The way my son changed my digital life

There is an utterly shocking number of websites that my son uses during his school week. Several of them are for math, there are a few for reading, and there are a couple that cover both math and reading. I understand that each website is different and tracking different skills, but I dislike how many there are. A few weeks ago, my son brought home a flyer touting a new website that we could use at home. That flyer went into the trash.

The point of my micro rant above is to say that my son sometimes uses my computer in order to get his homework done. After the homework we visit other websites together. And for weeks afterward, I see remnants of our time together in the form of digital ads.

I never really think much of those ads - stalking me with alternative boot options when I've gone shoe shopping or reminding me about the rug I am still thinking over. But when those ads started showing me toy options at Christmas and cute boy clothes after I purchased some polo shirts for his school...I thought about how creepy it was that those online stalking bots now knew I had a son.

I started ignoring the ads again, until I came across this article about one Mom's view of her children's digital ads invading her life. Yes, they are annoying reminders that we are being tracked, but she is able to point out that it is one more of those odd things she may miss seeing when her children are out of the house.

That feeling - the last time I'll get to experience something that my son does - is one that I know well. I look through the old videos I have of him, remembering the sweet way he still used both sign language as well as his burgeoning vocabulary, or the way he would flop face-first onto a pile of pillows. And then...one day...he just stopped doing those things.

Granted, he usually replaces those cute little idiosyncrasies with new ones for me to ogle over, but I need to learn to enjoy them while he does them, and not think too much about when he'll stop doing them and how my life will change.

What small sweet acts have your children stopped doing that you miss? Share with me in the comments.