Mommy FTW

Those of you who read Mommy For The Win regularly know that Cameron loves to read, and I try to encourage this by always getting him new books.  I’ve become a huge fan of the D.C. Public Library because really, who has the money to buy all these books!

When I first started going to the Library I would aimlessly search the shelves and pull out what seemed like it would interest Cameron.  Occasionally I would find something good, but it was hard to really get in there to look for specific things while wrangling a toddler and a newborn.  So, with the encouragement of the DCPL on twitter (@dcpl) I checked out the D.C. Public Library website, and learned how to place books on hold for pick up at whatever library I wanted.  It’s really easy – Here’s a step by step guide:

1)Figure out what book you want to check out – this can be the hardest part.  If you are short on inspiration, use Amazon.com to help you.  Today I started by typing in “Truck Book” to the search box.  One of the suggestions that came up was “Little Blue Truck” by Alice Schertle.  The reviews seemed good, so I thought I’d see if the Library had it.  (Honestly, I would say 8 out of 10 times they do have the book I am looking for!)  FYI, another great resource is the “Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought” suggestions box.  It’s full of other great ideas for similar books.  If your toddler has a favorite book, search for it and see what Amazon suggests in this area.  It’s really helpful!

Use this suggestions box to come up with ideas

2)Go to the D.C. Public Library website and search their online catalog.  The website is catalog.dclibrary.org – just type the title of the book (or if you have an author you like, you can try that as well) to find your book.

Search the online catalog

3)Place the book on hold.  Click on the book – when looking at the book information page you will see there is an option to “Place Hold” – this means that they will fetch the book for you (from any DC Library branch) and bring it to whichever Library branch you ask.  Yes.  THEY DELIVER IT!! If the book is checked out, they will get it for you once it is returned.  Usually it takes a few days if the book is not checked out.  They will email you when the book has arrived at your requested library.

Place your book on Hold - you can choose your pick up branch

4)Pick up your book.  Once you get your email, go and pick up your book – it will be there waiting for you under your name.  It’s so easy.  You will never aimlessly browse the Library again!

You can manage your holds and see what the status is as well.  If you decide you don’t want a book after all, you can cancel the hold.

Manage your Holds using the "My Requested Holds" button

Of course to do all this you need a library account.  If you don’t have one of those, sign up.  It’s quick, easy, and FREE!

Not in D.C.?  Don’t worry – I know other Libraries have a similar system.  Stop in to your local branch and ask them how to place a hold for a book and if they have an online catalog.  You will be so happy you did!

I think twitter is an amazing way to get and share news about your neighborhood, talk to brands directly, and just have fun. I follow a lot of twitter accounts of websites that I read regularly because they will often post extra information – little tidbits, pictures, and news updates – and the brands will sometimes post about special sales, contests, and promotions.

Try twitter, even if you just want to follow people and not post. It's great! Plus, people will think you are cool.

So, if you give twitter a try, here’s my list of people you should think about following:

Brands:

Huggies – Huggies – my diaper of choice for Cameron, weather its their Little Movers, Overnights, or Little Swimmers. Whoever does their twitter is amazing. They are really active with the community, and love to share everyone’s pictures and advice.  Plus, there are lots of giveaways!

PullUpsBigKid – Huggies Pull Ups – for those of you who are potty training, get expert advice.

Sephora_Expert – An expert from Sephora (which is also on twitter) that gives expert advice and will specifically answer all your beauty questions. Go ahead, ask them a question!

FreshDirect – Fresh Direct – the grocery delivery service.  They offer lots of specials via twitter.

diapersdotcom – Diapers dot com – My go to spot when I’m in a pinch for baby supplies. Who can resist free overnight shipping?

PatagoniaNYC – Patagonia – Find out when the sales are on, and get excellent customer service. They even put Cam’s sizes on hold for me to be sure what I needed was there when I got to the store.

CCCalifornia – C and C California – I love this company’s super soft tee’s and clothing. Follow them to find out about all the sales and specials going on.

Neighborhood news / local bloggers:

PolishBar_Bklyn – Polish Bar of Brooklyn – This local mani-pedi spot is my favorite in the neighborhood.

Brownstoner – Brownstoner.com – Get up to the minute updates on what’s going on in brooklyn.

OneHungryMama – OneHungryMama.com – Get great food + kid related info.

fortgreenepark – fortgreenepark.org – Get local news straight from the Fort Greene Park Conservancy.

PrattArea – prattarea.org – The Pratt Area Community Council

LOVEofBROOKLYN – fortheloveofbrooklyn.com – If you love photography and you love Brooklyn, then you will really enjoy these tweets.

BrooklynKids – brooklynkids.org – the Brooklyn Children’s Museum – get the latest scoop on the new exhibits and activities.

achildgrows – achildgrowsinbrooklyn.com – All the news any Brooklyn parent can use.

clintonhillblog – ClintonHillBlog.com – Covering news specific to our ‘hood.

BKLocal – fort-greene.thelocal.nytimes.com – the New York Times Local covering Fort Greene and Clinton Hill.

bklynbotanic – bbg.org – the Brooklyn Botanic Garden – see pictures, and learn about events.

PATHBrooklyn – parentsaroundthehill.com – See the latest from Parents Around the Hill.

camerongood – See what my son Cameron is up to. I post lots of pictures, and we check in on Gowalla, so you can see where we are at.

mrsbetsygood – That’s me! I tweet a lot about neighborhood news, as well as random stuff about my life in general.

Gowalla is a really interesting App for the iPhone that can help you meet up with other moms (or friends!) and it’s free.  Often used in conjunction with facebook, or twitter, but great just on it’s own, Gowalla encourages you to “Check in” places that you visit.  When you do this, it lets your friends who also have the Gowalla App know.  A message gets sent to their phone (like a text message – but not counting as one, for those of you who don’t have unlimited texting, like me!).  I think this has some pretty cool possibilities!

Tell your friends where you are...

...have an inpromptu lunch!

If you were at the Library the Playground, or out for a bite, you could check in at that location (create the location if it’s not already listed).  You can even add a description of what you are doing.  Your message would go out to your friends, and if they were near by, they could stop in.  It’s fun – and free, and might get you some unexpected playdates.  Gowalla works on the iPhone, Android, and Blackberry.  FYI, if you have heard of foursquare – this is pretty similar, but I think it has a few features that make it better.