The Facebook Factor

Photo from Facebook.com

I was traveling in Chicago for business last week so I was doing a lot of business on my phone. Each time I had a break during the conference, I would emerge out into the fresh air and check emails, voicemails and text messages. One message I noticed was a friend request that to me looked like spam. The first and last name was the same as my oldest stepson-but there were two weird, random names in the middle. Well, of course I “ignored” that request and moved on to other messages.

When talking with my husband that evening he asked “Why didn’t you accept Josh’s friend request for Facebook?” Oops. That was Josh? The crafty 13-year-old had thrown in a couple of names of star basketball players (ones that I obviously didn’t recognize) when he created his profile. Guess that’s what 13-year-olds do when they are on Facebook? I suppose I felt lucky that he “friended” me and found it pretty humorous that I had rejected the request.

So here we are now with one of the boys on Facebook. And now there are conversations happening with him and his friends, some girl writing on his wall that he should call her, him taking quizzes about how handsome he is and all sorts of other items.

As a parent, I have to say it feels a bit weird. It is almost like he has shown up to our adults-only dinner party and now we need to adjust the conversation. On the other hand, I have always tried to be open and honest around the boys so I guess not much should change, right?

Another funny example was when I was having my usual Sunday afternoon chat with my parents and my mom mentioned that she was sending a check for Josh’s fundraiser. Fundraiser? He had already hit her up via Facebook! I hadn’t even seen a catalog yet.

How am I supposed upload photos and brag about his wakeboarding skills now that he is on there? That would probably be uncool. Or how can I put up a funny post about him wanting “adult” toothpaste because he is interested in a girl? I’m sure he would be mortified and “de-friend” me immediately.

So, here we are in a new phase. Isn’t that just life with kids? You get comfortable in one part and then things change again. I suppose that makes it a fun adventure to see what will happen next.

Any of you other parents out there with tips - feel free to share them in the comments. We are in uncharted territory!

Makala Pollard
Sr. Marketing Specialist