Cozi Blog

Confessions of a Cozi Collage Fanatic!

When I first saw my family vacation photos in a Cozi Collage, I was instantly hooked! I love pictures, especially pictures of my kids, so I was a good candidate to enjoy the collages cooked up randomly by Cozi, but I didn’t realize just how cool the collages would be.

It turns out there’s something really magical about seeing previously individual pictures as part of a group of photos. Somehow, the collages manage to tell a story in a way that individual pictures sometimes can’t.

When I found that I could scroll through my Cozi collages by using the right and left arrow keys on my keyboard, a whole new world was opened up to me! Now I can just scroll right or left to see what the last collage was, or what the next one will be. The other day, I realized that I had been scrolling for almost an hour! That’s when I knew I was becoming a Cozi Collage fanatic!

Of course, this addiction is better than most any other, and it’s actually brought huge benefits to my life! I’m no longer scolded at family occasions for failing to send photos of the kids to the grandparents, aunts and uncles. Thanks to being able to send Cozi Collages via e-mail, I am back in the good graces of my extended family and in-laws! Just by hitting "S" on the keyboard, I can send pictures without any effort whatsoever, and it makes people so happy to receive these unexpected pictures!

Cozi Collages help me stay in touch with people who wouldn’t otherwise see pictures of the kids very often, and makes the extended family around the country feel more connected. They also give me an opportunity to enjoy the photos I take, and let the kids enjoy all the photos, too. It was a fun and sweet moment to come around the corner recently and see my 10-year old son sitting at the computer enjoying a collage of a recent family vacation.

So I freely admit to being a Cozi Collage addict and fanatic, and my life is definitely better for it! As my family and friends keep telling me, keep the collages coming!

Five-second rule too strict?

Chances are that if you were at a July 4th picnic or barbecue yesterday, you may have heard someone shout the phrase "five-second rule!" before quickly picking up food they had dropped on the ground, blowing or wiping off any detritus, and popping it in their mouth.

Come to find out, you really have a good bit more than five seconds to safely rescue and consume those wayward mouthwatering morsels before you need to worry about them becoming contaminated.

In research conducted by two Connecticut College seniors,  Nicole Moin and Molly Goettsche, they discovered that food dropped on the floor in one of their college dining halls remained bacteria-free for up to 30 seconds for wet food (apple slices) and more than a minute for dry (Skittles candy). In fact, the Skittles didn't show any bacterial contamination until the five-minute mark.

So next time you choose to rescue that tasty treat - or see one of your kids do the same - rest easier in the knowledge that time, and a little healthy dirt,  is on your side.

Sleepaway Camp: Are we all really ready?

Last weekend my husband and I took our sons to “Family Camp.”  This is the program name for a weekend “try out” of a camp they are signed up to attend this summer.

Our almost 9 year old son Avi is signed up for 10 days and his 7 year old brother Ezra is signed up for 5 days. 

At Family Camp we slept in bunk beds, ate way too much, sang songs, played on the lake – the usual.  The camp we’ve chosen is small and cozy and feels like a great start for them.

It’s also about an hour and a half from Seattle.  Just far enough to feel like an adventure.

But are they really ready?  Are we ready?

I know that for our older son it will provide an incredible growth opportunity.  He’s struggling with what to do about his special toy that he’s attached to.  He’s clearly worried the other kids will tease him.  It’s so heartbreaking and I’m trying to help him find something “cooler” that he’ll be more comfortable with.  It’s a long story that I’d like to blog more about but he’d kill me if he ever found out that I “told all” on this front. 

The hard part is that I’m attached to his special toy too.  When I see the boys with these toys I breathe easier knowing that they are soothed and that we have these last vestiges of babyhood still with us.  Heck we talk about these toys like they are actual members of our family! 

So on one hand I’m torn and don’t want them to grow up and on the other I know it’s time. 

I’d like to say my husband and I are planning a grand adventure for the 5 days that both of them will be gone but the truth is that I’ll be content to putter around the house, cook, clean – the usual. Just in case we get a call from one of them.  I’ll probably be holding my teddy a lot on those 5 days too.

Organizing Baby

I feel like I'm a pretty organized person who works very well having things scheduled. I also like tracking things, sometimes with more enthusiasm than the situation warrants. But then along comes a product that makes even me feel like an organizational babe-in-the-woods.

The ITZBEEN is a timer for new parents that keeps track of how long it's been (clever!) since the last diaper change, feeding, nap, and whatever else they feel they need to track. There's also a toggle to help nursing mothers remember which side the baby last nursed on.

