Ever get the feeling you're forgetting something? If you're like me, I'm a mother, a wife, I work a normal 9-5, and I have a small business (alot right?) I ALWAYS feel like I'm forgetting something. Now usually when I feel that way I can't remember what it is, but when I actually forget something, I don't remember till ages later. Adero is a system that is designed to help with that... What's Adero? Adero..the name sounds nice but what is it? Adero is an intelligent organization system designed to turn any bag you carry into a smart bag. How does it do this, you ask? It does this through the integration of smart tags and taglets oh and there's an app! Y'all know I'm here for a handy app. You add the taglets to things you want to be connected to your smart tagged bag. When everything is in one place your Smart Tag on your bag is green, and if you're missing something the Smart Tag turns red. And if you're not necessarily eyeing the tag at the time the companion app also allows you to check and see if you have all of your things, more specifically you can figure out exactly what's missing. The app is available for iOS and Android. People with children are 66% more likely to lose things on a daily basis You can get the Adero system starting at $79.99, you can turn your favorite bag (which could just be the most essential bag lol) into a smart bag. Think I might need to invest in this thing the way my memory is set up lol.

Starting this with a disclaimer..I'm not a social media guru or anything, I'm just a girl who uses social media, and wants my stories to not be blah lol. So clearly I've got an eye for a good app or two and I've come across a few that I thought I'd share. Canva Tried and true, and one of my favorite staple apps for social graphics, Canva has plenty of templates for Instagram Stories or like all the other stuff you can start with a blank template that's formatted to size and design your heart out. Canva is free abs available for both iOS and Android Unfold It's one of my newer apps I use, this one is specifically for your stories. It gives you premade layouts that you can customize using colors, pretty fonts, it may even give your stories some structure lol. But if you're trying to give a more polished look to your stories. It's free but has a few paid upgrades in it as far as templates go, it's currently only available for iOS. Unfold Screens (App Store) StoryArt Another new one to my collection, (I like variety lol). StoryArt allows you to make some really cool content for IG Stories. I like that there are categories of templates, and there's even animated ones! Because sometimes we're captivated by a good video or heck even some movement (I am). It's even got highlight templates (you know those little cover images you see for the story highlights in people's profiles). Now not all of the templates are free but there's a good amount to chose from. StoryArt is available for both iOS and Android StoryArt screens (Photo: App Store) Adobe Spark Post I don't think you can really have a digitally creative convo without Adobe coming up somewhere in it. I mean they're synonymous with design, c'mon even if you don't use it you've heard of some type of Adobe product. Well Adobe Spark Post is a free app that helps make some pretty cool social media graphics and of course since we're still in the same post..you guessed it, it can help with your IG Stories. It has templates of course and if you're really not sure what to do you can simply "Remix" the posts you see in there, meaning make a few adjustments to the text, colors there and ta-da! A graphic for your stories! Download the app for free on iOS or Android Adobe Spark Post screens (Photo: App Store) A Design Kit One more to share before I go..A Design Kit drew me in because it offers the foil textures to use for free and not alot of apps do. But unlike the other apps I've mentioned it doesn't give you templates to start with. It does give you backgrounds, brushes, stickers, fonts and shapes to build out your graphic. So if you're feeling like freestyling it a bit, or want to use the foil features to accent an image or something you can. It gives you ratios for both story and regular posts. Unfortunately my Android users, this one is only for iOS A Design Kit screens (Photo: App Store) Sooo which ones will you be downloading? Do you use your IG stories or do you just watch others? Let me know!

