Warning: If you have an unwavering love for your iPhone or iPod apps, you may want to forgo reading this "soapbox" post of mine. This Thursday, I just need to get a few things off my chest. Or, if you prefer, indulge me with a few moments of your time . . . .
A few months ago, my little sister sat on the stool at my mother's house, playing with her phone, when she turned to me and asked, "So, Mel, what kind of apps do you have?" "Uh, no apps--I just have a phone." You know, a normal phone. The kind you call people someone with when you are stranded on the side of the road. The same phone I get calls on when my daughter is sick at school. That is the purpose of my phone.
I don't get this whole "Do-You-Have-the-Latest-App" movement. (And, again, I apologize if you are one of those who has every possible app ever offered for a phone and love your apps.) Now, I know there are some very helpful tools that are quite cool. Lately the translator app on my husband's phone came in handy when we had our foreign exchange student living with us. Necessary? Not really. I'm pretty sure we could have got along just fine without it. And then there's the Gas Buddy app. It was helpful on our recent CA trip, where we found the cheapest gas was offered near us. But, truthfully, we drove a few miles further to save, what, $1? So, here's my soapbox tonight: Is it all worth it? And why is our society going berserk over phone technology? You name it--there's an app for it! Raise your hand if you think it is time we take a breather from phone-tech.
What I don't like is what it is doing to my kids. My husband's phone AND iPod have numerous apps and games that will keep our young boys occupied for hours. Hours! Not sure I love this idea. Let's ingrain this must-be-constantly-doing-something at an early age so they can't focus later in school? I don't think so. How about sending them outside to play ball or ride their bike. Novel idea.
Their current obsession? I'll name just a few. First there is Angry Birds. Who hasn't heard of this? It has taken our world by storm--even Build-A-Bear has them now! But, what is it?! You fling a bunch of squawky, crazy, and might I add, UGLY birds (either one at a time, or better yet, make them split into 3) at some even uglier pigs who are just hangin' out, until they pop. Not sure I get this. And, does anyone know why they are "angry" exactly? I recently read an article written by a psychiatrist that was supposed to explain the obsession with Angry Birds, but the only thing I got from the article was that the psychiatrist enjoyed the game just as much as the next person. See, world? You have all been sucked in. Conned, people.
Onto my next beef: So, my 4-year-old, tearfully approached my husband the other day (whilst holding Dad's iPod) and said, "Dad, I tried to feed the little zombie, but it wouldn't eat." Todd consoled him with, "Sorry, buddy, he must be dead." What!? Then, just yesterday, the same 4-year-old, again playing some zombie game, exclaimed to his older brother, "I got more brains Andrew!" They talked more about the game and every once in a while I'd hear things interjected like, "when that person is dead. . . " or "that zombie is ready to be picked. . ." Again, what!? Zombie Farm is a game (though I use that word loosely) where you harvest zombies. My 4-year-old is growing zombies in a garden. Who makes this stuff up? I'm not okay with my boys talking about dead bodies and brains! What is wrong with people?
Okay, perhaps I am too conservative. Perhaps this 34-year-old mom could already be considered an out-of-date fuddy-duddy. Perhaps I will lose many loyal readers tonight because of what I say and will be left to fight this battle on my own, but darn it, I can't see many positive outcomes if my kids (or anyone) heads down the addictive app path of fiery destruction. Like I said, people, let's all breathe for a moment. Yoga app anyone? Yep, they've got that one too. Put the phone or iPod down and breathe with me, sans technology.
Okay, I feel better already.
Namaste. Good night.
Allison 2002
Can you believe it has been a year since I won some crazy budget contest? My year of weekly blog-writing and work with mentor, Cristie Richards, is winding down with Imagine a Happier You and I find myself a little sad. It has been a great experience and a great blessing to my family. I feel like I am more solid ground and have a better head on my shoulders. Here is this week's blog post for IAHY and your Money Matters Monday:
My family returned home Sunday from a week-long vacation in California, only to find 14 credit card applications in our mailbox. Fourteen! We get them often, but never do I add them up over the course of a week. Disgusting. Another thing that felt entirely wrong was how many times I swiped the one credit card we own on said vacation.
Now, before you discredit everything I've ever said over the past year, let me explain myself. Do you remember my aunt and uncle I wrote about a while back? You know, the ones who have paid off two houses already? They swear by the use-the-credit-card-but-pay-it-all-off-every-month method. In fact they have taken numerous trips for FREE, using only the points they have accumulated from their card. My uncle suggests to make a budget, then make a register and deduct what you spend, just as if it were a checkbook. Please note that I don't want to promote the use of credit cards in any way, however I had heard about this method working for several people and have been terrified to try it. Why? Well, in order to keep your credit card balance from sky-rocketing, you had to be extremely disciplined, something we had failed at in the past. I was hoping we could attempt this method for the one week of our summer vacation since we had been practicing discipline over the past year.
The credit card we have gives cash back rewards and because I'm all about saving money, I decided to try it. We had been planning and saving for this vacation for nearly a year and had already set aside a chunk of money. I knew we could pay it off once we returned home, so after letting Cristie know of the plan, I set up our system.
