Coordinate family schedules with mobile calendars.
Parents need a multitude of skills and a storehouse of knowledge to make it through each day. The apps on your smartphone can play a vital role in finding what your kids need and providing on-the-fly opportunities for learning that will improve your parenting skills. Apps can also increase your productivity, letting you get more done in less time and giving you more opportunities for quality family time.
Cozi
The Cozi mobile app is a free family organizer that consolidates calendars, tasks, grocery lists and meal planning. It also includes a daily journal that allows you to record important events and milestones. Cozi was selected as the 2010 Consumer Product of the Year by the Washington Technology Industry Association, and it won the National Parenting Publications award that year. With apps for Android, iPhone, iOS 5 devices and Blackberry, Cozi lets you manage and update daily activities for your entire family. For quick identification and retrieval, you can color-code tasks and appointments for each person. Share lists and tasks with family members or remind them by email or text. Cozi also provides planning templates, coupons and discounts. Outlook, iCal and Google Calendar integration allow you to combine work, home and mobile appointments. Any user of a Web-enabled phone that does not have a dedicated app can use the Cozi mobile site.
Mom Maps
Mom Maps brings innovation and family fun to mobile navigation apps. Parents can use this app to identify kid-friendly places based on location. Available on the iPhone and Android platforms, the Moms Maps app was a 2011 Babble.com pick as a Top 25 travel app for parents. The Moms Maps website has compiled a list of 28,000 locations for family-oriented services and activities, such as kid's meals, playgrounds, museums and parks. Search by city, ZIP code or neighborhood. The listings mainly cover major cities across the United States as well as Vancouver, Montreal and Paris. Users can contribute to the website database and provide reviews to update the online data.
Mobicip Safe Browser
When your kids use smartphones, you can help protect them from predators and offensive adult content with parent control tools. The Mobicip Safe Browser app for the iPhone lets you replace the default Safari browser and use a password-protected system to restrict your child's access to undesirable Web content. Babble.com rated this app third on its list of the top 50 iPhone apps for parents. Mobicip Safe Browser simplifies monitoring by letting you choose between three age-level filters. The most restrictive filtering is for elementary school ages, while the high school filters are the least restrictive; you can also override or enhance these filters if you wish. Notably, YouTube and Google Search will use your filters. The app prevents installation or access to other browsers that would defeat your protection setup, and it also provides a set of safe bookmarks. Premium features include reports on the amount of time your child spends on the Internet and the ability to set time limits.
Coupon Sherpa
Using coupons when you shop can lower your grocery bill and free up money for extras and family fun. Coupon Sherpa is a mobile app that runs on Android, iPhone and iPad devices and it lets you download coupons to your mobile phone. Download virtual coupons for instant retrieval, leave the stacks of paper coupons at home and breeze through the grocery checkout line by showing the cashier your phone. Using your GPS location data, Coupon Sherpa finds deals and coupons at retailers and service businesses near your location.
ABC Family
The ABC Family app arrived in the iTunes app store in 2012, providing iPad and iOS5 device users access to quality, on-demand family TV programming. Stream full episodes of popular network TV series such as Jane by Design, Switched at Birth and the Lying Game to your iPad as they become available on ABC.com. Additionally, you can schedule reminders so you won't miss any episodes. The app lets you pause the episode that you are watching and you can return to it at a more convenient time. It requires an Internet connection while you view the shows.
Tags: Coupon Sherpa, Mobicip Safe, Mobicip Safe Browser, Safe Browser, also provides, Android iPhone, Cozi mobile
