 | July 17th, 2008 - by Dave Sampson |
Have you ever watched your car's odometer click over to 100,000 miles? Remember that growing feeling of excitement? That's what we're like over here at Sampa, where we're expecting to add our 100,00th website any day now. We can't take our eyes off the little spinning dials.
Now picture the old TV gag where someone is the lucky 100,000th customer at a supermarket, and suddenly horns blare unexpectedly, and confetti falls from the ceiling. We're going to do that too -- only in a much more geeky way, with Amazon gift certificates and FedEx trucks and everything.
So if you woke up this morning feeling lucky, we invite you to create that Sampa site you've been thinking about starting anyway. If yours is the 100,000th site, we have a fabulous prize package with goodies like a Canon Pro Series digital camera, a deluxe picnic set for four, a sandcastle playset, and other great items for kids or grownups who act like kids.
Plus, if you're already a Sampa site owner, and you refer the 100,000th site to us, we'll send a prize package to the winner and a second one to you! To ensure that you get credit for the referral, the winner can click the "built with Sampa" link at the top of your website, or click the "create your own free website" link in an email sent from your site.
You can find full contest details and exciting legalese on our new contest page at www.sampa.com/contest.
| June 11th, 2008 - by Paul Gross |
 Read on see our Sampa's top 10 picks for blogs about family life from a mom's point of view.
1) ManicMommies Can you relate to the expression “You can never have too many shoes or too many babysitters?” Then you will love this blog written by two thoroughly modern working mothers Erin and Kristin. This blog is set apart by its savvy technological reviews and canny knowledge of current events (the recent Sex and the City movie, not the war in Iraq). If you want to read a mommy blog that’s less about baby spit-up and more about Mac’s Bento program or an all-mother cruise to the Bahamas, this is the blog for you. Manic Mommies is great proof that just because you are a mom doesn’t mean you can’t be hip and in-the-know (and if you aren’t, you can cheat and pretend you are by clicking here.) www.manicmommies.com 2) Antique Mommy The Anti-Helicopter Mom, Antique Mommy subscribes to the self-proclaimed “Whatever Dude” parenting philosophy. Such laidback childrearing leaves her time to write truly lovely prose, anecdotes, and photo essays about life with her elegant Aunt Jean and four-year-old son/fledgling iconoclast Sean. Learn how to become so flippin’ cool here. www.antiquemommy.com. 3) Rocksinmydryer The name says it all! How an Oklahoma mother of four finds time to watch the LOST season finale with her very own DHARMA boxed wine is beyond us, but we are certainly going to try to get in on her secret! From sweetly spun stories that reflect her Southern heritage to savvy resources like her chore pdf, fun websites for kids, and avant garde approach to kids’ allowances (online banking, oh my!) this blog is full of surprises and an all-around great read. Bonus points for grammar so pristine you could eat off it! http://rocksinmydryer.typepad.com/ 4) CrazyBlogginCanuck This refreshing blog is written by a travel writer-turned-mother, and her adventurous approach to life is apparent in every word. From battling to conquer her fancy cable remote, to overcoming Boot Camp blahs, to the thrill of meeting the love of her life online, the author manages to be relatable and inspiring at the same time-and isn’t that what we are all really looking for in a blog? The episodic nature of this blog feels almost like a novel, and you’ll be drawn into the chaotic story of the Canuck clan-now living in Colorado- in no time. Check it out here. http://crazybloggincanuck.blogspot.com/ 5) Mrs. Fussypants’ Guide to Life From precious baby pictures to a good-humored Frump Fighting Manifesto (i.e.how to be a mom without wearing mom jeans), and rousing “Caption It!’ contests, Mrs. Fussypants hosts one of the most interactive mommy blogs on the web, and it’s a blast to visit. Check out the little blog with big personality here. http://fussypants.typepad.com/ 6) Karen Sugarpants From timeless classics like healthy lunches for busy moms to uber-cool trends like hosting a blogging baby shower, this blog is a little mix of everything. And thanks to her graphic design background, it’s neat-looking too! To find about her hot date nights with a “porous yellow fella” read here: http://karensugarpants.com. 7) MommyPie Mommy Pie is a blogger’s blog, to be sure. Functioning more as the online equivalent of a Starbuck’s Mommy Meetup than a one-dimensional confessional (although there is a sidebar for that if it’s your bag), Mommy Pie is all about getting mommies mixing and mingling, from asking thought-provoking parenting questions to linking incisively relevant articles and conducting hilarious polls. To find out what word she contributed to the urban dictionary, click here. http://mommypie.wordpress.com 8) Mrs. Mogul If this isn’t the chicest little blog on the internet, we don’t know what is. Indeed, Mrs. Mogul reads like Sex and the City for post-caesarean set. Read here for fashion, celebrity gossip, and the author’s disappointment that the sonogram machine actually couldn’t play Youtube videos. This glitzy chronicle is all about the author’s struggles to make it big in the entertainment industry, all while raising her very own Toddler Mogul. Check it out here. http://www.mrsmogul.blogspot.com/ 9) NinjaPoodles. For one thing, we have to give this blog props for achieving notoriety among