Simple enough for little hands, fun enough for everyone.
MattyMode started because Matty needed something calm on a phone
that wasn't trying to keep him hooked. His dad built it. His mom
— a teacher — shaped it. Made for every family that needs a calmer
moment to breathe.
No AdsNo TrackingNo AccountsParent-ControlledCore Activities Work Offline
What's Inside
Drawing Canvas
Eight soft colors on a warm cream canvas. We kept it simple on purpose — no stickers, no stamps, just drawing. You can save their artwork to your gallery if you want to keep it.
Bubble Touch
Gentle floating bubbles that pop when you touch them. We found that even really young babies will engage with this one — they don't have to lift their finger between pops. There's a subtle haptic and an optional soft sound. Rumor has it there's a hidden Bubble Rush mode for after bedtime...
Photo Viewer
You pick the photos, they swipe through them. We wanted Matty to see familiar faces — grandparents, pets, us — instead of whatever an algorithm decides. Nothing is uploaded anywhere.
Parent Controls
Everything is behind a PIN. You choose which activities are on, how long the timer runs, and how fast the bubbles go. If you forget your PIN, there's a recovery question and a daily emergency code so you're never locked out.
On the Horizon
The app does everything we set out to build. These are two ideas we're exploring — they may arrive eventually, in their own time.
Shape Matching
Drag a shape into its matching outline. The goal was to make it feel like one of those wooden shape sorter toys — no scores, no wrong answers, just the satisfying moment when it clicks into place.
Explore & Play
Floating objects that kids can grab, drag around, and toss off screen. New ones drift back in. Each theme would bring its own set of objects — fish for Ocean, leaves for Forest, that kind of thing.
Personalize
Themes
Themes change everything — the drawing palette, the bubble colors, the background, and even how the bubbles move. We included two with the app. The rest we're building out over time, and they'll be available individually or as bundles when they're ready.
Included
Default
Soft pastels on deep navy
Classic floating bubbles
Included
Ocean
Waves from the shore
Slow drifting underwater current
Forest
A walk through the trees
Soft falling leaves
Sunset
Golden hour before bedtime
Warm lazy float
Birthday Party
Confetti colors for the big day
Balloons rising to the sky
Deep Space
Weightless wonder among the stars
Floaty zero gravity
Dino Land
Stomp and roar through prehistoric colors
Tumbling dino eggs
Winter Holiday
Cozy and festive
Gentle snowfall
Spooky Season
Not-so-scary fun
Little tumbling pumpkins
Holiday Pack
$2.49 for 2 themes
Get All Themes
$7.49 for 7 themes
Default and Ocean are included. Additional themes will be $1.49 each, or less with bundles.
How It Works
How It Works
We wanted the parent side to be just as simple as the kid side.
Built-In Timer
You set the time — 5, 10, 20, or 30 minutes. When it's up, a sleepy character shows up on screen. There's nothing for your kid to tap to dismiss it. You handle that part.
Focused Sessions
MattyMode keeps the session focused using your device's built-in features — screen pinning on Android, Guided Access on iOS. We didn't want to worry about Matty accidentally calling someone or opening the camera. This takes care of that.
Recovery Options
We made sure you can't get permanently locked out. There's a recovery question, and if that fails, a daily emergency code based on today's date. One way or another, you're getting back in.
Save Artwork
Drawings get saved to a MattyMode folder in your gallery. We wanted to keep the good ones without having to screenshot mid-session.
One-time purchase. No subscriptions. Your kid never sees a purchase screen.
Why We Built This
MattyMode started when Matty was still small enough to think phones were a snack. Curious little hands everywhere on the screen — accidental calls, apps opening, settings changing — all in seconds.
We both wanted something that could help him settle into a moment instead of constantly demanding his attention. Something calm enough for a baby in a shopping cart, but engaging enough to grow with him.
MattyMode isn't designed to replace a parent's attention. It's designed for the moments when you need your hands free and your kid needs something calmer. A few minutes of gentle play — not a rabbit hole.
And if Matty's parents happen to pop a few bubbles after he's asleep? Well, that's what Bubble Rush is for. His mom said there weren't enough bubbles. So we fixed that.