I live in Southern California. Even without the historic drought we are in, this little stretch of the USA is delightfully dry, with stupendous temperatures. As a very outdoorsy person and I’m lucky enough to work from home. However, that combination is a crushing blow almost every single day, as I sit in my dungeon of an office staring longingly out the windows, like a sick kid during summer vacation.
Not only that, but I genuinely feel badly when I have to sit my kids down to get their homework done after school. They’re all “But daaaaaad, it’s really nice out! We want to play!!!” And I’m all “I knooooooooww. I want to ditch this and play with you! I’ve wanted that all day!!!” Alas, I didn’t have much of an option. I just reminded myself that my parents went through the same arguments with me when I was younger, but in the fall and spring, they’d let me read outside and get some stuff done on the patio’s when the weather was agreeable. My first goal is to install retractable roof systems Melbourne for the patio. Growing up in NY, it wasn’t often the case, but I’d take advantage of it when I could.
So now I’m on the other end of the argument. I obviously have to make sure they are working, but I also don’t want to deprive them, or myself, of the opportunity to enjoy the glorious outdoors. I can’t just tell them they could read outside like my parents would. Some of it is simply reading, or math on paper, but increasingly they need a computer and a signal to get their work done. I am all for these tech advancements in the house and in school. Problem is, this always tethered us to the home. Our wifi barely makes it to the far ends of our house and trying to work outdoors with it is completely futile.
Thankfully, a new solution has presented itself to us. I had always been wary of getting a hotspot device. Not because I didn’t think they would work (I knew they would), but because my kids are not the best with maintaining our equipment and I didn’t want to be bringing something outdoors, just for them to immediately break it. Now, I have to worry about that a lot less. I was able to get my hands on an AT&T Unite Explore by NETGEAR. I LOVE how it’s essentially built to be the outdoor person’s best friend. It’s made to withstand moderate drops, trail dust, dirt and can even get wet without becoming a formerly high-tech paperweight. It can also charge some of my devices, so as my phone dies, I can link it in there and get some more juice out of it. But best of all, I’m able to connect up to 15 devices to the thing! More than enough for the whole family. And speaking of the family, this device can be a parent’s best friend as it offers you parental control over what your kids view. So even when you’re out and about, you can be sure that your kids aren’t accessing content they shouldn’t.
Now I’m able to work outdoors when I want to! I don’t have to sit, miserably cursing the birds for having the freedom I was sorely lacking. I can just mosey on out to a local park or anywhere I have phone service and be able to connect. I can also do the same with my kids! My daughter and I worked side by side at a canyon near my house for a while before we had to head to my son’s baseball game. Even there, she was able to finish up what she needed to get done. Though I suspect at that point her “homework” had become games on Disney.com or something similar. I’ll let her pass this time. I know watching Tee Ball can be a bit dull for the spectators.
*I have partnered with Wifi Family, NetGear and Life of Dad for this post, but the awesomeness of the device is my own opinion. *
