"Put the phone down! I repeat, put the phone down!"

Last week (before all this snow), the kids and I were at the park relishing in the warm (almost 60 degree!) air.  It was so nice to be outside again after a frosty cold winter.  We enjoyed swinging together, running and chasing around, having races on the slides.  Soon, a few other kids joined us, and then a few more.  When I looked up to see where their parents were, they had parents, but they were all glued to their phones.  When a few of them were doing tricks, or wanted mommy or daddy to watch them, they would call out to their parents, and sometimes the parent would glance up from the phone, and other times the parents would be too busy to see or hear their child.  So they would tell me, "hey, watch this!" and proceed to go down the slide, or do whatever they wanted me to see.  I thought it was kind of sad and it made me reflect.  I thought "do I do this?!"  Am I missing out on happy moments with my children because I'm too busy texting friends or reading through my friends Facebook statuses or playing Candy Crush or checking out the latest photos my buddies have posted on Instagram?  Granted, maybe some of these people were texting family, or were working from their phones responding to e-mails or something.  I have no idea and I'm not judging them.  But it was a good moment for me to pause, and take a moment to think about how I'm using the technology in my pocket and how much attention I give to my kids.  I think it's so depressing that this generation (and future ones with the way things are moving) might not be there for our kids because we are too busy with our social media life.  We might be there, but are we really there???

I've tried to use the before bed/after bed approach for me, where I can only use my phone during the day for phone calls.  Or every once in a while I use it when I'm looking up a recipe for a meal, looking something up for preschool, or "textersations" with friends (because let's face it, sometimes it's too loud and crazy to have a normal even 5 minute conversation this way we can text back and forth in between wiping off sticky faces and playing with blocks).  Then after they get to bed, and I get the kitchen cleaned up, and have some hubby 'n me time, do a little reading, I can get on my phone or computer and have some down time on my phone or computer.  Because everyone needs that.  This is why my "Instagram" photos become "#11pmgrams".

We talk about having such a connected world.  We might be connected online with someone half a world away that we might have gone to elementary school with, but are we really connecting with our kids when they come through the door after a long day at school?  I can't say I always am connecting as well as I could.  I need to try harder!

Here's my call -  for you, for me, for all of us to "put the phone down!  I repeat, put the phone down!"  And pick your kids up!  Stop, look, and listen to those little ones!  Someday, I think we will all have big regrets if we don't, and I am already feeling guilty about the way I handle technology somedays (like the days I'm working hard to catch up on the blog and don't pay as much attention to my kids as I should...).  Will you try too with me to put your phone (or tablet, or computer, or i-Whatever) down with me and pick your kids up, literally and figuratively?  Please, you help me, and I'll help you in this quest.  "I repeat, put the phone down!"

Getty Images.  http://ideas.time.com/2012/05/17/why-cell-phones-are-bad-for-parenting/