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Dec
23
Traveling with Family and Friends this Holiday Season

Each season brings change and the holiday season is no different! Work, home, life in general has been fluid lately, so for this season’s gifts to the kids, I packed them up and we headed out of town for a much needed mini-vacation.

I’ve done holiday travel before, but haven’t seen anything like this. We were at the airport over two hours early, but the lines were so long that we missed our flight out and ended up having to traverse all over the U.S. in order to reach our final destination. To keep ourselves occupied, in touch with the world outside of the airport, and notify loved ones of changes and updates to the flight schedules, the kids and I pulled out our phones and tackled applications ranging from Southwest Airlines Mobile, Facebook, news channels, to games and videos.

Finally we made it to our final destination, Busch Gardens! It had TONS of activities for all of us and since I could not bring my entire network of family and friend to Florida, I brought Florida to them, taking pics of all of the events and activities and posting them so that we had everyone involved!

Which application did we use the most during the trip? Facebook, of course! With the Facebook application on my Smartphone I can stay connected to everyone on the go. All my friends and family can follow my every move, enjoying the pictures I post and receive my updates on my status. It’s so exciting to follow others as well and makes keeping in touch so easy… just got engaged, just moved, had a birthday, adopted a puppy… it’s all right there. Whatever or whoever it may be, I love to know what’s going on and keeping track of my loved ones.

Christopher, my 11 year old son stays connected via both Facebook and Yahoo Messenger. He utilizes his cell phone to log in and post updates on his account… updating his whereabouts and posting snippets of his adventures. As a Mom, I LOVE this because he can be tagged in pictures that were taken along the trip and instantly viewed by his friends, connecting them all together as we enjoy our excursion. His friends leave the craziest messages and I think that it builds a special level of connection between them all, bonding them closer as a group.

Happy Holidays and I look forward to sharing with you all again soon!

Posted by Stephanie in SmartPhone, Stephanie, Travel, Uncategorized Tags: Facebook, Holidays, Stephanie
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Aug
6
When Being Connected Matters Most

When most people think of the Fourth of July – especially when it falls on or around a weekend – they think of barbeques, weekend getaways, and fireworks. The same can’t be said for my wife’s family. For them, the Fourth of July usually means a trip to the hospital. It’s not because they’re irresponsible with fireworks or party too hard at a family picnic. It’s a matter of happenstance.

Last year, my mother-in-law slipped a disc in her back, pinching a nerve and causing discomfort that I can’t begin to fathom. This year, it was my wife’s turn. Amy earned herself a 4-day stay at St. John’s Mercy Hospital for a Fourth of July we won’t soon forget.

The week leading up to our nation’s birthday, Amy developed a fever and a nasty habit of going from the chills to overheating. We first took her temperature on Tuesday, and while she did have a fever, it wasn’t high enough to warrant an unscheduled visit to her OB/GYN. Because her department was working through a quarterly rebalance, Amy wouldn’t call in sick to work. Fortunately, her supervisor sent her home earlier than expected on multiple occasions.

The fight between the chills and the sweats continued throughout Wednesday, and on Thursday Amy awoke with a toasty fever of 102°. I was finally able to convince her to call in sick, and after a call to the doctor later that afternoon when her fever persisted, we were told to proceed to the hospital so they could run some tests and diagnose her.

Hours later, it was determined that the cause of Amy’s discomfort was a bladder infection. Later on that weekend, we found out that her kidneys were also infected. What we thought would be a quick trip for a prescription of antibiotic(s), fluids, and plenty of rest turned into an overnight stay. On Friday, we were told that the common treatment required 48-hours of the antibiotic. Later that evening, we were told that all would be well 24 hours after her fever last broke. Come Saturday morning, we were told that the doctor wanted to keep her an extra 24 hours to ensure that the infection had run its course.