I'm the go-to person in my circle for tech questions, and one of the most frequent questions that asked is "What are your recommendations for a new computer?" Now of course like all people I have my favorites I lean towards or that I use more often but picking out a new computer or suggesting one I always have people look at these specs.... Are you Mac or PC person? It's an easy either or question right? But it's a little grey if let's say you want to transition from Windows to a Mac. You're currently reading the blog of someone who had been up until a few years ago, a Windows girl. Anyway, once you answer that, then you can dig more into specs. What are you going to be using the computer for? For most of the people that ask me about a new computer, they aren't doing high level coding or playing the latest PC game...but wait does the Sims count? But kidding aside, you need to identify what you'd be using your computer for. Is it going to be your go to for ALL THE THINGS; email, business, games, surfing the web. Is it going to be just for business, just for playing around? Is it going to be for the household; so you and the homework assignments for the kids? Specs to look at... Memory - The amount of RAM in the computer, typically most low priced laptops come with about 4GB of RAM, I recommend at least 8GB, to give you good performance because depending on what you're running on the laptop certain programs use a lot of memory. Hard drive space - I've seen some laptops that come with a couple hundred GB of storage, which is good, but in the year 2019 even some low priced laptops come with at least 500GB of storage. Good rule of thumb, your laptop shouldn't have less storage than your smartphone, there are iPhones that come with 256GB, so your computer that you're working from should have more than that. Particularly because applications, and the operating system are using up some of your storage space and if you're someone who has lots of pictures or video files you will need it. Processor - now this isn't one alot of people really look at but it makes a difference, it's how your computer processes things, it's the CPU the brain. Most home laptops/computers have at minimum an i3 processor (Intel is the processor in practically every computer so don't worry about that). To keep this simple, the bigger the number after the "i" in the processor name the better...but that also impacts the cost too. Higher performing computers have an i5 or an i7. Screen Size - 11" is compact, good for you if you're going to have the laptop with you on the go constantly, and want to be able to carry it and it's not a burden. 13" is a good median it's not too small, and it's not a brick. 15" in my mind is for someone who low-key still wants a desktop but doesn't want the bulk that comes with it. This is also for people who want the laptop with the full number keypad. This last one isn't necessarily a spec but...WARRANTY!!! Make sure you have one on whatever you decide to go with, sure it adds to the total, but better to have it so when something goes wrong you're not unexpectedly coming out of pocket to fix something annnnd you don't have to find someone to do the work.

We could all use a little motivation, I know I could. So when I saw that there was an app that's exuding positivity AND it was created by a black woman I was all in! Let's get into the iShallBe app How many apps on your phone do you open and you get inspired? The iShallBe Daily affirmation app gives you, the user, a daily dose of positivity. By way of quotes, motivational videos, and messages. Every week day you receive a bit of inspiration from a notification. *hey that rhymed lol* The app also encourages you to set your own affirmations weekly, they call them iShallBe statements. There's even a part of the app that allows for goal tracking! The app allows for creation of a profile and you get to interact with other users who are all looking to be motivated and motivate others as well! Meet the creator...Shelby Tinsley Shelby Tinsley is the creator of the iShallBe app, the name of the app is fitting as she was named after the affirmation she "Shall Be" all things without reservation. Listen if that isn't speaking life over your child I don't know what is! Shelby is also a graduate of Florida A&M University. She's also a member of the NAACP and of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. With a vast amount of experience in working with words and people, Shelby also has a worked with government agencies, healthcare companies and in the private sector to help educate and improve employee engagement. When I asked why she chose the to create the app as opposed to let's say creating a book or some type of workshop to encourage others this is what she said We all live on social media, and as we know, it can be a blessing and/or a curse. Social Media informs us of our family and friends accomplishments. On the other hand social media has introduced us to “instant gratification”, where we instantly compare ourselves to those we follow and believe that we will easily and instantly accomplish a goal due to what it portrayed on social media. I created iShallBe as an app because I wanted to design a social platform for people to connect with each other for daily motivation. I'm excited about this app for multiple reasons, I love a good boost of motivation, I like to give others that same motivation and I LOVE the fact that a woman of color is the brain behind it. We're out here in this tech space, get to know us! You can follow Shelby on Instagram at @iShelbyRuth and follow the app as well on Instagram at @iShallBe_ The app is available for free on iOS and Android...whatcha waiting for? Go get your inspiration on!

