The story
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.
Matty's mom is a teacher. She knew right away what we didn't want: another app chasing scores, constant stimulation, or endless screen time. We both wanted something that could help him settle — less pulling for attention, more room to simply slow down for a minute. Something calm enough for a baby in a shopping cart, but engaging enough to grow with him.
We wanted something that could help little ones settle into a moment instead of constantly pulling for attention.
Every app we looked at was built to maximize engagement. Loud sounds. Flashing rewards. In-app purchases designed to catch a toddler mid-session. That's not what we were looking for.
So we built something different. Calm drawing with soft colors. Gentle bubbles that float and pop. Family photos to swipe through. Everything locked behind a parent PIN so you can hand it over and breathe for a minute.
No scores. No levels. No algorithms deciding what Matty sees. Just a quiet space for a little one to play.
The secret bubble mode — where 30 bubbles flood the screen at 3x speed — was Matty's mom's idea. She said the calm bubbles were too calm for grown-up hands. She wanted more. We may have overdone it.
Matty's dad reads every email. If something isn't working, if you have a question, or if you just want to say the app helped — we'd genuinely like to hear it.
— Chris & family