Confession 38 - Fist Bumps are OK and Emily Post

I'm finally getting back to writing. I know, it's been forever! What was I thinking when I thought summer would allow me to think deeply and write more ... NOT! It's been a constant struggle with finding things for the Little B's to do, attending social events and taking the liberties to stay out late and have fun during these long summer nights.

Today I'm confessing about my obsession with Emily Post and striving to have good manners, something we all struggle with young and old.  Many of you youngins may not even know who she is. My obsession started way back when I was younger. Living in a household where my parents were immigrants, it was always hard for me to judge whether I was doing something appropriate or insanely tacky. I had a good friend that I spent countless hours with who lived in a household of "prim and proper" and I always looked at them to set the bar and inadvertently learned the dos and don'ts. Things like, how to set a proper table, when to use please and thank you and when you have overstayed your welcome and should go home (sometimes I still get that wrong). As I got older and discovered Emily Post, I would read about what to do and research the heck out a of a topic.  Like, do you always send a thank you card after a dinner? Even if you said thank you while leaving and called and said thank you the next day.  Ya, I'm a little insane like that.  If you come to my house, you will see Etiquette by Emily Post prominently displayed on my book shelf, not because I'm the "manner queen" or crack that baby open all the time, but it's a reminder to me, to try to instill the best manners and etiquette within my family. Nowadays, that book rarely gets cracked and is merely dusted, I find it easier to Google the subject or go to the Emily Post website.

If you don't know much about Emily Post, you can read a brief biography here.

And from the Emily Post website, I love how they have changed the tune of etiquette and formalities. I find our world and definitely the newer generations, are becoming more and more casual. But, the basics of etiquette and manners still hold true, check it out below:

About The Institute

The Emily Post Institute, Inc., is one of America's most unique family businesses. From social networking to social graces, the name Emily Post has been the definitive source on etiquette for generations of Americans. Spanning five generations, this family business maintains and evolves the standards of etiquette that Emily Post established with her seminal book Etiquette in 1922. According the the Posts, though times have changed, the principles of good manners remain constant. Above all, manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. Being considerate, respectful, and honest is more important than knowing which fork to use. Whether it's a handshake or a fist bump, it's the underlying sincerity and good intentions of the action that matter most.

I'm so glad to know that the fist bump suffices as a welcoming and acknowledging gesture! I really like how the company has taken Emily's vision and made things current over the years.  You can go to the site to read up on etiquette in the digital world and  even everyday manners. Two sections I frequent often.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not perfect and I'm sure I'm lacking in many of these areas (especially probably in the technology manners area), but I'm always intrigued to find out the thought process behind certain gestures and a reassurance I'm doing the right thing.

I know many of you may think this is a weird confession and most wouldn't care what others think, but remember, etiquette and manners are not defined by that. It just shows that you are a caring thoughtful individual. What's so wrong with that? So next time you are wondering whether or not you should regift that Christmas gift, manners for Facebook or if it's okay to wear white after Labor Day, peruse the Emily Post site and get your manners and etiquette in check!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Confession #37 - Playlist #4

Today's confession is my "start of summer" playlist. If you haven't heard these songs before you're probably living under a rock and are totally missing out.

You'll find me signing or cutting a rug to all of them! Check em out!

And don't forget to use my favorite music app, Spotify, to listen to them! It's free to listen on your laptop or desktop and only $9.99 a month for unlimited access to 1,000s of songs.  Besides Shazam, it's the only music app I use!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Confession 36 - Invisalign, Clear Braces!

Hi Everyone! Today I'm confessing about a recent event I went to where I learned all about Invisalign: those cool looking "plasticy braces" or aligners.  Are you like me and ever wonder if they really work? And because they look so cool, they are probably pretty expensive right?

Well, it was a flood of really cool information I got at my event about them. Invisalign is a treatment that is an alternative to metal braces and their purpose is to straighten your teeth!  Whenever I think of metal braces a very distinct image comes to mind. I was lucky, I did not need braces when I was a teenager. But, I watched the ever so famous movie, Sixteen Candles, that portrays metal braces, let's just say, in a less then desirable way.  Joan Cusak's character, remember her and all these funny scenes! 