parents without using a “mommy” moniker. For another, you simply have to see the heart-shaped peanut butter and jelly sandwich created by Ninja Poodles’ daughter. It is the most adorable thing on the web since LolCats. Not as adorable, but equally interesting, is the footage of the mommy-daughter arson as blogger and daughter burn her daughter’s school uniform on the last day of school. It’s the “School’s Out” ritual we all wished we had, so live vicariously here. http://www.ninjapoodles.blogspot.com/ 10) MissZoot Why visit this blog? We know these are fighting words-but Miss Z has the cutest kids in the blogosphere-literally! The little Z’s are so full of precocious exuberance, they actually have photogenic personalities. Couple this with the fact that Miss Zoot is a warm, witty writer who can perfectly draw the situational humor out of everyday life, and you’ve got our number 10 blog. Check it out here. http://www.misszoot.com/
| June 3rd, 2008 - by Marcelo Calbucci |
With Father's Day approaching, we decided to share our opinion about the best Daddy blogs out there on the web. 1) GeekDad What sets this blog apart from the trove of parenting tomes on the web? We have three words for you: Legos in Space. It’s true! Read all about the High Altitude Legos Extravaganza on this wacky parenting division of Wired.com. Other gems include geeky songs to share with your kids and insightful tales from the home schooling trenches. Check it out here: http://blog.wired.com/geekdad. 2) Sweet-Juniper Billed as "a collaborative blog written by two people raising their kids in the most dangerous city in America" who wouldn't want to read this Chuck Palahniuk of parenting blogs? Ok, it may not be as gritty as all that, though the mother and father authors do go by the fairly hardcore nicknames, "Dutch" and "Wood." Dutch, the daddy, is the primary author, and has many funny insights on the woes of dressing his daughter, watching Buster Keaton shorts with his wee one, and being a parent in down and dirty Detroit. An excellent read featuring the best moniker-replacement for Stay-At-Home-Dad we’ve heard yet: Gentleman of Elegant Leisure. Check out the business card Dutch had made and more here: http://www.sweet-juniper.com. 3) Nordquist Blog Not only are his kids rock star cute, his post on the movie that changed his life (hint: it involves as little responsibility as possible) is a must-read for any parent who’s felt the pang of a mid-life crisis. His children’s pondering about church are also priceless, as are his own reverent accounts on holding small children-but you might want to cover your eyes during the pictures of his own childhood. Find out when National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day is here: http://blog.nordquist.org/ 4) Creative-Type Dad His eloquent Father's Day plea alone is hilarious enough to rank him on this list. If you are looking for innovative Father's Day Gift ideas, this blogging papa suggests a visit to "the Birthplace of Colonel Sanders" or a family Knight Rider marathon. Also notable are his amazing Lionel Richie Mother's Day cards. This is one father who understands the true spirit of festivity, as well as fun blogging in general. Read the musings of this "part-time crime fighter" here http://creativetypes.blogspot.com. 5) Daddy-dialectic. The most serious of the daddy blogs on our list, there are less cute stories about children struggling to pronounce "spaghetti" and more incisive debates about egalitarian parenting, being a modern dad, and society's reaction to SAHDs. For example, there is a post on this blog about the struggle to find dad-centric children's books. The academic approach is tempered by sweet perspectives on volunteering in kindergarten classrooms, sleeping in bed with babies, and the bittersweet ache of watching your kids grow so fast-all from a father's viewpoint. Check out this awesome group blog here: http://daddy-dialectic.blogspot.com 6) Daddy Types A shopping site for dads. Who knew? http://daddytypes.com/ Find all your manly baby furniture, daddy toys and nursery décor here! There is even some celebrity gossip, father-style.
7) MetroDad From recounting sobering and tender moments of marriage to downright hilarious detailing of universal parental ponderings, this blog covers everything from dealing with an in-law's illness, to the sociological effects of The Sound of Music on one’s infant daughter. This blog also explores the interesting intersection between daddyhood and a day job. Anyone who's ever showed up to a meeting with a Cinderella sticker-covered laptop will heartily approve. Click here for a list of karaoke songs any dad can sing and sound good: www.metrodad.typepad.com
8) MitchMcdad
A man needs a sense of humor to live with 3 women and one lady dog, and this blog's got it in spades. Making life as a henpecked husband truly hilarious, he fearlessly documents parenting in a post-modern world-texting the babysitter, playing "deal or no deal" with his wife over who's on kid duty, and creating humorous avatars of his dad-ly countenance. Find out what he named his new dog at http://mitchmcdad.com/ 9) Thingamababy With its dashing Dennis the Menace aesthetic, Thingamababy is certainly the most good-looking daddy blog on our list. Chronicling a "dad's eye view" of child-rearing, this colorful blog includes fun-filled features like "Top Six Baby Clips" from the show Scrubs, scary Halloween trick-or-treating videos, and his fearless quest to find cool undiscovered children's musicians for his kids to jam to. This lighthearted blog is goofy dad-isms at their best, so check out Thingamababy http://www.thingamababy.com/baby/here.
