Mama Kenz is leaving the building...

For quite some time now I have disliked my little blog here. 

I have long been frustrated with my name. 

The look doesn't suite me. 

The entire feel of it has just seemed to be missing the mark. 

I almost exclusively do reviews here, which is not my heart- I am a writer and artist at my core and I want my blog to reflect that. 

So, I have decided to break ties with this here place that I have resided in for 3 1/2 long years-
HUGE, I know! 
I'm packing my bags and heading for my brand new blog- on Wordpress no less!  I will be returning to the essence of blogging- writing about beauty and life and truth.  I'm not setting boundaries or expectations- just going to blog the way I really want to.  Some days I'll be funny, some days I won't.  What is important is that I will be blogging, and much more consistently at that.

Are you curious yet?  Want to know my name and new identity?  Alright, here goes...

BOLD Turquoise

You can hop over there to see a little bit of what I have already posted, why I chose that name and how things are shaping up in general.  I am still in the "moving-in" phase, but it feels good and right.  I feel inspired again which is wonderfully refreshing!

Of course, I would love for you to follow me there and join me in this journey- I wouldn't be a blogger if I didn't!  You'll see a few different ways to subscribe and follow in my new blog's sidebar and I dearly hope you will take advantage of them.  It would be exceedingly cool too if you dropped me a line to let me know what you think of my new digs!

I will still be blogging about our homeschool and family life over at The World According to Them and will pop back up here a few times over the next couple of weeks, finishing reviews and tying up loose ends. 

Some of you may also be curious to learn that the idea I had behind the blog I started last year- The Research Years (writing letters to my kids and their spouses for them to read in the future)- will also be moved and finally carried out on BOLD Turquoise.  So if you are interested in that, please do come check it out.  You can learn more about the whole idea right here.

I want to thank you all for being wonderful followers!  Just knowing that you're listening is what drives me on and gives me motivation.  So, thank you, thank you, thank you!  And I hope to see you soon at

BOLD Turquoise!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

What is up with blogger?! Anyone else?!

Alright- for 2 days now I have been trying to upload pictures to blogger and it keeps saying they are rejected by the server!  Is anyone else having this problem?!  I seriously have posts that I need to publish, BADLY, and I can't upload ANY pics!  Help!!

***Update***  Apparently it was Safari.  I had been using Safari for quite a while because I couldn't post pictures to blogger with Firefox (my preferred program), but now they have apparently flip-flopped!  Weird!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

A little unplanned break...

I'm sick. Like, death warmed over, laying in the recliner, hoping my children don't kill each other as I drift in and out of coherentness, sick.

And yes, I made up that word.  I'm sick- I'm allowed

So, until further notice, all this good stuff I have planned in terms of blogging (including my baking post :-( ), and ok, let's face it, pretty much everything in my life, will be put on hold.

Just praying I will be feeling better by Friday for my 7th Anniversary!

Oh, and if you were wondering how to comment but couldn't after I switched things around on my blog- it's all better now.

I'll be back as soon as I can!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

New Year, New Look!

So, you may notice I'm giving my blog a little makeover for the New Year.

If you are in a reader, head on over and check it out!

Let me know what you think.  I still have some things to tweak, add and change, but all in all, I think I like it... for now anyway!  :-)

(But HEY- I did stick with my last design for an entire year!  That is amazing for me!)

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

CSN Giveaway coming!

As a preferred blogger with CSN I have once again been given the opportunity to partner with them, and this time I thought I would spread the holiday cheer on to you all!  Later this week I will be hosting a giveaway for a really nice sized gift card to their over 200 stores, just in time for you all to do a little Christmas shopping!  You might even want to pick up one of their nice new TV tables (do you remember me mentioning this awesome TV table before- ya know, the one that I really want and would be the perfect thing to replace my husband's old, hideous, plastic, bachelor pad TV stand!), or some new toys for the kiddos!

Hop on over and give CSN a gander, cause after all, you could be winning a gift card there very soon!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

My BIg Fat Wonderful News!!!

So, last Friday I was contacted by Lorrie Flem of TEACH Magazine.  As you may remember, I am participating in her 6 month Step Up- Attitude is Everything program right now, and I had emailed to ask her if there was any work I could do for TEACH to work off my membership fee instead of paying through Paypal.  Well, as it just so happened, she had been thinking of me, but couldn't remember my name, and had been wanting to get ahold of me to do just that- work for TEACH! 