OMG, can you imagine having to deal with that type of criticism in this day in age, with SnapChat, Instagram and Facebook? Tada! Now you don't need to! Invisalign is "the Clear Alternative!"

I know many of you readers with Teens are thinking, "no way, how do I know if my teenager is wearing their aligners?" Well, Invisalign has this great teen program called Invisalign Teen. The aligners are made with a blue dot that dissolves and goes away with use. So if your teen is punking you and not wearing their aligners, you will know!  Plus, approximately every 2 weeks, you get a new set aligners to achieve your goal of straighter teeth! And with less discomfort, pain and shame! What a new concept!

Because there are no wires or brackets, they are completely safe to wear for a teen that is in sports. Teens consistently talk about how comfortable Invisalign is and the fact that no one needs to know you are even wearing them. How cool is that!  And gone are the days where you can't eat certain foods because you have braces, like popcorn, jolly ranchers and licorice. No way! Eat away, any type of food since you remove your aligners before you eat! 

I bet you had no idea that.... 

There have been revolutionary breakthroughs in orthodontia with the use of digital imaging to take dental impressions for teeth straightening with Invisalign. Some orthodontists even offer alternatives to the goopy molds now, with digital scanners like iTero, patients are comfortable while taking dental impressions and the orthodontist is able to receive precise 3D imagery through the use of an iTero wand to create a teeth straightening treatment plan with Invisalign.

That there are over 1.3 Million patients that are smiling with confidence thanks to Invisalign! That's a lot of people! And there is a 96% Patient Satisfaction rate *US Survey Data 2009

Many people think that Invisalign can only be effective at treating minor orthodontic issues.  But the fact is that the 96% patient satisfaction rate is a result of successfully treating a broad range of cases, from overly crowded teeth and underbites to jaw problems and tooth misalignment.

And believe it or not, in terms of cost, for most cases, Invisalign is comparable in price to traditional metal braces. Wow, I had no idea! I just assumed, they looked cooler and more cutting edge, and were probably more expensive.  The Invisalign treatment, usually requires fewer office visits, shorter appointments, and less emergency visits for broken wires or brackets.

I'm on the rampage now, to finally get the hubbs in and fitted for Invisalign. He's had this "Letterman" space between his teeth forever. He never got braces when he was younger since he played the trumpet for years, into his late 20's.  I wish there was Invisalign for him back then, *sigh*.

A couple links you might want to check out and peruse: the Smile Assessment section for Invisalign and also a link to Doctors that can treat you with Invisalign. 

So what are your thoughts about Invisalign now? Are you more comfortable checking them out and asking your orthodontist about them? I sure am and can't wait to get the hubbs in!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Disclaimer:  This is a sponsored post. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Confession 33 - SquareHub App Social Networking for your family

Today I'm pre-confessing (is that even a word) about an app that was just released today, SquareHub.  Ironically, there is nothing "square" about this app and it seems to me to be one of the coolest, most awesome apps that I have seen released in a long time.  I mean, I think the last time I was this over the moon, was when I stumbled on Orchestra, I remember my giddy feeling, all happy and blissful! Well, this morning when I found out about SquareHub, I felt the same exact way.

So what is it? It's a new app that basically lets you have a private network with your family.  So let me paint the picture. We have close family friends that have 5 children, 1 away at college, 1 soon to be and 3 still at home. At any given time, both parents are on their phones texting away to their children, talking about what's for dinner, who can pick  up who, who will be home to feed the dog, etc. Group texts can get hairy and rather cumbersome to respond to, so most of the time, the parents and the kids are sending individual texts. See the issue? See the huge "black whole of time"? What if there was a way to have private communication for your whole family to see?

Introducing SquareHub, a private social network for your family that allows you to communicate in real time with your whole family, taking away the cumbersome, clunky way texting, calling and emailing are. Take a look at the screen shots below... Literally I'm {swooning} and so AppHappy!