Come Sunday, we were both mentally and physically exhausted. Amy spent the weekend with an IV in her arm, connected to a pump that regulated the amount of fluid she would receive and the speed at which it would be delivered. While I almost never left her side, that pump was her BFF (for the weekend). Amy and Baby B are both doing well and our lives are back to business as usual.

Through all of this, and thanks to Wi-Fi, our wireless phones and a laptop, I was able to let friends know that we wouldn’t be able to make it to the weekend’s festivities using Facebook, Twitter, and e-mail. I kept our family members up to speed and directed visitors to our room with phone calls and text messages. I even took pictures of the flowers Amy received, her new friend the IV pump, and the fireworks we could see from Amy’s room. While enduring a situation that would make any first-time expectant parents nervous, we were able to keep our loved ones in the loop, and put their minds at ease, all the while keeping ourselves abreast of all of the latest news and sports happenings. Our Unlimited Messaging for Families plan got quite the workout that weekend.

We wonder what’s in store for the family come July 4, 2010?

Posted by Cory in Cory Tags: Cory, e-mail, Facebook, laptop, text message, Twitter, Unlimited Messaging for Families, Wi-Fi, wireless phones
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Jul
14
When Your Kids Don’t Want to be Your Friend

I’ve always believed that you can be friendly and loving to your kids, but not necessarily their friend … and that there would always be a fine line between being a parent and a friend with my kids. This maybe an old school way of thinking, I know. But I never expected my teenage kids to decline my offer to be their friend on Facebook.

For some reason they think Facebook is not for parents, and that it is for singles and, specifically, the Generation Y. That isn’t true! I have been able to connect and, in some cases, reconnect with a lot of people I work with, high-school classmates, and other acquaintances that I have not spoken to in years. More importantly, why would my kids not want me to be their friend? What’s on their Facebook pages that my eyes cannot be privy to?

Should I mandate that we must be friends? Or does this fit the principle that I am their parent, not their friend? Thoughts?

Posted by Priscilla in Priscilla, Teens & Cell Phones, social networking Tags: Facebook, Priscilla, social networking
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Feb
24
On the road again …

While sitting in the Phoenix airport recently with an hour and a half to kill, I began thinking about ways to entertain myself. As you might expect, my first thought was to look at my smartphone. I could check Facebook and Twitter to see what everyone was up to and found out, via Facebook, that an old co-worker of mine would be heading to Phoenix! Unfortunately, we wouldn’t be there at the same time. Darn!

So I then turned to the Cellular Video (CV) function on my device. And thank goodness for it! It added some much needed entertainment to my day. I was sitting in a restaurant with TVs, and, of course, the only thing on was sports (not that I mind, but there wasn’t a game on) and CNN which continued talking about the Hudson River plane landing that had taken place the day before. As amazing as that was (and it was amazing!), it wasn’t what I wanted to watch as I sat and waited for my next flight.

So, the short of the long is that CV saved me! I watched ridiculous clips from American Idol and also caught up on some celebrity gossip. It was a nice break from the ever-so-seriousness that was on the wall in front of me. Thank you CV! You helped my mind wander to useless, but oh-so-entertaining stuff!

Posted by Brandy in Brandy, Just for fun, SmartPhone, social networking Tags: Brandy, Cellular Video, Facebook, SmartPhone, Twitter
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Jan
8
Are you on Facebook?

I love the Facebook application I’m using on my BlackBerry Bold. It’s so easy to use and available at www.facebook.com/blackberry. I’m notified instantly when friends send a message or comment on my wall. If I receive a friend request, it comes to my phone, and I’m able to accept and increase my network.

I can also write on my friend’s wall, send a message, or check their status. I even update my own as often as I like. Since I enjoy sharing and receiving pictures, I love that I can take a picture from the phone and upload it to my page for all of my friends to see. It’s a fun way to keep me connected as well as add some simple and easy fun to my day. It’s so great! Anyone else have Facebook on their phone?

Posted by Brandy in Uncategorized Tags: BlackBerry Bold, Brandy, Facebook
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