Doing what?  Well, TEACH is launching a brand new blogging program and she not only wants me to head it up but design and create the whole thing right along side her!  I am still a little in shock!  The Lord is so good to have worked out this whole thing and put me in a position that just fits me like a glove!

I have been working on the program the last few days, since accepting the position on Sunday, and the more I work on it the more ideas keep popping into my head!  This program is going to be unlike any other blogger program out there and I couldn't be more thrilled to be the Head Mama (as I am being called)!  It is a huge responsibility but it has also been a huge motivator to get out of bed  earlier in the morning and get the rest of my life organized too!

Plus, getting to work directly with Lorrie is a dream!!!  Ever since attending the homeschool conference that I heard her speak at last March (remember when I LIVE blogged about her?) I have dreamed that she would be my mentor someday!  I have already gotten to talk to her on the phone three times and she is such a joy to speak with!  She is just about the best boss in the world- giving me lots of free reign to make decisions and really take ownership of this project!  Can you tell I'm excited?!

Want to get involved?

So, I am sure you will be hearing lots more about this program in the future!  And, if by chance you think it is something that you might be interested in getting involved in then run over to TEACH, see if it is a ministry you think you could get behind, ask me any questions you might have about the program and send me your info (address, blog link, etc...)!  We have approximately 40 spots left to fill, so don't hesitate to spread the word!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

Have you heard of her?

Apparently I am one of the very few people who hasn't heard of Ree Drummond- The Pioneer Woman, until now (or last week, actually).  If you happen to be in the same camp that I was in just a week ago (of never having heard of her) then stop what you are doing and go meet her (on her blog of course) right now.  WAIT!  I guess I mean stop what you are doing after you read about her here, then go meet her.

I believe she has the true heart of an honest to goodness blogger.  She is very real and full of character.  She single-handedly makes me give serious consideration to switching to Wordpress.

And this, oh this, is some of the absolute best blogging advice I have ever read, complete with a reference to Steel Magnolias.  And oh do I love a good movie quote.

I'll leave what I have to say about her at that and let you go discover the rest of the goodness and bounty at The Pioneer Woman yourselves.

What a find!

Yes, now you may go!  I'm done!  Scamper on now!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

My 400th Post!!!

400 posts!!  It doesn't seem possible!  (okay- so it was actually 2 posts ago and I thought I had it all worked out to post this as the 400th but something went wrong!  Oh well- 402 will have to do!)

Just over three years ago I began this blog, and although there have been slow times and I still often feel a need for direction, this blog has been a haven for me in the midst of an otherwise crazy life.  I appreciate each of my readers so much- especially those who comment and let me know they're there, but I am also keenly aware that I follow many blogs but don't comment nearly as much as I should!  So, I appreciate ALL of you who read, regardless of commentage!

But this post isn't about comments- it's about posts!  Lots of them (well to me anyway)!  Quite frankly I'm frequently amazed that I find a way to post at all much of the time with these two lovable but slightly insane kiddos!  Anymore, though, I find that not blogging is no more an option than not breathing.  Between dirty diapers, cleaning bathrooms and making dinner, this is one of the few places that gives me respite and allows me to remember who I am.

To be completely honest I would have to say that as much as I am in my blog it has grown to be in me over these years as well.  I take pictures of my children largely based on how well they will look on my blog.  I also realized while thumbing through the photos on my iPhone the other day with an old friend who wanted to see pictures of my kids, that I have an inordinate number of pictures of food!  I had no other way to explain the 10 pictures of a dutch baby pancake to him than to say, "Sorry- I'm a blogger!". That summed it up!

This blog had humble beginnings as all blogs do, I suppose, and is obviously still humble in many ways!  There have been some posts that I have been very proud of and others that were rather inconsequential.  One thing, for certain, though, ties them all together- they all contain a piece of me.  To commemorate this momentous occasion, I thought I would give you a glimpse back over some of my favorite posts in the last three years.  So, here goes!  Enjoy and let me know what you think!  ;-)

• My Cloth diapering series called What's Up with Cloth- I wrote this in the very beginning before blogging about cloth diapers was trendy!  
• Down on the Farm- a post about our first trip to our local and very personal dairy farm!
• Who Says Motherhood doesn't change you?  A just plain real post about momhood!
• Julie Powel Didn't Have Children!  Another one of those real mom posts!
• Unexpected Lessons in Hospitatlity- oh what you can learn from a four-year old!
• Finally Introducing...  Lion Cub's Homebirth story!
• I Made Dryer Balls!  A tutorial.
• Lightning McQueen Cake... Caachow!  Rhythm's 2nd birthday cake!
• Nachooooooo!!  The Nacho Libre Costume I made for Rhythm at 1 1/2!

