Current Most Used Apps

I spend an absurd amount of time on my phone. It actually sickens me whenever I get the notification on Sunday morning sharing how much screen time I utilized throughout the week. That said… not all of my phone use is mindless scrolling. Most of my Instagram use is actually just from responding to DMs. And I consider my phone a tool for work and a way to enhance my daily life. Everything in moderation, right?!

It’s been a while since I shared apps, but here’s what I’ve been using the most lately (beyond, like, Instagram):

1. LIBRO.FM/AUDIBLE/LIBBY

I listen to audiobooks throughout the day. Maybe I get lucky and get a stretch of time where I can do 30 minutes to an hour of listening (like if I’m driving or walking the dogs or cleaning around the house), but I think most of my listening happens in 10 minute increments. I’m constantly finding excuses to get in another blip of “reading” (er, listening!). I am always cycling through Libro.fm, Audible, and Libby.

– Libro.fm lets you purchase audiobooks through your favorite independent bookseller. I’ve become quite obsessed with supporting independent booksellers as best I can (🙌🏻) and this is a no-brainer.

– Audible is owned by Amazon and I still have a membership with them because some of the books I listen to are Audible originals. I recently listened to Dreamland and You Should Talk to Someone, both originals that I thoroughly enjoyed.

– Libby is BRILLIANT. You input your library card number and, BOOM, you have access to your library’s collection of audiobooks (and e-books if you’re into that!). You can place holds on books or search via what’s available. I always check my Libby app first to see if my library has the book I want to listen to before purchasing it from Audible or Libro.fm.

2. HEADSPACE

I’m highly obsessed with Headspace and can’t recommend it enough to everyone. Literally. Everyone. I feel so strongly that people should be meditating and Headspace makes it so simple. I was super intimidated by meditating, largely because I didn’t understand how to do it and Headspace demystified it for me. I credit Headspace for being the #1 thing that has helped me manage my intense anxiety and, quite literally, changing my life. I use Headspace at least once a day, often two or three, and I’ve been at it for well over 1,000 days at this point.

3. DUOLINGO

Practicing my French is now part of my morning routine. I use Duolingo and do it every single morning (for over 400 days in a row). I love this app so much because it makes learning a new language pretty easy and fun. I love the lessons and I’m pretty surprised at how much I’ve learned by just doing it for 10-20 minutes a day.

4. UNFOLD/VSCO/LIGHTROOM

Including this in here because it’s a question I get a lot on Instagram… I use Unfold for my Instagram stories where I want to have white backgrounds and clean, multi-photo frames. I use VSCO and Lightroom to edit my photos. Pretty simple!

5. CLUE

Clue is a free app where you can track your periods. It’s super reliable and I love that you can track all kinds of things beyond just your period including how you feel, what your emotions are, and sense of when you’re ovulating. Knowledge is definitely power.

6. 1 SECOND EVERY DAY

I’ve been using 1 Second Every Day for over two years now. I’ve only missed a couple of days but it’s a really fun way to have a “journal” of sorts. I’m terrible at actually journaling so I like that this grabs one second clips and pieces them together to create a video over time. Even if you don’t want to commit to doing it every day, it could be a fun thing to do for an extended trip or to document a baby’s growth throughout the year!

7. DARK SKY

After getting burned a bit from Apple’s weather app (like being stuck without an umbrella when it started to rain!), I upgraded to Dark Sky and prefer it so much better. It’s not perfect, but it’s so much more accurate than any other weather app I’ve used. And I like to be prepared– the radar is my favorite part.