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I’ve noticed a strange phenomenon on Facebook recently.  My husband often posts videos of my son dancing, making messes or just being generally adorable.  When we check back a day or so after posting something, we’re anxious to see all of the comments from friends or family, but usually there’s only a few notifications, two from my  from my eleven-year-old sister-in-law (its at least amusing when she misspells a comment and  then comments about her misspelling, misspelling yet another word in yer explanation) and one from my mother.  When I share or post a video, however, I begin to get comments and “likes” almost immediately. In both cases, nearly all of the comments come from women, and in my posts, it seems my female friends (most of whom are friends with my husband as well) felt more comfortable commenting and liking.  My husband and I have a theory that while just as many of our male friends view our photos and videos, only women feel comfortable enough to express their feelings about it.

Yesterday morning, Com Score released a press release based off of their study “Women on the Web: How Women are Shaping the Internet,” stating that globally, 75.8 percent of all women, versus 69.7 percent of men, visited social network sites in May 2010; a 30% difference.   Okay, so women are on social networking sites a whole lot.  So what?  What I found more interesting was that although there are more male unique visitors on the interent, “women spend about 8 percent more time online, averaging 25 hours per month on the Web.”

Okay, so now we know that women spend more time online and visit social media sites more often.  So what?  How do these statistics prove that women are “shaping” the internet?

Extending beyond page rank and unique visitors per month, BlogHer collaborated with Access Blog Influence Engine (ABIE) to compare different measurement tools on single, weighted 100 point scale in order to determine women’s online influence and to create a list of the most influentail Mommy Blogs and Women’s sites. 

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Although its nice to recieve credit for all of our hard work online, am I the only one who’s not in the least bit surprised?  After all, the internet is just another form of communication, which is just another one of those things in which women tend to excel.

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I am not a morning person. In my household, we are professional snooze-button-hitters. Unfortunately, employers and crying babies aren’t really all that sympathetic to our ‘five more minutes’ pleas. In order to cope with this unnatural necessity to get up before eight am, I have created my Personal Power Up, which consists of four easy steps.  Free for an unlimited time, so read now and then read it again later!

Step One. The most essential step to my PPU begins the night before. Before you procrastinators begin to groan, just here me out. Its just one simple step: I absolutely must pick my outfit out the day before. If I don’t, I end up standing in my closet after having tried on three outfits that just don’t feel right and its already 8:34. Preferably, the outfit is cute and looks great on me, but we digress.

Step Two. The next step to my morning PPU, is simply to put on my glasses, open my window and stare outside at the growing morning light for a few minutes. This may seem silly, but the sun’s rays decrease melatonin (sleepy hormone) and increase serotonin (happy hormone). After absorbing a little bit of sunlight, I usually feel energized enough to slip out of bed and don the gorgeous outfit I chose the night before.

Step Three.  A wake up drink made with you in mind.  Tea, coffee, hot chocolate, lemonade, water.  My wake up drink changes daily, but the key here is that I make my husband make it for me.  I learned this from a good friend of mine, who made it her husband’s job to start the coffee pot before she even gets up.  Similarly, my husband is in charge of delivering my first drink at the kitchen table in the morning. I make his lunch, so I think its a fair trade.  It also gives us a chance to say a proper good morning to each other.
Step Four. If everything goes right, I’m up around thirty minutes before my baby.  This is just enough time for me to get dressed, enjoy my husband-made drink, and take on step four: morning pages.  Morning pages are 15 minutes of continuous writing. It helps me unload, especially if I wake up feeling stressed about the day ahead, or if I had a particularly disturbing dream.

Now I just need 2pm ppu and I think I’ll be set!

We recently had a look at Number Sense, a new iPhone math game designed for 4-8 year olds.  Our 6 year old saw the game and immediately started playing.  Needless to say, he definitely enjoyed the game, playing it for a good hour!

It is really 5 games in one:

BOOSTER BALLS
Helps your kids learn counting from 1 to 30 by feeding some monsters.

DO THE DOTTY
Simple but engaging connect-the-dots games that will help your kids recognize and memorize numbers in the right order.

NUMBERELLA
A super hero donkey (Drizzle is his name) is all you need to get kids to compare numbers, without objects, from 1 to 10.

FISHOONKA
This deceptively simple game uses a school of fish to demonstrate the concepts of greater than, less than and equal to.

TOOT TOOT TRAIN
From Chocolateville to Licorice Lane runs a train that relies on addition and subtraction.

