nodding your head in agreement but my husband and I both knew the movie would be sad, we both knew it had the potential to make our 8-year-old cry, and we both could not wait till that part came. It seems pretty messed up when I put it that way but I think, deep down, we like to use these types of movies as opportunities to see what kind of kids we have. I truly wanted to know the level of compassion my kid would have for this kid who lost one dog to tragedy and the other dog to a broken heart. Movies like E.T. can tell a lot about sensitivity, compassion, attachment and how a child values relationships. So, of course, our son ended up crying at the end, during the montage of the dogs who had passed (this is the Dave Matthews version of the movie, by the way). And, of course, we felt like big jerks for letting it happen. But in the end, we also gained an opportunity to talk about what the boy would do next, how he would deal with it, and how we would deal with the loss of our pet if it ever came. It sure beats bringing down the conversation over dinner in a random fashion. Anyhow, my poll of the week is related to this post. Vote on it if you like. If you think of any other movies that can be used to open up converstations with children, comment below. I just picked the first five that came to mind. Don't laugh!

Love,
Marthaaaa!

Get With It

So every so often I linger back to this old blog of mine and read the old stuff. I'm not embarrassed to say I crack myself up. Especially my entry on going to the grocery store without a pen. That was an adventure I'm proud to say I have not repeated since. It's been a long time since I've written an entry yet there have been plenty of opportunities to share my nutso stories that you can probably relate to. I'm getting with the times and finally figuring out how to link up blog with facebook with twitter with the toilet seat handle and the garage door opener. If I can sync them together, I think I'll save a lot more time.
My current status in life is married with two boys - 8 and 4. What an adventure. I am happy to say that the family has agreed on a having a girl soon. We just have to search the internet, find one that needs a home, build a fence and we're set! Wait, maybe the fence should come first.
Hopefully I'm back for a while. The creative juices have always been flowing, it's just time to look behind the old marinades and condiments, pull the juice out, check the expiration date, and pour the juice out. The great part is that, even if the juice is old, I can pour it on the page and it's still relevant. Just watch for chunks!

Love Marthaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!

I Kid You Not!

I'm starting a new topic based on an experience I had at church over the weekend. This discussion is reserved for those of you who have had some of the most embarrassing moments with your children...

If You Can't Say Anything Nice...

After our recent week in Chicago I realized that online reviews aren’t always the most reliable sources. The hotel we stayed at was a decent place to stay but the maintenance of the rooms proved to be slightly neglected in our experience. With two children in tow we had to move rooms in the first ten minutes because my husband couldn’t access the Internet that he had requested for business. Luckily we hadn’t yet unpacked...

Thought of the Week - Contributed by Peggy Loftus

Life is Like Stewed Tomatoes?

Somehow in August this year I ended up with a bushel of homegrown tomatoes...and I don't have a garden. So, I had to find something to do with all these tomatoes. When I was growing up my parents canned and froze A TON of food from our 1/2 acre garden. "Hey!", I thought to myself, "why don't you stew the tomatoes and put them up." A lovely thought but I have never canned anything in my life and didn't want to learn on my own without my mom around to teach me. I called my mom, explained my predicament and she simply said, "well, freeze them." Duh! So she gave me basic directions and one morning I set to work.