I accidentally spied on my son...and busted him
You know the philosophical thought experiment about, "if a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?" Well I have a modern day conundrum. "If a child picks his nose and the camera is there to capture it, should he lose his candy privilege?"
That's a lot to digest. I'll break it down.
Our son has picked up the habit no parent wants for her child. And while I typically refrain from writing about topics that will embarrass my children when they're older, I'm just going to say it, Jack sometimes picks his nose and eats it.
While this is gross and certainly not hygienic, it's also socially uncool, and we really want to nip this problem before preschool.
My husband and I have told him he'll lose privileges for candy and treats if we see him testing how far his finger can go up his nose -- it's far.
Recently my husband texted me and told me to check Jack's room camera. I can access it while at work. (Yes I'm sometimes deathly afraid a hacker will tap into it. Past blog about how I try to manage the scary stuff I see while working in TV: "Make Safe Happen")
Jack was apparently playing make believe with his toys and it was too fricking adorable. I wanted to see. I tapped that app (ha!), and pulled up the video of Jack. His finger was up his nose. THE HORROR!
I felt like I had just read my 3-year-old's diary. I looked away. Then I wondered if I should use the mic on the app to tell him to stop. Instead, I shut it off.
I then texted my husband and told him what had happened. We agreed we would not punish this behavior since I was essentially spying.
It got me thinking. I'm sure with all the technology now entwined in our lives there will be more moments when I will be tempted to spy. I just hope if I catch my kids in the act it's for a behavior as benign as nose picking.
That's a lot to digest. I'll break it down.
Our son has picked up the habit no parent wants for her child. And while I typically refrain from writing about topics that will embarrass my children when they're older, I'm just going to say it, Jack sometimes picks his nose and eats it.
While this is gross and certainly not hygienic, it's also socially uncool, and we really want to nip this problem before preschool.
My husband and I have told him he'll lose privileges for candy and treats if we see him testing how far his finger can go up his nose -- it's far.
Recently my husband texted me and told me to check Jack's room camera. I can access it while at work. (Yes I'm sometimes deathly afraid a hacker will tap into it. Past blog about how I try to manage the scary stuff I see while working in TV: "Make Safe Happen")
Jack was apparently playing make believe with his toys and it was too fricking adorable. I wanted to see. I tapped that app (ha!), and pulled up the video of Jack. His finger was up his nose. THE HORROR!
I felt like I had just read my 3-year-old's diary. I looked away. Then I wondered if I should use the mic on the app to tell him to stop. Instead, I shut it off.
I then texted my husband and told him what had happened. We agreed we would not punish this behavior since I was essentially spying.
It got me thinking. I'm sure with all the technology now entwined in our lives there will be more moments when I will be tempted to spy. I just hope if I catch my kids in the act it's for a behavior as benign as nose picking.
