“I have witnessed this tragedy unfolding right in front of my eyes. Our children are in a devastating emotional state! No, ‘they all are just born like this’ is not the answer. No, ‘it is all the school system’s fault’ is not the answer. As painful as it can be to admit, in many cases, WE, parents, are the answer to many of our kids’ struggles! We must make changes before this entire generation of children will be medicated.”
‘There is a silent tragedy right now, in our homes, and it concerns our most precious jewels – our children.’: Occupational therapist addresses child mental illness epidemic, ‘We have to wake up!’
‘Hand them over.’ I asked her why. ‘You-guys-are-on-them-too-much.’ Say what? Us guys? Us?’: Mom stunned when 16-year-old ‘budding Instagram model’ daughter insists on no screen time at dinner
“My 16-year-old daughter pointed to each of us. She put out her hand, palm up. No lie, I was confused. Why did she have her hand out? Did she want a high-five? Was she looking for money? There had to be something wrong. She placed them on the table, screen down, and then made eye contact with us. I mean, ACTUAL eye contact. I stared at her, hanging onto every-single-word.”
‘Whoa,’ he whispers, unwrapping his present. ‘Isn’t he a little young?’ His mom asks, apprehensive.’: Boy gifted iPhone for birthday ‘grows up too fast,’ was a ‘child last year,’ suddenly he’s not
“Noah’s eyes widen. He’d almost forgotten about presents. ‘Which one should I open first?’ It’s a small rectangular box. Noah pulls off the paper. ‘Whoa,’ he says, staring at the white box on the carpet. iPhone 7. He can’t believe it. His parents both have smartphones, so do a lot of kids at school. He’s so excited, he barely notices his grandparents get up to leave. ‘Oh,’ he says absentmindedly, ‘Bye.’”
‘If you see a child with no socks, for goodness sake Barbs, don’t assume she is neglectful.’: Fed up mom wishes the ‘judgement’ would end
“If she complains she’s exhausted, she doesn’t need a lecture about, ‘How they’re only little once.’ If you see a mother giving her kid some juice, don’t assume she’s beer bonging those kids with red cordial every day. It’s probably a treat. Sit down with your judgement.”
‘I LOVE MY IPAD, MOMMY. I HATE YOU!’ My beautiful child was ugly crying, swinging arms, red faced. He threw his belly to the ground. ‘WHY MOMMY?!’ All hell broke loose.’
“His little body leaped off the ground and dove for the iPad in my lap. In between hiccups, coughs, deep gasps, he said, ‘MOMMY… I… NEED… IT.’ I replied a stern, ‘No, baby. You do NOT need it.’ Then, mommy did the unthinkable. ‘We’re going on an adventure.'”
‘I grew up obsessed with Little House on the Prairie. I wanted to give my children a simplified childhood. One with very few electronics. I really took a step back on how I’m raising my kids.’
“I want them to be KIDS and not someone I am trying to keep entertained. I want them to spend their summers the way their dad and I did. I want them to learn how to play Red Rover, Capture the flag, and Marco Polo. I want them to have tire swings, chalk, climbing trees, and mud pies. I want their finger nails to be dark brown from playing in the dirt.”
‘When they come out, everyone is gone. ‘What are we going to do?’ ‘I don’t know.’ They both begin to panic.’: Kids without smartphones forced to problem-solve, realize it made them ‘more likely to succeed’
“Their father is nowhere in sight. They have no way of contacting their parents. Michael is getting nervous. ‘We’re going to ask that policeman if we can use his phone,’ she says bravely. They approach the officer. Michael is afraid to speak. So is Emma.”
‘Predators go where the prey is, and unfortunately, they see our CHILDREN as that prey. A paycheck. An opportunity.’
“Predators take advantage of a moment a child is mad at their parents, and builds a wedge between them. Predators are patient. Children from our own communities are being plucked away from innocence and safety. This is more likely to happen from a false relationship online, than being randomly kidnapped.”
‘Home was a safe place for Brian in 2008. Whatever happened in school, stayed in school. Not now.’
“Brian walks across the cafeteria, minding his own business. Suddenly, his feet slide out from under him. The tomato soup goes up in the air and comes down on his lap. He’s so embarrassed, that when he stands up, he doesn’t notice Mark filming.”
‘I was sitting next to a grandmother of 3 children. ‘Honestly,’ she said, ‘kids these days have no idea what real values are, and they’re certainly not going to learn them from their parents.’
“‘What does that mean?’ I asked her curiously.”
