This weekend as we unplugged and headed outside to help kick off summer I got thinking about the balancing act between loving technology and being ok to leave it behind at the same time.

It only takes one look at the above photo to see the variety of things you might find laying around my office (and house) and more and more of them are connected every day.

Last night as we sat around a campfire, I took a few photos with my phone and then put it away.

My Droid Turbo gives me all the camera controls I need to take good photographs quickly and because I have auto backup turned on to Google, I knew that when it connected to my WiFi network when I got home the photos would be waiting there for me this morning when I wanted to get to them.

Of course, Google+ has an #AutoAwesome feature where sometimes they will take photos you upload and get creative with them as they did by making this animated gif of the fire.

Recently, I've received several new pieces of technology that I'm looking forward to reviewing.

The great thing is that no matter what shows up in the mail,  I never have to worry if I have the capabilities because I know that thanks to having Verizon FiOS in our house, it can handle whatever we throw at it.

I'm going to be checking out home security systems from Arlo and Canary. The kids and I are also excited to play with several goodies that arrived from Wacom. There is also an NX500  scheduled to arrive from Samsung today that I can't wait to start using.

Thank you @Wacom for the new toys to try out. Can't wait to review. #bamboopaper #wacomstylus

A photo posted by C.C. Chapman (@cc_chapman) on May 19, 2015 at 5:36am PDT

Also, if you ever want a test of your home network, have a bunch of teenagers over for a birthday party as they all ask you, "Mr. Chapman, can you please give me the WiFi password?" (btw I always type it in for them rather than giving it to them.) All that Facetiming, Snapchatting, bing watching on Netflix and my son playing League of Legends and still no body was complaining about the speed.

We had to explain to them recently what AOL was when they got bought. The concept of getting a CD in the mail that would allow you to get online was extremely confusing to them. They've never not known high speed Internet in our house which I'm thankful for, but also sort of wish they did understand the difference. *grin*

Related to this, we all keep seeing articles about how "the internet of things is coming" and as I think about these new gadgets and ones I already have, most of them are directly connected to our network. My camera pulls down firmware updates via WiFi, when I use my Bamboo Stylus to sketch out ideas on my iPad it backs up to Evernote without me thinking about it and I can check how much energy my solar panels are generating in real time from anywhere in the world on my phone. All of this happens because of the fast and secure internet access I have in my house.

Now if I could just find a new desk and kitchen counters with built in charging pads and I'd be all set!

Disclaimer - As someone who writes about living a digital lifesteyle, I receive items from brands for review purposes. I am also involved in influencer campaigns from both Verizon and Samsung. The words and thoughts I share are always my own, but I always want you to know my involvements as well so there is never any question. Some links above are affiliate links so that I can make a few nickels and buy more gadgets :)