Reason #1 – I cannot be away from my laptop
Reason #1 – I cannot be away from my laptop
May 25Whenever my mother sees me anywhere near my laptop she rolls her eyes, huffs and puffs, and goes on a tirade about my “internetting” and that “poor boy” and how she aaaaaaaaaaaalways had time for me.
Right.
In my mother’s eyes, every second I spend tapping at my laptop is a second I should spend with my boy instead. You know, playing with him, reading to him in several languages, making sure he gets enough “early stimulation“. Never mind that he doesn’t need any extra stimulation, he’s already twice the average size for his age and developing at warp speed. Or that I use the laptop to WORK. Or that my boyfriend lives in another continent (long story) and this is how we spend time together. Or that I just started a blog that will require frequent updates and lots of obsessing over hits and comments (ahem.)
Also, we live in the era of multitasking. I am perfectly able to check my email and feed C at the same time, and as far as I can tell he doesn’t mind.
But she does.
So the fact that I am inseparable from my laptop is reason #1 of the 1000 reasons why I’m a shit mom.
I have a play yard, but only use it to block the baby in the living room now, since she is big enough to push it wherever she wants to go. so the living room is the play area. with my daughter trapped in the living room with all the toys she can shake a stick at, and then some. sometimes grab my laptop and check my email, and check for blog updates, with one eye on her. Even though she instantly becomes far more interested in the computer than her toys, walks over and starts pushing buttons. (including the power button)
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ofthesea Reply:
October 25th, 2011 at 9:51 pm
Do you have an ipod? C is a NATURAL with it, and it deflects some attention from my laptop. Not a lot, but hey – every second counts!
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Yup, I’m guilty of this too.
But in my defense my kids control the TV in our house. And 90% of the time I am on my computer I have one of my children in my lap. Like, right now. Also, we spend plenty of time playing and learning. They’re well fed. Lots of love and attention coming from both parents = two happy children in my house so whatever if I’m on my computer a lot.
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ofthesea Reply:
March 14th, 2011 at 7:40 pm
As I type this my son is a few metres away running around our courtyard. Laptop moms are not insensitive – we just have WAY better peripheral vision! ;)
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I just found your blog and couldn’t help but identify with #1. But you know what your mom probably had that we don’t – a play pen. Somewhere to put you so she could read, bathe, work, whatever. Somehow play pens are obsolete now but our parents forget that they had it much easier.
And as soon as my 8 month old got close enough to my laptop, she tore off the option key. I took that as a big FAT hint.
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ofthesea Reply:
September 6th, 2010 at 7:37 pm
She’ll deny it to her dying day, tho! ;)
Welcome! Hope you like it here! :)
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You are truely hysterical. Thank you for sharing what most of us can’t say!!!. My kids are grown and for the most part gone, except one basement dweller who refuses to leave. I will continue reading your thoughts with pleasure!!!
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ofthesea Reply:
August 11th, 2010 at 9:09 am
Have you thought about flooding the basement? ;)
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Ohhhh. I’m on my laptop way too much. I gotta wonder if your mom spent every available second playing with you. Somehow, I doubt it.
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ofthesea Reply:
August 10th, 2010 at 12:16 pm
You should have seen her OUTRAGE when I suggested as much! So maybe she did. No wonder she drinks now.
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Oh, don’t worry, if you practice benign neglect long enough your kid will eventually get the hint and start playing video games.
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ofthesea Reply:
August 10th, 2010 at 9:52 am
I’ll cross that bridge when I reach the river!
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Oh I hear you. At least you don’t have teenaged children telling you pretty much the same thing. You’d think I was doing crack in the kitchen the way they sometimes react to my evening Tweeting, Blogging and Facebooking. Back off motha truckers.
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ofthesea Reply:
August 4th, 2010 at 9:40 pm
They say WHAT? I
hopedimagined by that age they’d be so stuck into their own iPhones to give a tweet about their mom!Kids. Go figure.
PS: You’re on Reason 1! How cool! How did you end up there?
PPS: #5 is a big favourite of mine ;)
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