You know how it is. You find a notepad. Select a working pen. Gather your thoughts. Put pen to paper. Take a breath. Get totally overwhelmed. Take another deeper breath. Decide what needs to go first. Make the first notation on your to do list. Make a second entry. Third entry. Fourth. Fifth. Tenth entry. Eleventh. Seventeenth. Twentieth entry. Start hyperventilating for realz.

If you are like me, just writing the to do list is overwhelming and satisfying at the same time. By penning the lengthy to dos, you get a sense of the enormity of the work ahead of you. You can be upset by the sheer magnitude of the list and invigorated by having a written record of what you need to do.

A week and a half ago I penned my to do list AKA “the novel.” I sat on the list for a moment or two or three or maybe even four before attacking the list full force. With only a few weeks to go til Christmas, I was leaving nothing to chance.

Item #1: Buy gifts for local family…delegated to my husband since each day he drives past the store I planned to shop at. Item #1 = Done.

Item #2 through #8: Work tasks that only I could attend to. Items #2-#8 = some done, some partially done, some to be done. Same old, same old. But, I have it under control.

Item #9: Blog header. Hmmm. A graphic designer I am not. A good, very good blogging friend created a header for me and transferred my blog from Blogger to WP. This friend? She’s a keeper. I splurged on a new domain name a few weeks ago. I probably need a new blog header like a hole in the head, but what can I say? I caught the “I need a new blog to express all the thoughts that are floating in my head” bug.

So, Item #9 had me wondering. Who would I hire to do the blog header? I don’t know many graphic designers. Recently I reviewed Zaarly. Zaarly is a cool, new site where you can post what you need. Post your to do list one item at a time. You can also post items you have for sale. I gave Zaarly a whirl.

My first Zaarly item was a call for someone to haul away a broken bedframe, old paint cans a plenty, and a coule of old monitors. No takers at $25. Raised the price on Zaarly to $50. Still not takers.  The problem could be that I live off the beaten path…probably too far away for someone who hauls stuff for a living.

My next idea was to post about the blog header. I guessed correctly that I would get a number of hits from graphic designer-types willing to help me. Over the course of a few days, the hits have come thick and fast. Started conversations with 3 of the graphic designers. Got a sense that one of the designers was a little too green about the gills. I have minimal graphic experience. I need a serious amount of hand holding. 

After talking back and forth with three of the designers, I drafted a detailed list of what I am looking for with my blog header. I’m ready to see what the designer creates for me. Thanks to Zaarly I was able to find someone who could do a to-do item for me. And with the schedule that I have going right now both at work and at home, any help I can find is golden.

Signing up for Zaarly is easy.

• Use my link to sign up.
• For everyone who signs up for a Zaarly account, Zaarly will donate $1 to Feeding America.
• Follow @Zaarly on Twitter.
• Like Zaarly on Facebook.

I was compensated with a gift card for using Zaarly to get tasks done. The opinions expressed in the post are my own. I follow the tenets of Blog With Integrity.

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Boy Scouts of America for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

We all feel the need to belong. Somewhere. Someplace. Or with someone. As a 3rd grader in my small town in New Jersey I was a scout. I wore my uniform proudly. If I recall I even wore my uniform to school. I looked forward to attending meetings after school. My family was part of the scout movement, too. My mother was the co-leader of my troop.

The stability of my little life was turned on its end when my family moved back to England…our home country. I was sad to leave. Mostly I was sad to leave friends, my school, and the comfy-ness of my routine. Kids need consistency. Scouts was the only activity I did each week. Once we moved to another country, I missed the scouting movement. Joining a scout troop in England was a key move that helped me regain my sense of self.

My son is now old enough to join the Boy Scouts. He talks about all the funs things that the Boy Scouts of America do. He’s interested in the meetings. He would love sitting with a group of kids. We know several moms and dads in our community who are active supporters in local Boy Scouts of America dens and packs. One mom runs an annual kickball tournament. Another helps her boys bake elaborate cakes for Boy Scouts events. I love the sense of family and of course community in scouting.

The meetings are held at a local Boy Scout hall. The scout hall is probably over 50-60 years old. Can you imagine the numbers of boys who have attended meetings in that hall. I wonder what things those boys are doing now. I am sure many, if not all, of those boys attended and went on to graduate from college. Which ones are now business people…doctors…teachers. How many want their boys to Be A Scout. I wonder how many are giving back to their communities as Boy Scouts of America leaders? A small number or a large number?

The Boy Scout hall is a stone’s throw from one of the two local elementary schools. I drive past the hall to go shopping at Walmart, attend church, and drive my children to activities. It is a supportive community out here that is for sure. In fact, with all the stress and tension of the new school year, the Boys Scouts like many activities is a way to get kids back on track. After the loose schedule and relative freedom of summer it can be hard for kids to get back in the swing of things for the new school year. Finding a new activity or returning to an old activity helps kids get back on track.

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Carbonite for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

A few months ago everything in my corner of the web was hunky dory. That is until I heard that my blog host’s backup server and main server had failed. I was speechless. Clueless. And angry.

Angry that I had not done anything to protect myself against a backup fail. I had failed myself, my blog, and even my blog readers. I did not have a current backup of my own. Shame on me.

