February 22, 2008
Cell Phones
When is a child old enough to have a cell phone? I have noticed in recent years, the ages for children has gotten younger and younger. My oldest didn't get a phone until he was 16, and then it was only because his father put it on his account. I decided to get my youngest son a phone for his 15th birthday. He isn't the type of child that spends hours on the phone so I figured it would be a safe bet. I'm glad I made the choice to avoid that whole situation with my oldest because he ended up with some pretty healthy phone bills. My youngest has not. He only went over his minutes twice in a year and that was because of texting. My problem is the fact that he continues to lose his phone. I don't know what to do (besides pin it to his shirt) to keep him from losing it. The phone isn't the only thing has has lost on a regular basis, his wallet is a tight runner up. How could anyone, with a wallet full of birthday money, misplace his wallet? I know when I have money in my purse, I never let it out of my site. At 16, you'd think he would be a little more cautious with what he does. I'm almost to the point of giving up. I got a 2 year contract on the phone so I still have another year to pay on it, but the fact that he continually loses it really infuriates me. How do you teach a child responsibility? I try to tell him that if someone else gets a hold of that phone, they can use it and run up my phone bill. His reply to that is to have it turned off until he finds it. So, I'm doing that every other week. Maybe a child needs to wait until they are an adult to have the responsibility of a cell phone. What did we do when we were young? It seems, I made it to adulthood without any casualties secondary to not having a cell phone. Why do kids nowadays need to have one? If we kept tabs on our children, the way our parents did, we would never need to call them to find out where they are at. I don't know what the answer is. I just know, this whole situation is making me very tired. I sure hope my son pulls it together in the next year, otherwise, adulthood is going to be a rude awakening.
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5 comments:
I dont have a baby.i guess still i can post a comment here:-)
i think u must make him undertsnd.espeecially cuz its a lota money losing ur wallent n mobile...anywaz...he wud grow up a responsible boy..im sure... thanx 4 checkin inmy blog...
chikku :)
My sons at 13 & 17 still don't have their own cell phones. We have a family one that they take with them if they're going to need it--say, if they want to stay after school or go to a friend's house or something. Our nieces, though, are 10 & 13, and they both have cell phones.
When our oldest borrowed his brother's Nintendo DS and lost it, he had to save up his allowance and replace it--it took quite a while, and he was broke for long enough that I think it made an impression.
I suspect they've learned to hold onto things because being military dependents, they've had ID cards since they were 10, and have had to keep track of them. They learned when their sister lost hers what a huge PIA it is.
The only suggestion I can come up with is to make sure he has to deal with the consequences of misplacing something--paying for the lost phone, etc.
Good luck, and I hope he grows out of it. Our daughter did. :)
Cell phones have GPS on them now. Wouldn't that help? You're a gr8 mom. I'm impressed. Hang in there. He's learning even if it doesn't seem like it now. (((hugs)))
arggh I'd be upset and would probably want to keep it from him but I guess 16 years old are still kiddos eh?
Have a great weekend!
My 14 year old daughter has one that we use when she travels with the band or various other groups that she belongs to at school. Havent had any trouble with loss but have had trouble with text minutes. I remember as a kid having to always have a quarter for a pay phone with me in case of an emergency. Have you tried to find a pay phone lately?
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