First off Hi!!!! It's been a while! But it's a new year, and it's the first Tech Tuesday of 2019! So with that I thought I'd share with you some apps that'll help you with those new year goals or just help in general. So here goes! Managing your Subscriptions So at the top of the year, we're usually thinking about how to manage our money, because we don't want to take those some money mismanagement habits into the new year or we just want to do better period. I don't know about you but I have a lot of subscriptions I've signed up for or recurring payments that automatically come out of my account. Now I get notifications from my bank when things clear but I really need to get a handle on how much and when it's leaving. Bobby Meet, Bobby..not a guy, an app lol. Bobby, not only helps you track your subscriptions but will send notifications when a bill is due. You can chose from common ones to add like Netflix, Spotify, Adobe (I always cry a little when that one clears lol). The app is free to download on iOS. *I've already downloaded it lol* Billy I didn't forget about my Android users, you can get the same type of app but it's name is Billy. Not being funny, that's the name of the app I swear lol. It's also a free download for Android so no excuses! Organizing your life...well it'll help With creating new goals, you have to create new habits and processes, so you have to organize your life. Alot of people (me included) get a new planner at the top of the year, or new journal, whatever the case to start fresh and do better. So while I have my lovely happy planner mini, I've also been on the search for an app that helps organize my to-do's with my business, work, and my life. I feel like I'm always forgetting something. So I came across two that may help you.... Airtable You may or may not have heard of AirTable, chances are if you've worked on any type of collaborative effort (literally any kind) you have come across it or had someone send you something with it. It's great for organizing your thoughts, plans, or if you are a blogger like me, then it can also be a content (editorial) calendar. It comes with tons of premade templates to fit whatever you need! This one is used primarily from one's computer, but there's an app for iOS and Android! What's the new year without fitness goals?? So of course people are going to be piling into the gyms and hogging all the equipment the first few weeks of the year, with their new years fitness goals. But you really want to try and stick yours out, heck or even just restart (that's where I am..all the time, I'm a roller coaster fitness person it goes up and down). So I've gotta include some fitness apps in this roundup, because look good, feel good, right? My Fitness Pal So this isn't a new one but a recurring one, because it's good! You can track your exercise and the database of foods, and portions for tracking your calories is so good! With My Fitness Pal You can track your food intake and calories daily down to teaspoon portions! It divides things up by breakfast, lunch and dinner. You can even scan barcodes in the app to get nutrition information quickly! It can even sync with your FitBit. It's also free for both Android and iOS So these are just a few, you know I'll keep you updated with more! So what are some apps you already use? You gonna download some of these for the new year?

Happy Monday! I know it's not Tech Tuesday yet but when I can talk about tech and being a mom in the same breath well it's a win!  So we live in an age where social media can be good or bad. For some it draws out our insecurities or triggers and then it's also a place where people find their voice.  It's how some people connect with others.  That was what Mommy Matters Community creator, Antonia Richardson had in mind when she created the Mommy Matters Community App. Soo about this app The Mommy Matters Community app is an online community for moms. It gives you a forum feel, a place where your voice can be heard and met with understanding. Right from the palm of your hand.  There's videos, The Wine Down Podcast, a place for you to jot down your thoughts aka The Mom Diaries, a catalog where you can connect with other Momprenuers, as well as plug your business (this is the catalog section, imagine browsing for a business and knowing you're supporting a mom's dream)! There's even a book club component! I don't know how many times in the past few weeks I've seen other people ask "What are you guys reading?" or mention book clubs. Meet the creator Antonia Richardson, the Mommy Matters app creator, was born in Trinidad and Tobago. She came to the states when she was just 7 years old.  She was a hairstylist for 10 years and also a cosmetology school instructor and manager.  But now she's a full time mompreneur (Mom + Entrepreneur). She also freelances doing hair for special events and weddings. I asked the creator, Antonia Richardson what inspired her to create the app, because I think it's important. I was inspired to create the app from my own experiences as a young mom. Not having anyone to really talk to so having a community of moms that supported each other genuinely was needed. Social media is great, and not so great at times. So to be able to connect and cater to moms in a more personal way out side of social media an app was it a sure fit! I also asked her what she hoped other moms get from the app. I hope moms can connect with moms worldwide and locally to support each other not only in business but also in motherhood. Having someone or a tribe you can talk to, vent to, and just the feeling of knowing that you are not the only one feeling this way. (With out being judged) It’s hard making new friends or even finding the time to connect with other moms for play dates and just time for ourselves. So I hope moms can use the app for support, resources, events, and building their tribe. Not to mention just realizing that because you are mom that you don’t have to put dreams and aspirations on the back burner that moms can do GRAND things! The Mommy Matters App is available for both iOS and Android, it's well worth it! So what are you waiting for go download it!

