You may have gathered that I spend a lot of time on the internet. I do, I confess. It's my guilty pleasure. It's my only guilty pleasure, unless you count running, but I don't really feel guilty about running. Oh, and McDonald's mocha frappes. I guess it's my second guilty pleasure.
The way that I make time for the internet is by not watching T.V. Not at all. No news, no sitcoms, no reality T.V. Nope. I very rarely watch movies and I even have given up watching Netflix shows. I used to watch Netflix shows while I folded laundry, surfed Facebook after everyone went to bed, etc., but I found them to be addicting and I was staying up too late watching, so I gave that up. I always love discovering new places online, so I thought I'd share a few of my favorite online hangouts with you.
Facebook – I love Facebook. I love the way it has allowed me to connect with faraway friends and family on a daily basis. I love that my mom's group can use it to make weekly and monthly plans. I love that it has allowed me to connect with running buddies and my area running group. I love that I can post a question about pretty much anything and get a response. Just last week, Campbell broke the screen to my iPod touch. Within minutes of posting about it on Facebook and asking if it was worth repairing, a friend posted that her husband fixes them on the side. $40, and my iPod will be good as new. I really doubt I would have found that person without Facebook's connections. I keep my Facebook pretty locked down and hidden and only "friend" people I actually know, but even still, I never post anything on Facebook I don't want the whole world to know.
Blogs – I love reading blogs. Photography, writing, learning, insights into peoples' lives, all of my favorite things! Most of my running favorites are on my sidebar (to the right), although I admit I have more running blogs on my Google Reader list that I need to add there. I also have many non-running blogs that I love. I can't remember if I've shared these before; if I have, just skim over this part.
1. Enjoying the Small Things - Mommy blog; amazing photographs, beautiful writing
2. Ain't No Mom Jeans - Practical fashion for mommies
3. Babyology – Cool modern baby gear
4. Blue Lily Photo – Photography blog with a twist–these photographers and their two kids travel the world and live out of suitcases
5. bobbi + mike – another photography blog–husband/wife photographers who are a hoot
6. Cake Wrecks – you will not be able to read this blog without laughing until you cry. I promise.
7. Dr. Weil's Daily Health Tips – kinda self-explanatory
8. Hairdresser on Fire - I am not so much into hair, but I like her tips and her tutorials
9. Jennifery Woodbury – Life in Pictures – Love this mom/photo/scrapbooking blog.
10. Kevin + Amanda – a cooking & travel blog. I like to live through her travels.
11. Miles and Mutts – this one is about a girl who started up a program to run with shelter dogs. Great idea!
12. Ni Hao Y'all – I read several China adoption blogs, but this one is the best.
13. Nie Nie Dialogues – A burn survivor's daily life
14. Zooborns – photos of animal newborns. What's not to like?
15. The Pioneer Woman – Her "confessions" area is my favorite.
Shopping - I hate shopping in stores, especially for clothes. The only store I really like is Target. Therefore, I do a LOT of online shopping, mostly at the following stores:
1. Amazon.com – my go-to for so many things–food, toiletries, household, ANYTHING. We have a PRIME membership, which is worth every penny. I can order something and have it shipped free and in my house in 2 days.
2. Gymboree – I love this store for the kids' clothes. I never buy full-price, and by combining their sales with coupons that I find in Parenting magazine and my Gymboree Visa 5% discount, I get some killer deals. I never spend more than $10 an item, usually less. That's cheaper than most discount stores even, and much better quality. And much more cute.
3. Naartjie – Another favorite clothing store, mostly for Campbell. My grief with this store is that sizes sell out quickly, and often by the time the sale hits, the stuff I want is sold out. The outfits that Campbell gets the most compliments on are from Naartjie.
4. Hanna Andersson – very high-quality kids' clothing store. I have bought myself a few things here, even. They do have decent sales, but I end up spending more like $20 an item here, even with sales. I buy a few favorites from Hanna every year, but I'm too cheap to buy their whole wardrobe.
5. Etsy – I get the coolest things on this site. Like Elmo dresses and party decor and photo booth props and dog collars and…it's awesome. There are fabulous shops there.
![]()
Pinterest – I don't spend a lot of time on Pinterest, but I do use it to organize links I want to remember. I have boards for recipes, holiday ideas, etc. I only visit once every week or two, but it's a handy little site.
. Bookmark the
.
