I think letting kids use things like phones and iPads will always be a bit of a debating topic for a lot of people (parents or not). I also think there’s nothing wrong with a healthy debate, and that’s why I felt this would be a good post to do!
We allow Grayson to use our phones and our iPad, and in a lot of instances it has been a massive help for us. It makes bum changes so much easier when he has Thomas the tank engine or Bing up on a phone, because then he isn’t so focused on trying to move away. I also have a few apps on my phone that I’ll let him play on if we go out for dinner and he’s getting stressed because he’s hungry. I’ve never noticed anyone giving us filthy looks for this, but most of the time I’m focused on making sure Grayson is happy and healthy so anyone else (other than Mark) is just non-existent for me at the time.
I love being a parent, and helping Grayson learn and grow as an individual, but parenting is hard. So sometimes I will opt for the easy option if I know it isn’t harming Grayson and it will help us in the long run. I don’t think that makes me, or anyone that does this a bad parent.
I also think that a lot of the apps we let him play on have helped his development. He’s not looking at a screen constantly, but if he is we try to make it as educational as possible. I think it’s because of this (and a number of other things) that Grayson’s is so clever, and I have no qualms saying this because he is clever.
We don’t allow Grayson to sit in front of a screen every single hour of every single day, and we never will. We still encourage him to do other things: he loves reading, drawing, building, dancing and using his imagination but he also likes to sit and listen to songs on YouTube and play on apps that teach him the letters of the alphabet.
I think as parents we should understand that parenting will always be different for everyone and we should embrace that! So if you’re a new parent, pregnant or you’ve started considering letting your child use an iPad so you can wee in peace – don’t let anyone make you feel bad! If you are a parent that doesn’t let your children use anything electronic wise, awesome!
As long as our children are happy, that’s what counts.