When I was your age, internet wasn’t in the dictionary

Dear Chip and Bobo,

When I was your age, internet wasn’t in the dictionary.  It’s true.  Al Gore hadn’t even created it yet.

Computers were around, but they were approximately the size of our house.  Nowadays, I can do more things on my iPhone than they ever could.  Check my email, order pizza and surf the internet.

By the way, thank you, Bobo, for showing me that little trick about rotating pictures on my iPhone the other day.  Way to show an old dog new tricks, kiddo.

I’m amazed at the things you can find on the internet nowadays.  When I was your age, if we wanted to know something, we went to the library and looked it up.  In an encyclopedia.  No, not Wikipedia.  A large volume of books that contained information that was outdated as soon as it was published.  Next time we go to the library, I will see if they are still around.

We didn’t have things like Playhouse Disney.com, or iPhone apps that entertained you in the grocery store.  Or blogs.  Man, what did we ever do with our time?

The internet is a way of life for you; it’s all you’ve ever known.  The other day, when we were driving home from preschool, and you asked a question I didn’t know the answer to.  You appeared shocked that mom didn’t know everything (which I loved you for), and promptly responded back, “Momma, why don’t you just Google it?”

Sometimes, if I’m working on my computer in my office, you will bring in your keyboard (an old defective one from my IT guy), and “write code” along with me.  You think it’s pretty funny, but I know it’s not far from the truth.  You will probably be running technical circles around me by the time you’re eight.

Alas, I give Grandma and Poppa a hard time because technology is so foreign to them.  When I give them lessons again on how to save or print a document, I find myself losing my patience.  I sometimes forget that they grew up in the era of manual typewriters, sending letters by snail mail, and fumbling through the dictionary to look up a word.

They worked in paper and quills pencils back then.  Tangible stuff.  Not bits and bytes.

And in some ways, that isn’t an entirely bad thing.  Because Grandma?  Created a baby book for each of her three children.  I have it now, and we love looking through it together sometimes.

And you, my dear children?  Will get a disc with a copy of this blog.  How lucky you are, indeed.

Love you to pieces,
Your Momma (Who someday will get around to doing your real baby books)