I hate clutter. I hate stacks. I hate mess. I hate hunting for the one piece of paper I need. I hate filing papers so I can find them later.

For these reasons and more, I heart EVERNOTE.

Evernote is my digital brain. And let’s face it, what mom doesn’t need an extra brain?

Think of Evernote as a FREE digital filing cabinet that you can access from virtually anywhere – your computer, the web, your smart phone, your iPad.

Less Paper In My House

When a piece of paper comes into my house it has three options – trash, scan & file in Evernote, or keep hard copy. These days there are relatively FEW things that get that third option.

• Kids artwork? Report cards, award certificates? Scan and file in Evernote.
• New appliance owner manual? Find an online copy and save to Evernote.
• Utility bills, mechanic bills? Evernote. Receipts that need saving? Evernote.

We have a combo printer/scanner/fax units (similar to the affiliate link on the right) and it has a wonderful “scan to email” feature and a document feeder tray on top. This means I can load a 10 page document and push one button. The file is scanned and it automatically opens a new email message with the PDF attached. I type in my unique Evernote email address and click send. DONE!

Organizes Research and “Need to Save” Online Info in Searchable Format

I never have to use browser bookmarks and then later spend valuable time trying to hunt down that article or resource. Now I have about a dozen common web pages I visit set in my Bookmarks Menu Bar. Everything else is saved to Evernote with the easy Web Clipper Extension. When I’m on a page I need to save, I click ONE BUTTON and it automatically clips the article (and not all the extra ads, etc) and sends it to my Evernote account. I use this to save recipes, research for my books, articles I think will come in handy when I’m speaking, etc.

I can also send stuff to Evernote from my phone. If I’m out and I see an interesting book I might want to read I just snap a picture and push a button to file it away. Eating out and drinking a wine I really like? Photograph the label and it’s remembered for next time. You can also record audio files, etc.

Create notebooks and sub-notebooks to your heart’s content to organize your stuff.

Of course a filing system only works if you can find stuff and Evernote’s search functionality is AMAZING. (NOTE: I do pay the $45/year for the premium account so that Evernote makes my PDFs searchable. Otherwise you can add tags to your notes.)

Saves Me Weekly

At least once a week, Evernote comes to my rescue because I am literally carrying my entire household filing cabinet in my phone. I was at the dog boarding place and forgot to bring Buddy’s shot records. Brought them up in Evernote and emailed them to the receptionist. Doctor’s office asks what meds my kid is on? Evernote to the rescue. Need a kid’s SSN? Evernote. (You can password protect notes for security.)

Every mom needs Evernote. It’s a compact program but it can do so much. One of the best things I did when I first started using Evernote was to buy “Evernote Essentials” by Brett Kelly (affiliate link). It is basically THE go-to guide for Evernote and is really easy to understand. It’s $29 and comes with LIFETIME updates. So as Evernote grows and improves, you’ll get updated “how-to” instructions. And it has a 100% money-back guarantee.

If you use Evernote I’d love to hear some of the ways it makes your life easier.

Last weekend Mark and I went to see “The Impossible” starring Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor. It is based on the true story of the Alvareza family – mom, dad and 3 sons – (from Spain) who were vacationing in Thailand when the 2004 tsunami hit.

All 5 family members were in the pool area of their resort when the wave hit. Mom and the oldest son manage to find their way to each other shortly after coming up (not before being banged around quite a bit). The movie follows their journey to find medical care (the mom is badly injured). Then you discover that dad and the two small boys managed to stay together. He’s determined to find mom and son. Son is determined not to be separated from his mom while she is in the hospital.

There’s some great lessons in the movie – not giving up hope, loyalty, and enduring the seemingly impossible.

But there was one thing that struck both Mark and I. First the real-life Spanish family is replaced by a European white family. I’m not sure if Hollywood thought a Spanish family wouldn’t have as broad appeal? Then, other than a couple of native islanders who help the mom and son in the beginning, the entire rest of the film focuses on the Caucasian tourists – American, British, German, Scandinavian. Even with the movie being one family’s story – it seems that the filmmakers could have done a better job of portraying the local islanders.

Naomi Watts gives an AMAZING performance and will undoubtedly get several award nominations. Of all the characters in the movie hers has to go through the largest range of emotions – survival, motherhood protective instinct, overcoming the pain of her injuries in the search for help, and then clinging to life through multiple surgeries.

The film is sobering – an realistic portrayal of the ordeal. It’s quite graphic – showing the mom endure multiple injuries while swirling underneath the water being slammed up against branches, debris and furniture. I winced more than once. Of course it has a happy ending as the family is reunited and, oh look, our insurance company wisks us away in a private jet to get medical care.

“The Impossible” is definitely worth seeing. Just know that it’s heavy. Bring tissues.

Read about The Real-Life Family

Plugged In Online review