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

My little addiction...

It's true.  I just can't help myself.  I wish I could say that the little addiction I am going to share with you was merely one to chocolate- that I could handle!  I could more than handle it- I could be completely okay with it (since, clearly, I already am).  But no, this addiction is much more serious.  You see, when I stumble across a new blog that even slightly resembles something that I may be interested in, that small little button that either holds the word "follow" or "subscribe" beckons my name and I simply cannot resist.  It is a weakness.  A sickness really.  One person should not have upwards of 200 blogs in their Google Reader!  It isn't healthy!  I have 23 blogs that begin with the letter "M" alone!  There is no way that anyone could honestly and genuinely follow that many blogs!

For instance, at this moment I have 725 posts in my reader. 725!!!  (And that is up from the 712 it was merely at the start of writing this post!)  I have been trying to widdle this down over the last week or so, and it didn't start off as that many, but you know how it is, as soon as I get one post read then 4 more get published and added to the list in its place!  Plus, much of the time I scroll through my reader on my phone if I am not able to get to the computer.  So, I always "save as unread" the posts that I like, want to see on the big screen, or want to tumbl- but if I am not able to get to my reader on my computer for a day or so these really add up!

If I were to ask my parents about this predicament, I am sure they would harken back to my yesteryears when I would even refuse to sleep for fear of missing something... anything really.  It is a plague.  Ingrained in my character since birth.  Each time I dare to even consider hitting the little "unsubscribe" button, that nagging, sing-songy little voice whispers, "But what if they post something really good?!  You'll never know..."

Want to hear the even crazier and almost funny part?!  I really have been trying to chisel up my reader lately- get down to the blogs that I truly love and know that I absolutely don't want to miss.  So, I have actually been unsubscribing from a few blogs here and there.  One day I even went through and did I big purge and was starting to feel a little bit better about my situation.  For some reason, however, Google keeps adding these blogs back into my reader!!!  Ahhhh!!  I have no other reasonable explanation for it and the only thing I can think is that these phantom blog subscriptions are stalking me!  I can't break free!

If anyone has a suggestion for how to handle all of this (including permanently deleting subscriptions from my Google Reader) I would love to hear them.  Until then I will hold my breath, close my eyes and click the "Mark all as read" button with a cringe and shiver down my spine. I am sure I will be missing a plethora of good great incredible ideas, but lets face it 722 is just not a number that this swamped mama can even comprehend, let alone conquer!  Well, here goes nothin'...

Be sure to visit my sponsor- Marmee's Bread Market- for recipes and everything else you need to easily make fresh baked goods for your family!

A little bronchial pneumonia anyone?

Yup- for three weeks now I have been under the plague of bronchial pneumonia, and as of now, there is no let up in site.  As luck would have it, they cut off our insurance for my husband and myself this month, so heading in for an appointment is a pretty daunting financial burden.  I did manage to take the boys into their doctor and have him prescribe me something as well, but I have been off of the Z-Pack for 5 days now and am actually getting worse.  I have a hard time breathing and have been coughing so hard that I have pretty much completely thrown out my upper back.  Fun.  Something is going to have to give here soon though, I'm not sure I can make it through the weekend.

On a happier and probably more interesting note, however, there are some big changes happening over at my boys blogs!  Lion Cub is moving on up to join his big brother on the same blog, which has now been renamed The World According to Them.  I am really excited about this change (which is still in process as I get links changed, layouts adjusted, buttons made and so forth), and think it will make posting much more feasible since I won't be trying to keep up with both their blogs!

Also, on that same note- I am changing R-Man's online name (which I have never really fallen in love with- it's kind of... well... lame).  In light of his new drum set and his long-time passion for dance, music and banging on just about everything with just about anything, he shall hence forth be known as (drumroll please!  Haha- get it!?  Oh, I crack myself up!)...

Rhythm!  

Fitting, don't ya think?!

Off the Grid!

