Thankfully, our kids fell into that sweet spot before devices and social media became deeply embedded in childhood experiences. As a baseball family, we spent years traveling and bonding with just a handful of other families. By the time sleepovers rolled around, we knew these families well and felt comfortable with the idea.

However, today’s landscape is different. Kids as young as six have access to iPads, smartphones, and games like Minecraft or Roblox. By age ten, many are navigating social media platforms, including YouTube. With this technology comes a myriad of potential issues that parents must now consider when allowing sleepovers.

We all desire recognition; we refuse to be reduced to mere numbers or symbols. I vividly remember a friend from college who attended Auburn University. He lamented about his core classes, often overflowing with students—one math class had more than 100 participants. He confided, “I’m just a number. Number 62 in the class. The teacher doesn’t even know me.” This left him feeling lost in the crowd, invisible. In contrast, it made me grateful for my experience at Troy University, where classes were small and personalized made all the difference; my professors knew my name and a bit about my story. I felt seen, I felt heard.

Remember when everything happened at the kitchen table. Growing up breakfast, lunch and dinner was served here and everyone was expected to show up. As a kid you were held until you asked to be excused. Hard decisions were made with elbows on scratched wood. The good plates were brought out for birthdays, Thanksgiving and Christmas… and set up just a bit more fancy than the usual. Kids arguing, laughing, playing when they shouldn’t all happened there. Bad news was gently given…usually served with a cup of coffee or glass of sweet tea. Happy news was served with the same drinks at the same table. Everyone had “their” chair. Once claimed it was yours forever. The table has food stains, hot mug rings, and permanent pen marks that are now a… permanent… part of the wood. The kitchen table tells a story. It is, or was, where life was lived.

As we step into a new year, tech will continue to shape the way our children interact with the world. With new devices and social media platforms emerging daily, and if your kids received a device for Christmas,  it is crucial  to establish guidelines that help your child develop healthy habits while ensuring their safety. Here are the top five rules that that will not only support you as a parent, but will also keep your child safe online.

In today's fast-paced digital landscape, the influence of data on our lives has never been more profound. For parents, understanding how this data shapes our children's world is essential. The online world is not just an extension of reality; it is a reality of its own—one that can significantly affect our children's beliefs, behaviors, and emotional well-being. When data reinforces these lived realities, we must pay attention.

X, per new policy guidelines, is allowing pornography. There are no parental controls on X. Because it is considered an adult app. So the only thing standing between your kid and a twitter education on porn and sexuality is a fake birthday. Read that again. We know that our youth are experiencing a mental health crisis. Teens are still forming their sense of self and developing values and beliefs. Exposure to explicit content on sites like X can lead to confusion, distorted views of sexuality, and body image issues. Pornography often portrays unrealistic and exaggerated depictions of sex and relationships. Teenagers who are exposed to this content, again, may develop unrealistic expectations about sex, intimacy, and body image, which can negatively impact their future relationships and sexual experiences.