{photo by Chris Adamus}
With our recent reading of Reclaiming Conversation, many of us are making more of an effort to reduce screen time (for ourselves as well as our kids) and spend more time face to face with those we care about. We are wising up to the lure of technology and its effect on empathy and relationships.
But we also know that these little devices of ours are useful tools, and when handled correctly, they can help us organize our schedules and tasks, and bring some balance to our crazy lives. However, with thousands and thousands of apps available, who has the time to figure out which ones are truly useful and which ones are just time wasters? We want our phones/tablets/laptops to work for us efficiently so we can spend more time with the people we love and less time managing everything on our screens.
We often ask people we know, “What app do you use for… (fill in the blank)?” because we appreciate getting advice from a trusted friend, right? Well, we thought we’d ask our SLOCA community this question! We are all balancing very full schedules and can understand the needs of our fellow parents. So we’d love to know which apps you use regularly to help you organize your life and be productive. (Other than our new, amazing SLOCA app, of course!) Apps that aren’t too distracting or too cumbersome or too time consuming. Apps that are quick and easy to use, effective, and worthwhile for parents with busy lives who don't want to be on their phones all the time.
As an example: I’m not terribly app-savvy, but for what it's worth here are the apps I use pretty regularly on my iPhone and would recommend. (I haven’t researched apps in awhile, maybe there are better ones out there, but I’ve been using these successfully for some time!):
- Tiny Calendar – My calendar app of choice.
- GoodBudget – A budgeting app I try to faithfully use to keep track of spending.
- Audible – For family audio books and books I want to get through on my own. I listen in the car when I’m alone, or while doing dishes, folding laundry, etc.
- Paprika – Recipe organizing and meal planning tool that I love!
- TurboScan – I don't have a copier, so this allows me to make copies and print from my phone.
- Reminders – Yep, the one that comes with the iPhone. It's simple, I can have multiple lists, and it just works for me.
Here’s the fun part: We are making this a drawing and giving away a Kombucha card from our school store! If you answer our app question, you’ll be entered in a drawing for a chance to win. (Even if you don't like kombucha, plenty of people at SLOCA do – it would make a great gift!) Come on, this will be easy and fun!
Click here to submit your response.
We will gather the responses and share them (anonymously) in a future blog post, so you’ll get to see the recommendations. By participating, you will be entered in a drawing for a chance to win a Kombucha card (good for 6 cups of delicious Whale Bird kombucha, a $27 value) from the SLOCA store! This drawing is open to all current SLOCA parents, and ends Friday, September 30, 2016 at 11:59 pm. Name and email must be included to be entered into the drawing. The winner will be chosen randomly and will be announced the week of October 10th.
Questions? Email Down Home. Join in the community and share your favorite apps – we will all appreciate the suggestions!
