Digital Parents Archives - With Some Grace

FYBF – When Stranger Things Happen At #DPCON14

March 28, 2014 By: mamagrace7149 Comments

Having never been on a cruise before, I thought it best to step on board with no expectations.

Sure, I was excited to get away and spend some much needed kid free time with awesome bloggers.

But a boat? Would I get sea sick? Would I be heaving over starboard? Would my diet through the entire 3 and a half days consist of ginger pills, herbal tea and not much else?

None of it happened. But I did do a lot of laughing. Like serious, bowling over in stitches, not being able to catch my breath, my core muscles haven’t had such a work out since that time I tried to plank for 60 seconds.

And what’s a cruise without a Jack and Rose moment?

Wait. That’s right. It was a conference.

Alongside the continuous giggles, we had some fantastic keynote speakers who spoke straight from the heart and with lots of passion. Sharing some great tips from Debs at Learn To Play At Home on how to be a Pinterest Queen to Kelly at Be a Fun Mum on how to find the “Why” to your blog.

With no brands in sight, there were only open and frank discussions on how to find your authentic voice and using it efficiently among your community.

It was truly a conference of bloggers for bloggers.

It took a bit of explaining, letting him know how awesome we all were but eventually, even the captain got it.

1. Follow With Some Grace.

2. Sign up to the awesome Digital Parents community ( if you haven’t already done so). DP was created by Brenda Gaddi who happens to be the creator of FYBF. She’s also created 4 gorgeous kidlets. In case you’d like to know. Or maybe not. But we’ll share that info just the same.

3. Add your post URL to the linky. Please only link up one post.

4. Grab the funky FYBF button and post it on your sidebar. Help spread the blogfloggin love.

5. Visit the blogs of your fellow FYBF’ers and share the comment love

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Meet ya in the real life

February 12, 2013 By: mamagrace7163 Comments

The 20’s were spent rockin’ the suburbs. Penniless but with plenty of time to spare, partying was on a budget. Smoking durrys and aimlessly driving around the city with mates was Friday night’s thrill.

Then the 30’s saw the polar opposite. Single and career driven, both money and time were spilling over in abundance. Unattached and uncommitted, life was an absolute riot.

Drinking till 3am on a school night was the norm. Strutting into the office at 9am sharp, wearing the professional suit and flawless makeup became an art form.

Since entering the fabulous 40’s, party mode is entirely different and definitely trickier.

How does one manage to still go out for a fun Saturday night without losing composure as a responsible (cough) mother of twinlets?

Last Saturday afternoon saw the Digital Parents catch up; a gathering of on-line pals. We read about each other’s quirks and perks, follow each other’s journeys. Meeting in the real life becomes a natural transition and conversations have an effortless, natural flow. (And it’s not just the alcohol talking, yo!)

It’s a connection non-bloggers don’t understand.

Being the token male of the evening, and just as hilarious as I imagined, Kevin easily claimed rock star status.

Kelly and Kylie were just as bubbly as the voices in their blogs. (Loved the purple stilettos, Kel!)

I’m bummed that I didn’t take a snap of Tamsin‘s (literally) killer shoes. Spikes and all!

Having a chin wag with the gorgeous and eloquent, Veronica, I was reminded how our friendship is so much more mature for its year and a bit existence.

Evening eventually rolled in. Along with the empty wine glasses, the last left standing with me were Mumabulous, Kim and mah soul sistah, Brenda.

Walking back to the train station, I did a Jess, tripped up on the footpath and sprained my ankle. Now, there’s the party days I remember!

I can say in complete contentment, this blogosphere is my social circle for this next decade and beyond.

Real life friends won’t get it. Spouses will shake heads at the copious amount of time dedicated to the computer screen and phone. Family members are left aghast.

Meh.

Those who don’t get my blogging, don’t get me.

Big thanks to Catherine and Jodi for organising an awesome time!

Looks like I have big shoes to fill when it’s my turn to round y’all up in May!

Bring it.

Speaking of bloggy friendships transformed into real life, joining Essentially Jess for IBOT.

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Sticks and stones: Keeping your family safe on-line {Norton by Symantec Giveaway}

December 24, 2012 By: mamagrace718 Comments

Earlier this year, Digital Parents kindly invited me to a special luncheon hosted by Norton by Symantec, the internet security specialists.

A frank, round table discussion about the realities and internet usage for the everyday family was not only insightful but extremely educational.

Last month, Norton hosted another lunch and provided us with an even more informative afternoon.

Talks were led by Norton’s Internet Safey Advocate, Marian Merritt, whose role is to offer families and consumers clear, actionable advice on Internet safety, from how to avoid being a victim of identity theft to what parents need to know about cyberbullying.

And with teenage children of her own, Marian had a wealth of information and knowledge to share.

The Norton team compiled this useful list of friendly tips for parents to help children stay safe online:

Set aside time to discuss appropriate online behaviour with your children and create age-appropriate “House Rules” with your children about how you’ll use computers, tablets, smart phones and gaming systems in your family
Show your children how to use security and privacy settings
Be a positive role model and be aware that children like to imitate your behaviour
Inform your children where to turn and how to react in case of a difficult situation, such as online bullying
Make sure you use security software on all your family’s computers, tablets and smartphones

One point that came out strong and clear is that it’s not the parents job to “spy” or to constantly monitor our children’s internet usage and behaviour.

It’s about sitting down and working out what the house rules are when it comes to computers, smart phones and other devices that all the family use.

And as our children are constantly on-line and vulnerable to cyber-bullying, teaching them the “Sticks and stones” theory is no longer viable.

Norton Family is an on-line forum that’s full of tips and methods on how to keep a safe and protected environment.

We all know that the internet is forever changing.

Norton by Symantec are proactive in keeping parents and families to keep up and on track with what these changes are and what kind of impact they can bring.

What are your tips for keeping the on-line environment safe for your children?

I have 2 copies of the Norton 360 Multi-Device software to giveaway. Valued at $129.99, the package brings together powerful PC, Mac, Android smartphone and tablet protection to deliver a single solution that protects you on your various devices.

To enter:

Answer the above question as a comment on this blog post
Subscribe to With Some Grace
Follow With Some Grace on Facebook

The important stuff:

This giveaway is only open to Australian residents.
Closing date is Monday, 14th of January.
Both winners will be contacted via email on the following Tuesday.
If one of the winners doesn’t reply to my email within 24 hours another winner will be chosen.
Entries will be judged on merit and decision of the winners will be final.
The software package will be sent to the winner by Digital Parents Collective.

*I was invited by Digital Parents to attend a Norton by Symantec lunch and was given a free copy of Norton 360 Multi-Device software. I also charged Digital Parents Collective an administration fee to run this giveaway. As always, all opinions are my own.

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