Top Ten Tuesday: My Favorite “Being-A-Grownup” Apps

Out of the 90+ apps I have installed on my iPad, probably more than 3/4 of them are kid-related. More often than not, you will see my little Fiona dragging it around playing Cupcakes or Parker snuggled up on the couch playing Where’s Waldo?. In fact, when I actually get a chance to get my hands on it, they are always clamoring to swipe it away from me.

I suppose I don’t blame them – the apps I use aren’t fancy or flashy – but they are apps that epitomize what makes the iPad so amazing. Interactivity…video…portability…sheer beauty…makes me want to go “ahhhh…”

So here are my top ten “Being-A-Grownup” apps in no particular order…

1. Pandora: This is one app that my kids and I both enjoy. I can listen to my JJ Heller station and the kids can listen to their Disney Channel or Wiggles station. Listening to a local radio station is so…2009, right?

2. ABC Player: This app has full episodes of quite a few ABC shows, so if you have some fans, you can watch them at your convenience. For example, I catch up on Castle episodes, while I’m cooking dinner in the kitchen, folding laundry in the basement, or flat-ironing my hair in my bedroom.

3. Pinterest: Can I really say anything bad about Pinterest? It is especially beautiful on the iPad, because you can scroll quickly, pin easily, and everything is easy to see. Plus, it gives me plenty of time to pin all sorts of things I will never have time to actually do or make…:)

4. Betty Crocker Cookbook: Somehow I stumbled onto the Betty Crocker app, and unlike some of the other cookbook apps I own, I find myself going back to it over and over again. It is easy to navigate, has simple family-friendly recipes, and well…it’s Betty Crocker!

5. Flipboard: This app is like the creme brûlée of social media apps…it turns Facebook and Twitter feeds into creamy and crunchy little nuggets of deliciousness. All the links are opened for you, and status updates read like a magazine. Love it!

6. The Weather Channel: I mostly use my phone for checking the weather, but for looking at radar, the iPad app is the best hands down. Within two touches, I am looking at full doppler radar that I can zoom in or out to see if I have time to run out before the next storm hits.

7. USA Today: This is the only news app that I use. It is easy to navigate, gives you the basics, and it even has little embedded video clips.

8. WebMD: The best part about this app is the symptom checker. You just touch the area where you are having symptoms and it quickly walks you through the questions to nail down your possible issue. Then I can take what I find…and call my Nurse Practitioner sister. 🙂

9. WordPress: I like having the flexibility to draft blog posts whenever…wherever…and this app makes it super easy. I like how I can save “local” drafts too, so I can still jot down my ideas outside of a wifi zone.

10. Zillow: Since we are in the house-selling/buying phase of our life right now, Zillow has been a lifesaver. It gives you satellite images of the area you are looking for houses, the Zestimate price of the homes, and details on what is for sale. In a word, it is…awesome.

I can imagine that you are all…Blown away! Amazed! Stupified! Astounded! But as I look at my list, it is clear proof that the best iPad apps understand what the iPad is all about – and pursue it relentlessly.