You can check in to places just like on Facebook, so parents will know when your kid reached the movie theater or Suzy's house. You can also share pictures, that can be adorned with stickers, filters and star rewards. The app is also equipped with emoticons for when you are too busy to respond with a "I like that", or "bummer", you can just hit the face icon! Genius right?

The app is cleverly equipped with a To Do List feature where you can assign tasks to any family memeber and any or all family members can have visibility.  No more from your teenager "mom never told me to do that", oh yay buddy, that's not what the To do List says! Genius! (I know think of a new word Creative Junkie)

So go and check out this app and download it, it's FREE and get some time freed up to do some things that matter, instead of sending texts and emails!  I'm sorry to say that this app is only available for iPhones at the moment, an Android version is currently in development.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Confession 29 - Taking Care of My Skin

Today I'm confessing about my secret (well not so secret anymore) regimen to my, what people are saying, glowing skin! I'm letting all my readers in!

Thankfully, I have good genetics and wrinkles and sunspots are at a minimum, but let's face it (no pun there), everyone ages and everyone gets wrinkles and age spots. I was looking for a new regimen that would keep my face clear of acne (yes, I'm still getting acne in my late 30's), clean my pores and make my skin look and feel flawless.  About 6 months ago, a friend of mine, Michelle, began selling the skincare line, Rodan + Fields. I quickly went on to the product page and started to investigate.  Michelle became instrumental in helping me figure out the best line for my skin type and issues.

We soon decided on trying the "Unblemish" line as it would help with my acne and scaring.  From the first week that I started using the line, I could see a huge difference.  My acne started to clear up and my skin was finally starting to look somewhat normal.

After using the Unblemish line, I used and purchased one of my all time R+F favorite products, Micro-Dermabrasion Paste!  I use this paste 2-3 times a week and it makes my skin feel and look amazing!! I just use a dime size and scrub it all over my face dry, with no water. And then wash it off.  I cannot say enough good things about it.  My 8 year old even uses it for her Keratosis Pilaris.  After discussing the product with our dermatologist, she said it's worth a shot.  It will completely clear up her face after just one use.

Since I've started using R+F products, they have come out with yet a new revolutionary product, the Macro Exfoliator! It's basically a hand held exfoliator  that can be used in between professional treatments and can even replace those procedures, plus, can be done once weekly at home, which I love!  I found after the first use, my skin looked good, but after the second week, it looked luminous and glowing!  It is a treatment that mimics the professional treatments, and the results are similar, but a fraction of the cost.  It is quickly becoming one of my all time favorite products!  There is even an iPhone app to keep you on schedule of using your Macro E, I'm Happtastic~

Now that you have read all about my experience, go experience Rodan + Fields for yourself.  For anyone that goes and likes Michelle's Facebook Page, here she will send you a free sample of the Micro-Dermabrasion Paste. Completely free, to try and fall in love with!  So hop to it and like her page and see the glow!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Confession 28 - Back in the Saddle and Fundawear? YIKES!

Well, I'm back from my 3 week hiatus! I was out for pleasure to Nashville, TN for 2 weeks and then in Orlando for business... phew, that was a lot of traveling! More to come about my Nashville trip. I did get out to do some photo shooting so I will be eager to share those.

Today, I'm just confessing about a new technology I read about. Why you ask, because it's so tantalizing! Check out this article I found on Mashable about this new technology..


After you have checked it out, leave me a comment on your thoughts.   Post "50 Shades" and Christian Gray, this seems very interesting.... !  And, once again, I'm proving to you that I stay up and up on the most creative technological products out there, LOL!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Confession 24 - Pinterest Fails = Laughing = Therapy for the Soul

Okay, so today's confession is about a little area of Pinterest that has been popping up in droves. Have you checked it out? Well if you haven't and want a good laugh, and a great escape, check it out.

