Using Technology to Keep in Touch

Family separations are never easy. Unfortunately, they are a regular part of military life. Be it deployment related or living 3 time zones away from the closest relative, military kids know the heart ache of long distance relationships.

In the recent years, technology has made many gains that military families greatly benefit from. Here are a few ways you, your little ones and your loved ones can keep in touch using these new advances:

1. Skype and FaceTime:

My favorite use of Skype was watching a Dad participate in a KinderJam birthday party while on deployment in Afghanastan.  Thanks to his wife's iPhone 4, he could watch his little girl Tooty-Ta and she could hand clap while he Woo-Hoo-ed.

Bringing a wifi accessible tablet like an iPad to KinderJam classes, the dinner table or even the first day of school, will allow grandparents and other relatives to meaningfully participate in the lives of your children.

Some go-to Skype conversations we commonly use in our house are: 

A) What was your favorite part of the day?

B) A game called, "I'm thinking of an animal." One person thinks of an animal and everyone  
     else has to guess.

C) How big is the plant? One family planted seeds the day Mommy deployed.  During
     FaceTime conversations, the children showed mom how big the plant was getting while
     she was gone. That way, the kids always had something to talk about with Mom.

2.Video Emails

Because of strenuous work schedules and varying time differences, we can't always Skype when Dad is away. When this happens, I take short messages of the kids during daily activities or special events and email them to our service member. He sends us messages just to say hi and has a special message for each kid (and me).

3. DrawSomething and other drawing apps

My kids love to Play DrawSomething with their aunt. My oldest really tries to guess and create pictures with accuracy. My youngest just likes to make circles. Either way, my sister loves playing and seeing what the kids do. And we all huddle around the iPad to see what she draws.

There are other drawing apps like Doodle Buddy, that allow you to email your drawings to others and apps that let you decorate and email family pictures like Disney's Totally Tangled. 

4. Pre deployment videos:

These are nothing new. Videos of parents reading books before leaving home are a staple of pre deployment preparedness. With recent advances in built in cameras, personal videos are easy to record on a laptop, smartphone or tablet. 

Because of its recent incline in popularity, the video message isn't just for deploying active duty anymore.  One mother recorded grandparents blowing kisses to her baby.  She showed baby the messages over and over and when they were reunited, mother reported that her little one did not show the stranger anxiety that is common for one year olds around new adults.

5.  Record-your-voice toys:

Personalized dolls and toys are more accessible now as well. Hallmark carries recordable books that allow people to record themselves reading.  The book plays the recording as the child turns the page and the reader can add personal messages to the child.

You can also order a personalized BuildABear using a "say it with sound" chip.  These chips can even be ordered over the internet. The person making the recording just needs to call in the special message.

These recent advances in technology have been nothing short of a miracle for the separated family.  Creating strong bonds with the important adults in a child's life is curial for later development in self esteem, social emotional well being and academic success.  For the child, keeping in touch with family members brings a smile to their face and memories in their hearts.  And that deserves a big Woo-Hoo!http://imgur.com/gallery/PjtBd