Backing up your hard drive will give you piece of mind knowing that your files, photos, and even your blog is safely stored. Carbonite provides online backup that works while you work. That’s right…Carbonite back ups your files continually as long as you are connected to the internet.

All files backed up by Carbonite can be accessed from any computer. You can even find your backed up files using your smartphone or an iPad with the free computer backup app. Carbonite is available for your PC or Mac for only $59 a year. You can try it free for 15 days. And you don’t need to leave your credit card number.

Still not convinced that you need Carbonite? Use code “BLOGAD” to get two months free with the purchase of Carbonite. Once signed up, you’ll get unlimited backup from your PC or Mac with “anytime-anywhere-access” for only $59 a year.

You might be interested to know a few more facts about Carbonite…

The roar of the crowd. The sea of red. The beer….oh my goodness the smelll of the beer.
I was a tween when I was taken to Manchester United. I had my red woolly scarf. I don’t remember eating food at the game. But the roar of the crowd is an abiding memory.
Loud doesn’t begin to describe the noise level at Old Traffford.

Another of my posts over at Oyster Locals Blog. Did you know I write about DC?

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Lego? Blocks? Buildings? Are your kids as obsessed with constructing as mine are? My little guy eats and breaths Lego… From morning til night. He even brings a Lego guy or two to school so he doesn’t miss out on building time during the school day.

The National Building Museum is the spot for builders-in-training. This museum is the site of an awesome Lego exhibit. I don’t use the word “awesome” often, but if you are 10 and under the first words out of your mouth upon seeing the Lego exhibit will be a breathless “Awesome!”

My son and I stopped by the new exhibit at the end of our day at the National Building Museum. Lego Architecture: Towering Ambition, open through September 5, 2011, combines intricate scale models of national landmark buildings with an extensive Lego creation area for kids. The 15 buildings were especially constructed for the exhibit.

Bins of Lego line the walls of this room on the second floor of the National Building Museum, with two large triangular shaped tables in the middle of the room. Over 100 kids were creating, building, and experimenting with Lego during our visit…one son proudly added his three feet tall building to the cityscape on the center of one of the tables.

The first floor is dominated by a large fountain. The Great Hall is the perfect spot for many D.C. parties and events. Other areas of interest for visitors young and old include an exhibit on Washington, D.C. , an area for the museum’s youngest visitors to play, and an exhibit on construction of the World’s Fairs in the 1930s.

The museum is America’s leading institution dedicated to advancing the built environment through education. Located at 401 F Street, N.W., in Washington, D.C., the museum is opposite the Red Line Judiciary Square stop. Connect with the National Building Museum on twitter @BuildingMuseum and on Facebook.

Want to learn more about engineering and try a project at home? Visit eweekdcfamily for more information.

Staying in D.C.? Consider booking in at the Marriott Washington Metro Center, Washington, D.C. — centrally located with Starbucks and renowned Fire & Sage restaurant on the premises. Or try the Hotel Monaco, Washington, D.C., with amenities like free wine in the lobby each night.

Don’t forget to visit…

the place in D.C. for cupcakes…Georgetown Cupcakes
the place for news in D.C…the Newseum
the place to go undercover in D.C…the International Spy Museum

When not helping her son build with Lego, Jill walks gingerly on her floors to avoid stepping on stray Lego…ouch!

– Jill Berry of Musings from Me

[Photo Credit: Flickr/National Building Museum]

A few years ago my children were obsessed with Club Penguin and Webkinz. My girls loved creating a world online. My oldest would dress her penguin in an array of clothes. My middle would  play games. The wolds they created were fun and sweet.

Have you heard of A Better World? A Better World is a Facebook application. I played around with A Better World over the last few days. My kids wondered what I was doing. I mean it is not everyday that Mom creates a person on the computer who looks like…well…me.

I had fun deciding what my person…uh me….would wear. Pants or a skirt? Shoes or boots? Decisions…decisions.

I’m not a player of games. I didn’t get in to Angry Birds or Bejeweled Blitz. I play an occasional wii game. In the 90s I dabbled with CD-ROM games. Do you remember 7th Guest? It was a game where you solved clues to discover who the murderer was. I played the game quite a bit. In fact, 7th Guest might be the last game I played and enjoyed. Whatever the game I typically don’t play for long.

I dabbled with the world of A Better World. Here’s what I liked about the game…

• You can customize your character
• You can earn points.
• You can use the app while you are tinkering on Facebook.

A Better World is a cute game. Why not give it a try? You’re on Facebook anyway, right?

I was given a gift card from Likeable Media as thanks for testing and writing about the game. The opinions expressed in the post are my own.

I don’t “get” Star Trek. There I said it. When I was first married I watched all of the variations: Star Trek, Deep Space Nine, as well as the movies. I even had the poster from Star Trek Generations framed.

I liked the shows, but watched because more because my husband was watching them. My husband is a huge fan. I’m a fan of Captain Janeway, but I think it because she is a strong female leader. I’m happy that my teen daughter shares her dad’s love of all things ST.