For those of you that don't know what Pinterest is, it's basically a huge bulletin board.  Remember 5-10 years ago,  when you would read an actually paper magazine, find something you liked, rip it out, and then tack it to your bulletin board? Well, Pinterest took that concept and made it virtual  It also added the social element to it, so you can see what your friends are pinning on their boards, actresses, bloggers, basically anyone.  I'm forewarning you though, if you go on, you will not be able to stop looking! Some of my favorite things to look at are craft items, with home decor coming in second, and those funny and sometimes inspirational quotes third.   Take a peek and let me know your thoughts if you are a novice.  You can quickly connect to me by clicking on the right button at the top of my page.  Comment below and let me know you are following me, and I will follow you!

Okay, so onto the subject at hand... now that you know what Pinterest is.  For you Pinterest experts, go on and type Pinterest Fails into the search box and see what you find.  OMG, I can't stop laughing when I do this. My BFF and I spent an hour or so over lunch a week ago pulling up the funniest ones and laughing our butts off! Laughing is such good therapy for the soul.

Here are some of my favorites.  I see I need to get out of my comfort zone and try a "Pin" or two I know I'm going to fail at and then blog about it and pin it... !  My problem is that I won't try a pin that I think I will fail at... I know lame right? I need to change that and give back to the community!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Confession 22 - Ringya App - A way to organize phone lists

Today I'm confessing about one of my favorite phone list organizing apps... Ringya {{squeal}}. It is one of my favorite "sanity" apps and I've only been using it for about 3 months! What is it? Well it allows you to take a photo of any phone list spreadsheet (yes you heard that right, you just take a photo) and then send it off within your Ringya app to the gurus there, some minutes later (usually about 30 for me) you get an alert on your phone through the app that your new phone list is ready! It takes all the information and creates an individual contact for each person on the spreadsheet. It will even categorize the list for you, by heading. So the class list for my daughter's class is broken down by student, mom, and dad.  I have at my finger tips, phone numbers, addresses and names! It's just genius! Don't believe me? Check the video out below:
 A new feature just released is group text and email. So if I need to rapidly send out a message to all the neighbors on my block, I hit group message and bam, same message to all neighbors in one action!  How cool is that?

So if you are tired of constantly looking for a spreadsheet on your messy desk or searching for hours through emails up on emails, download this app. You will not be disappointed! If not for anything, just to see the beauty in the conversion of a spreadsheet into contacts... it's absolutely beautiful!

Now...  an app needs to be created that automatically puts my daughter's softball game schedule into my google calendar from a spreadsheet, now that would make me do the "Happy Dance" like a million times!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Confession 12 - San Diego Train Ride

Today I'm confessing that I love traveling by rail. Why you say? Well, there is not the stress of traffic,  you can move about in a train car, use the restroom, eat, drink and as you will see, snap some awesome pictures. I'm fortunate to be living close to the coast in California and have access to the Surfliner Amtrak Train. What an amazing experience. My husband and I went for a 24 hour trip with some close friends down to San Diego. Normally, this would be a 60 minute drive in your car, but on a Saturday, with lots of traffic going south, it can take you up to 2 hours if you don't leave at the right time. We packed an overnight bag, some snacks and traveling cocktails and hit the train station.

I'm in love with my iPhone right now and all the neat photo apps I've been able to take advantage of. This trip, I used almost exclusively the Camera 360 app.

Just check out these cool pics!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Confession Nine - Photo Booth in your Pocket

I can't believe I'm on confession nine... Yay for me for keeping this up. It's a chore some days, just finding time to write and then trying to figure out the best topic for the amount of time I have.
Today, I'm confessing about one of the many photo apps I use on my iPhone, IncrediBooth. {{swooning}} Have you been keeping up with the PhotoBooth trend? It's everywhere, from parties, to graduations to weddings. OMG, it's so silly and fun and retro, what's not to like? It's super easy to use and gives you the flexibility of saving just one picture (like here) or in a classic photo strip format (like below). I love getting my creative fix using this app. And I'm totally ON TREND!

Check it out, at 99 Cents... you can't even get a coffee for that price!
You can shoot in all different types of filters and buy more filters right through the app.

Go have fun with this swanky app this weekend!

