What do you do when your kids eat up all your phone minutes?
Today I discovered that my cell phone bill was over $400 - YIKES. Apparently my 15 year old son has been over using his cell phone. We share a family plan for the cell phone - my hubby, me, our 2 teens and grandma. We share 1200 minutes and last month - my 15 year old son alone used up almost 1000 minutes all by himself. This is really upsetting - I have confiscated his phone and talked to him already about it. My hubby is going to be so annoyed and upset.
Every so many months - when we go through the cell phone bill, we have this kind of talks with the teens about using the cell phone as their own private line. Then, they lay low for a month or so ... hardly using the phone and after a few weeks - they go back to the same routine. It is so frustrating. I can't really just take the phone away from them cause they need it when they go to school - for mom and dad to communicate with them when they are not home. I can't really cancel the phone plan to change it to pay as you go kind of a service cause I will have to pay for penalties which I can't afford. I am running out of ideas. What should this mom do? Any thought or ideas?
Every so many months - when we go through the cell phone bill, we have this kind of talks with the teens about using the cell phone as their own private line. Then, they lay low for a month or so ... hardly using the phone and after a few weeks - they go back to the same routine. It is so frustrating. I can't really just take the phone away from them cause they need it when they go to school - for mom and dad to communicate with them when they are not home. I can't really cancel the phone plan to change it to pay as you go kind of a service cause I will have to pay for penalties which I can't afford. I am running out of ideas. What should this mom do? Any thought or ideas?
posted by MarieY at 10:33 AM
NEW! 
5 Comments:
Hi,
I just found your site and I'm enjoying a good read. :)
I don't have a solution, I just wanted to commiserate because I'm in the same boat. Actually, our bill was only $40 over this time. Our son was the culprit, and we found some 2:00 AM weekend nights wehre he talked to his girlfriend for 28 minutes at a pop. Yikes!
I'll be watching here for any suggestions.
Peggy
http://cookinkids.com
Your post was very entertaining for our family. We discussed over dinner and it continued after.
Our teen states that kids have no ability to restained themselves when it pertains to their phone use.
My husband and I agree.
You might want to consider putting the kids on the pay-as-you-go phones. Keeping the phone plan for the adults.
When the kids run out of the time they can use their own money - do extra chores- ect.
Thanks ladies for the comments. Rona - I have thought about putting them in a pay as you go plan but if I de-activate their phones from their current plan - I will end up paying penalties which I can't afford. Your kids are right it is hard to restrain teens from using the phone.
I think if you have had to pay more than one $400 bill you can afford to deactivate that phone ;)
Actually the $400 is not what I pay monthly - it was a result of one teen using the phone too much. My regular phone bill for 5 lines (family plan) is around $125/month - I have confiscated his phone for now.
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