Death to Google Reader

When I heard Google Reader was biting the dust July 1, I found myself going through the stages of grief. There was denial, continuing my daily online trek to my beloved Reader and ignoring the pop-up reminding me that the end was at hand. I had time and thought that maybe there would be uproar enough to cause them to keep it after all.

Then there was anger. Why, Google? Why would you take away my dear friend who brings me my favorite blogs instead of hopping from blog to blog to blog? What am I? An animal? Nothing will ever be as good as my Reader!

Afterward was bargaining and depression, ending up with me in a sorrowful heap, unable to find a suitable replacement for the Reader-shaped hole in my heart.

But here I am on the acceptance side. Much like the inner turmoil that overwhelms us all when Facebook redesigns, all the Reader transition required was a little time to get used to something new. So, to keep you from spiraling into a deep despair, here are two options I've toyed around with and find a good replacement.

Feedly

Feedly was the first Reader alternative I tried and is ultimate the one I've ended up using regularly. When I started using it, it required a plug-in, but it's now completely Web-based. That, however means little to me. I just wanted it to provide me the blogs in order from newest to oldest, not lumping them together by source as I'd seen some other RSS readers do. Feedly does just that. It has a clean look to it and is easy to navigate and understand. Plus you can choose a newspaper-esque view or one more image centric (like I like). You can also import your Google Reader list into it, so there's no need to add every single blog or site you follow to it.

Bloglovin'

My second favorite option is Bloglovin'. It's similar to Feedly in design, ease of use, importing your Reader list, etc. I'm just sticking with Feedly because it's what I found first. One feature I like though is the popular blogs tab, so you can discover new blogs to follow and enjoy.

I hope these will help you find your next Google Reader love and make the transition a little less emotionally scarring. If you would like to follow me on Bloglovin', there's a handy dandy little button in the sidebar you can click to do so. Whatever RSS you choose, I hope we stay connected!

I'll see you on the other side! (Maybe this is like the whole Y2K thing and nothing will actually happen. But it's good to be prepared, whether it's finding a new reader or collecting thousands of cans of creamed corn.)

Atlantic-Pacific

One of my favorite blogs right now is Atlantic-Pacific. I just love her ladylike style with a twist. She's got me swooning over full skirts, mixing patterns, and wrists full of bracelets. Since I'm trying to resist any shopping urges, I use her blog as my imaginary closet because, while a leather top may not be super practical for a working mom in Arkansas, it is fun to pretend like I could pull it off! 

I think she does a great job of showing how the little things make an outfit. It's all in the details, like her patterned loafers, neon heels, bow belt, cute clutch, and colorful prints. While a leather top may be out of my league, I can definitely amp up my accessory collection. It's an easy way to infuse a little edge and interest into my existing wardrobe. 

All photos via Atlantic-Pacific.

Book review: Bringing Up Bébé

Every year before vacation, I sit down and decide on what books will be my beach reads. Last year I finally read the Hunger Games trilogy after being excruciatingly late to that party. The year before it was Tina Fey's Bossy Pants and Russell Brand's Booky Wook (I was in a memoir mood, I guess). This year's choice was a little more reflective of my current situation.

I had downloaded Bringing Up Bébé on my Kindle last August and only found time to read a chapter of it. I realized that, with a 1 year old in tow, this year would not have a lot of time for leisurely beach reading, so I might as well finish what I had, especially since it pertained to raising a child, which I currently find myself doing.

The book takes a look at the American style of parenting next to the French style of parenting the author witnesses upon moving to France with her husband and infant daughter. While such comparisons can be controversial — one is seen as "right" and the other "wrong" — Druckerman does a good job of avoiding that. At first, she isn't even sure she likes living in France, and she questions some of the parenting tactics she witnesses and slowly warms to them, so she's not obsessed with French culture and unfairly biased.

I haven't read many (OK, any) parenting books because I view them as too psychological, touchy-feely, and judgmental, developing my method from trial and error, asking others, and Googling (always a quality choice). And while Bébé is more of a book about parenting rather than a parenting book, I found this one entertaining to read and thought provoking as well.

One of my favorite ideas presented was the cadre, or framework, approach to parenting that the French parents Druckerman observes use. The French create a strict framework inside of which the child has freedom. She gives the example of her friend who implements a strict 8:30 bedtime for her children, but they are free to play, read, or do whatever in their room after that time but must stay in their rooms. After a while, the child will put himself to bed because he's tired. It gives the child an opportunity to play an active role in obeying.