Yes, you see that right, Baby Bella can touch her tongue to her nose... EWE, pure talent!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Confession Seven - Nashville Photo Shoot

Today I'm confessing that I absolutely loved Nashville, TN. Not only did we get to play in downtown Nashville and listen to awesome live music, I got to do a quick photo shoot. I'm just getting back into photography after nearly an 18 year hiatus. 18 years ago, there were no digital cameras, so photo shoots are so different now, with so much flexibility. I love it!

Below is a picture of our friend's home where we stayed while we were visiting, incredible right? You have no idea how ultra cool their house is. We were so blessed to be able to stay there and partake in some great memories.

The pictures to the right were taken in the surrounding areas. I was in heaven... {{swooning}} right?

I hope these pictures inspire you to get out and see some natural beauty in your city.

And these are from downtown Nashville... all taken exclusively from my iPhone. I've used 3 different photo apps. Stay tuned in the coming weeks to see which are my favorites. There are so many neat apps now to use. The hubs and I had fun goofing off as you can see. We truly were able to cut loose!
I absolutely loved downtown Nashville, all about country music, boots and good ole southern food and fun!

Thanks again for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Confession Six - I'm an iPhone Lover

I was going to show you more pictures of Nashville today, but a late night and a busy work schedule has impeded on me making things pretty for you, so you will have to wait till Monday, I know you are devastated! Ha!

I'm confessing today that I'm an iPhone lover. I saw this comic and quickly started laughing, this is totally my household because we are a household divided with my hubby as a Droid lover. I love my iPhone! Why you say? Well, I've used both, Droid and the iPhone and I'll have to say that the ease of use and no "crashing" are my two all time favorite reasons. Followed by the breadth of apps available.  It seems like the Droid market is catching up with the amount and types of apps, but there is still a lag! Case in point, one of my favorite photo organizing / printing sites, Shutterfly, only has an iPhone app.

So what do I use my iPhone for you ask?  Here's a list:

1. Picture taking, editing and coloring
2. To do list, Orchestra is my all time favorite, you can see my earlier post here. 
3. List and note taking, Evernote, check out my earlier post here.
4. Look up phone numbers, websites and information on the go
5. Banking, I bank at Chase and can deposit checks from home {{swooning}}
6. Keeping up on Movies, Stars and rent-able DVDs
7. Check the Weather
8. Listen to Music 

Where do you stand, iPhone or Droid or dare I say .... Blackberry? I'd love to hear from you!

Thanks again for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

P.S. I'll do another post in the coming weeks of my current favorite apps. So stay tuned and keep coming back!

Confession Five - Music Playlist

Well as promised, I'm confessing about some of my favorite songs right now. I'm still trying to figure out the format for these playlist posts, but for now, they will just be a mixture of all types of songs. In the future, I might label the playlists like party, dance, blogging, kids etc. But for now, it's just my favorite ones, the ones I can't get enough of and put on repeat and listen to like 10 times in a row! Yes, I'm very obsessive like that!

Follow me on Spotify... I use that service exclusively as it is not uncommon to find me downloading 10+ songs in a day and well, my iTunes budget is not that large.

Let me know your thoughts on these bad boys and if you "discovered"  a new artist or new genre you didn't know you liked. PS, if you follow me and see that "Justin Bieber" is in my most played collection, it's because my daughters have access to my account on their iPad and play it like 50 times in a row, really I promise!

Thanks again for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Confession Three - Creative Parenting vs. Invasion of Privacy

Today I'm confessing that I am a parent that loves creative parenting strategies. Especially this one that comes from a mom, Janell Hofmann, from Massachusetts who has her 13 year old son sign an 18 Point Cell Phone Contract for his iPhone.

Here's Janell's Contract from her personal blog post: 

Dear Gregory

Merry Christmas!  You are now the proud owner of an iPhone.  Hot Damn!  You are a good & responsible 13 year old boy and you deserve this gift.  But with the acceptance of this present comes rules and regulations.  Please read through the following contract.  I hope that you understand it is my job to raise you into a well rounded, healthy young man that can function in the world and coexist with technology, not be ruled by it.  Failure to comply with the following list will result in termination of your iPhone ownership.

