Holidays in a Snap with Apps

By GalTime Nerd Chick Andrea Eldridge

These apps will make holiday shopping way easier!
These apps will make holiday shopping way easier!

Apps to keep you organized this holiday season

With Thanksgiving this week, it's officially time for the holidays! Who doesn't love this time of year? Trips to see relatives, parties with friends, gingerbread and eggnog…I better stop if I want to ever finish writing this article.

Unfortunately for many though, the holidays can be an unnecessarily stressful time as we try to manage our busy lives and fit everything important into such a short period of time.

Perhaps this year I can offer a bit of holiday relief with these apps for your smart phone that can make staying on track this season a little easier!

Black Friday: The first stop on the holiday express is Black Friday - when we start buying presents for all of our loved ones. To help navigate the craze of specials on sale that cold November morning, DealNews.com has a free Black Friday app that updates major retailers' specials. Notification of Black Friday sales will go straight to your phone as soon as they come available this first week or two of November. Get it for both iPhone and Android by clicking here.

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Travel help: If you're the type to travel all over visiting family and friends during the holidays, chances are you'll want to make sure you packed everything so you won't have to buy anything last minute or borrow something from your mother-in-law - ugh! uPackingList is a free app for both Android and iPhone that allows you to create a packing list with several different categories. Also, it comes with premade lists that are carefully designed to include the most common items you'll need on travel. Don't forget anything on the way to grandma's house this year! uPackingList is available by clicking here, or search for it in your app store.

Holiday meals: If you're likely to stay home and cook up some holiday deliciousness this season, we have an app for you! Epicurious is one of the best-known cooking sites on the internet, and just so happens to also have the best app available for managing cooking. I personally like to put a screen protector on my iPad and take it into the kitchen with me. I use the Epicurious app as my cookbook for everything! As an added bonus, I can email my shopping list from within the app if I need my husband to pick something up from the store.

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Party planning: For those of you hosting holiday parties to remember, iPhone owners can download the Simple Soiree app, which allows you to plan a menu, include shopping lists, invite guests and check RSVPs.

Making a list and checking it twice: Finally, when it comes down to the big shopping rush in December, a simple list manager like Wunderlist can help track your holiday gift list. Available for both Android and iPhone, the Wunderlist app allows you to sync it across all of your devices so if you're at home on your computer doing online shopping, you can enter the things you've purchased online. Your updated list will then be available when you are out shopping with your mobile device.

With a little organizational help from these apps, you'll be in for a truly "app-y" holiday!

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