5 Apps I Love

To begin with, I am not getting paid by any of these apps to promote them. Though that would be nice. Instead, I am just sharing with my friends the phone apps that I love that they may not be aware of because sharing is caring.

1. Overdrive 
I begin with my absolute favorite. I love books and could seriously bankrupt myself by buying up several sections of Barnes and Nobles. And while I still prefer a good physical book that I can hold and sniff for that weird, musty book smell, my busy mom lifestyle forces me to use ebooks and audio books for convenience. So that's where Overdrive comes in. This app connects to your local library and lets you download ebooks and audio books straight to your phone for a limited period for FREE!!! I have saved so much money doing this, and I am never without a book for those boring periods of waiting between soccer practice, doctor's appointments, and the weird useless time between school pickup and some other errand when it is pointless to drive home. 

2. Waze 
My husband introduced me to this G.P.S mapping app. I prefer it to my Maps app for several reasons:
     a. It tells me the shortest route to drive. Sometimes it's a way I would have never thought about,      
         but it hasn't steered me wrong yet. 
     b. It notifies you about accidents, road work, and other obstacles up ahead. It even lets you add 
         your own if you see something. And this in itself becomes something for your kid to do to keep 
         him from saying I'm bored for the tenth time. The only downside is it shows how fast you are 
         driving and if you are accidentally raising a backseat driver like I am, he or she may 
         occasionally point out that you are driving 57 miles in a 50 mile an hour zone. 
     c. It notifies you if there are police up ahead. And while I never drive over the speed limit (ignore  
         the comment above), it can serve as a nice heads up for anyone accidentally finding their foot 
         resting heavily upon the gas pedal.
     d. It lets you customize the voice of the Siri like speaker who gives you directions. I currently use 
         Simon. His sexy British accent makes my drive more pleasant. 

3. Shopkick
Like most women, I have a love affair with Target and can aimlessly wander the aisles in a blissful state of nirvana. The Shopkick app lets me wander while earning some money. The app even works in other stores besides Target like at Walmart, T.J. Maxx, Best Buy, and Marshall's to name a few. It gives you points for things like opening the app as you walk in the door or for scanning the barcode of items. Kind of like a grownup scavenger hunt. Once you have earned at least 1250 points, you can redeem them for a $5 gift card.

My favorite is the Target or Starbucks gift card as it downloads straight to your phone, and since I am usually in Target I use it then and there for my Americano or the bag of chocolate covered macadamia nuts I plan to hide from the kids and eat in secret. I usually earn a gift card every other month or so. 








4. My Fitness Pal
Okay, I have a love hate relationship with this app. It's great when I torture myself and go on a 1200 calorie diet. However, it tells me when my handful of chocolate covered macadamia nuts is about 300 calories. Overall, it has helped me shed the baby weight when I've put my willpower to use. And it does let you put in your exercises so you can earn back calories. 

5. Voxer
When it comes to typing texts, I should be all thumbs like the new generation. But I'm all index finger and hunt and peck my way at a slogging pace with autocorrect often suggesting words I do not want.

So this walkie talkie style app lets me talk into the phone and tell my husband or my buddy, Jennie things like "Can you pick up some more of that delicious guacamole from Albertson's" or "hey I'm running late for Cub Scouts". And since I find myself in situations where I don't have the free fingers or time to text, this app lets me talk and walk at the same time. I even have my son Voxer for me when I'm driving since I don't text and drive. Sometimes I end up having Voxer conversations while wandering the aisles of Target in between scanning for Shopkicks. 

Anyway, these are my five favorite apps. I'd love to hear from others if there is something you believe we might not know about but really should.