 I love you madly & look forward to sharing several million text messages with you in the days to come.

 1. It is my phone.  I bought it.  I pay for it.  I am loaning it to you.  Aren’t I the greatest?

 2.  I will always know the password.

 3.   If it rings, answer it.  It is a phone.  Say hello, use your manners.  Do not ever ignore a phone call if the screen reads “Mom” or “Dad”.  Not ever.

 4.  Hand the phone to one of your parents promptly at 7:30pm every school night & every weekend night at 9:00pm.  It will be shut off for the night and turned on again at 7:30am.  If you would not make a call to someone’s land line, wherein their parents may answer first, then do not call or text.  Listen to those instincts and respect other families like we would like to be respected. 

5.  It does not go to school with you.  Have a conversation with the people you text in person.  It’s a life skill.  *Half days, field trips and after school activities will require special consideration.

6.  If it falls into the toilet, smashes on the ground, or vanishes into thin air, you are responsible for the replacement costs or repairs.  Mow a lawn, babysit, stash some birthday money.  It will happen, you should be prepared.

7.  Do not use this technology to lie, fool, or deceive another human being.  Do not involve yourself in conversations that are hurtful to others.  Be a good friend first or stay the hell out of the crossfire. 

8.  Do not text, email, or say anything through this device you would not say in person.

9.  Do not text, email, or say anything to someone that you would not say out loud with their parents in the room.  Censor yourself.

10.  No porn.  Search the web for information you would openly share with me.  If you have a question about anything, ask a person – preferably me or your father. 

11.  Turn it off, silence it, put it away in public.  Especially in a restaurant, at the movies, or while speaking with another human being.  You are not a rude person; do not allow the iPhone to change that.

12.  Do not send or receive pictures of your private parts or anyone else’s private parts.  Don’t laugh.  Someday you will be tempted to do this despite your high intelligence.  It is risky and could ruin your teenage/college/adult life.  It is always a bad idea.  Cyberspace is vast and more powerful than you.  And it is hard to make anything of this magnitude disappear – including a bad reputation.

13.  Don’t take a zillion pictures and videos.  There is no need to document everything.  Live your experiences.  They will be stored in your memory for eternity.

14.  Leave your phone home sometimes and feel safe and secure in that decision.  It is not alive or an extension of you.  Learn to live without it.  Be bigger and more powerful than FOMO – fear of missing out. 

15.  Download music that is new or classic or different than the millions of your peers that listen to the same exact stuff.  Your generation has access to music like never before in history.  Take advantage of that gift.  Expand your horizons.

16.  Play a game with words or puzzles or brain teasers every now and then.

17.  Keep your eyes up.  See the world happening around you.  Stare out a window.  Listen to the birds.  Take a walk.  Talk to a stranger.  Wonder without googling. 

18.  You will mess up.  I will take away your phone.  We will sit down and talk about it.  We will start over again.  You & I, we are always learning.  I am on your team.  We are in this together.

It is my hope that you can agree to these terms.  Most of the lessons listed here do not just apply to the iPhone, but to life.  You are growing up in a fast and ever changing world.  It is exciting and enticing. Keep it simple every chance you get.  Trust your powerful mind and giant heart above any machine.  I love you.  I hope you enjoy your awesome new iPhone.  Merry Christmas!

 xoxoxo

Mom

Invasion of privacy? I think not! This kid is only 13 years old! What are your thoughts about this? If you are paying for your child's cell phone, would you institute this type of contract? I'd love to hear your thoughts about this subject. Agree or Disagree? 

What are my thoughts?

Hot Diggity! I'm {{swooning}} right now over this contract and I will be all over doing something like this when my minions grow up old enough to get a cell phone. As the rule stands in our home right now, a cell phone is not needed till the girls drive. I know, this sounds so archaic and old school, but I'm trying to hold out on this one as long as I can!

Thanks again for stopping by and I hope you liked my latest confession!