Did you remember...that Apple's Event is in September? *Read this in the tune of Earth, Wind, and Fire "September"* But seriously, today was the day! Apple held it's highly anticipated fall keynote where new iPhones are typically announced, but enough of this let's get into the good stuff! Apple Watch First out the gate following an Mission Impossible style intro that resulted in a reveal of "the clicker" and a few stats about Apple Watch, was Apple Watch series 4. Did you know it is the #1 watch period? Not just the #1 smartwatch Now of course if you've already invested in an Apple Watch you're anticipating the next iteration and new features.  On the technical/hardware tip, Apple Watch Series 4 has a larger screen, louder speaker, and S4 64-bit dual core chip, so it's faster.  It comes in two sizes 40mm and 44mm.  The back is made of black ceramic and sapphire crystal to allow for improved cellular service. The Digital Crown (the switch on the side of most watches) has been improved with haptic feedback to give it more of a traditional watch feel. Now while these are all great features, in terms of looks and styling, the new features in terms of health got me excited. Of course out the gate and at the heart of the Apple Watch it's main focus and biggest point is health, I mean they have a partnership with Nike.  But the new Series 4 Apple Watch will be able to check your heart rate for irregularities.  Like that's a major thing, especially since heart issues are commonly referred to as "silent killers".  You can also perform an Electrocardiogram (ECG) from the watch to check for AFib (Atrial Fibrillation).  It also has the ability to detect if you've fallen, and if you're immobile for a minute it can make an emergency call. The Apple Watch Series 4 will be available to pre-order this Friday September 14th, and will ship and be in stores September 21.  Oh and it comes in this beautiful new gold stainless steel, in addition to the silver, space grey, and gold finishes.  Apple Watch Series 4 w/GPS starts at $399, and Apple Watch Series 4 w/GPS + Cellular starts at $499. Series 3 Apple Watches will still be available at lower starting price of $279. iPhone..not 1, but 3 new iPhones Of course we all knew there was going to be an iPhone announcement, but we got 3 of them!! So let's start off with the iPhone XS and the iPhone XS Max.  There's a clear distinction between the two..did you not catch the Max on the end of the other one? So the most obvious and probably the only real major distinction between these two is *drum roll* screen size!  The iPhone XS has a 5.8" screen and the iPhone XS Max has a 6.5" screen.  So what do both of these phones come packed with? Edge to Edge Super Retina displays, the highest pixel density of any Apple device. They're both front and back glass, but Apple promises it's more durable, with improved scratch resistance. It's also water resistant up to 2 meters for 30 minutes (so don't take it deep sea diving lol) but you don't have to worry about spilling your tea or coffee on it. I'm sure of you are spilling tea anyway just not on your phones. The XS iPhones both are packed with the A12 Bionic chip, that boasts a 6 core fusion architecture, four core GPU and a Neural engine. This new Neural engine literally blows the possibilities wide open for technology on the iPhone. Machine learning, graphics, gaming, and AR.  Speaking of...Steve Nash was apart of the Apple Keynote and helped demo an app HomeCourt. It tracks the real time stats and insights on players as they're training.  Like the release angle, the height, the speed, how may shots made versus how many attempted. All of this is done on the phone, no sensors on the person or anything. But back to the other nuts and bolts of iPhone XS models. They have dual 12MP cameras, and with the neural engine technology you get Smart HDR, Portait mode is better, you can even adjust the depth of the photos after it's taken. Seriously at this point the cameras have no choice but to improve, because after the iPhone X and before that, the introduction of Portrait Mode, we just can't go back.  Oh and did I mention that these bad boys will have dual SIM support?? You can have two numbers on one device! This is done through one physical SIM and an eSIM. The iPhone XS and the iPhone XS Max come in...oh wait there was one more thing I was supposed to share with you...the iPhone XS and the iPhone XS Max comes in 512GB storage capacity. Yes that's a half a terabyte of storage..on....your..phone.  There are laptops without that much storage.  But they also come in 64GB and 256GB if you're not into all that free space.  The iPhone XS starts $999 and the iPhone XS Max starts at $1099, pre-order will be available this Friday September 14th and availability September 21st.  They'll be available in space grey, silver and gold. iPhone XR I did say there were 3 iPhones announced today right? Apple also announced the iPhone XR. So here's a funny fact, the screen on the XR is larger the XS (not the XS Max) it's 6.1", while the iPhone XR is 5.8".  It has the impressive A12 chip so it's fast. It also has a edge to edge liquid retina display. It's not front and glass back but is designed with aluminum and glass.  It also has the dual 12MP cameras, which includes Portrait Mode and Portrait Lighting so you're gonna get great pictures.  It also has the TrueDepth camera on the front for FaceID.  What's better about this one, oh it comes in 6 different colors, and it's cheaper. The iPhone XR comes in white, black, blue, yellow, (PRODUCT)RED, and coral. The starting price is $749 and it comes in 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB storage capacities.  You can preorder this October 19th, and it will be available October 26th. All the new iPhones will feature iOS 12 which will be available for download this Monday September 17th. And there you have it folks, that's all the buzz from today's Apple Event! Which items are going on your list? New Apple Watch, the iPhone XS Max? Let me know!