In addition, every game has a unique reward.  If you brought your child to an arcade or fair, they would want a reward, so this game does a nice job of a similar effect.

Overall, we really liked the game.  The congrats type message after each round got to be a bit much for us adults, but the kids seemed to enjoy

(disclosure: we were given a promo code to try out the app, but this did not keep us from speaking our mind as to what we thought of the game as an unbiased opinion.)

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“When I took office,” said Bill Clinton, “only high energy physicists had ever heard of what is called the Worldwide Web…Now even my cat has its own page.”  Indeed, over the course of the last two decades, the internet has gone from techie pet projects to a resource for the  privileged to a near necessity of business, if not life.  Whether you’re Bill Clinton’s cat, one of Facebook’s 500 million friends, or if you have twenty  minutes on the train  to and from your white collar job to blog on Blackberry, American personal and business lives and the internet have become inseparably intertwined.  If you’re company or work doesn’t involve some kind of online social media, said company may be in trouble!  There are dozens of ways to make (more) money on the internet, some more effective and lucrative than others.

Websites are one way to make money online, whether you have your own brilliant, unique idea or your building upon a previous idea and just need proper online representation.  According to Top Rank Online Marketing, the three marketing tactics readers will use most often are Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Social Network Participation, and Blogging.  So how does one going about doing such things and where/when does the money come in?

The idea is that you’ll have more hits on your site due to search engine searches relevant to your content.  To improve your site’s SEO, develop a glossary of keywords on your site (and blog, but more about that later) using a service such as Keyword Discovery or WordTracker.   In a similar way, Social Network Participation (such as Facebook) is a way to connect 500 million people (about 13% of the world’s population)  with your product or idea.  Blogging plays a slightly different role for a website.  It gives a uniquely human aspect to a website.  Its a way for websie viewers to  So here’s the money making part: the content.  Either your site simply enhances a previously established business or idea, for which online marketing simply brings you more customers or patrons.  On the other hand, if your main work is the site itself, quality content and aesthetics, along with SEO development is pivotal.  Providing quality leads us to another money making possibility: website development.

Someone has to have the umbrella idea and delegate and manage tasks of web design, writing and programming, but there are millions of ‘menial’ jobs for writers, artists and experts online.  These types of online tasks can be taken on in as freelance work or as regular work.  Writing is probably the most common form, mostly in the form of blogging and article writing, but even photographers and musicians can sell their work online.

If you don’t think you have any particular talent or artistic ability to add, you can also make money simply with your time, filling out surveys and writing reviews.  Sound Out, for example, helps amateur musicians upload and edit their music for a small fee.  They also pay reviewers to listen to the music and put in their two cents.  Of course you have to be careful surveys and such, as they can be tedious and the pay is not always worth the effort.  Also effective is the use of an affiliate marketing program.

The best part about online jobs is the scheduling, so why not try a little of it all?  You never know if something fits until you try it on, after all.

American Girl is not merely launching their own charitable project. They are actively recruiting the widespread community of young girls to join them in their pursuit of good deeds. It is not about helping American Girl achieve a glorious goal, but a beautiful and innovative method of involving, inspiring, and encouraging these youngsters to spread the light.

To begin with, today American Girl is debuting Shine On Now, an interactive site that requires young girls to spread the word to as many of their friends as they can. Through their efforts, American Girl will donate up to $1 million in clothes, books, dolls, and money to four charitable organizations. The site offers those involved a downloadable kit to guide the young do-gooders in fundraising and volunteering for those charities, or charities of their choice.

Simultaneously, in honor of their shining stars, American Girl is launching a new virtual campus – Innerstar University – where young girls participate in fun and enriching activities to boost their confidence and strength. Since their inception, American Girl has focused on maximizing the potential of their customers, 3-12 year old girls.

Finally, American Girl is giving away a MyAmericanGirl to a most deserving girl! We are asking our readers to nominate a girl in their lives or in the community who embodies the bespoke charitable characteristics. In a paragraph, and without referencing the girls identity, please describe what it is that makes this girl stand out. We encourage you to include her outstanding activities and how she helps others in general. Based on your description, we will choose one girl to be awarded the doll, and will feature her right here on Social Media Mom!

The program ends July 31st. Please help us spread the word!

American Girl sent me free product samples as a part of my partnership in the Shine On Now^™ program. The opinions and content posted here is my own.