Well, we are going to head out camping in a few days so I just wanted to let you know that I will be off the grid for a while!  My greatest hope is that I will be able to 1.) find my camera and 2.) that Blogger will start allowing me to upload pictures again so that I can share our adventure when I get back!

Until then, for anyone interested, I just did a BIG post about my plans for homeschool preschool this fall over on R-Man's blog: The World According to R-Man.  So hop on over there and let me know what you think!

Stupid Blogger- Photo problems!

So, are any of you experiencing problems uploading photos in blogger with Firefox?  I am having serious issues (I can't see the photos to upload them!) and it is putting a serious kink in my blogging progress!  Erg!!  I was using Safari to add my photos, but with that being down as well, I am pretty much dead in the water!  And there are SO many posts I want to finish!!  Any help would be greatly appreciated!

**Update- a upgrade was launched tonight for Firefox and it finally works again!!  AND I found my camera!  Double plus!  Yeah- photos to come!

Tumblr!

Have you heard of Tumblr?  I was just turned on to it by Carisa at 1+1+1=1 and I gotta say, I think I'm going to love it!  You know me, always making all these crazy posts of things that I love and want to share with you guys (and remember for myself!).  Well, now I can do that even more easily with tumblr and you guys can get an instant visual on what it is I want to show you!  Carisa does a great job of explaining it, so I will let you hop over to her post to get more details on what tumblr is, but if you want to check out my tumblr page directly here it is:

The {tumbld} Mama Kenz Studio

Granted- there isn't much to look at yet, but oh baby- just you wait!

Welcome to the Party!!!

Welcome and I am so excited to have you!!

Let me introduce myself! My name is MacKenzie (aka Chic_Mama or Mama Kenz) and I am the Mama behind:

Mama Kenz Studio,

 

The World According to R-Man,

The Lion Cub and The Research Years (more about that in a minute!).

I have two little boys so far (an almost 4 yo and a 10 month old) and have a passion for training and discipling my kiddos at home (which includes academics), being the best wife and homemaker possible (although I fail in this area more as much as I thrive), living as naturally as I can (I LOVE cloth diapers!), creating things with my hands (I love a good project!), reading (mmmmm- books!), blogging (of course!), and a whole host of other things!  I also enjoy helping mama's birth their babies and learn how to adjust to life afterward as a DONA trained birth and postpartum doula.  I think I lead a pretty eclectic life!

Things you can expect from Mama Kenz Studio are:

• Light-hearted mama wit (okay- I hope you think I'm funny!  Don't we all?!)
• Thoughts on faith and life
• Book, product, service, event and speaker reviews filled with honest opinions
• All sorts of craftiness
• Memes 
• The occasional reference to the bodily functions and by products of young children (see here)
• Honesty & Realness (isn't it refreshing to just be real?!)

Things you won't find here:

• Perfection
• Anything related to fly fishing, hunting or sports in general
• Generic product reviews for so-so products
• Boringness (well, I hope not anyway!)

If that sounds like a whole barrel of goodness to you, please feel free to subscribe or follow, snag a button, become a fan on Facebook (also in left sidebar), and/or follow on twitter (Chic_Mama)!

With this blog party I am also introducing my brand new blogging venture called The Research Years which is devoted to letters I am writing to my children and their future spouses.  It is about leaving a legacy and creating a heritage.  I am very excited about it and would be honored if you took the time to visit over there as well!  

I hope you will be able to visit throughout the week as I will be hosting a variety of book reviews and and even a giveaway on a very cute children's book!  The fun is just beginning!

As far as the party is concerned, if you don't know about it you can click on the badge at the top of this post to find out more, but basically it is just what it sounds like- one big blogging party with hundreds of bloggers who meet each other, enter for prizes and just plain have fun!  It is sure to be a great time!

Personally, I have my eye on these prizes:

(okay, so I am going to have to post them after I can access the 5 Minutes for Mom site- they are currently being over loaded)

Thanks so much for stopping by!!

iPad therefore I am!

Well, today is the day- iPad is officially on the market!  And I want one so badly I can taste it!  I honestly think that this little piece of futuristic technology could revolutionize my life!  No, seriously!  Ever since Lion Cub sucked on the end of my iPhone and left half the screen unresponsive, life just hasn't been the same!  The iPad could make up for what I have been lacking, and more! 

