Author Archive

Found a new place to shop!

I ran across a site called Clever Cuties, which sells apparel for geeks and nerds.  There are several places to find geeky gear like this, but I was really impressed with the site layout, additional features, and the artwork on the apparel is really geeky cute!

The “My Mom’s a Geek” t-shirt seems to fit Geeky Moms.com really well, don’t you think?

Clevercuties.com…not an affiliate but a really fun place to do some virtual shopping.

Best Practices to Teach Basic Computer Movement – Part One

It takes a lot of effort and time to teach a young child how to use a mouse or keyboard.  It takes even longer to get them comfortable enough to maneuver through a GUI with little effort.  Yet, once your toddler or young child becomes comfortable at this level, the amount of actual intervention on your part decreases immensely.  The goal is not to get them an interactive babysitter but to give them independent computer skills which will build them a strong foundation for their future.  Children of today will never remember a time when computers or the Internet did not play a predominate role in their lives. (Unless of course they grow up sheltered from modern technology.)  These kids excluded, the geeky child is engulfed by technology. 

 

The future of computers is fuzzy but one thing is certain:  they will never go away.  With that promising thought in mind, let’s get our children off on the right track and give them the tools to empower their lives with an open and ready to learn attitude.

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Strawberry Girl’s Dreamsicle

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 New Recipe from My Little Geek

  This drink is good for evening get-togethers and movie nights.  My little girl came up with all the ingredients.  You will need a blender or a smoothie maker.  In this example, we use a blender.

 

  Strawberry Girl’s Dreamsicle

3 scoops of ice cream

1/4 cup of sugar

2 cups of milk

1/4 cup ice (a few cubes or crushed)

1 cup of Strawberry milk mix

 

Blend until smooth.  Serves 3.

Cooking Mama ‘mia!

image I purchased the Nintendo DS version of Cooking Mama in hopes my 4 year old wannabe Rachel Ray would entertain herself for at least 30 minutes. Instead of hammering in my fridge or breaking eggs in her miniature fantasy kitchen she could crack a few with the DS wand right? Wrong. Either her age or impatient temperament was a factor in their disagreement. Instead of freeing up some of my MUCH needed and desired relaxation time, I listened to cries and whines about how "Mama can’t do it…" or "I can’t do this!"

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Free Online Educational Games for Kids

 

Here’s a list of my kids’ favorite online games. . .they don’t even realize they are learning!

Star Fall
My three year old daughter loves this website. She learned her letters in a matter of days, and also what sound each letter makes. The main purpose of Star Fall is to focus on teaching children how to read. This site is great because you aren’t required to download anything and they update the content on a continuous basis. If kids have gone through the entire site a few times, they can come back a week later and there will be something new for them to do. The manner in which content is displayed is very intuitive and easy for preschoolers to follow. This is a must have bookmarked site if you have preschool aged children.

Prongo.com
Prongo.com is another free educational game site that continues to provide fun interactive activities for kids of all ages.

The Kidz Page
The Kidz Page is loaded with activities for kids. From education games, to printouts, to games that are just plain entertaining, this site is an endless resource for parents wanting to give their kids computer time without having to worry.

Sheppard Software
The Sheppard Software website offers free online games with educational value for older children. The content is broken down into different subjects, such as Math, Vocabulary & Science. The games are entertaining and don’t make you feel like you are learning. I personally enjoy the ‘Math Man’ game, it takes me back to my Ms.PacMan faze but I’m actually working my brain while playing!

Newbie 101: Preventing Data Loss

image I rebooted. That was the last thing I did to my computer. During the reboot, a strange beeping noise permeated from the tower. I cringed at the thought of what had just happened. Immediately I knew that my hard drive was fuxxored. The reality made my spine cringe, as if nails were scrapping a virtual chalkboard. Years of pictures, movies, music; all lost with a click of the mouse.

This is a hard lesson for anyone who invests time and money into their computer system. A computer is only as good as the data it holds. Without my data, the programs running on the computer seemed empty and useless. The hardest part about this whole situation was it held precious photos and videos from my daughter’s first year of life.

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Newbie 101: Spam

image Spam.

No, we aren’t talking about the compressed meat in a can. This is the countless mail that flows into your email box. Thousands of messages coming at you from all ends, questioning if you can call them back, asking if you need to ‘enlarge’ certain areas of

your body, pushing you to purchase products, or inquiring about your personal information.

It must work right? Why else would these people continue sending you all this mail? Someone somewhere must look at one of these messages and say, "Wow that sounds like a great deal! Sure I’ll send my bank account information to you so you can transfer $500,000 to it! I can’t wait to retire!"

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Zen Computing

The art of allowing your energy to positively impact your technology.image

You awake to an alarm clock ran by a minicomputer chip. The furnace kicks on blowing warm heat to your toes; all because of the computer timer controlling your digital thermometer. You stumble to the bathroom, clapping your hands together to power the lights.

The TV recorder has taped all of your favorite shows, the fridge has cooled your food to the perfect temperature, and your smart phone reminds you of a 10 o’clock meeting. You remotely start the car to alleviate the dry cold air, thus making your initial shock into the environment easier. The ride to work is surrounded by technical gadgets. From street to street, sign by sign, images of technology rave on until you are almost amidst a panic attack. You sit at your desk at work and multitask millions of different programs and applications to maneuver some intangible benefit for your company.

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Using Facebook Apps for Child Development

image Social networks have taken over millions of households around the world. The ability to share instant updates to all of your friends and family as well as pictures, videos and links has changed our view of the Internet. In the past, email and chat was the digital connection between individuals. Now, with sites like Facebook and MySpace, you can post all of your updates in one spot and everyone can view them instantaneously.

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