Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Say hello to my little friend...


Everyone knows that I'm a bad-ass. And a mom. That said, I would like you to say hello to my little friend, Nintendo DS. Yes, Nintendo DS is what I like to refer to as "Mommy's Little Helper." Perhaps at this point you are thinking, " Pshaw! Video games rot the brain! Good parenting? I think not!" To which I would respond that you are a fool - a fool I say!, and attempt to persuade you to listen to what Nintendo DS might have to offer your family.

1) Video games may or may not rot the brain - that remains to be seen in the EW household. But I will tell you this: Nintendo DS makes my son do his homework. Mostly because I say this, "If you don't do your homework now, I will take away your Nintendo DS." Works like a charm every time. *Note: Feel free to apply this formula to bedtime, teeth brushing, you name it. Get creative! Nintendo DS will not fail you.
2) Nintendo DS also functions as a magic wand of sorts. When I wave Nintendo DS suggestively at my son before school, he understands this to mean that if he gets in the car ASAP without whining, crying, or refusing to go to school that day, he will be allowed to play a quick round of Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games en route to school. Voila! Peaceful mornings abound!
3) Nintendo DS allows one to at least entertain the thought of embarking on a family vacation (not for the weak of heart, mind you). Five hour plane ride back East? No problemo. Nintendo DS is the solution to your problems. *Note: Okay, I'm not gonna lie. A situation such as this may require the assistance of yet another of Mommy's Little Helpers, and no I don't mean alcohol (this time). I'm referring to the ever-trusty portable DVD player.

Until recently, Nintendo DS had been used exclusively as a parenting tactic for my son. But to both our surprise and delight, Carl and I realized just weeks before Christmas that Maggs had recently developed an interest in the Nintendo DS as well. Lo and behold, Santa surprised Maggie with her very own pink "in-tendo DS" (as she calls it) on Christmas morning!


Like mother, like daughter.

Which brings me to my favorite reason of all for being a proponent of the Nintendo DS.

4. While these handheld devices may serve as "little friends" that help my day run smoother by functioning as a means of occasional bribery (let's just call it what it is), they make my kids act like friends to each other, which is perhaps the greatest gift of all.

One of the main reasons Carl and I thought that Maggs would enjoy a Nintendo DS of her own is that the kids can sync their machines so that they can play games together, which they think is the bee's knees. And I'll admit, nothing gives me greater pleasure (other than jarred cheese sauce, Tivo, and 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep) than hearing my kids laughing and having fun together. It's just the best sound in the world. So if you haven't already, I highly recommend that you do yourself a favor and hightail it to your nearest Best Buy or Toys R US or wherever, and purchase a Nintendo DS of your own today. Trust me, you won't regret it.

19 comments:

SurferWife said...

Ahh yes. That device represents both God and the Devil in our house. Let your kids know how good they got it and tell them that there is a sad, sad boy in San Diego that actually has to earn his DS time with reading. If he reads 20 minutes, he can play 20 minutes and so on.

Existential Waitress said...

Monique, that's pretty much the approach I take as well - and I include chores too. And like I said, it works like a charm! We're not dumb... LOL!

Lyndsay Wells said...

There have been many studies done that show kids who game have higher scores for reasoning and problem solving than kids who don't.

So there ya go ;)

Existential Waitress said...

Thanks, Maven! I've heard that's true too and thought about including that in my post, but didn't want anyone's brain to explode when I said that. LOL. I totally think that videogames in moderation ARE good. Not to brag or anything, but my son is a straight A student, so they can't be THAT bad for him, right? And I haven't even BEGUN to discuss his obsession with the wii...

Dee at Pedestrian Palate said...

I am all about the Nintendo DS. Mine are officially too old for it, but we just substitute the I Touch and all is well.

Nancy@ifevolutionworks.com said...

There is nothing like a Ds or xbox or whatever your game of choice is....for a babysitter!

I'm lucky that my son isn't obsessed with any of them, but I really do appreciate how they can hold his attention for longer than 20 minutes

Bathwater said...

For a minute I thought you were going to describe how installing the vibrating rumble pack and crashing mario's car into the wall for hours of "personal" fun had been discovered by you.

I've lost all control over my kids and their video games they are plugged in like the Matrix at thsi point and would not know how to live outside in Zion.

GratefulTwinMom said...

I know exactly what you mean...
http://twinmommusings.blogspot.com/search/label/video%20games

Amy said...

Well, Nola a bit too young and I am a bit too broke. :(

Andrea said...

AMEN to these incredible friends that help us get through the days!!!

Theta Mom said...

I am all for the kid of things that keep my son engaged. He's too young for the DS, but loves his Leapster!

BTW, I tagged you and linked you at Theta Mom chickie! Be sure to come by and check it out! ;)

Jules said...

So funny. I love it. Vaughn is only two so right now I'm using milk as a bargaining chip. He will do anything for that.

Organic Motherhood with Cool Whip said...

You know, before I became a mom, I thought video games and TV were a two-pack bearing the fiery flames of hell. Seriously.

But now that I am a few years into motherhood, I have realized that the twin fiery flames of hell are not so bad. In fact, I feel grateful every day for being born in an age where I can turn on the TV every morning so I can cook breakfast without Diego attaching himself to my ankle and shrieking "milk! nursies! milk!" the whole time.

I had not heard of Nintnedo DS before, but it sounds incredibly enticing and quite heavenly indeed. Is it expensive? Nino is currently obsessed with playing the games on Nick Jr and PBS kids online--which is delightful to me.

Existential Waitress said...

DG, it's funny b/c my my son used to be all about the leapster, now it's the DS. Next I'm sure it'll be an itouch. It's always something...

Nancy, I used to feel bad about using the videogames as a distraction, but now i consider them pure genius! LOL.

Bathwater, i always enjoy a good Matrix reference. Nice one!

Grateful Twin Mom, I told you we have a lot in common! ;) My kids and hubs LOVE the wii on the weekends, and while I do sometimes join in for some wii bowling, I consider that a nice way to escape and grab a moment for myself! Yes, indeed!

Existential Waitress said...

A, Nola IS a bit young still probably. Maybe she'll like a leaspster in a year or two - although Maggs always preferred stalking mommy over any other form of recreation until recently...

Andrea, yes! Amen to "mommy's little helpers!" :)

Theta Mom, again thank you so much for the link! I'm going to post my Seven ASAP!

Jules, I say use whatever you can for a bargaining chip - I would ride that train as long as it lasts! LOL!

Naomi, I agree about the fiery flames - that is before I got used to this motherhood gig. Now I'm cool with using videogames as occassional bribery. I also used to never, EVER allow my kids to eat candy (those days are over). I think we paid about $130 for Maggie's DS. no they aren't cheap. She better not lose or break that sucker! And my son started with those same computer games. He also had one of those Fisher Price Easy Link internet launch pads (in case you're still in search of the Holy Grail of toys...LOL)!

Tracie said...

I thought the DS was going to solve my parenting problems and it did not. My sons are too stubborn to be bribed with it. They don't care about anything. Freaks.

Existential Waitress said...

kys, that sounds like my daughter, the mommy stalker. As I've said on many occassions, she usually thinks the free balloon from Trader Joe's is far more interesting than any other toy she owns. She's kind of a freak that way too.

BonBon Rose Girls Kristin said...

I broke the hubs of the video games when we got married. I have a feeling now that we're parents...they'll be back! As a form of bribery...it just might work! ah ha ha

Existential Waitress said...

Kristin, my hubs looooves the videogames! Fortunately, when he plays with his friends, he does it after I've already gone to bed.