Love the web

Over the years, I've become an internet junkie. Whether it's current events and news, shopping, jokes, or whatever, I think I could surf the web for twelve hours a day and not get bored. In response to my husband and kids teasing me about that, I thought I'd share some of my favorite sites.

1. http://www.amazon.com/ - The gold standard of online book shopping, Amazon has evolved into a site on which you can buy everything, not just books. Their prices are great, and I use the site a lot just to look up info.

2. http://www.cnn.com/ - Whether you love the news or hate it, or find biases in every bit of media, you have to love CNN just for its home page alone. You can get a pulse on what's going on the world in about three seconds, just by glancing at the main page. In Busy Mom World, anything that keeps you up to date in three seconds is good.

3. http://www.orientaltrading.com/ - This is the best place to find party stuff, school stuff, prizes, craft stuff in bulk, and so forth. For every mom who has put together a theme birthday party or goody bags, this site is the cheapest, and the minimun quantities are not a big deal. If you sign up for their e-mailings, you often get deals such as free shipping, discounts, etc.

4. http://www.vistaprint.com/ - I've been ordering business cards from them for many years. Their cards are printed on quality stock and always look very professional. I get them for myself so that when I drop my kids off somewhere, I can give the other mom my info. (cell phone number, dad's work number, etc.) in an efficient way. The cards look so good, actually, that my boss starting getting her business cards from them. Same story about signing up for e-mailings and getting great offers.

5. http://www.petfinder.com/ - If you have ever considered adopting a pet who needs a home, please check out this site. They are terrific.

6. http://www.speedypettags.com/ - We hate the jingling of tags, so we get collars with the dogs' name and phone number printed on the collar. These folks are very nice to deal with.

7. http://www.momnos.blogspot.com/ - This blog is written by one of my closest friends, an amazing, amazing writer. It's worth checking for new posts every week. While the majority of posts are about Bud, my friend's autistic son and her incredibly insightful thoughts about her experience of raising him, she tackles many topics. My favorite post ever was a recent one about hairdressers.

8. http://www.scrabulous.com/ - I am so hooked on this, it's obscene. If you love Scrabble, check this out.

9. http://www.airset.com/ - For those of us who don't own PDA toys, this online calendar is great. Not only can I manage my own life on it, but also the lives of all of my family members. Also, I can access it from any computer, and so can my husband. Airset sends you reminders about appointments and stuff, too.

10. http://www.chinaberry.com/ - This company started as simply mail order, and of course, evolved into internet shopping, as well. The beauty of this company, however, is that the reviews of each book or item are done by real people, real moms who can comment on why the item is a great choice or whom the item would best target. They only carry awesome things, picking and choosing their offerings very carefully. Love that.

11. http://www.skincheck.org/ - It's all about skin cancer. This non-profit group's website and work is all dedicated to the organizer's son who passed away from melanoma, a PREVENTABLE disease. I know the people personally, and their educational mission is to make sure that no young people ever lose their lives to skin cancer. I adore them personally and professionally. Check out the site, then check your skin.

Hope you like my list and my taste. I'll add more another time.