I'm a geek let's get the obvious out the way but I'm also a mother, wife, and have a house.  So lately the only things that really get me excited are gadgets and things for the house. (Maybe I'm just getting old lol) I recently just got an air fryer!!! You guys seriously don't know how excited that makes me.  But I came across this June Smart Oven...I'm here for the IOT (Internet of Things) and ALL the smart appliances that come with it.  So let me get into the details on this intelligent oven... The June oven kind of does it all, well not the prep but still.  It's seven appliances in one! An air fryer, a convection oven, dehydrator, slow cooker, broiler, toaster, and warming drawer.  As someone who has limited counter space, and puts up appliances often, this would help alot! And what would a smart appliance be without a fancy touch screen? The June oven has a 5-inch LCD touchscreen to set and interact with it. It looks fancy but what makes it smart? Well, it gives you the ability to set your oven and view your food from your smartphone! So no forgetting about the food, or in my case having to keep getting up to go check the food in the oven. You can check a live video  feed from your phone via the June App (which is available on iOS and Android) .  It has over 100 cooking presets to get your meal done fast and cooked to perfection!  It is checking on your food more than you do lol The June oven collects data from six fast and energy efficient carbon-fiber heating elements, two convection fans, a precise platinum wire temperature sensor and a high-precision glass bead food-thermometer to ensure this.  The data is processed once a second! The June Oven also gets automatic updates via a WiFi connection, which also add new functionality to it and it is Alexa enabled.  So you can use voice commands to turn the oven for dinner.  The June Oven retails for $599.

Hey Hey! Happy Friday! So I wanted to pop in (ahead of my return to regularly scheduled posts for you guys) to share a new app!  With every new iOS update or any smartphone update, we're always looking for new emojis (still waiting on the black family option on the family emojis..but I digress).  So imagine my excitement when I found out about the Napturalista Moji app!  It's an app that has nothing but black woman magic in it!  All the emojis look like us and represent us.  I've got some favorites already. Go download this app and change your group chats forever!  It's available for free on both iOS and Android.