At the dollar store I found a pocket file with four tabs, small enough to fit into my purse. I labeled the tabs "Fun", "Food", "Gas" and "Souvenirs". Everything we bought on the trip should fall under one of those categories, so to keep track of each purchase I put the receipt in their designated slot. At the back of my pocket file, I put a small notebook and pen. On the first page I wrote down our beginning total (what we had budgeted and saved for the trip) and with each purchase, I subtracted that amount. Like I said, I was terrified of losing control and going over on our budget, so I was meticulous about deducting every penny.
Those who have followed my blogs will know I am a believer of vacations. There is nothing that can replace the quality time with children, isolated away from the busy routines of home-life. The memories we made were truly priceless, but didn't need to be pricey. We went to Legoland and Sea World (both with heavily-discounted coupons of course!), visited several museums and spent a lot of time on the beach, which was by far the family-favorite activity.
One shining money moment came from a comment from my oldest daughter. Each child had earned their own souvenir money prior to the trip and each had a different amount, depending on how dedicated they were to their chores. Kendra, my oldest, had worked the hardest and therefore had the most to spend. As we walked around the shops at Downtown Disney, her eyes got big and anxiety grew as she realized how difficult the decision would be on which memento to bring home. She was holding a cute scarf (that cost a whopping $20!) when suddenly she dropped it and exclaimed, "I'm going to be wise with my money!" Not only a great money moment, but a proud Mommy moment as well.
I'm pleased to report that we stayed within our budget! In fact, we came out slightly under. Yay! As soon as we got home, we got online and paid off our credit card. Sigh. The anxiety that had been building with each swipe of the card quickly dispersed once I clicked the "confirm payment" button. I'm so glad that for once, our vacation isn't following us home. It took a lot of planning and prep work, but knowing we had the money to make the zero balance on our credit card is a great feeling.
With the cash-back rewards I will get, I plan on tucking the amount away for Christmas because it will be here in two shakes of a lamb's tail. After the holidays, it will be time to plan and save up for next year's vacation. Until then, it is back to the cash method for me! Seems to have worked great for us thus far, plus it keeps my panic levels to a minimum.
I just sent my 6th child back to her home in Taiwan. It’s true. I’ve had a 15-year-old daughter for the past 6 weeks. Her name is Jennifer— or at least that is what she was called while she was here. I couldn’t have predicted what it would mean to have a foreign exchange student in our home, but in having her here our family has learned several things:
1. I learned how to speak Chinese! Well, sort of. I now know the words for cantaloupe (Jennifer’s favorite), watermelon, horse, mosquito, hello, thank you. With Chinese, it is all about inflection. Jennifer often giggled at my poor attempts at her language and I learned that my mouth is quite incapable of properly formulating Chinese words.
2. Americans put far too much sugar in and on everything! Poor Jennifer had to choke down sugary breakfast cereals, pancakes w/ syrup, cookies, brownies, fruit snacks, candy, etc. The “healthy lifestyle” I thought we lived easily (and sadly) falls into America’s overly-sweetened mainstream. 
3. Jennifer attends 10 hours of school each day, 7 days a week. That’s every single day folks. 10 hours. After she told us this (and after picking up our jaws from the floor) my respect for the dedicated and educated Taiwanese people grew immensely. Case in point: One night, after playing a game of Monopoly w/ her, each of us needed a calculator to tally our points, except for Jennifer. Counting it up in her head was simple enough for her. Still, Kendra reminds me daily that she DOES NOT want to live in Taiwan—too much school for her I guess. 
4. Though she said she was shy, she really made the best of this American experience. She wasn’t afraid to step out of her comfort zone and try new things. To name just a few: church, girls camp, American food, hiking, camping, roller coasters, boogie boarding, cooking, sleeping in her own room and bed, dancing w/ the Xbox—heck, she even pierced her ears while she was here!
5. Other things that were amazingly new and wonderful to her: blond or red –headed people, blue eyes, can openers, macaroni and cheese (her new favorite!), painted fingernails, homemade pizza, babies (particularly our Baby Ty!), trampolines, high school lockers (who knew?), American movies, driving in a car (not a bus or scooter) everywhere we go, going from having no siblings to 5 rambunctious kids!
6. And then there are some loves that transcend any language or culture, namely Justin Beiber.
7. I was blown away by the selfless nature of Jennifer’s parents. Not only did they send their only child to a new country and a family they didn’t know, but after seeing how quickly Jennifer’s English was improving, her mother begged her to stay longer, knowing that any time here will only benefit her. They also have been so giving, showering us with handmade gifts from the heart. Did I mention how incredibly artistic Jennifer and her mother are? Jennifer taught my girls how to make a toy cat out of a baby sock and my boys how to fold the best paper airplanes in the world!
8. What I didn’t expect was how much I would grow to love Jennifer in the short weeks that she was here. She is a sweet, loving, patient girl who never complained about anything (except for the cinnamon in the French toast—can you believe she doesn’t like cinnamon?). Saying good-bye to her at the airport tugged at my heartstrings and we both blubbered like babies. Though she is halfway around the world, there has been a bond created that won’t be broken and I am quite certain that we will see her again.
Thank you, Jennifer, for spending your summer with us and enduring the craziness of our home. We loved having you and until next time, “kan ni yihou”.
