Want to discover useful and affordable new technology for parents? You can really improve your family and community volunteer communications capabilities in minutes. You will not believe some of the cool things you can do with your computer, internet connection and mobile phone!
Drastically improve Grocery Shopping
I had three winter pregnancies within five years in the snowy Northeast. How did I survive those winters? By feeding my growing family the easy way - home delivery shopping. I've used Peapod for years (available in the Northeast) and Vons in Southern California recently and I'm very fond of the convenience, quality and budget control this form of shopping gives me.
Budget control, you say? Sure! When I walk through the grocery store, I try to stick to my list, but inevitably throw in other things that look good or are on sale. I don't find myself thinking through menus like I should or storage space like I should. But when I shop online, I can pick what's on sale and plan meals around that by buying complementary ingredients. There are usually great specials and menu suggestions online and, best of all, the websites keep a running total of my shopping cart, so I can trim my quantities and stick to a weekly budget. Ever tried to keep a running tally on your in store shopping cart? Didn't think so. There are no suprises!
The other fantastic thing about this is you handle the groceries only once, when a lovely delivery person brings them to your door (some will bring the groceries inside, but there are insurance concerns). No shlepping them out of the cart onto the belt, no more packing them into bags, no more throwing them into your car, no more walking up stairs with them. No - you simply put them into your fridge and cabinets and race off to the next thing on your to do list.
This would be great to try on vacation too, when you want to stock your room with goodies, but don't want to spend an afternoon at the grocery store.
I can't recommend home delivery shopping more highly for any busy parent!
Start a Blog, Join a Social Network or Photo Sharing site
Who doesn't like sharing news and photos with friends and family spread across the country? Blogs and photo sharing sites are great type of technology for parents that allows you to easily set up and manage a new form of communication with your extended network.
In particular, I've had a great experience with Blogger (google's free blogging software) and Wordpress for blogs. For social networks, there are a variety of choices - if you want to maximize the number of people you can connect with, try Facebook or MySpace. If you are looking to create a more private group experience, try Ning or CollectiveX. In terms of photo sharing, the category killer is Flickr (owned by Yahoo!), but if you like to print pictures, you may be happier with more commercial services like Kodak Easy Share Gallery, Shutterfly, or Snapfish. I have tried them all, and am happy with the quality of the prints, and even the personalized specialty goods like personalized photo albums (a great gift for families that don't need more stuff).
You will love Skype if you need to chat with people anywhere around the world during the time you are at a computer. The chat software is completely free, but Skype has a lot of other cool features too. Try having a video conference with Grandma - so many of my friends do this with their relatives in different states or countries. You can also get low flat rate international calling features. This would be fantastic if you had friends or family members overseas, even for a semester abroad, business trip or a vacation.
I rely on Skype all the time. You'll love it too.
Stay Connected on the Go
If you've been eyeing a Blackberry, but just don't have the heart or cold hard cash to shell out for a new phone and expensive dataplan, consider Teleflip, a unique service that converts emails from your pre-selected senders to a series of text messages that you can read on your current cell phone. You can even reply by using a clever nickname instead of the full email address you are trying to reach. Replies go back to the other person as emails, but if they are also using Teleflip and they have you on their pre-selected senders list, they'll get your email on their PC and phone. Pretty cool for keeping in touch, no matter where you roam.
Juice up that newsletter you promised to handle for your school or volunteer organization...
Easier ways to pay
You don't have to dig in your wallet for a particular card, or scrounge through your purse for loose bills or change anymore. You can use a very secure form of payment that can be baked into your credit or debit card, a key chain or even your mobile phone. To pay, you simply tap your gadget on a reader available at movie theaters, quick serve restaurants, convenience stores, stadiums and other retail locations. Here's how it works: The technology is called RFID. It uses advanced wireless technology, and security features managed by your bank, to transmit your encrypted payment account information to your bank to approve the transaction.
It is cool to be able to zip through lines without that awkward "how do I get this card in this machine" moment. And for some cards, on many smaller-sized transactions, you no longer have to sign! Don't worry, you are still covered by your card's Zero Liability policy (please check your individual terms to make sure this is the case for you).
Millions of these cards are already out there - and one could be in your wallet right now! Look for the MasterCard PayPass, Visa payWave, American Express ExpressPay or Chase Blink symbols to see if you already have one.
Editor's Note: I previously worked for MasterCard on MasterCard PayPass and MasterCard Mobile PayPass programs.