Personally... when I was parenting newborns I can't imagine wanting one more thing to remember to do... "Honey, did you set the nap timer?" We changed diapers when they were dirty, nursed when the baby was hungry (which, at times, was so constant that I wouldn't have wanted to know how few minutes rest between nursing sessions I was getting), and the babies napped when... well, when they were sleepy. But I guess, for some parents who feel a real need to keep track of baby care at this level of detail, it makes...sense?

What do you think? Overkill? Or should we get our developers working on synching Cozi Central with the ITZBEEN? <insert smiley face>

Site of the Week: artPad

This one is just cool. Art.com, a site that sells prints, tapestries, posters and other wall decorations, has a flash-based painting program that you an play with for free. It's called artPad, and it's just plain fun. Let your kids sit down and create a masterpiece... or wait until they're in bed and create your own. You can save it and send it to grandma and even add it to the artPad gallery for others to see and add to. And when you save, it doesn't simply keep the final product, it shows a movie of how you created it, frame-by-frame.

Psst! Sometimes, You Just Gotta Pass It On

This was in my inbox this morning, from Robbie, our fearless leader, who writes... "As I read through this, I thought, 'this one belongs on the Cozi blog…"

---------

If Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were alive today, their infamous
sketch, "Who's on First?" might have turned out something like this:

COSTELLO CALLS TO BUY A COMPUTER FROM ABBOTT

ABBOTT: Super Duper computer store. Can I help you?

COSTELLO: Thanks. I'm setting up an office in my den and I'm thinking
about buying a computer.

ABBOTT: Mac?

COSTELLO: No, the name's Lou.

ABBOTT: Your computer?

COSTELLO: I don't own a computer. I want to buy one.

ABBOTT: Mac?

COSTELLO: I told you, my name's Lou.

ABBOTT: What about Windows?

COSTELLO: Why? Will it get stuffy in here?

ABBOTT: Do you want a computer with Windows?

COSTELLO: I don't know. What will I see when I look at the windows?

ABBOTT: Wallpaper.

COSTELLO: Never mind the windows. I need a computer and software.

ABBOTT: Software for Windows?

COSTELLO: No. On the computer! I need something I can use to write
proposals, track expenses an d run my business. What do you have?

ABBOTT: Office.

COSTELLO: Yeah, for my office. Can you recommend anything?

ABBOTT: I just did.

COSTELLO: You just did what?

ABBOTT: Recommend something.

COSTELLO: You recommended something?

ABBOTT: Yes.

COSTELLO: For my office?

ABBOTT: Yes.

COSTELLO: OK, what did you recommend for my office?

ABBOTT: Office.

COSTELLO: Yes, for my office!

ABBOTT: I recommend Office with Windows.

COSTELLO: I already have an office with windows! OK, let's just say
I'm sitting at my computer and I want to type a proposal. What do I need?

ABBOTT: Word.

COSTELLO: What word?

ABBOTT: Word in Office.

COSTELLO: The only word in office is office.

ABBOTT: The Word in Office for Windows.

COSTELLO: Which word in office for windows?

ABBOTT: The Word you get when you click the blue "W". < BR>
COSTELLO: I'm going to click your blue "w" if you don't start with
some straight answers. What about financial bookkeeping? You have anything
I can track my money with?

ABBOTT: Money.

COSTELLO: That's right. What do you have?

ABBOTT: Money.

COSTELLO: I need money to track my money?

ABBOTT: It comes bundled with your computer.

COSTELLO: What's bundled with my computer?

ABBOTT: Money.

COSTELLO: Money comes with my computer?

ABBOTT: Yes. No extra charge.

COSTELLO: I get a bundle of money with my computer? How much?

ABBOTT: One copy.

COSTELLO: Isn't it illegal to copy money?

ABBOTT: Microsoft gave us a license to copy Money.

COSTELLO: They can give you a license to copy money?

ABBOTT: Why not? THEY OWN IT!

(A few days later)

ABBOTT: Super Duper computer store. Can I help you?

COSTELLO: How do I turn my computer off?

ABBOTT: Click on "START"..... ....

Every Day Can Be A Holiday

The Ides of March are upon us (Beware!), following closely on the heels of Pi Day. We humans do love our celebrations, don't we? My family will soon celebrate Opening Day (April 2nd) with a trip to see the Mariners play, and just earlier this week we decided that Daylight Savings Day merited a slumber party in the guest room (since nobody could get to sleep an hour earlier than normal bedtime anyway).

It got me wondering... what fun and unique family holidays do other people celebrate? What special spin do you put on the more widely acknowledged holidays? Sound off in the comments and let us know!

If you're feeling low on the cheer and need some suggestions, this site has an extensive list of observances and holidays for nearly every day of the year. Party on!