Care.com

Parents know how hard it is to find a last-minute babysitter (or a replacement when your regular sitter cancels). Those days are over thanks to Care.com.

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Go out to the movies this weekend. Go shopping. Catch up with old friends. Or find care you can trust while you're away on business or vacation.

Care.com connects families with trustworthy babysitters, nannies, dog walkers, tutors, and elder caregivers through a variety of family memberships to fit every budget. Read expert advice on care planning through our exclusive editorial content, including articles, resources, and Sheila's Blog, written by Founder and CEO Sheila Marcelo.

Search Care.com by your ZIP Code or metro area to find local caregivers who match your exact needs. Search results include profiles with photos, video interviews, experience, availability, and references, which you can view before contacting a caregiver about a job. Plus, families can request free background checks on any caregiver as part of their monthly membership-unlike anywhere else on the Web!

Once families have hired a caregiver, they can then share their experience with the Care.com community by rating the caregiver and leaving a review. All caregivers are then ranked using reviews, ratings, and other criteria, and will have a basic, Silver, or Gold status.

Care.com is simple to use—just Join, Find, and Connect! Locating safe and convenient care has never been easier.

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If it's 12:00 AM and your heart is pounding in anticipation, then you've found Woot.com and you're waiting to for the daily deal to be revealed.

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Cool electronics products keep Woot.com's users coming back day after day to get more great deals on the items they love. Digital cameras, DVD makers, portable GPS, projectors, blenders, and USB missile launchers are among the products you might find on Woot.com. Sometimes quirky, sometimes essential, but always cool, Woot's daily deals are definitely worth checking out. You never know what you might find.


Just remember: act fast, you never know when the daily Woot might sell out!

Book Review: "Darkfall" by Dean Koontz

One of Koontz’s earliest novels that was originally titled “The Pit” by his persona Owen West, has been retitled “Darkfall” and is now published along with other Koontz titles. I picked up this paperback after reading and enjoying Koontz’s “Odd Thomas” series. The writing of “Darkfall” is just as dark and evil as I had expected.

Koontz’s use of imagery throughout the novel is outstanding. I was able to (unwillingly) step into the novel and be part of the action. I truly felt as if I was traveling with the characters throughout the story.

The demonic characters where slowly revealed to us as the gates of hell were opened through a glowing pit dug by the evil character Lavelle. Lavelle practices voodoo, but other than a few references to his rituals, I found that there was much research lacking by Koontz.

The characters Jack and Rebecca were well developed and I felt a strong connection to them, even to the evil forces of Lavelle. There was a strong story line of good vs evil that was carried through the entire book. A lesser love storyline was also present and I found myself enjoying the character development through this route.

Having a 12 year old child, I found one character, Penny, who is 11 years old to be unbelievable. See seemed to present the maturity and dialogue of a much older teen. This was especially evident at the end of the novel.

Overall, this was a fun read, which you should probably not read before bedtime.

Book Review: “The Paper Doorway” Poetry by Dean Koontz

I recently gave my 12 year old son the assignment to reflect on poetry that he had recently read. His response was that he could not do the assignment, as he did not like poetry and had never really read any poetry.

My response to him went something like this “but you love poetry, and you recently were telling me about all the great little ‘stories’ you were reading in your Dean Koontz book.”

His response “That’s not poetry, I liked that book. It was full of funny little stories.”

We had a long discussion after about how poetry takes on many forms and brings many different emotions. The emotions that were felt with Koontz’s poetry made my son feel happy. All poetry is not like that and my son did later admit he enjoys poetry, especially Koontz’s poetry.

“The Paper Doorway” is filled with humorous, whimsical poetry for children of all ages. There are wonderful illustrations on nearly each page and each illustration contains a mouse for your child to find.

This is a must have book for all young readers which will expose them to the joys of poetry.

A Memorial Day Dedication

Lilac Festival, Rochester, NY

Sand Cherry Blossoms