I especially loved the chapter about food and how to help our kids learn to enjoy a wide range of flavors, explaining that children's demands for a diet only of white pasta, ketchup, and chicken tenders isn't something innately in them, that they have the ability to eat a variety of things. The problem is in giving into these demands versus teaching them about foods and flavors.

It was also very interesting to see how another culture views working mothers (stay-at-home mothers are pretty rare in France), daycare (a scary word here, but government subsidized and awesome in Paris), maintaining the marriage relationship between spouses, child autonomy (they feel that children need to have freedom and space, even infants, and not suffocating parents following them around the playground narrating their every move), and discipline.

There are some things I didn't completely agree with (she notes that the French aren't very pro breast-feeding and that they limit praising their children — which also made sense to a point ... but it's too much to cover in a parenthetical statement), but overall it has made me think about the kind of person I want to raise and has given me some helpful insight on how to navigate that path.

I would definitely recommend it, in part because I really loved it and in part because I know Scott would love for me to have someone else to talk to about it. He's heard enough about French parenting philosophies to last him a lifetime.

Toes in the sand

We just got back from our family vacation to Florida, and we had a blast! While it wasn't Preston's first time on the trip, it was his first time to actually get to experience the beach. Last year, he was only 6 weeks old, so he spent his time in the room and only spent about 15 minutes at the beach one evening for pictures.

This year, accompanied by a small fleet of inflatables, Preston got to come down and enjoy the beach in the mornings. (He napped most of the afternoons away. The beach can be tiring!) He loved the pool and floating in the ocean with his daddy and grammy, as I expected of the child who cries when taken out of the bathtub. In an unexpected twist, though, he loved the sand, too! (This is also the child who cried because he had cake frosting on his hands for his cake smash pictures. I mean, who hates frosting but loves sand?)

^^^ Cool and shady in his inflatable pool at the beach.^^^

^^^ Sandy hands, sandy toes.^^^

^^^Flying high with daddy.^^^

In the sappiest of ways, it melted my heart to see Preston love the beach so much. Our family vacations to Florida are such a long running tradition — my mom and her parents went when she was a girl, and then my dad was added to the group, then my sister and me, and then Scott and now Preston — and I loved watching him take to it so well. And I look forward to getting to share more of these summer memories with him!

The magic of online shopping (and saving)

I love online shopping.

Since I live an hour from my favorite places, being able to virtually browse and bag my favorites from the comfort of my own couch only to have it show up 5-7 business days later on my doorstep is an excellent alternative. Plus, my feet don't hurt as much afterward.

Most of the time, though, I just "imaginary" shop online — fill my bag up but don't check out in the end. On the off chance that I do click the "proceed to checkout" button, I visit a couple of other websites to make sure I'm saving as much as possible because, while it might start as imaginary shopping, it costs real money.

The first place I go is Ebates.com. Now, you've probably seen the commercials for Ebates with people holding up their big fat checks talking about how they made money shopping online and thought, "What's the catch?" I mean, there has to be a catch, right? Well, having used it a few months now, I've yet to find one. Once you set up an account, you just have to go to the Ebates site, find the site you're wanting to shop at (for instance, J.Crew). Beside the store name, you'll see what percentage cash back they're offering (6% at J.Crew right now). Click on the store, and that's it. Shop and check out as usual. Once your payment has gone through (about 2-3 days), you'll get an email from Ebates telling you how much cash you'll get back. They send you a check every three months with your savings.

As an added bonus, when you sign up and make your first purchase, you get a $10 gift card from one of a selection of various stores (Target being one of them). They'll also send you emails with coupon codes or when stores are running double cash back. It makes me feel especially frugal when I buy something at double cash back. If they sent the savings back in gold coins, I'd dive in them a la Scrooge McDuck. It'd be a shallow pool, but still.

My second stop is RetailMeNot.com. I do a quick search for where I'm shopping to see if they have any useful coupon codes or free shipping. (Continuing the example, with the code "SUMMER" at J.Crew, you save 25% site wide ... I think I need to do some J.Crew shopping now!) You don't even have to sign up with them. Other users provide feedback to let you know if the code works or not, so you're not left sifting through a bunch of duds.

While I'm not much of a couponer (although I'm working on it), this is definitely something I do every time I'm shopping online. I save money, and I get new clothes. It's a beautiful thing.

*Full discloser: If you follow the Ebates links, sign up, and make a purchase, Ebates will add $5 to my savings. It doesn't affect your savings or cost you anything, though.