10) A Family Runs Through It
From playlists by his six-year-old daughter to family podcasts and favorite websites, this is certainly one of the most tech-savvy parenting blogs on the web. And it's also one of the most fun. From family-friendly movie reviews to music recommendations and youtube videos of family outings, this blog is just a great guide to having fun as a family, written in honest, humorous prose. http://www.pkmeco.com/familyblog/
| May 19th, 2008 - by Roy Leban |
We've added a very cool new feature to Sampa -- the ability to have multiple sections of your Sampa site. Each section is like a mini site by itself, with blogs, photo albums, pages, etc.
What really makes it special is that each section can have its own theme, layout, editors, and privacy settings. Create a section for your kids and let them have at it! Since you can set the privacy separately, you can have a public site for your family with a private section for your kids. Your kids can have the full experience of owning a space on the web while you can rest assured that they're not exposing personal information to the world.
You can create His and Hers sections, or a separate section for a new or expected addition to your family, an upcoming wedding, family reunion, etc. Or, perhaps your current Sampa site is a baby site and you now want a family site -- but you'd like to keep your baby site as a record. It's easy -- create a new family section and make it the Primary section. Now, visitors to your site will go to your new section first, but they can still visit your baby section at any time.
To get started, click Manage, click on the Site tab at the bottom, then click on Create Another Section. As the site administrator, you'll always have permission to edit all of the sections you create, but you can also add two editors per section.
| May 6th, 2008 - by Marcelo Calbucci |
Thanks to your handy Countdown Widget you know that Mother's Day is just around the corner. Of course you'd love to trek out for some nice overpriced roses or a sappy card for mom, but what with monitoring your Facebook, Myspace, and Bebo accounts, you're not really in a position to take time off. If you are looking for a Mother's Day gift that won't cramp your Second Lifestyle, here's a guide to parlaying your favorite social networks into totally legit Mother's Day gifts that will make mom melt.
Family ReunionIntroduce Mom to the excitement of social networks for herself with Sampa.com. Sampa.com is a family-oriented website that automatically connects family, extended family, and a close circle of friends with simplicity and safety.
With easy-to-use templates and posting options, Mom can have a blast chronicling family milestones and getting in on the social networking trend in a way that's fun snd stress-free. Story Time
Recall the ultimate mother-child bonding experience when you make mom a Shelfari shelf of your favorite childhood bedtime stories.
Add sentimental tags like "the one you read me when I wouldn't stop crying" or "the one we'd recite together word for word." She'll be over the moon quicker than you can say "Goodnight creatures everywhere." Getting Home in Time for Dinner
You know how moms worry! For Mother's Day, give her peace of mind when you add Whereaboutz, the Facebook app that uses Google maps to display, you guessed it, your whereabouts.
The best part is the SMS functionality, which allows tech-phobic moms to view your location right from their cell phones as they push their cart in the grocery store. For the Helicopter Mom, there's no better gift than Whereaboutz. A Trip Down Memory Lane
Use geotagging to make a Zoomr map of places where you and your mom have been together. Amp up the sentiment by creating descriptive tags like " 'our' sushi place" and "the ski camp with the dreamy instructor."
Your mom will love this techie travelogue of your special times together. Bragging Rights
Making mom a Flickr photo album is child's play. Show momma what a mature young adult you are when you hook her up with the handy plugin Slickr.
Slickr uses Flickr pictures as a feed to create family picture screensavers, so she can show off your adorable mugs to her colleagues and houseguests without having to resort to anything so overt as a forward. We can just hear the choruses of "Look what my son made me for Mother's Day" now! Home Videos
Home movies are the heart of any good Mother's Day gift, so do it in exportable style when you make it on MotionBox. Not only does this site include sophisticated features like the ability to send just a clip or highlight, these elegant movies are also easily exportable to mom's mp3 player or laptop.
Once she's breaking a sweat on the Stairmaster to your four- year-old rendition of "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" you'll know you've achieved a place in the Mother's Day Gifts Hall of Fame. Family HootenannyIn honor of Mother's Day, hook mom up with a convenient platform for her favorite hobby: planning family get-togethers. Like a less dictatorial Evite, Planypus lets you post potential plans in a more casual, conversational way.
Because the messages can be delivered back and forth by email, SMS, RSS or online homepages and calendaring tools, Planypus works great for both your text-savvy sister, your geek brother, and your mom who won't stop driving you crazy trying to learn how to use her BlueTooth headset. Misty Watercolored Memories
This next gift idea is the Gen-Y equivalent of the classic handprint-in-the paint Mother's Day card. Like ComicLife and RockYou combined, Bubbleshare lets you give mom a killer slideshow of pictures with bubble captions, holiday themes, audio captions and video captions. So creative and cute!
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