When someone asks you what good social media can really do, or when they complain to you about the commercialism of Christmas, show them this link.

It really brings home the fact that we all need each other, that social media can bring us together in amazing ways — and that the best way to have a meaningful Christmas is to “get out of yourself.”

If you’re a parenting blogger like me, you may not think you need to know all that much about marketing. But author Shiv Singh has something for all of us in his new book, Social Media Marketing for Dummies.

You’ll learn how to better reach your audience via Facebook and Twitter, you’ll learn about online influencers and you’ll figure out how to make the most of YouTube. That’s just for starters.

Is this book aimed squarely at parenting bloggers? Nope. But there are definitely some gold nuggets in this book with your name on them. Check it out.

It seems like every few days I hear about a new regional parenting magazine joining Twitter. Thanks to all of you who have commented or emailed about this list and who asked for an update. We have a lot of new entries here.

Even if you don't live in the area that these magazines serve, you'll find that they tweet links to terrific articles on health, parenting, back-to-school, etc. that are of interest to ALL parents. Check 'em out!

Atlanta Parent (GA): AtlantaParent

Bay Area Parent – Silicon Valley (CA): @BayAreaParentSV

Birmingham Parent (AL): @bhamparent

Boston Parents Paper (MA): @BostonParents

Calgary’s Child (CANADA): @CalgarysChild

Carolina Parent (NC) @CarolinaParent 

Central Penn Parent (PA): @CPennParent

Charlotte Parent (NC): @charlotteparent

Charlotte Parent Web Editor (NC): @CLTparentweb

Chesapeake Family (MD): @ChesFamily

Chicago Parent (IL): @ChicagoParent

Coastal Family (GA): @coastalfamily

Colorado Parent Magazine (CO): @ColoParentMag

Columbus Parent (OH: @ColumbusParent

Curious Parents (NJ): @curiousparents

Dallas Child (TX): @dallaschild1

Fredericksburg Parent (VA): @FredParent

Genesee Valley Parent Magazine (NY): @GVParentMag

Giggles on the Go (Washington D.C.): @gigglesonthego

Houston Family (TX): @HoustonFamily

Kansas City Parent (MO): @KCParent

L.A. Parent (CA): @carolyngraham

L.A. Parent Health-E blog (CA): @Health_E

LIParentSource.com (NY): @LIParentSource

Little Rock Family (AR): @LRFamily

Metro Family (OK): @metrofamily

Metro Parent (MI): @MetroParent

Neapolitan Family Magazine (FL): neafamilymag

New Jersey Family Magazine (NJ): @njfamilymag

O.C. Family (CA): @ocfamily

Our Kids San Antonio (TX): @OurKidsMagazine

Parenting and Babytalk (National): @parenting

Parents and Kids (MA) @Parentsandkids

Piedmont Parent (NC) @piedmontparent

Portland Family (OR) @Portland_Family

Raising Arizona Kids Magazine (AZ) @RAKmagazine

Staten Island Parent (NY): @SIParent

SW Florida Parent & Child (FL): @gulfcoastmoms

Today’s Parent (Canada): Todaysparent

Treasure Valley Family (ID): @lizbuckingham

Westchester Family (NY): @WestchesterFam

Wilmington Parent (NC): @WilmingtnParent

Wow. Yesterday's post, which showed a fairly shocking new PSA on teen texting while driving, has created a bit of a splash, with people discussing it on Facebook and Twitter. Many said they were going to show the video to their teens. One woman promised to send it to her texting-crazed sister.

But one woman commented, in a very thoughtful message, that she thought the video was far too graphic for her teens. She said she didn't allow her teens to see R-rated movies and she thought there were better ways to get the point across than to show them a video that was potentially nightmare-causing.

I appreciated her thoughtful comment, and it made me think. I do believe you have to know your individual kid to know how to handle these
decisions. (And boy, they
don't seem to get easier!)

I think a lot of kids hear Mom or Dad
talking about driving safety (or being a safe passenger) and it sounds
like the adults in a Peanuts cartoon: "Wah wah, wah wah wah…" They
see themselves as being talented multitaskers — and Mom and Dad as being
hopelessly out of touch.

