Signed in Blood....not really!!

I had a revelation yesterday. [Yes--occassionally it happens...]


We have four children at home; three of which have cell phones. "Why?" you ask.... We live in a time where technology is taking over the younger generations. We also live in a time where crazy people surround us. So--why not use today's technology to our advantage? Give a kid a cell phone and you can basically hunt him down any time you need.


When the kids are at school, out and about, or over at the dad's house (ugh), I can reach them anytime. Now---- the problem comes in when there are no boundaries. If you don't set limits (on anything, for that matter) then you're not doing right by your kids if you expect them to handle the cell phone responsibly. I guess there is SOME kid out there SOMEWHERE who can be trusted with raw technology without screwing up. NOT MY KIDS.....lol


Let's just suffice it to say that one of my kids (tyler) messed up bigtime last month. For the month of May (just to be clear,--31 days), my precious child talked 58 hours. To whom? About what? Are you kidding? Not only that--he texted over 10,000 text messages. Yeah--this is an issue.



So....... I came up with a cell phone contract that each of the kids had to sign. I know this is not a new concept, but nonetheless important.



I know it's probably too small to read, so here are the eleven points I made:

1. I understand that the cell phone does NOT belong to me; it belongs to Mom and Robert. Once I start paying the bill, that will change;
   
2. On school nights, the cell phone will be turned OFF at 9:00 p.m. unless otherwise stated by Mom and Robert;
   
3. During the summer, the cell phone will be turned OFF at midnight unless otherwise stated by Mom and Robert;
   
4. I will not send nor receive any inappropriate pictures or texts, including but not limited to, any nudity or profanity;
   
5. During the school year, my texts will be limited to 1,000 per month;
   
6. I will not go above 50 peak minutes per month as outlined in cell phone bill;
   
7. Any overage of minutes per month will be paid by me as well as any accountability or punishment accompanying the overage;
   
8. I will NOT access the internet;
   
9. I will NOT purchase ringtones, unless otherwise stated by Mom and Robert;
   
10. Cell phone is subject to review at any time. Mom and Robert will ask before taking cell phone;
    
11. Unless absolutely necessary (as determined by Mom and Robert) phone should not be used for long distance calls. All long distance calls should be made from home telephone (long distance is free).
    
    
    I understand and agree to the above items. Failure to follow the above stated rules will result in cell phone confiscation for one week or over, as determined by Mom and Robert.
    
    I understand these rules to be in my best interest and accept them as a means to learn responsibility.

Hey ~ in this day and age, you have to protect your kids...from themselves. What's sad about this is that most of their friends are allowed to do whatever they please when it comes to cell phones. I don't understand it!! Example: one of Tyler's friends came over several months ago. He is a nice kid, but definitely doesn't have the parental guidance he needs. He left his phone in my car, so when it rang, my husband answered it (he wasn't sure who it belonged to since we had several of tyler's friends over). What was discovered was a very inappropriate text/pic message including nudity from one of his "friends." My husband was livid! He decided to do some more digging and what was on his phone was AWFUL! After he discovered his phone missing, he started calling our house to retrieve it. I called his mom (whom I had not met--that was a fun way to meet her) and made her come over with him and get his phone. I would not give it back to him. I handed it to his mom and told her that we didn't allow that type of behavior in our home. Of course, she was embarrassed; but I really don't care. It's my house and I will control what comes in it! [whew....let me take a breath. I'm getting all worked up!]

Bottom line: A cell phone is just like a car. I wouldn't hand my kids the keys without equipping them with the knowledge and responsibility to drive it. The same rule applies to a cell phone. They are dangerous and should be treated with care.

fondly,
fit
chairperson of MAIM
(Mothers Against Inappropriate Mobile usage)