Mother's Little Helper: HP Mini 110

I received a HP netbook for Christmas.  As a gadget gal, of course a netbook was on my wishlist.  The size/portability was so appealing but I was a bit skeptical about how much of a performance trade-off there would be.  But for the last few months, I have found that my HP netbook offers many features that makes it a great mother's helper.  

First, the size is perfect.  It is so small that it fits nicely on our narrow kitchen bar.  I can quickly reference our online family calendar, look up recipes I have saved in Evernote, read online news, answer emails, etc. all without leaving the heart of the home. Second, the battery life is amazing.  If you are an experienced laptop user, you know too well that battery life shortens quickly over time.   Well, I have been pleasantly surprised that this is not the case with this netbook.  As it is so small, I often tote it to a local coffee shop that offers free wi-fi without worrying about having to park myself close to an electrical outlet.

More about the specs of my HP mini 110-1125:

• 1GB RAM (expandable to 2 GB - do it yourself for less than 50 bucks)
• 160 GB Hard Drive
• Built in webcam
• 3 USB ports
• Up to 8 hour battery life (yes, in real life use)
• Decent size key board
• Runs on Windows 7 starter edition
• Built-in wireless network

Now, I will say that this netbook is not powerful enough to function as my main computer.  However, as most of my computing is done online, I use heavy program suites like Microsoft Office less and less; making my 'netbook' a perfect companion.  Here are some tips that I suggest to make the most out of using a netbook:

• Expand RAM (memory) to maximum capacity
• Use Windows 7 over XP or Vista
• Use Google Chrome as your web browser: Although a longtime advocate of Firefox, I have found Chrome much so much faster to use on the netbook.
• De-crap your netbook with these instructions. 
• For more ideas on how to maximize your netbook read this article.

As far as moving to 'online computing', here are some indispensable apps: 

• Google docs or Zoho Writer instead of MS Word
• Gmail instead of MS Outlook
• Evernote for online & desktop file storage (my digital filing cabinet)
• Springpad as my family organizer and project binder

The Low-Down on a Low Sodium Diet

We recently were thrown a curve ball when my husband was advised by his physician to follow a low sodium diet.  Honestly, upon first hearing the news neither of us felt that it would be a big deal.  We have always eaten fairly healthy.  We watch the fat, we don't eat much fast food, we eat whole grains, etc.  So as the household adult in charge of all the grocery shopping and cooking, I was fairly confident that this recommendation represented just another step toward our objective of maintaining a healthy lifestyle.  Moreover, I always felt that eating a raw or no processed food diet sounded appealing.  I thought to myself, "it shouldn't be too hard, we are almost there anyway."  Well, as a researcher by nature and by training, I plunged myself right into this new project...

Of course, like most Americans I went to the web to learn more about this topic.  The Mayo Clinic website is a good place to begin gathering information.  The first three words that come to mind describing what I have learned..."What the hell!" (Actually this is the PG version of the first words that came to mind).  Now, I did understand the relationship between dietary sodium and conditions like high blood pressure and congestive heart failure.  But that knowledge resided somewhere in the periphery as I never gave it much consideration when making our family food choices.  Honestly, given my professional background, I am quite embarrassed about how little I really knew about the role sodium plays in the American diet.  

Starting with just the basics...It is recommended that adults ingest between 1,500 - 2,300 mg of sodium per day.  Sounds reasonable. However, to my astonishment I learned that it is estimated that the average person consumes between 7,000 and 10,000 mg per day! Borrowing a line from a rent-a-car commercial, I thought to myself,  "You can't be serious!" There was no way this outrageous statement applied to our eating habits.  I marched straight for the pantry looking for evidence to prove that we, in fact, do not eat like typical Americans. Given that we don't eat products obviously laden with sodium like canned vegetables or soup, or boxed products like mac 'n' cheese, we couldn't possibly consume this much sodium.  But, my head hung in shame, when I discovered how much sodium was in many of the basic cooking ingredients I used each day.  I was dismayed when I discovered that 1 slice of whole grain bread can have as much as 200 mg of sodium!  Yes, we were 'typical' and the vast majority of our dietary sodium came from processed food.

So let me just say, my original premise that our existing eating habits put us very close to a 'low sodium' diet has been shattered.  And now I see my ideas about eating a 'raw' or 'clean' diet are nothing but romantic delusions.  This is going to be a lot of hard work that will have major implications on my shopping and cooking habits.    

Looking For Inspiration in All the Right Places

Yes, I have the winter blues.  It seems that the more I am cooped up in the house, the more dissatisfied I am with my surroundings.  So while I wait for the spring thaw, I am looking for ways to beautified my interiors.  I have been drawing lots of decorating inspiration from Houzz.  Just browsing through the beautiful photography on this website lifts my spirits.  Plus, if you sign up for an account you can create 'idea books' for future reference or to share.  Beautiful and well organized...oh the inspiration...

Happy New Year

Happy New Year.

It must be a sign of getting older but I seem to find myself spending more time reflecting on years past than on eagerly anticipating the upcoming year.  Something about the number 2010 makes me reflect over the last couple of decades in five year increments:

• 5 years ago (2005): I trained for and completed my first (and only) marathon.
• 10 years ago (2000): I welcomed my second child and moved in the KC area
• 15 years ago (1995): I completed my dissertation and moved to NC
• 20 years ago (1990): I moved from the Midwest to Miami to start grad school
• 25 years ago (1985): Welcomed adulthood and began planning for the adventure that would quickly take up 25 years.

Using Down Time During Winter Break Creatively

Winter break begins today.  I can't believe how fast the last few months have flown by.  The other day I joked with another SAHM whose youngest also started kindergarten about how now that the kids are in school all day we never see each other.  And I thought I would have so much time on my hands.  HA!

Now, I have been busy getting back into career mode.  No job at this point, but spending a lot of time researching, networking, and refining what I want to do when I grow up (or at least in the next year). 

But the next few weeks, I am going to enjoy taking time off from 'constant homework badgering' (my oldest is in junior high...need I say more?).  The extracurricular activities also slow down, and thus so does my time as a taxi cab driver.

I'm not much of a 'crafty' mom, but I am looking forward to a few fun projects with the kids...1) making a gingerbread house (using an all inclusive kit, of course), and 2) turning my six and nine year olds' great story telling imagination into their first books using Tikatok.  I have been wanting to try this out for awhile and now will have the time to help my guys give it a whirl.  This service provides story prompts for creative minds but with the flexibility to tell their own stories as well as plenty of space for custom illustrations that can be uploaded.  Books can be professionally published at a reasonable cost as well as downloaded into PDF ebooks for a small fee.  If the test drive goes well, I am thinking about having the kids collaborate on book to give their Papa for his 70th birthday.  What grandparent wouldn't love that?!