Smart Phone solutions for the kids

Though I mostly blog about places we visit or food we eat, I have decided to dedicate a full post to the topic of phones for my kids. Smart phones, to be more exact!

My kids are 11 and 9, and according to both of them, they are the only kids in their classes who don't have a smart phone. Or I should say, "didn't" have a smart phone. Yes, you read correctly, I broke down and got each of them a brand spanking new smart phone. I know I said I would not do so until they were 25, but read on.

Aside from the fact that we just moved continents and their lovely Nokia 150 brick phones don't work here, I am actually pretty excited about the new "Google Family Link"  . Google Family Link allows me full control over their phones (with some catches, I'll describe later)!

Yes! CONTROL.

So, now they are no longer the dorks with dumb phones, and I still have not given them the keys to the internet. So, how does this Google Family thing work?

1. I setup the control app on my phone.
2. I then set up new accounts on the kids phones and follow the instructions to link them to my Google Family account.
3. From my phone I can set up time limits for screen-time, so the phone locks after it has been used for the amount of time I set. I can specify bedtime and have the phone automatically lock until the wake time I set. I can just lock/unlock their phone any time I decide. (They can make emergency calls if the phone is locked, but that is all.)
4. I have to approve any app they want to download and any app that has a rating of 17+ in the google play store, like youtube for instance, is off limits. Though they can have youtubeKids.
5. I can track their activity and see which apps they are using and how much time they spend on each app.
6. I can also track their location at all times.

This is a great solution for our family!!! (Google Family is only currently available in Australia, NZ, Ireland and the US)

The one thing I don't like about Google Family is that once the kids are 13 years old (you enter their birth date when setting up their accounts), their phone gives them the option to turn off Google Family control. (But I guess if a parent somehow, maybe, accidentally entered their birth dates incorrectly, then I guess this could not happen til they were a bit older. Hypothetically speaking, of course. Just sayin) Also, teens with existing accounts, are not eligible to be managed by Family Link. Maybe time for a new account! I am definitely not the only person bothered by this "feature" of Google Family Link! Read more here

Not so incidentally, I also caved because I found some reasonably priced phones that the app worked with (it only works with newer Android devices, mostly Android 7) and a reasonable plan.

The phones we got were the new Moto E 16gb phone.  They are currently selling for $99.99 on Amazon with Prime. These phones are compatible with both CDMA and GSM network! They are unlocked and work with all the carriers (in case you already have a plan with one.) They have a memory card slot, which can be formatted to be internal memory. They have a fingerprint reader, which is rare on phone of this price. The battery life could be a bit better, but because their screen time is limited anyway, its not a huge issue AND the battery is removable, so you can carry extra batteries (and higher capacity batteries are available to buy.) Most importantly, as far as my kids are concerned, there is sufficient choice of cases available to purchase for these phones.

The plan we used for them is only $15 a month from Tracfone (we don't have any plans/contracts with a service provider). With Tracfone you can pick which network you want to be on, so if one has better coverage where you live or go, then you can decide on that one.

So there you have it. We are all carrying smart phone now. We didn't have to break the bank, give our kids free reign of the internet or access to social media in order to stay connected (and not look like dorks- very important when starting a new school, especially Middle School!)

Wekiva Springs, Florida

Now that we are based in Orlando, I am on a mission to find excursions and activities that don't involve theme parks. Unfortunately, I can't escape the sun, so I am trying my best to embrace it.

This weekend we headed out to a little swimming hole that's not too far from Orlando, called Wekiva Springs. And yep, you read that correctly! "ALLIGATORS AND OTHER WILDLIFE MAY BE PRESENT."

No one else seemed too concerned, and there were plenty of people enjoying the crystal clear waters of the spring.

There was also an area where you could rent canoes and stand-up paddle boards to take down the river.

I forgot my suit, so I did like many other adults and just sat on the edge as the kids played in the water.

I also went for a little walk around the vicinity. (Do you see that crane in the water?)

Unfortunately the trail was closed due to the recent hurricane.

Though we didn't see any alligators, we did see turtles, catfish and even a snake!!!! in the water. The kids jumped out pretty quickly upon seeing the snake, but they didn't stay out for long. The nice thing is that the water was so clear, you would see anything that was swimming around very quickly.

Prague

In August, I took a trip to Prague. Though most of my travels are with the family, this time I went by myself. Though the weather was quite warm (and I am not a fan of the sun) I had four glorious days wandering around the city and exploring at my leisure. Eating and walking, walking and eating, checking out the architecture and the people. That's my favorite way to explore a city.

And of course, a trip to a farmer's market!

I took in two museums: The Narodni Gallerie to see their Gerhard Richter exhibition, and the Mucha museum.

and lots more walking and exploring. (I think Prague is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever been to.)

Copenhagen with the kids

Realizing that I never finished posting about our trip to Denmark (and that it was the part of our trip specifically for me that I had left out) I revisit our weekend in Copenhagen.

We rented a very cool 2 bedroom apartment on airbnb. It was quite central, so we could easily walk all over the city. The kids were very impressed with the graffiti on the outside of the building and the skatepark across the road. (What I loved most about being across from the skatepark was the amount of light that was allowed into the apartment because there was no building across the road.)

I have always heard that Copenhagen is a very expensive city, but maybe that is from people who live somewhere other than Dublin. We didn't find it too bad. That said, because we were traveling as a family, we usually had breakfast and dinner in the rented apartment and only really needed to buy lunch on the go.

We had a great, relaxing city break and loved exploring the city on foot. We found it really easy to navigate! We visited the farmers market, playgrounds, the botanical gardens and of course the graves of Hans Christian Andersen and Kierkegaard.

On our second day, we visited the Aquarium.

On our last day, we visited the magical Tivoli Gardens. If you have kids (and even if you don't), its worth a trip to Copenhagen to see the Tivoli Gardens. Apparently, Tivoli Gardens is what inspired Walt Disney to create Disneyland. I am generally not a fan of theme parks, but Tivoli Gardens is something very special (and I unfortunately don't have good photos.)

And of course, no trip to Copenhagen would be complete without visiting The Little Mermaid!