Parents make their son sign a contract before aggreeing to get him his first mobile phone

Being a parent can be a whole new chapter in many of our lives. After all, we get to teach someone the way of the world and help them grow into their very own personalities. However, having children can also be filled with a number of worries. One of the most prominent concerns for many in recent years is cell phones, and how to make sure that children are being kept safe online.
Many parents have their own way of dealing with the issue. Some decide to hand over the phones and trust that their children will tell them if there is ever a problem while others ban them all together until they are old enough to make their own decisions. Although many believe they are using the best approach, one mom was about to cause a storm online after she thought up her very own plan to help keep her son safe. The mom wrote a contract for her son’s phone. However, it wasn’t long before it caused an online debate among other parents.

Family life

Mel Watts is an Australian blogger who uses her family life as the primary source of her blog content. Thankfully, her time online means that Mel has been able to create quite the following for herself over the years.

However, things were about to heat up when Mel announced her new plan. She wrote a contract for her son’s phone, but the deal was about to become the topic of debate among many other parents.

Creating a home

By the time Mel was 20 years old, she was already a single mom to son Ayden. Thankfully, her luck was about to change as the blogger met and fell for Nolan in 2009. She began The Modern Mumma blog as Mel wanted a way to share her new family life with the world.

Nolan and Mel walked down the aisle, and even welcomed three more children, Ivie, Indie, and Sonny, into the world. It looked as though their family of five was complete. To top it off, Nolan ever stepped up to raise Ayden as though he was his biological child.

Open and honest

The blog follows all aspects of Mel and Nolan’s family life – including all their intimate and personal secrets. From relationships to how the parents raise their children and everything in between – it appears as though Mel is prepared to share everything with the world.

Although not everyone agrees with Mel’s parenting style, the stay-at-home mom defends her choices and is usually backed up by many of her fans who all defend her actions. Many people love Mel’s openness and want to continue being a part of the family’s life, especially as the personal subjects have helped many through situations of their own.

Dividing the internet

It wasn’t long until Ayden decided that he wanted a cell phone. He was 12 years old and was the first of their children to ask for the addition. This was going to be a new challenge for Mel and Nolan, but they were torn.

They wanted Ayden to feel as though he was trusted but were worried about everything that came with having a cell phone. Thankfully, the parents crafted their own idea. Mel uploaded her plan to the internet, but her fans were divided. Mel had drawn up a contract for Ayden to follow if he wanted a cell phone.

Plenty of rules

It appeared as though Mel had thought of everything as there were no less than 17 terms and conditions for young Ayden to follow. The youngster was told that he must stick to all of them if he wanted to keep his phone. Thankfully, Mel, Nolan, and Ayden’s biological father all agreed to the rules.

They all wanted to ensure that Ayden enjoyed his childhood without too much time in front of a screen as well as keeping safe online. It seemed to be the perfect compromise to make sure that all of them were on the same page and got what they wanted.

Keeping him safe

Mel admitted that her parents had never let her have a phone while she was growing up. While many were desperate for a cell phone, Mel was grateful for the freedom of not having one.

Plus, the blogger had experienced the darker side of the internet and now worried about the online world. Mel has been the victim of bullying thanks to her blog. She didn’t want her son to become a target or even become a bully.

Three strikes

The three parents all agreed that if Ayden couldn’t stick to the rules, then he wouldn’t be allowed to keep his phone. There was a zero tolerance policy. Thankfully, Ayden would have a chance to prove himself as he was allowed three strikes on the majority of the rules before his phone was taken away.

However, some rules seemed to be more serious, and breaking one of them would mean that Ayden’s phone was immediately taken away.

Covering the costs

One of the most important factors for the parents was the cost of the phone. All three agreed that it would be a valuable addition. However, they soon had an answer to all their worries.

The parents decided that the phone was actually theirs and Ayden was merely borrowing it. That meant that if the phone was broken or lost that the youngster would need to cover the cost of replacing it or fixing any damage.

Keeping them safe

Of course, accidents can often happen. Mel knew that they needed to give Ayden some help to make sure the phone was kept safe, so splashed out on the best phone case and screen protector she could find on the market.

The contract stated they needed to be kept on at all times – no exceptions. Now, if Ayden broke or damaged the phone, the parents knew they had done everything in their power to keep it safe.

Answering the calls

Having a cell phone means we can always contact other people. This meant that Ayden should be able to answer his parents calls no matter what, right? One of the rules in the contracts stated that Ayden needed to immediately answer the calls or they could initiate a manhunt.