For some, it might take the shock of
seeing exactly what can happen in a moment of inattention to really
grab them by the collar and say "PAY ATTENTION!"

So
funny. Yesterday I was complaining about Matt saying I'm the mom who
won't let him see R-rated movies at 13. And today I made sure he saw
this shocking, violent PSA video. I guess I don't put them in the same category.

But I respect this mom's opinion. I think we all know best how to reach our own kids.

What do you think? Is it too graphic to show to your teen? Or is it just the wake-up call some kids need?

P.S. Check out this October 2008 post, "Put Down the Cell Phone: Save a Life — Important Advice for Parents & Teens" on Geneseevalleyparent.com. The post was written by a high school intern at the magazine, Stephanie DeCross. From the post: "…We could reflect on and learn from recent tragedies like the one in
Fairport where texting may have caused a terrible accident which cost
five graduating seniors their lives. Reports noted that moments before
the crash a cell phone was used from within the vehicle to send and
receive messages. The young women involved were in the wrong place at
the wrong time… and possibly preoccupied by this fatal distraction. They
were not, as we are not, invincible."

Recently I joined 1,400 women (and about 12 very brave guys) at BlogHer '09 in Chicago. It was insanity in the best sense of the word.

To say this is an opinionated bunch of women would be an understatement. (They're bloggers, after all!) And not everything about the conference was sunshine and roses. (Search for #BlogHer09 on Twitter to follow the conversation.) But I loved the sessions, meeting other bloggers and moms — and the chocolate, which seemed to be everywhere.

It was held in an amazing city — Chicago. I brought along my husband and son, and they had a ball going to two Cubs games while I was at the conference. We had a great time in the evenings, going out for deep-dish pizza, seeing an amazing Second City performance. (Can't wait to see some of these folks on Saturday Night Live one of these days. Such talent! And guts!)

And I even showed my son that *I* had guts. We went to the Gospel Brunch at the House of Blues, and I ended up on stage, dancing with about 20 other people. And my 13-year-old didn't die of embarrassment — although I'm sure he thought he might!

BlogHer '10 will be held in New York City next August. Want to go? Make your reservations soon. This year it sold out.

As many of you know, I've been working as Consumer Reports' social media reporter since February. I love this work, and it fits so well with my commitment to sharing important consumer news with parents right here on Parent Talk Today.

I usually do my work for the organization as @CReporter on Twitter. But my editors also asked me to write a Consumer Reports blog post, "Eight Ways to Protect Your Kids on Social Networks," which talks about how to keep kids safe on Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, etc.

Nancy Willard, director of the Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use, advises parents, educators, librarians and policy makers on how kids can use the Web safely. Her advice in this post can help keep your kids safe.

For more on information on surfing the Web safely, visit the Consumer Reports Guide to Online Security.

A post on the Consumer Reports Safety Blog, "Inflatable Accidents Are Up, Up and Away," caught my eye yesterday, and I wanted to share it with you. 

(Disclosure: I work part-time as the social-media reporter for Consumer Reports at @CReporter on Twitter. Actually, it's a job that comes in very handy for me as a parenting writer, because I learn about these issues from folks who really know how to test equipment and check on safety issues.)

Recently an 11-year-old boy flew 40 feet into the air, clinging to a poorly anchored inflatable slide that was caught by a gust of wind. Fast-thinking parents punctured the slide and brought it back to earth before the boy was injured.

But, as CR notes: "The newest numbers from the Consumer Product Safety Commission, which
were last updated in 2005, are sobering. The CPSC reported four
fatalities in inflatable-related accidents from 2002 to 2005. In 2004,
the most recent year for which we found complete data,
inflatable rides, such as inflatable slides and bouncers, accounted for
an estimated 4,900 injuries treated in hospital emergency rooms,
according to the agency. That was up sharply from 1997, when the CPSC
estimated only 1,300 such injuries — a whopping 277 percent increase
in just eight years (a time in which inflatables grew in popularity)."

