Update: PocketMod

Since posting about the PocketMod, I've had a lot of responses and great additional tips. One person uses theirs as a daily budget tracker, and a few of my friends flocked to the site immediately.

A reader let me know about this page, where there's a lot of extra little add on pages that people on the net have made. You will need to download the flash version of PocketMod to your computer, but after that you can add in all sorts of fun! There's pages like a random maze generator, a Google calendar sync and even movie listings.

Happy 16th Birthday Bradley

Today is my nephew's 16th birthday. I can't believe it. It doesn't seem like it's possible that he's practically a grown-up! I've put together some of my favorite photos of the little guy!

I remember when he was just a cuddly baby, he was cute ...me, not so much. This is his first Christmas.

He's always been a happy kid. Who know anyone could get that excited over his birthday cake? I've always loved this photo just because of his sheer excitement!

I took this next photo at my 18th birthday. He was so cute, always wanting to sit next to me. It looks like we enjoyed some more birthday cake, (look at Nancy back there... always trying to get in the photos!)

But popping into photos is just family tradition. (There's a picture of his mother running through a wedding picture, here.)

Even with bunny ears, look what a cute little kid he was!

He's been so cute, I wish he could stay little. Happy birthday Brad! Have a great day, and good luck on the driving test!

Love,
Aunt Heather

My new best friend: PocketMod

About five minutes after yesterday's post about making lists to accomplish tasks, my sister calls. (This was totally out of the blue, I never talk to my sister.) She says, "You know how I need a to-do list?"

She hadn't yet read my blog. "Yes," I say.

"You know how I always forget to look at my Palm, and I hate to carry around a huge day planner?"

"Uh, huh?"

"Go to this website, PocketMod.com," she instructs.

Alright, now I love this little thing! It's a free little day planner that has eight booklet pages created by some clever paper folding. The website has tons of different templates for each booklet page, everything from the coveted to-do list to calendars and games.

My PocketMod for this week includes some sketch pages, a grocery list and a few calendars.

So go to the website and give it a try. A little morning origami never hurt anyone!

It's Monday

A good friend once told me: Smart women make lists.

So I make a list, because Mondays are always hard for me to manage. If I don't accomplish a lot, or at the very least gather my thoughts into a comprehensive list that will tell me exactly what needs to get done, I mess up the entire week.

Thomas' rebuttal: Successful women complete their lists.

I run those two lines through my head everyday. Motivation is a challenging mountain to climb, especially on a sunny Monday after a fun weekend.

Sometimes I'm successful, a lot of times I'm not.

A Stranglehold on my weekend

So apparently there's a new game out this week, Stranglehold. I discovered this because suddenly we weren't listening to the news, but rather gunshots rung through the house. I enjoy auto racing games, sports games and the like. These first person shooters ON THE BIGGEST TV IN THE WORLD with full surround sound and a blasting subwoofer are another thing all together.

I grew up in a fairly quiet home. My parents didn't listen to music too often, they wouldn't let my brother blast punk in the eighties, and the television was hidden away in a small room at one end of the house. As the drastically youngest of four children, my older siblings moved out by the time I was eight years old. Without the others in the house my parents and I lived in a quiet environment, with the exception of me and my girlfriends giggling about who knows what. That made me a creature that likes silence. This is where Thomas and I have a bit of disconnect, he being the eldest of four. I don't suspect his house was loud, but I think there was always something going on, somebody with a friend over, a sister practicing the piano or the television. Result: he's more comfortable with music on, I like silence.

So, I decided to spend my evening outside. I like Thomas to get some time doing what he likes to do even if it's not my favorite way of spending time at home. I'll make the most of it by tending to my plants that were slightly neglected in last week's unbearable heatwave.

And by admiring Lola and her dedication to eating sticks, playing with her toys and napping.