Back To School - Post #2

Are you going just as crazy as I am trying to keep track of all the dates (Back to School, Teacher Conferences, Holidays), it's just maddening! At the beginning of the year, you are bombarded in all directions with dates to put on your calendar. And, most of it is still be distributed in paper form (my huge pet peeve, not only is not "green" but I don't need more clutter or a paper to lose!)

So, does this happen to anyone, you get the paper from your child's school,  you read it, you're like, yes, I need to keep this in a safe place. You put it in a safe place, then you can't find it and can't remember the safe place, you run through  your  email inbox, you text and call a couple of other frazzled mommies, and still can't find your info...??? Ding, Ding Ding!!! That's me!!!  .... last year... This year, I'm trying a different approach.

I've been reading a lot of articles lately on using technology to simplify... and so, here is how I am taking that approach to help me with my lost papers/ need dates issue.

Take a picture and file it!  Camera phones have come a long way and you can now use them to "scan" papers. Gone are the day you need to go through a million steps to scan a piece of paper. Now, all you do is  set the paper on a flat surface, point and shoot! That's it!

Now, I like to use the camera capability through a little program called Evernote. It allows you to take notes and catalog your pictures too. It also syncs up with an online account so you can access your files from your desktop or laptop, this is great for redundancy.  It also... wait for it... let's you share! Yes!!!  You can share all your notes and pictures with your hubby. For me, that doesn't matter, he rarely helps manage the family calendar, but if you have a hubby that does, it's a great feature!

So, as I sat in the multipurpose room of my daughter's school for Kindergarten Orientation thrown with 4 different drop-off / pick up schedules and hundreds of other dates to remember... I snapped away.

Here's what Evernote looks like:

http://evernote.com/


Let me know if you use this system or something else.  I'd love to hear your feedback!

Until Later.... !

Computers, iPads... such the old school...

So my dad sent me this email... I'm half hesitating while I click on the link to open the video... did I just download a virus?  I know you guys are just like me... your parents send you these weird emails... and you are like where did you find this stuff? Enough with the rant, more importantly here is the video, and no there is no virus. Check it out, very interesting stuff. And if anyone has an "In" to Corning... I'd love for that to be my next job. So cool!

Orchestra - Review of one of my favorite iPhone / iPad apps

Okay, I still have an awesome party reveal to show you and talk about, but until I get my brain around that, I'm keeping you occupied by telling you about one of my favorite apps. Orchestra... "ah ha" can you hear me singing? I LOVE LOVE this app! OMG, it really has changed my life! It's a supercharged to do list with some really cool super charged features! Here they are listed by importance:

1. Set up a to do item for someone else - Genius right? And the person doesn't even have to have an iPhone / iPad or even use Orchestra! Double Genius. So, when I want the hubby to call on that contractor or change a light bulb, I can automatically schedule it on his To do List. He gets an alert and is even prompted to tell me when he is finished with the task. I often use this with my BFF when she tells me about something and is like "ok, ya, I'll send you the link" and then a couple days go by and no link.... I'll set up a To Do for her in Orchestra!  Then when she doesn't respond to the Task, Orchestra even let's you nudge them and remind them to complete their task.  Can you see why I like this?

2. You can forward an email to your Orchestra To Do List. I don't know if you are like me, but people are constantly asking me to help them with something... PTA, Girl Scouts etc etc. It seems like it's a never ending email list of things to do. So instead of having to retype all that stuff out, I can forward that email to Orchestra and it dumps it right into my To Do list.  I can give it a due date just like the rest of the tasks OR, wait for it, I can assign it to someone else! Awesome right? Are you loving this. I have a theme here, I think I might be learning how to delegate!

3. It's robust in other features that I like to use from time to time, like collaboration, speak to text and syncing (which is really helpful when I can't locate my cell phone but need to update my To Do List, which is very often).

Check it out here:

http://www.orchestra.com/

I'm hoping that the Android version is released soon... I have a Droid freak in the house, I know, I couldn't convert him... !

Until next time... Later...