So a week or so ago, the ever popular LinkTree got flagged as spam by Instagram.  LinkTree is a service that provides one link for the many things we may house on the web, but specifically it's a gem because well Instagram only allows for one link in your bio.  Many users (myself included) opened their Instagram app to a message stating " a link in their profile was in violation of IG guidelines". Needless to say there was full on panic. Alot of users weren't sure what it meant, thought they'd been hacked, etc.  While you were in "violation" you weren't able to comment on posts or anything.  My error message specifically pointed to my profile and the only thing there was my Linktree link. This was resolved but I thought why not just make a links page on your own site?? So I'm going to share a few ways you can quickly make one for your site! Wordpress If you're a WordPress user like myself, you can easily make a new page. Create the new page, add your respective links to what you'd like and publish.  Now of course you want a visually appealing page, so add your image to the top and jazz up the heading.  I use "Shortcodes Ultimate " on my blog (because I am a WordPress user) and it allows me to create buttons using a shortcode.  This is also helpful when adding dimensions to your blog posts as well! Wix/Squarespace If you use Wix or SquareSpace this is also an easy add on.  You're going to go to edit site button from your dashboard.  Then on the left side of the screen go to Menu & Pages --> towards the bottom click "Add Page"--> Name your page (Links is a good idea) and hit Done.  Now you're not done with the design or add the links but the page is created.  Then you can just add images or shapes or whatever you want and hyperlink them to the items you want your users to get to.  The beauty of Wix is you can pretty much do anything design wise, so get creative with it! For my SquareSpace users, you're going to login of course. Then go to Pages.  Click that little "+" sign at the top of the list of pages, name the page, pick a layout or you can leave it blank.  Then go ahead and edit the page. This was the quick and the nerdy version of how to do a landing page. I mean after all you want the traffic to come to your site right? As a blogger this is really important, especially if you plan to work with brands or increase your readership.  Stay tuned though I have something coming up that will help you!

Chances are if you have a smartphone, you're utilizing one of the big 3 apps for social media. Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.  Today I wanted to share some tips on making the most out of your Instagram profile, especially if it's a business profile.  Most people have a side hustle of some kind so if you haven't switched to a business profile you should. Highlights Now this isn't a business profile specific feature, but highlights from your stories should be apart of your profile.  Highlights are those little circles on people's profile pages, that show certain stories they chose to highlight.  Let's say you offered tips or covered an event in your stories, you can add that as a highlight so people or even brands can see what you've done. Especially since Stories disappear after 24 hours. Contact options...use them! Now of course most people have the email and phone buttons on their business profile. Those are the default ones, but have you taken a look at the other contact options? Stylists, there's a button you can add directly to your profile if you use Acuity, StyleSeat, Booksy, MyTime and a few others.  Selling tickets to an event, you can add a tickets button via EventBrite.  PR/Marketing people, you can even add movie ticket buttons via Fandango and Atom Tickets.  Got a restaurant? People can make reservations via OpenTable, Yelp, and even place an order from GrubHub. SO A few more So of course you should have a bio, and you definitely need to have a website in your profile too if you're a business.  But did you also know you can add hashtags, and other IG account names to your profile so it makes it easier for customers or other users with common interests to find you! So update that description. If you have other accounts "@'ing" them in your profile makes it an easy follow for people and connects you to your brand. Have you subscribed to the blog yet to make sure you don't miss any posts? Sign up today!

Ready to change up your space? Perhaps you just did a tour of a model home and you're inspired to spruce up your living room.  I don't know about you guys but I periodically rearrange my house to give it a different feel. I'm not the Feng Shui guru or anything, but there's something about a space that feels put together.  Now I'm also not rich and to be honest, I'm not a window shopper or someone who will spend hours browsing furniture stores.  Sooo I was excited when I stumbled across the Decor Matters app. Redesign your room, while sitting in it You ever have an idea hit you or see a piece of furniture and think, that would look great in the living room?  Well, think of this app like being on Pinterest, Amazon, and in HomeGoods all at the same time!  I mean who doesn't like HomeGoods? You can design a room completely in the app, so like a mockup or you can use the AR (augmented reality) feature to see how something will look in a room in your house. Again I am no Interior Designer, but I cannot wait to decorate my little office space in the house...no laughing at my mockup Hey Designers, this is helpful for you too! While someone  like me can design or at least attempt to with this app, designers can benefit from this too.  I mean you can showcase your mockups and visions for others to see within the app, people can follow you.  So there is somewhat of a social aspect.  Another thing to note, even if someone comes up with their design, it might be helpful just to be able to get a better idea of what your potential client is trying to design. What's even better, if you find something you like, you're able to shop right from inside the app.  Cool, right?  The DecorMatters app is available for iOS only , sorry to my Android users.  On the nerd end I am happy to see developers really taking advantage of the AR kit in iOS. Happy decorating!