Shaun and I had the strangest moment the other day. Shaun was sitting on the couch next to Kyle, teaching him how to use his iPod. Shaun's iPod. Because I was trying to decide whether or not to buy Kyle and Natalie their own iPods. Kyle was oblivious to us--his earbuds were in place, and he was paying rapt attention to Dora. Shaun and I just looked at each other and shook our heads. We were both thinking the exact same thing. Are we really talking about buying our preschoolers iPods? The same preschoolers that have their own computer and Wii and portable DVD player?
Kyle can use the computer all by himself, and it actually startled me a few months ago when I caught him asking me how to spell things so that he could Google them. He was just Googling Dora and Elmo and Toopy & Binoo, but he was Googling! My 4-year-old! He types faster than he can write.
Natalie's not quite as advanced since she's not quite 3, but you'd think she was born using a DVD player. When she heard us talking about buying another iPod she requested a pink one.
It's strange to think how different their childhoods will be from ours. And I can't even imagine how much more will change in the next twenty years. I hope progress will be good to my kids, but I also sometimes wish for something so much simpler for them. And for myself. I can't tell you how demeaning it is to have a Wii or iPod explained to you by a 4-year-old.
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