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I try not to be a networking site junkie, but since my recent move I have to admit that my online community of friends has been a staple for me. I just completed my first year as a mother, and having a network of expert mothers (Mom’s logging in at least 10,000 hours of nose wiping, vacuuming and lullaby singing) at my fingertips has been a lifesaver.

This week, one of my favorite networking sites, MetroImma, honored me as their “Mom of the Week“!  Although I love blogging and discussing all kinds of topics with my online peers, its rare to get such a direct vote of confidence from them.  I’m an educator by day and a stealth mom and blogger by night, so I sometimes feel I’m at the fringe of the blogging network, but being named Mom of the Week has given me  a huge boost of confidence!  If I didn’t feel as if I were part of the blogging community before, I certainly do now.

So what’s next for this official Mom of the Week?  I was considering trying to take over the world (yes I’m young enough to give a Pink and the Brain reference), but maybe I’ll just settle for writing this blog.

Social media can be great for meeting new people and exploring personal and business relationships. For one couple, however, Social Media really has changed their lives.

Here’s the wedding proposal:

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Here’s a video of the proposal:

Sara and Paul – otherwise known as @SurburbanOblivion and @PaulOFlaherty – are getting married. And the way they met is far from conventional. Sara and Paul did, in fact, meet online and are now hosting what Sara calls on her blog, Suburban Oblivion, a ‘Twitter Wedding’.

Living on opposite sides of the globe, their unconventional relationship began with a disagreement over a blog post, flourished through Skype calls and was heart-wrenching in its distance. Paul and Sara did, however, overcome the odds and the doubters and are tying the knot on June 19^th at 4pm Central time:

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In a manner harmonious to their online courtship, and engagement at a Tweetup, they are actively encouraging people to Tweet their way through the wedding, using the hash tag #Paul&Sara.

Twitter has fast become a way to make friends, influence others and share your opinion; now it is being used to allow people around the globe to share in the happiest day of two peoples’ lives.

Social media is a journey that society is just beginning, and as Sara and Paul take the first steps of the married lives together, through the power of social networking they can share it with those dearest to them, wherever they are.

A touching tale of two individuals brought together through social media just goes to show that however much we think we know about where social media may take us, we can never be certain where we might end up.

This has been a guest post courtesy of Susan Bryant of Winweb.com.

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From Napster to Kazaa, where there’s a will, music lovers will find a way.  In the mean time, it was frankly embarrassing how often I would simply YouTube a video just to listen to the background music…pathetic!  Introducing Fetchmp3.  As with all music downloading sites, fetchmp3 depends on a community of contributes and listeners to work.  It takes the audio from YouTube videos allows you to download it in a listener-friendly format.  This is exactly what I’ve been waiting for! Its embarrassing how often I’ve YouTubed a song in lieu of buying it.  Unlike many of those sites, however, Fetch is completely legal.  The catch? It may takes a few minutes to convert each video into an mp3 format and then download it onto your computer.

As a listener, I’m also enjoying Pandora’s Music Genome Project, among other online radio services, which have actually made my dish-washing experience half-way enjoyable.

On the artists’ side, however, social media and musicians seem to be a match made in heaven.  Spinner is a prime example of this, especially if you’re not looking for your Top 40 Pop Hits, but songs for songs from the more underground or underappreciated music scene.  These hopeful musicians give their music out for free in exchange for a little attention. Of course, MySpace Music and Facebook have spin-off versions, which are no less viable.

On the other hand, being an artists sometimes involves a little narcissism for which Social Media maybe stumbling block.  Linda Laban of Spinner wonders,”Even when it comes to your favorite pop star or rock band, is there such a thing as too much information?”

Indeed, of the 20 most followed Twitter accounts, 10 of them are musicians!  Of course, that maybe why celebreties are so loveable.  I’m not complaining, as long as the music keeps coming.

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You have to fight for you right to be fashionable.  There’s always something in your way, whether its time, money or comfort.  For many women and Twittermoms, its a daily challenge.  Revamping your style doesn’t have to be time consuming or expensive, however.

1. You are what you eat. Did you know that strawberries and tea actually whiten your teeth?  You can be as trendy as you please, but if you have yellow teeth or terrible acne, it kind of cramps your style!  So

2. Hair today, gone tomorrow. Changing your hair style doesn’t have to be expensive.  In fact, it could cost as little as a dollar for pretty clips or a little more for a hat if you’re going outdoors.  For an especially cheap, but adorable look try a

3. Shoelaces.  If you’re on the go, brighten your day with funky or brightly colored shoe laces.  If you have to wear your sneakers, you might as well make the most of it.

