Impressing People W/Technology (The new Sitterati App)

My iPhone is my window to the world, it's my date book, it's my phone book, it's my social life, it's my emergency plan, it's my entertainment.  I know this isn't big news to anyone.  I am a cliche.  

But every now and then I marvel at this small electronic device that manages my life.   I channel the same 90-year-old lady inside me who can't believe planes can really fly.  It's an amazing world we live in, it really is.

There's An App For That
Lucy's piano teacher, my friend Lisa, told me how she went "birding" with her smartphone.  Even though nature scares me, I was fascinated by the idea of using a phone app that mimicked bird calls.  Lisa was excitedly telling stories about birds (supposedly rare birds that are hard to call) that flew right onto her back porch upon hearing the smartphone's literal tweeting.  That is a pretty cool use of modern technology that even some of the tech haters (and self-proclaimed nature haters, with mantras like "I support it I just don't like it") couldn't find an argument against.  

While my friend is communicating with birds, I found a new app that helps me communicate with my babysitters--the newly launched Sitterati (http://clvr.li/149CIfX).  There are dozens of apps for the bird-watchers out there, but the brilliant folks at Sitterati saw an identified gap in the market when it comes to scheduling and booking sitters.   

This free app for iPhone is not only helping sitters and parents communicate it is pioneering parent-to-sitter mobile payments.  How many times have you been on your way home from an event or a date night and you have no cash to pay the sitter?  I once paid a sitter in loose change I found in my car.  And you know with four kids, even being gone a couple hours cost me a lot of nickels and dimes.  With Sitterati I can pay the sitter with the ease of my phone--no change, no hassle.

They are really cute, wonderful, fabulous, adorable kids, but sometimes (a lot of times) they can be a handful and I need to find just the right sitter.

We've Come A Long Way Baby
Years ago, when my oldest kids were babies I remember looking for sitters and not having much luck.  One day, a friend told me to come into her kitchen.  She took a deep breath and opened a small drawer next to the sink.  "Here, it's time," she told me dramatically.  "You need to see this."

She handed me a stack of papers stapled together.  It was an Excel spreadsheet of babysitters, or more like the Holy Grail of Referred Babysitters in the Area.  This spreadsheet was copied and shared with desperate mom after mom.  The pages were torn and tattered.  There were coffee stains on some of the pages.   Notes filled the columns like "she's studying to be a teacher, loves to help kids with homework" or "available on Saturday nights!" and "has 5 younger siblings so understands chaos."  

I promised to protect the spreadsheet and only share it with the next mother when the time was right.

Well, nine years later we've come along way baby.  All of that information can be stored in the Sitterati app on the marvelous small electronic device that is an iPhone.  Parents can keep sitters organized in one place, create jobs and send to all the sitters at once (rather than individual phone calls or text messages); book sitters and pay right from the app too.

The babysitters also benefit from all this technology.  They get easy access to jobs from parents they know and see all the jobs they're booked for in one location.  Win-win.

The app is easy to use and helps even the most unorganized parent (um, me) feel on top of their game. 

Smartphones are for more than just taking pictures of yourself.  Hey use the word "selfie" when talking to your teenage babysitter to impress her with your knowledge of smartphone slang.

Impressing People With Technology
My first trip to the Apple store a few years ago was a pretty heady experience.  It was like walking into Disney World.  Every character employee smiled and seemed genuinely happy to be there, assisting you on your journey into Apple-mania.  And just like Disney World, I fell in love with everything.  When it was time to check out, the awesome guy in the blue shirt helping us, Dane, thanked us and told us we needed to sign on the dotted line.  

"Do you have a pen?," my husband asked.

"Dude, you don't need a pen," Dane smiled explaining the cyber signature.

My husband and I laughed and looked at each other with the cheesiest "this is soooo coooool" expression on our faces.

Well, folks, the too-cool-for-pens tech awesomeness isn't just for the Apple store anymore.  With an app like Sitterati even your teenage hipster sitter will think you are pretty cutting edge when you tap the screen on your iPhone to pay her.

To learn more about Sitterati click here: http://clvr.li/149CIfX


I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective, and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

A Part of The Family & Sittercity's 2013 America's Top Sitter

I recently wished the little girl I used to babysit a big happy birthday on Facebook.  A big happy 28th birthday. Gulp.  How can that be?  It feels like just yesterday we were playing together with her Teddy Ruxpin doll and watching Saved By The Bell after she got home from school.

This little girl all grown up, Amy, is a very interesting grown up--smart, creative, loves her family.  She thanked me with this message:  Thanks! I know!!! It seems like just yesterday we were building tee pees in the backyard!! I hope all is well with you and your family!!

Awww, she remembers.  I babysat Amy and her brother when I was in high school and college.  I loved taking care of the kids and playing with them.  I loved talking to Susan and Jim, the kids' parents.  I grew up with all of them.  The whole family took me out to dinner when I graduated from college.  We've stayed in touch thanks to Facebook and old-fashioned letters on the holidays.

Taking care of Amy and her brother gave me a glimpse of the mother I wanted to be.  A mother that got down on the floor and played with the kids, a mother who the kids could talk to and laugh with, a mother the kids could rely on to keep them safe and protected.  

