Not surprisingly, one of the biggest New Year's resolutions for all kinds of folks is getting organized. But for moms, we'd imagine it's the biggest of all. (Even us, we admit it!) Can you ever be too organized? So we're thrilled to be working with AboutOne.com, a cool family management site that we discovered last year, that really helps make a mama's life easier by storing all your family's important info in one safe, accessible place.
Did we mention safe?
In this newfangled online world, there are actually a ton of easy, affordable ways we've discovered that technology can get your life working better and keep you sane, maybe even save you a few brain cells. And don't worry, when we say easy, we mean it.
Here are just three our favorite organizational tech tips for moms:
Sync your schedules
It kind of makes us crazy that moms tend to be the KEEPERS OF ALL SCHEDULES in our families, especially when the info is only in our own heads. It's a huge relief to be able to share and sync schedules with your spouses, your caregivers, even your older kids.
If you don't use Google Mail, go now and sign up for a free account, if only for the fantastic Google Calendar feature. It even pings your phone with important upcoming appointments which can be a real lifesaver. Just enter them in, click save, and it seriously does everything else for you.
Use the cloud
Instead of storing everything on your home computer, the cloud (i.e. the internet) can really help streamline your life while giving you access to your stuff from anywhere. It's kind of nice to be able to pull up photos of the kids at the grandparents' house, without having to lug a laptop around, and to know your info is backed up if your toddler drops your laptop in the bathtub. (It could happen!)
In fact, you're probably already using it, if you're on sites like Flickr for photo storage and sharing. And what we've really like about AboutOne.com is that you can manage your family life from one location that's got serious, heavy duty, bank-level security. Store everything from health records, scans of the kids' artwork, household information, and emergency info for caregivers, all of which you can access and update from anywhere. Like if you need a social security number at the doctor's office? Grab it from your smart phone.
And it looks nice and pretty, too. No corporate spreadsheets.
Apps, apps, and more apps
You'll find no shortage of entertaining apps *coughAngryBirdscough* but there's an equal amount of organization applications too that can help a mama out, many of which we've featured on this site. Apps like TeuxDeux, a smart online platform for making to-do lists, or Intuition, which is billed as "mom's personal assistant"( and for good reason) help turn your phone into a mini-office. If you haven't poked around the brand new Apple App Store, there are tons of ideas there. Have fun!
The best part is that you're probably using one or more of these things already. With simple tweaks you could be more productive, saving yourself time and energy--which, frankly, we'd rather put towards our kids any day. -Kristen + Liz
Visit our sponsor AboutOne.com to learn more about their handy service that acts like a virtual file cabinet, all accessible from any computer and even your smartphone.
Special Offer: Use code "COOLMOM" for 20% off your subscription through 12/31/2011
Congrats to our 5 winners of a year subscription to AboutOne: Holly C., Teresa L., Kim N., Anna C. and Julie E.
Did we mention safe?
In this newfangled online world, there are actually a ton of easy, affordable ways we've discovered that technology can get your life working better and keep you sane, maybe even save you a few brain cells. And don't worry, when we say easy, we mean it.
Here are just three our favorite organizational tech tips for moms:
Sync your schedules
It kind of makes us crazy that moms tend to be the KEEPERS OF ALL SCHEDULES in our families, especially when the info is only in our own heads. It's a huge relief to be able to share and sync schedules with your spouses, your caregivers, even your older kids.
If you don't use Google Mail, go now and sign up for a free account, if only for the fantastic Google Calendar feature. It even pings your phone with important upcoming appointments which can be a real lifesaver. Just enter them in, click save, and it seriously does everything else for you.
Use the cloud
Instead of storing everything on your home computer, the cloud (i.e. the internet) can really help streamline your life while giving you access to your stuff from anywhere. It's kind of nice to be able to pull up photos of the kids at the grandparents' house, without having to lug a laptop around, and to know your info is backed up if your toddler drops your laptop in the bathtub. (It could happen!)
In fact, you're probably already using it, if you're on sites like Flickr for photo storage and sharing. And what we've really like about AboutOne.com is that you can manage your family life from one location that's got serious, heavy duty, bank-level security. Store everything from health records, scans of the kids' artwork, household information, and emergency info for caregivers, all of which you can access and update from anywhere. Like if you need a social security number at the doctor's office? Grab it from your smart phone.
And it looks nice and pretty, too. No corporate spreadsheets.
Apps, apps, and more apps
You'll find no shortage of entertaining apps *coughAngryBirdscough* but there's an equal amount of organization applications too that can help a mama out, many of which we've featured on this site. Apps like TeuxDeux, a smart online platform for making to-do lists, or Intuition, which is billed as "mom's personal assistant"( and for good reason) help turn your phone into a mini-office. If you haven't poked around the brand new Apple App Store, there are tons of ideas there. Have fun!
The best part is that you're probably using one or more of these things already. With simple tweaks you could be more productive, saving yourself time and energy--which, frankly, we'd rather put towards our kids any day. -Kristen + Liz
Visit our sponsor AboutOne.com to learn more about their handy service that acts like a virtual file cabinet, all accessible from any computer and even your smartphone.
Special Offer: Use code "COOLMOM" for 20% off your subscription through 12/31/2011
Congrats to our 5 winners of a year subscription to AboutOne: Holly C., Teresa L., Kim N., Anna C. and Julie E.