I mean have you looked at the specs on this thing?!  Not only is it only 1/2" thick and 9.7" high, it has a high-res LED-backlit display and the most advanced multi-touch technology!  Just like for the iPhone, there are thousands of apps that have just been waiting for today to make their big entrance onto the market.  Plus, Apple is releasing a brand new app called iBook which turns the iPad into the most amazing book reader available (among other things, it is in color, unlike the Kindle).

As far as e-mail and web-surfing go, there is nothing like it even in existence!  The iPad, essentially, let's you hold the internet in your hands, like a book, making it tangible for the first time! 

It's portability and versatility could make my life as a mom and a blogger so much more streamlined and help me get way more done in a day!  I would be able to work anywhere and almost anytime.  Yes, folks- I am in love with iPad!  And I haven't even seen one yet!  I may just have to run over to Best Buy later on today to get a little hands on action for the first time.  Then again, I would just be teasing myself since there is no way that I can buy one.  :-(

Now, this is where all my regular mom readers can check out, because I would never expect anything from you!  However, if there happen to be any business people reading this post right now who would like a little solid advertising in the blogosphere- I'm your girl!  If you sponsored my blog with a new iPad, I would feature your advertising on the top right corner of all four of my blogs (including the one I am revealing next week), plus do numerous posts about your company, and add your logo to my business cards with the caption "sponsored by."  In addition, depending on your product, I am sure I could find more ways to drive people to your site- I am one creative chica!

So, that's it!  If you happen to be interested in sponsorship, you can quickly get in touch with me at  

chic_kenz (@) yahoo (.) com

I look forward to hearing from you soon and thank you so much for your consideration!

For the love of taxes!

Or NOT!!  Okay, as much as I hate doing this, I am going to have to take a little blogging break over the next week to complete our end of the year junk for our business.  I don't think that I can quite express in words how much I loathe this time of year (aside from just hating doing the paperwork end of our business to begin with- a job I NEVER saw myself in... and still don't!)!!!!

But don't fear (as if you were), I am going to be back in February and Mama Kenz Studio will be better than ever!  As you may have noticed (or may not have if you read me in a reader) I am doing a serious remodel of my blog (all by myself) and will be continuing to tweak and redesign as time permits!  I will also be revealing my big, long awaited blogging project next month (I am soooo excited to show it to you!!). 

Is that all?  Of course not!  I ALSO have an affiliate blog in the works that will be completely dedicated to reviews and giveaways which of course will be kicked off with a big old carnival! 

So keep your eyes peeled and I will see you in February (or sooner if I just happen to get our business junk done early- Please Lord!!)!

PS- I am still on track with my Bible in 90 Days reading (YEAH!) and will be resuming my Early Bird Challenge again tomorrow... just in case you were wondering!

Monday Mentions- January 4!

There are so many cool things that I have found lately and I am just busting to share them with all of you!  So, let's not waste any time!  Check these out!

• SWAGBUCKS!  Okay, many of you may have heard of this site already but this is a new one for me.  I had heard of it here and there and just thought it was another one of those scamming, time wasting sites that you never really get anything out of.  Well, it's not!  All you do is sign up for an account and start using their site as your regular search engine (instead of, say, Google).  You randomly get points, or "swagbucks" from the searches you do (and you know we all search for things all the time!) which can be traded in for such things as giftcards (to stores like Amazon, Target, Barnes & Noble and so many more!), electronics and so forth!  You can also earn points for referrals and such, and whenever someone signs up under you you get points when they get points too!  I know of people who bought all of their Christmas presents this last year just with the bucks they had earned from Swagbucks!  Now seriously, that is pretty darn awesome!  Give it a try- what do you have to loose?!

• Make Your Own Blogger Background Tutorial!  Okay- this is pretty darn cool too!  I have been really wanting to redo the look of my blog (as well as change the name- more to come on that!) but just haven't found anything that really suits me that is free and I can't afford to have it professionally redone.  Then I stumbled upon this tutorial the other day on The Cutest Blog on the Block and I am so excited about it!  I obviously haven't done it yet, but I am working on it and can't wait to show you all what I come up with!

• Well, in order to make a really nice background and such of your own, you really need to have some cool digital scrapbooking stuff!  Robin @ the Heart of Wisdom has been featuring some really fun free scrapbooking kits lately and the ones she posted today are SO cool!  They are from The Shabby Princess and I am in LOVE!  They have the coolest download for holiday recipe cards, so of course I am already planning my Christmas projects for next year (hey maybe if I start working on them now they will actually get done by Christmas!)!  Anyhow, they are definitely worth checking out!

