Thanks to happy circumstances combined with basic human greed, we have now become a three-iPad family. Let me explain: Justin had some surplus autism funding that had to be spent by the end of March, so I asked his team about resources that would be appropriate for him. His speech pathologist (bless her heart) offered to authorize an iPad and some apps. I hesitated at first, since Chris already has an iPad and we could’ve just put new apps on there, but the promise of a free iPad wore me down. I didn’t tell Chris what I was doing until I got the OK from the funding people, and even then I waited until the stores were closed so he couldn’t run right out the door.

So we bought a 4th generation iPad for Chris, gave his old one to the boys…and bought an iPad Mini for me (along with a keyboard and a camera connector…but let’s not dwell on the details.) The Mini replaces my netbook and my Kindle, so I managed to consolidate devices, plus it’s way lighter, cuter and more portable than the full-size iPad. We had to pay for this one ourselves, of course, but Chris never hesitates to spend money on technology, so everyone came out of this happy.

My new setup

It’s the size of my Kindle

Let me get one thing straight: I wish I’d never heard of Pokemon. My kids have been obsessed with the little creatures for months and I still don’t really get the appeal. But Justin wanted a Pokemon birthday party, so I did some research and came up with some pretty cool (yet cheap) games and decor.

My first rule of party planning: thou shall steal all good ideas available online. I copied the basic invitation from somewhere and just added my own text to it:

My second rule of party planning: thou shall frequent dollar stores. I bought red and white plastic tablecloths and a black streamer to make the table look like a Pokeball. And since I have no talent at all for cake decorating, I made simple cupcake toppers (one side was a Pokeball, the other had different characters) that some of the kids actually chose to take home. One boy asked me to wipe the chocolate off his cupcake topper so he could keep it. Wow.

We got lucky in that it was a beautiful day and the kids could go crazy on the trampoline. I shudder to think of what would have happened if all that energy had been trapped inside my house. In between trampoline sessions, we played a few games:

• Capture the Pokemon, which involved the kids throwing Pokeballs (Styrofoam balls painted to look like the real thing) into their opponent’s bin.
• Pass the Pokemon, which was basically Hot Potato but with a Pokemon stuffy
• Pokemon bingo (I found the cards online, printed them out and had a friend laminate them for me)

After games it was time for snacks and cake, and then I set them loose just trading their Pokemon cards. I gave each kid a goody bag filled with a Pokeball bouncy ball, a Pokemon notebook and a Pokemon sticker sheet (all of which I ordered online), plus a few trading cards. I also gave each kid a personalized Pokemon card — there’s a website that lets you upload photos and customize the whole card, so I had the parents send me photos of the kids beforehand so I could make the cards.

A highly successful party!

As of today, this blog has been online for eight years. It started as a transitional experiment: I was leaving the paid workforce to have my first baby, and I wanted to find a way to share the details (and the photos) of my early parenting experiences. I wish I could claim I’ve maintained a sharp focus and always stayed true to a purpose… but unless  ”give people a vicarious peek into my life and throw in the odd snide comment” is a valid purpose, I might be out of luck.

Maybe if we work at it, we can make language a complete impediment to understanding. – Hobbes (as in Calvin and Hobbes)

I used to complain that email was doing unforgivable things to the English language. Acronyms (and not always common ones) replaced actual words. No one felt the need to punctuate. And AutoCorrect caused more than its share of havoc.

Now, of course, email is passé. Everyone texts on the go, which means no one has a full-size proper keyboard or time to write more than a few words. It’s common to send a one-word or even a one-emoticon text. (I actually take the time to type OK in my texts rather than just K, but I realize I’m a dinosaur.)

Sure, we all learned the acronyms, and we all use the shortcuts. But I think Hobbes was on to something.

And there’s a related problem: because it is so easy to share information instantly, it is far too easy to share without thinking about it.

We’ve all seen those embarrassing photos and status updates on Facebook from people who don’t seem to understand that the beer-swilling party shot may come back to haunt them when they apply for a job, or that the rant against their ex-boyfriend may find its way to unfriendly ears. I’ve read intimate details about people I’ve never heard of, simply because they are a friend of a friend of a friend of mine online.

This blog also suffers from the must-share-something syndrome. I’ve often felt the need to post something, anything, just to show that I’m still here. Never mind that I don’t have anything to say. I just start typing, and hit Publish when I can’t think of anything else to add. And I don’t think I’m the only one.

Maybe we’d be better off if there was a mandatory waiting period like there is in some places when you want to buy a gun. If people could just take a day or two to think before sharing with the world, they might decide it’s not really worth it. Or they might take the time to craft a clearer message.

And now to hit Publish…