My 7 Year Old Googles Me

Duke gets online on his iPod.

He used to only watch toy reviews and music videos on YouTube.  And then he was playing Draw Something with me, his dad and auntie.  He would take pictures and make videos.  He learned to email me from his dad's account.  All so innocent...

...and then he started opening Instagram and trying to find out if I was his Elf on the Shelf!  So nosy!  At first I thought it was funny and cute until he started calling me out on my pictures!

Duke: Mom, You are the Elf!
Me: No, I'm not
Duke: How do you have that picture when I woke up before you?  
Me: I just do
Duke: Yeah cause you took it after you pretended to be the Elf!
Me: Duke I am not the Elf!
Duke: (laughs) Yeah right Mom!

My future detective, I swear!  And then I found out he googled me!  Okay not me but my blog!  I asked him why he googled my blog and he said he wanted to read it.  SO FUNNY!    

I don't have anything to hide... do you?

Our Own Mobile HotSpot With NetZero4G!

My family is always on the Internet.  I work from home, my husband watches basketball, the kids always have Netflix on or are playing games... so its inevitable that our connection is slow sometimes. We tease each other "stop sucking my Internet".  Its really funny.  We're excited about NetZero4G Mobile Broadband because now the kids can have their own mobile hotspot.  Our 6 year old Duke is especially excited because he can take his iPod and watch YouTube while we're on the go.  The NetZero 4G Hotspot is compact, durable and holds a good charge.  It was incredibly easy to set up.  I just powered it on, waited for it to connect, refreshed the Wi-Fi networks on Duke's iPod, connected to the NetZero network and put in the password.  EASY!  

We were heading out so I put the hotspot in the front pocket of Omie's diaper bag and tested it in our truck.  It was still connected and the connection was fast!  The kids are so excited about it because we've traveled and didn't want to pay $15 per day for Internet at the hotel.  And the times we did pay for Internet, the connection could not handle XBOX Live.  Talk about sad faces!  I also travel for blogging and having my own hotspot is awesome.  I can even connect up to 8 devices, you know how many friends I can make at airports or at blogger conferences?!         

What is NetZero4G Mobile Broadband?  

Fast, secure Internet anywhere on our 4G network

Enjoy the freedom to connect your laptop, iPad® or tablet to the Internet with one of our flexible data plans to meet your needs. No contracts, no commitments.  

Plans start as low as $9.95 per month!

This is what is in the NetZero 4G HotSpot box:

Powered up and connecting...

Setting up Duke's iPod... he loves watching Thomas and Friends on YouTube!

Connection is FAST!


Get Social with NetZero4G:  NetZero4G on Twitter / NetZero4G on Facebook


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Disclosure:  I am part of the Mom It Forward blogger network.  Mom It Forward and NetZero partnered in support of this campaign.  NetZero compensated me for participation in this campaign.  However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.  

New Generations of Life & The Internet.

I've been on the Internet since 1996. It's amazing that I remember the exact year. I feel super old when I say it but super proud. Card-carrying member of the Internet since 1996. I used to pay for the Internet by the hour. On dial-up slows, not speeds. My sons will never know how slow the Internet was. They'll never know Geocities pages and life before Google and YouTube. We used to have to sit at a desk to use the Internet (or a Computer) and now they can go online anywhere and sometimes, for free.

If you live in the dark ages and think that meeting people on the Internet in 2012 is weird, imagine meeting people back in the 90s. My inner nerd is going to show but I don't care... We used to have crews, cliques, whatever you want to call them and we'd meet up to party, have dinner, catch the newest episode of The Sopranos. It was awesome.

One of the longest Internet friendships I've had is with Noel. We figure we've known each other for about 13 years. He went from growing up in NY to living in LA, meeting his future wife and moving back to NY - got married and had kids. He has a huge circle of family and friends and I've added friends, got to experience NY, expanded my knowledge of photography and music all because of him. He's one of the good dudes and his wife Ana is just as awesome. It's no wonder they have 2 amazing kids.

Ana & Noel were in town last week and we finally got to meet their sons Gabo & Natho. Duke and Gabo warmed up to eachother and were so sad when we had to say bye. When Ana brought up that they could Skype or Facetime eachother, I couldn't help but think, "Damn this is technology, our kids are lucky." We'll be lucky if they remain friends like us. We can hope.

The Internet has evolved, thus is life. Guaranteed for a good time.