Hellobee

The Trikester is no stranger to technology. He uses the iPad in his car seat and when he’s reached his limit in the stroller at the mall. He gets to play with my iPhone during long stints on the potty and in the checkout line at the grocery store when a meltdown is imminent. He doesn’t necessarily get long stretches with our devices at home (unless Mama is especially desperate for a distraction), but when we’re out and about, it’s a lifesaver!

 The Trikester enjoying some iPad time while Mama packed and cleaned before moving to our new house this spring. 

Note – we’re an iOS family, so that’s what I’m writing about, but a lot of these things can be done on an Android, and I’ll admit, after researching this post, Android devices have some serious perks when you’re sharing with your kids. Specifically, they allow you to set up different profiles on a device, so when you switch users, you can just switch profiles, rather than manually having to adjust each setting.

Before you hand your iPhone over to your toddler or preschooler, I’ve got a few suggestions to keep everyone happy:

Enable Restrictions

Kids are smart. Scary smart. My two year old has figured out how to do all kinds of things on the iPhone that I’ve never consciously taught him. To keep your offspring in check, it’s a great idea to enable restrictions on your device. Restrictions are Apple’s version of parental controls.

Restrictions allow you to limit access to certain apps and prevent your child from performing certain actions. For example, you can set-up restrictions that allow you to disable FaceTime (the Trikester tries to FaceTime his grandma a few times a day), prevent your child from deleting apps, or turn off access to the app store. You can also specify the kind of content you want them to access; for example, you can limit iTunes access to G-rated movies. Best of all, you can use Restrictions to turn off “In-App Purchases;” with this setting, you’ll prevent your toddler from spending money in the app store without your approval.

When you’re sharing your device with a toddler, restrictions run a fine line between keeping them out of trouble and driving you batty when you’re using the device. If you turn restrictions on for your toddler, you’ll have to turn them off before you can use any features you’ve limited.

To Turn On Restrictions:

• From the home screen, click on Settings
• Select General, and then Restrictions
• If you don’t already have a Passcode, create a Passcode
• Now review the different options, and turn each one on or off as your wish
• To adjust these restrictions later on, follow the same steps, entering your Passcode before you can make any changes

Set Data Limits

We’re still operating under a really old AT&T contract, so we’re lucky enough to have unlimited data on our devices, but many parents aren’t in a similar boat! I’ve already heard a few horror stories from colleagues about their kids getting new tablets and phones for Christmas and blowing through the family’s data allotment in less than 24 hours.

On an Android device, it’s really easy to set hard data limits that prevent you from going over your allotment. Unfortunately, it’s not so easy on an iOS phone or tablet. You can elect to receive text message alerts from your cell phone carrier when you’re nearing your data limit, but often times they don’t give enough advance warning.

On an iOS device, the best strategy to prevent overages is to restrict certain apps from utilizing cellular data. That way, if your device isn’t connected to wifi, the app won’t consume any data. For example, my son plays with an app called “Pocket Zoo.” For each animal in the zoo, it links to YouTube videos and live webcams of the animals. He’s on the app all the time, so it uses a ton of data. By turning off cellular data, it prevents him from accessing all those YouTube videos on the Pocket Zoo app unless he’s on wifi.

To Limit Cellular Data Use:

• From the home screen, click on Settings
• Now select Cellular (it’s a green button that looks like a cell tower)
• If you want to turn off cellular data completely, you have the option at the top of the screen
• If you want to turn off cellular data for specific apps, you can scroll down

Configure Find My iPhone

When the Trikester is using my iPhone, sometimes in the grocery store cart, sometimes in the stroller if we’re out for a long walk, I’m always fearful that he’s going to throw it on the ground and I won’t notice until much later when I’m unpacking my purse at home. Other than putting a leash on it, your next best move is to ensure that “Find My iPhone” is enabled. Once this setting is turned on, you can locate your phone on a map, or get it to play a tone (even if the ringer is off) to help you locate it. Once you turn on this setting, your Apple ID password will be required to turn it off.

To Turn On Find My iPhone:

• On the home screen, tap on Settings
• Tap iCloud
• Sign in with your Apple ID, if you haven’t already
• Turn on “Find my iPhone”

If your phone is lost, you’ll go to this website: www.icloud.com and sign-in using your Apple ID. Click on “Find My iPhone” and see your device pop up on a map. If you then click on the device, you’ll see a little i. Selecting the i allows you to choose “Play Sound.” If the device is nearby, you’ll hear it play a loud tone that continues until you turn it off.

Get a Case.

This is great advice. I ignored it. Today, the Trikester pulled some stuff off the mantle, including the iPad, which hit the stone hearth. As you might have guessed, the screen is now destroyed. Stupid Mama. Please be smarter than me! Put a case on your device before it goes into your toddler’s hands. Ottterboxes are my go-to case choice – I have one on my iPhone, and they’re on our school iPads, too. Granted, they’re a little bulky, but they offer a level of protection that seems most appropriate for a two year old (and his klutzy mother) without screaming “little kid case.”

Consider Installing a BubCap

Have you seen BubCaps? They’re really stiff stickers that cover the home button of your iPad or phone. The sticker is too rigid for toddlers to push, but an adult doesn’t have problems depressing it. If you want your child to stay in one app, and only one app, you can use a BubCap to prevent them from hitting the home button. Now that the Trikester is older, he can easily switch back and forth between apps, but I would have killed for one of these a year ago when I set him up with a video on the iPad during a long car ride. He kept hitting the home button and exiting the app, and then flipping out when he couldn’t get back to the show.

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Do you have any other suggestions? What do you do before sharing your device with a toddler?