4. Belt it out.  A belt can be added to almost any outfit.  For a comfortable fit, try one of you’re husband’s white shirts with the sleeves rolled up a little with some tights underneath.  Add a pair of red shoes and you’re good to go!  While in you’re husband’s closet, see if there are any old ties he wouldn’t mind parting with (or you don’t want to see him on him anymore) to cinch around your waist.

5.Shop online.  While Amazon or Overstock are a great place to start your online fashion search, I suggest using these broad shopping cites as a way to decipher which brands you like best and then going straight to the brand name or manufacturer’s website.

6. Tee is for Trendy.  T-shirts are the bane of my closet’s existence.  I have so many tee shirts from various events and projects that I’ve been involved in that I just can’t bare to part with.  Turning tees into anything from a dress to handbag is a great, inexpensive way to wear a t-shirt in a trendy way.

7. Bundle of Joy.  Whether its ebay or criagslist, buying your fashion items in ‘lots’ saves you time and money, plus the convenience of buying in the comfort of your own home.

8. Not Your Mama’s Closet.  In college, there’s no way I would have considered sharing any fashion item with my mother, save a classic pair of diamond earrings, but my new role as a mother has left me with a more beautiful, curvier body that finally fits well into women’s petite’s (no more Junior’s department for me!) Sharing clothes with friends and relatives is a great way to renew your wardrobe with paying a cent.Some more timeless fashion items are pricey and even on sale, they’re half of your part-time paycheck.  When it comes to these, buy them only as a last resort.  This is what Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day and your Grandmother are for.

9. Organize What You Have.  Organizing does not have to be expensive!  It can be as simple separating your hairpins from your earring into Ziploc storage containers and baggies, and placing them back in the drawer all together.  Also, separate your clothing by color, whether in the drawer or on a hanger. When you have your accessories and clothing at your fingertips, you’ll be able to coordinate more effectively and shop for what you actually need.

10. Scarf it down.  Adding almost anything to your neckline is flattering, but where necklaces can be expensive, a scarf serves purpose and person.  Try looking for scarves in, of all places, Hospital gift shops.  I know it sounds crazy, but I’ve frequently found that small gift shops love to throw the most fun sales (i.e. everything red, white or blue in the store is 25% off).

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms and Gap Outlet blogging program to be eligible to win a $20 gift card. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”

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It was a beautiful spring day and I was on vacation visiting friends in Louisville, Kentucky, when we haphazardly decided to pack up our children and husbands and cart them off to heaven.  I mean the Outlet Mall.  Much to our husbands’ dismay, the babies cried for the majority of the trip and our hour and half “tops” journey turned into a three hour picnic-in-the-car due to what we found out later was simply a fender bender. Do you think that discouraged us?  Absolutely not, and it was not just because of the excellent company. You see, we were armed and dangerous.  Not only did we have our Van Heusen and Children’s Place rewards cards, but we also had a slew of online coupons from the store sites themselves and two secret weapons.  After all you wouldn’t send a soldier into the front lines without a weapon, right?

Secret Weapon Number One: Prime Outlet Membership Card.  Not only is it free, but you can check online before you go to see just which stores having which sales and print out specific coupons for your store. To execute this mission, we needed the team.  At Rockport shoes, we took advantage of a “Buy Two Get One Free” deal.  Our husbands didn’t need three pairs of shoes each, but since her husband needed two and mine needed just one, we split the cost of just the two pairs of shoes, so my husband got a new pair of Rockports for just under $30.  That’s what we normally pay for a lesser quality pair at Payless.

Secret Weapon Number Two: Texted Coupons.  The beautiful thing about the texted coupon, is that they’ll give you the code for it right at the door.  At the Croc outlet, I snagged three pairs of crocs for just $40 (the price of just one pair at your typical Crocs dealer).  I have to admit, I was a text coupon virgin at this point, but I have since then, I’ve added Target to my texts with benefits and never looked back.

We came with our children and husband in tow, but we had trained and armed ourselves well.  We came to conquer and we were victorious!  If you are an Outlet Mall soldier, arm yourself with these Gap and Banana Republic coupons.

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the TwitterMoms and Gap Outlet blogging program to be eligible to get a $20 gift card. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”



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