| Giga Pets | |
Unfortunately, a new fad has taken over my life this week, and so I thought I should write about this new "Nightmare for Parents."
Now, for those of you unfamiliar with these delightful toys, virtual pets, or giga pets as they are also known, are palm sized toys with an electronic chip in them. There are even web pages devoted to these devises. They have to be fed, played with, cleaned, and disciplined on a regular basis if they are to thrive and grow. (Kind-of like real kids, I suppose!). The annoying part is that these little pets "beep" at you, almost all the time, when they are in need of something. So at least in my kids' school district, these pets are no longer welcome at school.
Ok, let me backtrack for a moment. Now, I did not buy these little electronic wonders for my sons; my dear sister sent them from Maryland to our home in Arizona. (The boys really love their Aunt Sandy now!) Thank you so much, dear sister Sandy!
Now, the real problem is, these toys are very cute, and my two older boys worked hard to make them live. But, since they couldn't take them to school..I was appointed as the "Keeper of the Giga Pets". So, I have been trying all week to figure out why the thing is beeping at me, which button to push, and wondering who in the heck came-up with this new toy! I have almost figured out which of the four buttons to push, and in which order, but...hey...I know computers, but I can't figure out these toys!
For the record, Kevin, my 4 year old received a virtual 1001 Dalmations Giga Pet. He loved it, but lost it somewhere in the house after two days. I assume it is dead, because we can't hear any beeping from it anymore. Mikey, my 6 year old, received a T-Rex giga pet, that has lived for one day at times. He cries when it dies; I try to help, but I haven't figured out all the buttons yet. Danny, my 9 year old son, received a Godzilla giga pet. Now his pet is 8 years old, and doing pretty well. Maybe these toys are for older kids!
Anyway, I am writing this as a warning to all parents! You might want to think twice before buying your child a virtual pet. Although, they are fun, once you can figure out how to work them, they are very time consuming, and they make you wonder "how can I be caring about this little electronic dinosaur as if he was another kid?"