My son has been bouncing in inflatable jumpers and sliding down inflatable slides since he was a preschooler. When he was little, I made sure he wasn't getting jumped on by the bigger kids, but I didn't realize the dangers in these structures being caught by a burst of wind or suddenly deflating.

Does this mean we need to stop using inflatable slides and jumpers? I don't think so. But should adults supervise their use and be available to prevent kid pile-ups and to make sure the structure is safe? Absolutely.

Not ready for your 10-year-old daughter to be hanging out on Facebook or MySpace or Twitter just yet? I don't blame you.

Fortunately, companies are picking up on parents' concerns about the Web and are creating products for tweens that provide safeguards from the stranger dangers inherent in the online world.

My Secret Circle is a secure social-networking world designed for girls ages eight to 12. Girls can hang out online, chat, share pictures and play games — safely.

My Secret Circle is invisible to the regular online world and is not a Web site. By purchasing online access keys featuring unique ID codes, only friends can connect on My Secret Circle by exchanging private codes. Once a code is used to connect two friends, it is inactive and can never be used again. Since the codes are embedded in the product itself, girls never need to upload personal information online, further enhancing the security of the network.  

Other features of My Secret Circle include profile pages, an avatar tool, an online journal that can be kept private or "public" (for friends to read), instant messaging, games and an extensive photo feature in which girls can upload photos, add text and create slide shows. 

The access keys can be purchased individually or in a pack that includes two keys. Also available (separately) is a headset with microphone that allows girls to voice-chat online in a secure environment.

My Secret Circle is currently available for purchase at Justice stores across the U.S. for $19.99. The two-key pack retails for $29.99 and the chat headset with microphone is $14.99.

It’s no secret that many kids today are more technologically advanced than their parents. They practically grew up with a mouse in their hand and spend a great deal of time IMing, texting and "Facebooking."

Rosemary Blandford, a 37-year-old Chicago-area mother of three who formerly worked as both an ER nurse and a teacher, recognized that she didn't know as much about all things techie as she wanted to in order to keep up with her kids. So she created RosieKnows.com.

In addition to tips on using Twitter, Pandora, Skype, Netflix and a lot more, the site includes an entire section about social networking so that parents can join their kids online and stay involved in their digital lives.

Rosie offers free videos, step-by-step instructions and tutorials. And check out Rosie's blog for even more tips. Here are some to get you started:

Rosie's Tips for Saving $$ on the Web

•    Communicate in a new way – Skype lets you have a long-distance phone conversation with other Skype users without the long-distance charges. (Now we've all heard of Skype, but Rosie's video tutorial will show you how it actually works.)

•    Buy or sell using online classifieds or auctions – Ebay and Craigslist will help you make money or buy someone else's goods at good prices. (Both sites can seem a bit confusing at first. How do you bid? How do you pay? Rosie makes it easy.)

•    Find great entertainment without leaving home  – Watch videos or TV shows on Hulu or  documentaries on FreeDocumentaries.com. Use Netflix to watch and even stream popular movies. 

•    Give the gift of a family tree – Use Geni.com to create a family tree. It won't cost you anything, and may be cherished by family members more than any pricey gift.

Can you tell I LOVE this site?

Are you on Twitter? Facebook? Chances are, if your kids are hitting the teen years, they're there. Or they want to be.

What's the best way to know what they're up to? Get involved with social media yourself. It's not that difficult — and it's a lot of fun. More and more parents are sharing tips via social media. Many parenting magazines now have Facebook pages, and the parenting community is "tweeting" like mad these days!

I wrote an article, for the April issue of the American Society of Journalists and Authors newsletter, about how writers can use social media to advance their careers. But the article is really helpful for anyone who wants to get started with social media. Check it out here. You can download the PDF at no charge. The article is on page 10.

I'd love to hear how you're using Twitter, Facebook or other social media to connect with other parents. Please leave a comment!

P.S. Of course, when I'm sitting her tweeting away and chatting with my parent buddies on Facebook, I look JUST like this model!