I’ve got a few websites that make living my life a ton easier.  The best thing about them is that they are FREE.  So check these sites out my peeps…

Mint.com

My husband and I use this site for all things money budgeting.  You link your bank accounts, credit card accounts, home loan, car loans, 401k, IRA and the list goes on and on.  Once you’ve done that, you can tell where your money is going, if you are on budget or not and really anything else you ever wanted to know.  We can just log in and see if we’ve eaten out one too many times this month and know that we need to tone it down.  And don’t worry–its secure–like bank-level security secure.

Teuxdeux.com

I’m a list-maker.  It helps me breathe when I make a list of everything I need to do for the day.  Problem is, I can’t ever find a pen when I need one!  Teuxdeux.com is super duper simple.  You just type in what you need to do when and click on the stuff as you complete things.  If you don’t complete all your tasks, it automatically moves those items to the next day for you.

Totspot.com

Totspot has been a lifesaver since we had our little bambino.  It’s sorta like Facebook for kiddos.  Basically instead of trying to email a ton of people whenever we have little updates or pictures or what have you, we just enter it all in totspot and totspot emails everyone at once for us.    It’s very secure so only the people that are your kiddo’s friends/family can see the info.  Family/Friends can comment on photos or anything really they want to.  There are growth charts so you can record doctor appointment stats …I’m telling you it’s all VERY cool!

So.  October 2008, my husband and I welcomed a little bambino.  Because of the timing, we got a ton of Christmas baby stuff…booties, hats, PJs, bibs–you name it.  So the hubmeister and I came up with a way to showcase our little man in all his winnings but not put him through 500 clothing changes in the one day that is Christmas.  Our solution?  The Twelve Days of Jack (that’s his name hahaha)!

This is the way The Twelve Days of Jack worked:  In the 12 days leading up to Christmas day, we would dress him up in his Christmas socks or his Christmas bib or what have you.  Then we would upload that pic to Totspot which is a Facebook type of thing for babies. It’s fabulous–all your relatives and friends sign up to be your kiddo’s friend and then you upload your journal entry, picture or video ONCE and it sends out a link to everybody he’s friends with.  Each day SOMEONE gets to relish in the fact that their Christmas themed present was showcased AND your kiddo doesn’t have to endure the revolving dressing room door.  It’s definitely a WIN WIN.

We got TONS of applause for this idea from the fam–everyone was anticipating the next day, excited to see what Jack would have on the next day.  So go forth and gear up for your Twelve Days!