Why do I love Dragon Naturally Speaking? Let me count the ways . . . .

Ok, so the video doesn’t tell you all ways I love Dragon Naturally Speaking. However, it does show you how easy it is to use the software. Literally, all you have to do is plug in a noise canceling headset to your computer and download the software. You place your cursor where you want to type and away you go. Now, you do have to train the software to your voice. I tend to talk fast, so it had to correct for that. Plus, if you find that it is typing same wrong word, you can train it on that specific word. This isn’t rocket science to figure out (which is good because I have a tendency to NOT read the books or pdf files that comes with software).

I was able to create that video while my kids were up and playing at my feet (and you can tell when they grabbed my leg, because the video starts wobbling. You can also hear them a little too.) However, I did want to show that you can still be involved in doing other things and be able to use Dragon NaturallySpeaking. This more than triples my typing speed when I am typing and dealing with my kids (Take the Dragon NaturallySpeaking typing test if you don’t know what your typing speed is). I am actually writing this blog post using the software too. Here is the official video on how this all works:

As I stated in my video, I am finding that I can get a lot more in the little snippets of time I have during the day plus I am able to get way more done at night. I love being able to go to bed before midnight. I love being able to answer emails and do blog posts when I have Will sitting on my lap drinking from his sippy and watching cartoons. I have five blogs, so being able to write more content in less time is a huge plus for me. Plus, anyone who knows me, knows I have no problems talking. I am able to do my freelance work and reports using this also. I will be recommending this to my boss. Beside blogging, I have used it to make my daily lists of what I have to do each day plus some grocery shopping lists too! I am not the only one who thinks it is great, check out this New York Times Review.

Dragon NaturallySpeaking is really for anyone who works on a computer. If you talk faster than you type, you need this. If you want to be more efficient in your work, you need this. If you just want a new toy to play with, you DEFINITELY need this. Time is money, and the time you save from using Dragon NaturallySpeaking makes it worth every penny.

I love finding new toys to put on my blogs  This widget is something I am hoping to incorporate over at my travel blog shortly.  However, I wanted to make sure that anyone who was interested in travel checked out this widget first!

This is Flash travel map that is very easy to embed into your site.  You can display flight route information and is free to to download too.  You can fully configure it so that you can show your readers a fixed departure point, fixed destination point, fixed departure and destination, or an ‘anywhere to anywhere’ open search.  There are 20 languages to pick from, and it can also be added to added to iGoogle Netvibes, and your desktop.

Even though Skyscanner the most powerful and flexible flight search engine in Europe (which provides instant online price comparisons on over 300,000 flights and over 600 airlines), this maps tool widget works for the United States also.  I used it to map all of the trips I took this year without any problems.  When I typed Chicago into the Maps Code Wizard, I was able to pull up all three airports here (Midway, Ohare, and Rockford).  This is a great way to show your readers where you are going when leaving for vacation.  If you do live in Europe or have a big European readership, this is a great way for them to check prices for trips. (see Cheap Flights Map Widget)

Head over to Skyscanner and check out their maps tool widget!

If you have little ones in your house, check out Baby Rodenburg. This DVD teaches you child sign language, A-B-C’s, numbers, colors, and animals.  The DVD was a huge hit here.  Madison (my 4 year old) is learning sign language in preschool, so she loved the reinforcement.  My son who is 15 months loved it due to the music and seeing other babies.  I am not sure if he really “understood” any of the sign language.  Mom like it, because I got to actually learn some sign language (like how to sign eat) that is actually quite useful at my house.

My only complaint about the DVD is that it seems a bit disorganized at times.  I wish they correlated the signing to whichever letter they were on.  Meaning, when they did the sign for eat, I think they should have been talking about the letter E.  That being said, they really reinforced each sign and what it means using several different ways.  As each thing was signed, Madison often repeated the sign several times and repeated the word that went with the sign.  Will danced with the music and pointed to the screen and said “seeeeeee” every time an animal, baby, or toddler was on.

This DVD was created by a set of parents who couldn’t find any DVDs out there that fit their needs for their child.  Instead of complaining, they made their own DVD to use with their own child and to share with the rest of us!

As a work at home mom, I often feel like I am going in 20 directions at any given time.  Add in extended family and you really think your life is a circus.  My kids are only 4 and 1 so I can only imagine how much worse this gets.  Qlubb is one of those organizing sites that allow you to not feel that your life is a circus.  You can use this as your own personal orgaziner, family organizer, playgroups organizer, school, organizer, or even a community organizer!  There are even sign up sheets you can use — I can definitely see this coming in handy for your next family reunion.  It is just as easy to add tasks as it is to add pictures.  The majority of the things you want this to do is on the main page which makes nagivating the site quite easily.  This is one of the few sites out that I have ever seen that allows you to use your social networking to benefit your real life.

If you need to get organized, check out Qlubb, and let me know your thoughts.

Another blog you should definitely add to your blogroll has to be Unguided Blog.  The first thing that jumped out at me with this blog is its calming colors.  I love the blue background and green text.  I find it relaxing and enjoyable to read.  This simple one sidebar theme is just awesome.  It is a clean design and doesn’t make anything look cluttered.  The other thing that will stand out for you is the content.  You will find yourself reading the posts and wanting more. You can read about everything from acronyms to arab women finding men sexy.  If you want to read a view of the world like you’ve never seen before, definitely check out the Unguided Blog.

Let me warn you, make you sure have a box of tissues handy when you check out the blog Because Someone Cares.  This blog is about (to quote her site) “Every time I hear of a suffering child, my heart breaks. I must do something to help in any way I can. For now I’ll write about some of these children, and hopefully you’ll read and do whatever you can to help.”  She also has other posts, but there are a lot of really good posts about children who need your help.  As a mother with two little ones myself, it reminds me of how lucky my kids and I really are and breaks my heart at the same time.  She even has the foundations that she talks about in her sidebar for easy reference.  If you want to make a difference in this world, check out her blog and the foundations she talks about and consider donating yourself.

My family and l luck out.  We have plenty of credit cards at our disposal when I want to do some online shopping.  However, not everyone can get a credit card, or if they have one, it is only for emergency purposes.  What do you do when you want to shop and not use a credit card?

EBillMe comes to the rescue and allows you to pay cash online by using the bill pay portion of your checking account. I personally tried out this service yesterday, and it is super easy to use. First, I went to Tiger Direct to order a Wii game.  You click on the add to cart just like you normally would.  Then click on proceed to secure check out.  Fill in all your information and where it says “submit order” pick eBillMe.  That’s it!  You now have ordered using your checking account!  Now, on the screen you will have what you need to set up payment through your bank.  You also will get an email too!  Everybody’s bill pay is different, so I won’t go through how to set that up, but they make it super easy by giving you everything you need.  I didn’t take me any longer to buy my game  this way verses using a credit card (that is because it usually takes me a while to find my purse and wallet that has my credit card).

If you prefer not to shop online using your credit card, I highly recommend EBillMe.  This is also a great way to shop if you don’t want to be handing out your credit card number too!