Dec 15, 2014 3 min read

Recently, I have been having a struggle that I imagine many parents have in today’s technology-obsessed world. My children think they can’t live without continuous access to Wi-Fi.

They are on their phones/iPods constantly, searching for music, texting friends or surfing various social media sites like Snapchat and Instagram. I, who admittedly gets upset if I forget to take my cellphone when I leave, am still driven absolutely crazy by their fixation with connectivity.

I used to get irritated when I couldn’t get them to look away from the television to pay attention to me when I talked to them. Now, I long for those days, as their necks are craned in the opposite direction, always peering at their hand-held devices.

For a while, I mandated they hand over their electronics upon entering the house from school and only could retrieve them when their clothes were changed, chores were completed and homework was finished. That worked for a time.

Then, they wore me down, saying they needed to use the calculator in their phone, or they just wanted to listen to music while they loaded the dishwasher, and I relented. Quickly, the problem returned.

I knew I would have to get creative, so I called our provider and got a tutorial on how to change the Wi-Fi password. I told my husband I would only change it when the kids needed a break from steady access.

It didn’t take long. When I asked five times for the kids to come set the table, I had enough. I told my husband I was changing the password the following morning. That afternoon, when they came home and couldn’t log on, they were upset.

“Did you change the Wi-Fi password, Mom?” the oldest asked. I told her I had.

“Can I have it?” she continued.

“Chores first,” I replied.

She went and did the two small tasks I left for her and then returned.

“Can I have the password now?” she asked again.

“Chores first,” I repeated.

“I already did my chores,” she sternly repeated.

“I’m saying that ‘chores first’ actually is the password,” I laughed. Not surprisingly, she didn’t find the same level of humor in the joke that I did. Although, several of my friends told me it was a stroke of parenting genius, and I tend to agree.

I changed the password only a couple times since that day, and I hope I don’t have to continue to do so with any frequency. I hope the kids just get a grip on their usage and learn to be more responsible. But just in case, I am ready. Future passwords may include “Nonotyet,” “Homeworkdone?” and “Askmelater.”

Sounds like a parenting win to me.

Laura Zoeller can be reached at zoeller5@verizon.net.