Looking back, I am so grateful to this family.  Susan, the mother, my boss, was such a compassionate person.  She asked me questions about my life, really took an interest and gave some great advice.  She treated me like a member of her family.  

Now, as a mother to four children of my own, I understand even more how special these relationships are with good, caring babysitters.  When you find someone that really, truly loves your kids, it's a powerful thing.  When you find someone that doesn't mind coming over when your house is a mess and understands when one of your kids is having a temper tantrum filled evening, it's a relief.   When you find someone that makes your kids laugh, helps with their homework, does the cool pony tail braid from YouTube that you have no idea how to do (even after watching the so-called easy online tutorial), is flexible and doesn't get mad when you change the time to come over 238 times because you are a little overwhelmed with life and unorganized, maybe unloads the dishwasher, puts your kids to bed happy and thinks it's funny when the toddler is going through a phase where he licks furniture....yeah, when you find that someone it's amazing.

Those sitters aren't just a part of the great village that helps us raise our children, they are part of the family.

Chelsea is our sitter family member.  Our kids love her, she is kind, understanding, fun and we all love her.

Do you have a special babysitter you and your kids love?  
Sittercity is looking for the best of the best to win its 2013 America's Top Sitter contest.  Your favorite sitter could win $5,000. Yeah, $5,000!

Can you think of a better way to say thank you for everything they do for your kids and for you?  All you have to do is click on this custom Facebook app http://clvr.li/12uCnhB and nominate a sitter by uploading a picture and briefly explaining why they should be Sittercity's 2013 America's Top Sitter.  That's it!  So simple.

A panel of experts will choose 10 finalists vetted by Sittercity and the final winner will be chosen by the Sittercity Facebook community.  The nomination period ends soon, on February 25th.  Voting takes place March 5th through March 15th.  Go nominate, go vote!

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective, and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

Sanitize-How to Shield Your Kids and Not Go Crazy

Sponsored Post

Eleven years ago right about now, I became a little bit of a worrier.  That is when it all changed.  Eleven years ago right about now, I was pregnant with my first child.  I worried about the foods I ate, the amount of weight I gained.  I worried about second hand smoke from the person smoking across the street.  I worried about standing too close to the microwave.


That's what a good parent does right? Worry.


Over the last 11 years, I've been very lucky.  I've had four healthy children.  Sure, there were ear infections, rashes, a minor hernia surgery, Swine Flu scares and even a diagnosis of Celiac disease.  But over the years, I relaxed and rolled with the punches, er, germs.


That's what a good grown-up parent does right? Worry less.


I was maturing.  I was parenting.


But then JT went and broke his arm.  I felt like a newbie parent all over again.  The anxiety, the worry came back.  I joke that I wish I could wrap him in bubble wrap, but the thing is, I 'm not joking.

"Oh it's just the beginning," the ER nurse told me as she smiled knowingly and put the splint on JT's broken little arm.  "I had three boys. Broken bones, stitches, you name it."


I nodded, speechless.


"It's not just boys!," another nurse lauged along with her friend.  "I had two daughters who were just as reckless and accident prone.  It's kids."


They laughed together and looked at me with a "just wait, honey, you are in for it" look.


All these looks.  All these worries.  I wanted to grab my baby boy and the bubble wrap and head for the hills.  But even the hills are dangerous.  Ugh.


After a couple weeks with JT in a cast, I've had a little time to analyze my situation.  Those nurses are right, I'm in for it.  But that doesn't mean I am doomed to a life of paralyzing fear and anxiety. 


Here's a few tips I figured out on how to shield the kids and not go crazy:


Be prepared, emotionally.  
-I was so NOT prepared for something bad to happen.  I am not suggesting you walk around waiting for the sky to fall Henny Penny style.  But know that bad things can happen to good, cute little people and leave the bitterness at the door.  Accept that you are strong enough to deal with life "stuff" and don't be afraid to ask friends and family for help.


Be prepared, with a kit.
-Have a first aid kit in your house, in your car. Sounds simple, but lots of people (um, me) don't have a first aid kit at the ready.  


Have a plan.
-We fill out emergency cards all over the place for our children, but what about at home?  Who is your emergency contact?  For example, who is your someone that will watch your other kids while you go to the hospital in an emergency? 


Teach them well.
-Being the mother of an almost 11-year-old, I realize how important it is to teach kids to be responsible for themselves, but also to help out.  When JT broke his arm, the older kids and I were a team.  Peyton grabbed the baby and helped ease my mind.  Lucy talked to JT throughout the ride to the hospital helping him from going into shock. 


Sanitize.
-Always, I mean always, carry hand sanitizer in your purse.  Not only will it zap any scary germs lurking, um everywhere, it will give you a sense of control and ease anxiety and worry.  For example, I could not fix JT's arm, but I could sanitize the hell out of our hands in the ER waiting room.  You better believe that helped.


Bottom line, we simply cannot shield our kids from every bad thing that will happen to them, physically or emotionally.  But worry doesn't help.  Being prepared and taking control of what we can, even it is only sanitizer, does in deed make a difference.

As a member of Clever Girls Collective, I was selected to participate in the Healthy Habits program sponsored by Kimberly-Clark and Colgate-Palmolive. The content and opinions expressed here are all my own. #healthyhabits #cgc
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