Thanks Amazon for sponsoring this post to help other parents learn more on how Alexa can make their lives easier. Because on the path of parenting, we could all use a hand from time to time!
Let’s begin with a brief recap of a typical day in my life as a parent. I have two beautiful kids. Both of them happen to live with Down syndrome. The Down syndrome is actually the least of my current challenges due to the fact that my daughter is a 12 year old tween and my son is an active and smart 15 year old teenager ready to rumble every single day. Our day begins at 5:45am on school days, and our morning routine literally starts with Alexa’s wake up call.
Did you know that you can configure your daily alarm by asking: “Alexa, wake me up at 5:45am”!?
Alexa wakes me up and like that, the day begins. I wake up the kiddos, if they are not up yet. I know they can hear Alexa but as it should be with technology, the power of mommy’s voice has its own special magic and can’t be replaced, right? Even with all that magic that moms have, we may need the power and support of someone like Alexa to be sure we don’t sleep in (can you imagine the horror and disarray!) so we can wake up right on time to a new and beautiful morning every day.
What comes next? For a single working mom like me, calendars are everything. I repeat: everything. I manage three calendars. My kids’ calendar, my work calendar, and my personal calendar (yes, I do have one all my own!) If you didn’t know, Alexa allows you to link up to three supported calendars per person. Meaning, more than one person can use this feature. All this is possible through the Alexa App and all you need is your sign-in information to begin. Not using all the features yet? Get on that!! Calendars are so helpful for busy parents!
How does this work and how does it help with parenting? Well, if you are a parent I don’t need to tell you how busy early mornings may get and how awesome it is to ask someone something and get a straight answer, right? So, while we have breakfast, pack our bags and lunch boxes and get ready, I ask Alexa, “Alexa, check my work calendar.” And she does!! I love that she always listens!! Plus, I don’t have to check my phone or paper calendar to know what’s on the agenda for the day – she just tells me!
The day goes by and among the many reminders Alexa plays for me, sooner or later comes the one to pick up the kids from school. I know these are daily basic routines for most but as it happens when you work from home, such as in my case, it’s too easy to lose track of time and (thank goodness!) here comes Alexa to the rescue.
Once the kids are home and after having some time to relax, it’s homework time. And let’s be honest, homework is never easy! I rely so much on Alexa when it comes to helping my kids with homework. From 5 to 6 pm each evening Alexa’s main job is to answer my questions such as, “Alexa, what does ARBOREAL mean?” Do you know? I didn’t know either! Some other smart ways I ask her for help are. “Alexa, give me a synonym of the word BILK,” and to end this reading and comprehension exercise, “Alexa, now give me an antonym of the word BILK.” And, yes, she always has the answer.
Don’t forget that the coolest part is that before asking for the antonym you can even ask, “Alexa, what does ANTONYM mean?” And that is how Alexa helps me help my children do their homework. No muss, no fuss – finally!
I could go on for days about all the great things Alexa helps me with when it comes to parenting, but I am going to end this post with one of my most favorite features ever. When I am out of town for travel, I love to open my Alexa app on my cell phone and use the Drop-In feature to talk to my children with their Personal Care Assistant, and even help them complete their homework over the Echo Show since we have multiple Echo Show devices in our home. Did you know you could do that??!! For all these and so many other reasons, “Alexa” is my ally when it comes to parenting. The best part, it can become your ally too.
