On Thursday I had an acupuncturist appointment.

I forgot my cell phone and called Alan from P's school to remind him I was coming to pick him up at 3:45 (my appointment was at 4) so he could watch the boys. He said he'd be waiting.

I arrived at 3:40 and waited until 3:50 and then had to leave so I could be there on time. I was mad, but calm.

I called him when I arrived at the office and he said "Why didn't you call me?". He'd forgotten I didn't have my phone and even though I called 30 minutes before I had to pick him up, he is so used to being reminded by phone about things that it doesn't occur to him to set a timer, etc, to ensure promptness.

He arrived, by bus, halfway through my appointment (let me tell you, entertaining 2 boys in a small room while mostly naked, laying down and being stabbed with needles isn't as fun as it sounds) and took the boys home.

Alan is a wonderful man, so this post is not a complaint about him, but more about the effects of relying on contant contactability and how it changes how we organise our time and relate to others.

I am torn. I would really like to have a PDA to make my schedule easier to access (and because I am still having short-term memory problems from the accident) and the best ones out there are cell-phone based (iphone/Blackberry), but I do not want to make this situation worse.

This whole topic reminds me of a recent shopping trip wherein Liam asked me for a toy and I said no. I told him I did not have any cash to buy the toy for him (it has been my standby excuse) and his reply was "Well, then just use your debit r credit card!".

At the time it seemed cute and witty of him to think of this solution, but I found myself laying in bed later, wide awake, mulling it over.

When did my kids notice that you could just swipe a card and pay for whatever you wanted?

How am I going to teach them about money and wise spending and limits?

How will I explain about when convenience is appropriate and when it isn't?

I guess my point is, technology is good... great even, but how will it effect how our children make choices?

Any opinions??