Category: Tips & Tricks

Ladies Learning Code – WordPress Workshop

Have you heard about Ladies Learning Code?  They’re a Toronto-based women-run not-for-profit that organizes workshops for ladies (and gentlemen too) to learn new technical skills.  Their workshops offer great quality instruction, in a fun and hip atmosphere.  And it’s really affordable – the workshops are only $40, and that includes a full day of instruction, breakfast AND lunch!

Ladies Learning Code is hosting a WordPress for Beginners workshop on January 14. If you’d like to attend, registration begins at 7pm TONIGHT. Follow this link to register. When they ran this workshop in November, it sold out fast.

If you do sign up, then I’ll see you at the workshop. I’m volunteering as a mentor to help out. I’m really looking forward to it- should be lots of fun.

[photo of the November WordPress for Beginners workshop from the Ladies Learning Code blog]

Best Kids Apps

Say what you want, but I am pro-technology for kids.  Of course, I think there should be limits placed on the amount of time a kid spends with a smartphone in their hands, but in general, I’d much prefer to see a child playing with n iPad (and actually interacting with it) than just passively watching TV. Everything in moderation, right?

Anyway, if you don’t mind sharing your smartphone or tablet with your kid, you might want to try some of these apps out:

There’s a Monster at the End of This Book is an interactive story app based on the Sesame Street book of the same name.  My nephews (aged 3 and 6) can’t get enough of this one.

Don’t Let the Pigeon Run This App features a make-your-own story and drawing tool, all based on Mo Willem’s hilarious “Pigeon” books.  We’ve played this with our 9 month old daughter, but mostly Ian and I just like to play with it ourselves.  That pigeon is a riot.

Elmo Loves ABCs for iPad. Seriously, what kid doesn’t go nuts for Elmo?

I haven’t tried it, but Swiss Miss recommends Count the Animals, an app for toddlers and pre-schoolers learning to count.  It comes in 16 languages!

For more kids’ app recommendations, check out this article that the NY Times just ran in their travel section.  And of course, check out BestKidsApps.com where you can search for the best apps for kids of different ages, search by different prices, different types of apps, etc.

Oh, and PS – if you’re going to let your kid play with your iPad, you better get a really good case for it so they don’t break it.  I have my eye on the iGuy by Speck Products.  Isn’t it adorable?

[image above by Flickr user speedye]

Playing with the New Facebook Timeline

If you’re on Facebook, you’ve probably noticed some of the recent changes, and you may have heard that there are even more coming.  One of the more nifty changes is the “timeline” that you can enable on your Facebook profile.  It will be available to most users in the next couple of weeks, so you can wait to see what it’s all about, or you can get a sneak peak now.  There’s a screen shot of mine, above.

To enable the new Facebook timeline feature, follow these steps as outlined over at Mashable.  It’s really not that hard or technical.  The most difficult part is signing up for Facebook mobile, which you can promptly disable after you’re done playing with Timeline.

The Best Travel Websites Ever

See… I told you I couldn’t stay away for long!  I saw this list of the Best Travel Websites Ever on the Guardian’s website and had to share.  It really is the best roundup of “insider” travel websites I’ve seen in a long time.  Peruse, and enjoy!  (I might be back soon with more info about a few of these that are personal faves.  Otherwise, I’m still on holiday!)

Wine Picks & Pairings App

I read about this iPhone app in the Globe and Mail last week.  It’s a guide to wines and wine pairing, which is really nothing new.  But what’s cool about this app is the barcode scanning function, which will definitely come in handy next time I’m standing in the LCBO staring at bottles, trying to pick one that’s not the same-old, same-old.  Just scan the barcode of a bottle and read reviews.  It will even tell you where the wine is in stock at LCBO locations.  Amazing!

Wanna Do A Road Trip…

…But you don’t have a car?  No worries, you can drive someone else’s.

If you’re a good driver with a clean record, you can sign up to drive someone else’s car from one location to another, and get paid for it.  Or at least get your flight home covered.  For example, think about all the snowbirds that need their fancy automobiles driven down to Florida for them each year.  Or the people that are moving across the country, but don’t want to drive their own cars (I guess because they’d rather fly).

Sound interesting?  There’s a Toronto company that’s always looking for new drivers: Toronto Drive-Away Service.  Or check out the US-based Auto Driveaway for opportunities in locations across America. Also check with any major car rental agency – they’re often offering one-way rentals at a steep discount.  For example, check out these one-way Florida specials from Avis.

If you want to do a really big road trip, consider driving an RV one-way.  The big RV rental companies need their vehicles moved around, and will often offer a big discount on the cost of a rental if you pick up the rig in one town, and drop it off in another.  Have a look at the one-way rental deals offered by Cruise Canada here.

All The Daily Deal Emails In One

Do you subscribe to any daily deal emails (like Groupon, Living Social, Wagjag, FabFind, etc)?  If you subscribe to more than one, do you feel like you’re inundated with emails every day?

A couple of months ago, I was receiving around 10 daily deal emails every morning, and I got sick of how they were clogging my inbox.  So I unsubscribed from all of them, and signed up for JUST ONE daily email from OneSpout.  OneSpout indexes all of the daily deals in your area, and sends one (sometimes long) email with all the deals.  Then you can read them all at once, or just delete it.  Love it.

Warning though – once you get all those deals every day, you might become addicted to them like I am.  I’ve purchased deals for spas, restaurants, interior room painting, duct cleaning, landscaping… it goes on and on. I guess I’m a real sucker for a good deal.

Mom, This is How Twitter Works

Maybe you remember back in May when I wrote about my love for Jessica Hische (the amazing letterer and illustrator).  I briefly mentioned her “Mom, This is How Twitter Works” guide – which started as an image file.

Her simple guide to explaining Twitter went viral, and now she has made it into a webpage with more detail (explaining retweeting, hashtags, and a comparison between Twitter and Facebook).  Check out www.momthisishowtwitterworks.com and learn a thing or two!

Caribbean Vacation Deals

It’s minus 10 degrees in Toronto – time to start planning your Winter Beach Getaway.  Or if you’re not taking one, you can still dream (like me).

Budget Travel magazine has just released a great list of the Best Caribbean Vacation Deals for 2011.  Of course, this is all for Americans, but with the dollar basically on par, there are some insane deals here, including Guavaberry Spring Bay, where you can get your own treehouse style vacation home that’s only a 10 minute walk from the Baths on Virgin Gorda (British Virgin Islands – pictured above), starting at $155.  Crazy.