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Google moms share tech tips for your family
May 6, 2011
As a Googler I often take my work home with me—in a good way. With two young boys at home, life is always busy, so my husband and I are always looking for ways to save time, get organized and enrich our lives in simple ways. Because the products I beta test and use in the office have become an integral part of my own family life, for Mother’s Day this weekend I’d like to share some favorite tips, including a few from other Googler parents.
Capturing and sharing memories
Instead of keeping 500 crayon masterpieces, store digital photos of all your kids’ artwork in
Picasa Web Albums
Collect trip or party photos in one place by letting all of your paparazzi upload their snapshots to a
collaborative online album
Tag friends and family
in Picasa photos so you can easily create and share personalized
collages
,
gift CDs/DVDs
or
movie slideshows
Use
Picnik
to edit your Picasa Web Albums photos. Use the “Create” tab to add text, stickers, frames and other effects to your photos—your kids can help, and you can email them as digital cards to distant relatives
Safely share home videos with family by inviting them to view a
private YouTube video
Keep a running family history by encouraging relatives around the world to contribute stories and biographies in a
shared Google doc
or
blog
Communicating and entertaining
Video chat
through Gmail for free with long-distance grandparents and friends—this is also great for connecting kids with their parents when traveling
Entertain kids on the run with kid-friendly YouTube channels—like
Sesame Street
and
School House Rock
—
Android apps
or your own photos and videos on your mobile phone (kids love watching themselves!)
Have your kids help you create a video card or a cartoon on
YouTube
Explore the world from the couch—fly around Google Earth on your
mobile phone
or
tablet
On camping trips, use
Sky Map
to explore and name constellations. You can even
travel back in time
to show your kids what the sky looked like on the day they were born
Read the classics—like
Anne of Green Gables
,
The Wind in the Willows
and
Grimm’s Fairy Tales
—for free from Google eBooks; for older kids, many books that are required reading for school are also
free
. Google eBooks are accessible and readable on devices your family probably already has—like laptops or smartphones
My son Kai chatting with his dad while on a business trip
Organizing and planning
Plan a group trip by creating a
shared Google document
or
site
with proposed dates and activities.
Navigate around traffic
and find the nearest pit stop with
Google Maps for mobile
Using
My Maps
, get family and friends to help you collect ideas for activities in your area that are family-friendly
Schedule family events, playdates and birthdays on a
shared Google Calendar
Track everything from infant feeding schedules, holiday gifts and thank-you notes to travel packing lists and family budgets with
Google spreadsheets
; look at the
Template Gallery
to customize yours
Use
forms
in Google spreadsheets to send invitations to birthday parties and collect RSVPs (there are templates for these, too)
Use the ingredient filter in
Recipe View
to find recipes that exclude ingredients your kids won’t eat—like [
meatballs without onions
]—or use the time filter to find easy recipes your children can help prepare like
chocolate chip cookies that take under 30 minutes
Share a shopping list on Google Docs—whomever goes to the store can easily access it from the new
Google Docs app on Android
I hope these tips inspire moms (and dads) to celebrate your family this weekend. Here’s hoping you can save time and energy to focus on having fun with your kids!
Posted by Cathy Cheng, Webmaster Manager and proud mom of Kai (3 years) and Jin (10 months)
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