• And lastly for today, here is a project I found through UCreate on Bright & Blithe for a super cute mail sorter that I want to make!  Such great ideas- I think I am going to have a very crafty year!

If you have great things you have found lately then definitely share them in Monday Mentions on Daily Mish Mash!

Just trying to find the right fit

I know, I know, "Changing again?" you ask?  Well, yes, I am, but I just haven't been happy with the way my blog looks and have been feeling the need to streamline- simplify.  So bear with me... again! 

I am hoping to figure out how to add a navigation bar at the top, make the middle column a little wider, add custom page breaks and signatures, and number comments.  Plus I am going to revamp my header and so forth. 

It may take me a bit to get it all done, especially considering I am not sure what I am doing for the most part!  I am also working on getting my newest little blogging project live, which I am hoping all of you will enjoy, along with maintaining my boys blogs- and this is just my blogging life!  I still have stuff to do in real life too- no joke! 

So, stay tuned and let me know what you think as you notice the changes!

Changes for the fall

So, now that The Summer of Baby Love is over, I have decided to restructure my memes a little bit.  Basically, each meme will be posted once a month, instead of weekly.  Memes will be posted every Tuesday.  When each meme is posted I will also be announcing the meme for the next week, along with the topic, so that it is easier for everyone to participate.  Here is what the new meme schedule will look like:

1st Week of Month:  Chic Cheeks
2nd Week of Month: Where I Babywear
3rd Week of Month:  I Was Here... Breastfeeding
4th Week of Month:  Mama Time

I decided to do this so that I could participate in more of the wonderful memes that you ladies have out there, and because I feel like it will be more feasible for people to join in my memes if I only host one a week!

So, with that said, this week's meme will actually be on Wednesday (because of the holiday) and will be Wear I Babywear- you can post whatever recent babywearing pic you want, to join in!  I can't wait to see where you all have been wearing your babes! 

Works for me Wednesday- Bloggy Favorites!

I have recently been doing some new things (for me) in the blogging world and I thought that I would pass a few of these ideas on to the rest of you since they are working so well for me!

First of all, any of you who follow Carisa at 1+1+1=1 probably saw this post a few weeks ago, but if you haven't then you really need to check it out! She has so many awesome tips about blogging and making the most of your internet time! One of the things that has made a big difference for me has been enabling my e-mail address through blogger (this link goes to Jolanthe's Homeschool Creations blog and give very clear directions). By doing this people are able to e-mail me directly back in response to my comments on their blogs- duh, why didn't I figure this out before?! This has been really great and has allowed me to have much more of an ongoing conversation with some of my new blogging friends. I highly recommend that you all do it!

Another wonderful thing I have discovered and put to good use is my Google Reader! Holy cow- I am addicted! I had quite a few blogs that I was "following," but most of the time I wasn't able to make the rounds to all of the blogs and would forget the address and such. I had subscribed to fairly large number by e-mail but started receiving so many e-mails that I just couldn't keep up with it any more and it all felt disjointed! Now that I use my Google Reader I can easily read all my favorite blogs at one time and in one place! I LOVE it!!! What a valuable tool!

Okay, quite possibly the coolest and most useful thing I discovered through Carisa's post is Evernote!! At first I thought, "Oh, big deal, it is just another notes app! I have so many of those on my phone and hardly ever use them!" Well, Evernote is in a class all it's own! I don't thinkI can really do it justice by just telling you about it (although I may blog exclusively about it soon after I have used it for a while), so just do me a favor, go to the Evernote site and watch the intro video! You can thank me later!

Another great blog post was recently up on The Cloth Diaper Whisperer with lots of great basic directions for finding your way around Twitter! I am more of a facebooker and so Twitter has felt complicated and a little beyond me! However, this is a great post to simplify things a bit!

Lastly, for now, is the MckLinky Blog! Many of you probably know that MckLinky popped up on the scence about the time that Mr. Linky started having all sorts of problems, and has done a fantastic job filling the link-lovin' spot! Brent, the creator of MckLinky does an amazing job at creating relevant products and link-ware, and more over, the service is FREE! But beyond using the MckLinky itself, you have to go and check out the blog! Brent has some of the best blogging advice I have ever heard! He is incredibly straightforward and honest and I really appreciate his blogging mentality! I think all bloggers can benefit from reading what he has to say!