Thankfully, Ayden could earn extra credit at the end of each month by completing his chores, meaning he could enjoying making more calls of his own.

Sticking to the time

Although Ayden could work hard to earn extra credit for his phone, that didn’t mean that he would be allowed to use it whenever and wherever he liked. Mel wanted Ayden to hand over the cell phone to one of his parents every night before he went to bed.

Although Ayden was an early-riser, his parents stated that he wasn’t allowed to message anyone before 7.30am to make sure that he never woke anyone up.

Adapting to the rules

The rules were supposed to be in place the entire time that Ayden had his phone. That was until he found himself somewhere that had different policies. Mel stated that school would have their own rules.

This meant that Ayden was to adapt and follow those instead until he was home. Mel knew that her son might be tempted to use his phone while at school, but warned this could mean that it got taken away.

Getting permission

It appeared as though Mel had thought of everything when it came to covering how Ayden could use the phone. She believed that Ayden should set an example for everyone else by making sure that he was never bullying anyone else online.

One of the ways Mel wanted to enforce the rule was by stating that Ayden could only photograph people who agreed to their picture being taken, and he must delete the snaps if he was asked.

Social media rules

Thankfully, Ayden was allowed to use social media. However, they wanted to make sure that the youngster was sensible with his profiles. They stated that he must only upload photos of others if he would be comfortable with the same snaps being of him or his sisters.

Plus, any content that Ayden shared or posted must be appropriate for everyone. This meant only uploading posts that Ayden would be happy for the rest of his family to see.

Always be kind

Mel was worried about the kind of comments that are often made online, so she specified that Ayden wasn’t allowed to troll anyone on social media.

The rule was that if Ayden wouldn’t say it to someone’s face, then he wasn’t allowed to hide behind a keyboard and type it to them instead. Breaking any of these rules meant that Ayden could lose his phone. Being kind online was something that was very important to Mel.

Keeping watch

Some wondered how Ayden’s would be able to tell what he was posting online and how he was using his profiles. However, Mel has already thought of a plan to cover all aspects.

The parents agreed that they should have access to Ayden’s phone to make sure they can monitor any access. Plus, they stated that if Ayded tried to deceive any of them or hide any of his content, then he would be in a lot of trouble.

Sharing the details

Ayden was forced to hand over all of the login details and passwords for his social media pages if he wanted to have them. Plus, he had to agree that his parents could check at any time of the day.

There were more rules that stated Ayden wasn’t allowed to change his passwords without telling his parents. If he broke the rules, then Ayden would no longer be allowed to access his social media pages.

Not the bad guy

Mel, Nolan, and Ayden’s biological dad all hoped that the youngster understood why they had written all the other rules. However, they also wanted to make sure they didn’t paint Ayden in a bad light to make it seem as though he would always be the one at risk of breaking the rules.

Mel also wanted to add conditions that helped to protect Ayden while he was online. After all, it can be a dangerous place.

Building trust

Ayden’s parents wanted him to know that he was always safe to tell one of them if he was being bullied online or if someone was behaving in a way that he didn’t like.

They wanted to prove that they all trusted their son, but they hoped that Ayden would also learn to be open about his internet experience – especially if he was worried about something. All three of Ayden’s parents were always there to help.

Mixed signals

Words don’t always come across the same way online as the way we mean them to be said in real life. This worked both ways. Ayden’s parents wanted him to understand that just because something could be said in jest in reality, it can be tough to get those emotions across when it’s typed.

Everyone wanted Ayden to understand that his statements could be interpreted the wrong way, while others might not mean what it appears.

Inspiring others

Mel has often shared all aspects of her life, including all the elements that many of us would usually keep to ourselves. The contract for Ayden to have a phone was no exception. Thankfully, many of the mom’s fans were pleased with the deal.

In fact, they thought it was the perfect answer to help keep Ayden safe online while he was still so long. It wasn’t long before many parents were inspired to create contracts of their own.

Making things clear

It appeared as though all three parents were taking the contract very seriously as Mel soon handed over a visual copy of it all. She wanted to make sure that everyone knew where they stood.

Plus, seeing the policies for himself could help Ayden to realize that his parents were being serious and that he needed to stick to the contract if he wanted to keep his privileges. Thankfully, they had even highlighted the most important rules.

Warning others

So how long does Ayden have to follow the contract? Mel stated that it will be up for renewal when her son turns 15. However, she now hopes to spread a message to other parents around the world. Mel states that parents should “Trust your gut.”

She believes that if something feels off, then it could mean children are trying to hide something. Mel thinks that all parents should be allowed to check their children’s phones to find out the truth.