How the iPhone Keeps my Family Connected

When I walk through my front door I'm greeted with three beautiful sounds-a, "Hi Honey" (from my wife), a, "Dada!" (from our toddler), and a, "coo coo" (from our three month old). It's a wonderful feeling coming home to a loving family, anticipating my arrival home (especially when I'm bringing take-out). It makes me wonder sometimes why I am in a profession that demands travel...

Our family has several "communication" rules:

1. My wife and I always talk:
• In the morning before either of us leave for the day.
• Later in the morning to see how each of our days are going so far.
• In the afternoon for a longer conversation (usually during lunch time or naps) to see what each other has been up to.
• Before bed, every night we always pray a prayer together (even over the phone).
2. I make sure that I get to speak to our kids on the phone AT LEAST once if I'm away.
3. We always, always, always say I love you (and we are good at telling if it's sincere or not).

The iPhone helps me stay connected with my family more than a traditional phone has in the past. For example, when I'm away I can email or text a picture of myself or what I'm doing. This allows our kids to see "Dada". Furthermore, with the iPhone 4, I can now have video calls with my family, not only when I'm around WiFi with FaceTime, but anywhere with Yahoo! Messenger video calling.

I chose a phone plan that allows me to call my family anytime, from anywhere nationwide. When I'm home, we do EVERYTHING together and that's the way we like it. If one of us is in a particular room, the other will come also, just to be together. When I'm away, short little phone calls, even if I'm on the other side of the country help maintain that. Quick text messages letting the other person know they are thinking of you, or thoughtful emails is a great way to stay connected. And now that my wife has an iPhone 2G (my old hand-me-down, sorry Katie) she can send me pictures of what the kids have been up to, highlights of their day, etc.

Not only that, but the iPhone is a smart business tool to help me run the ministry when I'm travelling. I don't have a hour a day to sit at a computer and answer 300 emails, reply to tweets, answer Facebook messages or check where my album is on the iTunes download chart (ahem). The iPhone allows me to work, when I need to work, when I have time to work, when it's convenient to work. I can even write blogs from my phone, thanks to Google's integration. Most importantly, it allows me to stay connected with various social networks and have fellowship with the Christian community, in a digital kind of way. And while this is no replacement for a real life interaction, it's a good substitute when I have no other alternative.

The iPhone helps us stay connected, period. Now if only my wife had an iPhone 4...

Dear Apple,
Any chance you can hook us up? We'd be forever grateful!

Love,
The Bray's