Every Christmas my mother buys my husband a couple of the Star Trek Hallmark ornaments. This year she bought him a silver Christmas tree to hold the Star Trek ornaments. I won’t tell my husband this, but I’m a little relieved to get the Star Trek ornaments off our main Christmas tree. To me, a Christmas ornament of Warf wielding a sword is not Christmassy at all!

I’m not a weepy person. I don’t cry at the drop of a hat. My steeliness was thrown out the window as I watched the 9/11 film at the Newseum at the end of the summer.

I sat with my three children and husband while we watched a short movie chronicling what happened in New York, the Pentagon, and Pennsylvania on that fateful day. Reporters, photographers, firefighters, and bystanders reported on what they saw, heard, experienced. The documentary was poignant, heartbreaking, and powerful to watch.

As I watched the movie, I teared up as I remembered how the world changed on 9/11 for my children and the world. My girls were 3 and 5 on 9/11. On our visit to the Newseum my girls — now 12 and 14 — learned about a day in their lives that they only vaguely remember.

The Newseum — a modern structure — is located in the heart of Washington, D.C. at Pennsylvania Avenue and Sixth Street, N.W. The Newseum is a stone’s throw from the U.S. Capitol, the National Museum of Natural History, the National Gallery of Art, and the Verizon Center. The Newseum — a 250,000-square-foot museum of news — blends five centuries of news history through high tech and hands-on exhibits

Our family had only 3 hours to see the Newseum as we needed to get home for our daughter’s high school volleyball practice. If you are on a tight schedule, I would suggest going to Level 6 to the Pennsylvania Avenue Terrace. The top level of the Newseum offers a spectacular view of the U.S. Capitol to your left and the museums on the National Mall.

On the way to the Newseum on the Metro from Shady Grove Station, I had my children read a local free paper as I wanted them to get in the mood for a museum of news. As we left the Pennsylvania Avenue Terrace we moved in to the display of Today’s Front Pages on the top level of the Newseum. Newspapers from almost all the 50 states and a large number of countries are changed each day. My teen who takes French was intrigued by the French language newspapers. The tween wanted to read a few Spanish languages papers. My son and his dad found any newspapers with stories about football and sports.

From the top level of the Newseum, we took the elevator to Level 4. Before we moved to the 9/11 Gallery we spoke to the children about how to be respectful while going through this exhibit. I was proud of how well my children looked, listened, but didn’t chatter while walking through the exhibit.

After the seriousness of the 9/11 exhibit, we took the kids to the Elvis exhibit. My son soaked up all things Elvis at the exhibit on how Elvis was portrayed in the media. We watched a movie on the history of Elvis as depicted in news clips, newspaper headlines, and TV shows. I had heard about, but never, seen the Ed Sullivan Show…Elvis’ shaking hips and all. Fascinating to see a clip that is legendary.

As our time at the Newseum drew to a close, we took the children to the Interactive Newsroom on the second level. I had heard from friends that their children loved this area. The exhibit area features about 30 monitors in booths. My son  played a game where he had to be the reporter for a whodunnit on “Who let the animals out at the zoo?” Was it the clown? The ringmaster? Or the animal trainer? This cartoon allowed the children to answer questions to move the story forward

Coming to the Newseum via Metro…

• Take the Green or Yellow Line to the Archives/Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter Metro Station.
• Take the Red Line to the Judiciary Square Metro Station.
• Take the Blue or Orange Line to the Smithsonian Metro Station.

Where should you stay while in DC? A few hotels near Capitol Hill:

• Mandarin Oriental Washington DC has a spa, fitness center, and two restaurants.
• The Washington Court Hotel features spacious rooms at a good value price.
• For families and those staying in DC longer than a day or two, check out the large suite-style rooms with pullout couches at the Residence Inn Washington DC.

Jill blogs at Musings from Me.

Our family plays games. Not all the time. We’re busy with school, work, homework, sports, and music practice. When we get a chance to play games, it’s good family time. One of the themes of this blog AND our family is that we “Seize family time one dinner/movie/game at a time.”

Oh, we have our ups and downs like any family. My teen thinks that some games are too babyish. My kid thinks that some games are too hard. My tween only wants to play certain games. Eventually after a few skirmishes we find a game we can all tolerate.

Here are some tips from Hasbro on family time at the holidays…

During this festive time of year, it is always important to remember that one of the best gifts is time spent together as a family. Relationship expert Karen Deerwester reminds us that “laughter is the foundation for a resilient, happy family. In this fast-paced time of year, Family Game Nights renew families and encourage us to be our best and have fun!”

1. Don’t over-schedule. Choose a night that works for the entire family and enjoy un-plugged fun with Hasbro games
2. Give yourself a break and plan for a takeout dinner to save time for games during Family Game Night
3. Get the children involved by having them choose games — they’ll be excited to participate!
4. Bring home new games to inspire unexpected fun
5. Reward the family for playing by giving special awards, privileges and treats

Our family loves all Hasbro games including games like Scrabble, Twister, Trivial Pursuit, Sorry!, Pictureka!, and more. Visit www.familygamenight.com to access coupons online!

I was given Pictureka and Disney Pictureka to review. The views expressed in this post are my own.