The Many Faces of xtra xtra
Our Facebook followers do pretty extraordinary things. They’re getting married, graduating from college, having babies, celebrating anniversaries, and hosting parties. We enjoy celebrating milestones with them, and Xtraxtra Milestone keeps things personal and fun.
We created this special Facebook account that lets us friend and follow our favorite folks. We can post updates and write on our friends’ walls when something exciting happens, and we enjoy looking forward to milestones with our friends.
Our graphic designer has created clever profile pictures for Xtraxtra Milestone’s profile (after all, profile pictures are half of the fun!). Sometimes you’ll find our icon celebrating a birthday, and other times she’s going to graduation. The images cleverly illustrate a great way to make graphic design interactive for a branded approach. Click the image below to take a look at some of the images she’s created; I think you’ll be impressed!
Till next time,
CH
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Your Small Business and xtra xtra
It’s National Small Business Week, and that means it’s time to recognize the people in your community with fresh ideas that keep things running. Our current economy can make it an uphill battle for smaller companies as they fight to excel, so we want to applaud the businesses that are making a difference in their communities.
Though our site reaches across the country, xtra xtra is actually a small business, too. We have a close-knit team that works hard to make the site cool and efficient. You can learn more about us by visiting xtra xtra’s LinkedIn page. If you’d like, go ahead and follow us, too. We’d love to learn more about you and your business, too!
If you’re a small business owner, visit xtra xtra and put our free announcements to work for you. If you have an upcoming sale or perhaps a special event, create an Event milestone at xtra xtra. If you want people to know about your newest hire or an employee promotion, make a Professional announcement. If you’re opening a new store in a different town, post that, too! Let us help you spread the word with updates and stories your community cares about!
Till next time,
CH
- xtra xtra
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Summer Weddings and Romantic Comedies
Summer is upon us with 80 degree temperatures in Boston, and that wonderful season means trips to the beach, longer days, barbecues and ice cream trucks, and all sorts of festivities. It also means that summer’s romantic comedies are about to start playing in your local movie theater.
We love romantic comedies, or “rom-coms,” since they often deal with, include, or lead up to one of our favorite milestones: weddings! We asked a few of our followers and friends to share their favorite wedding movies, and we got a lot of different responses.
Father of the Bride
The Wedding Singer
The Wedding Date
My Best Friend’s Wedding
Four Weddings and a Funeral
The Bachelor
Muriel’s Wedding
My Big Fat Wedding
The Wedding Planner
27 Dresses
Rachel Getting Married
Runaway Bride
Are we forgetting any of your favorite wedding-themed flicks?
If you need help getting into the summer wedding spirit, visit a few of our favorite wedding websites.
- Wedding Window—This site lets couples create customized wedding websites. They also have a wonderful blog called WedLoft with great wedding planning resources. Stay tuned to their blog as we will soon be guest bloggers!
- The Bridal BFF—Find fun tips and observations for brides to consider in their wedding planning. Angel, the head blogger, offers wonderful perspectives and suggestions to her “bridal besties.”
- Beantown Bride—We’re in love with this colorful blog for bridal inspirations. Find elegant photos and ideas with a special Boston touch. Never fear, though, for all these ideas would be awesome in any corner of the country!
Let us know if we missed any of your favorite movies and websites, and perhaps you’ll also create a special (and free!) wedding announcement at xtraxtra.com. Celebrate your family and friends’ nuptials by celebrating with all of your favorite communities!
Till next time,
CH
- Milestone Spotlight
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How I Met Your Modem
These days the internet is a part of everyday life, but it’s easy to forget the days when it was a novelty. As part of a web company, I am naturally a bit curious about how people think about the internet, so I asked some of our friends and followers to think back to their earliest memories of life online. Needless to say, a lot has changed!
Here are a few of our favorite responses… Read more
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Stephanie Joins the Blog!
Hello xtra xtra blog readers!
Stephanie here; I want to introduce myself as a second voice on the xtra xtra blog. I will be joining Cooley to bring you the latest milestone related news, tips, and all things xtra xtra.
Exciting times are ahead for us: newspaper and other partnerships, industry relationships, and of course…BlogHer ’10. I will be travelling to NYC in August to attend the BlogHer conference this year. This will be my first time at the conference, and I am both nervous and excited! (Any and all advice from past attendees would be greatly appreciated!) I will be chronicling my journey to BlogHer here, so stay tuned.
I will keep you up-to-date on our exciting partnerships, and introduce you to some of the impressive companies and bloggers that we are working with. I will also chime in on our regular blog topics, as we help you celebrate the milestones that matter.
Here’s to many happy milestones!
Stephanie
- Our Team
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Tossing Our Caps Into the Air for Graduation
We talk a lot about academic milestones at xtra xtra, but now we’re approaching the most important academic milestone of all: graduation!
In the next few weeks, colleges and high schools will be holding commencement ceremonies and marking a new beginning for thousands of students. If you know someone who’s about to celebrate a graduation, here are a few of our favorite ways to celebrate a new grad!
- Say It With Cookies—Everyone orders cakes for graduation parties, so do something different with clever cookies. Bake your grad’s favorite cookie and write his or her initials on top with frosting, or go gourmet and ask a local bakery to help you get creative. Cakes for Occasions, for example, is featuring adorable cookies in the shape of a graduation cap!
- Frame the Diploma—Diploma frames can be pricey side, so many students are unlikely to go out and get their diplomas framed when they’re just starting to pay bills and make ends meet. If you’re looking for a memorable gift, offer to frame your grad’s diploma. Options range from affordable to extravagant, and it’s something your grad can cherish forever in celebration of a job well done. Start off with University Frames; they have cool ideas and a large selection.
- Post an Announcement—Of course the xtra xtra team can’t resist encouraging announcements! Whether it’s in your local newspaper or on xtra xtra, celebrate your grad’s achievements with a special announcement. Our intern, Jamie Reddish, recently graduated from Emmanuel College, and she posted her announcement at xtra xtra. Our site offers free and easy tools for sharing with your favorite communities, so take a moment to tell everyone how proud you are of your student’s hard work
So Tell Us…What are your favorite graduation celebrations? Do you have any fond memories from your graduation? Let us know, and remember to create a milestone at xtraxtra.com, too!
Tossing my cap into the air,
CH
- Milestone Spotlight
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Do You “Like” the New Facebook?
A few weeks ago, Facebook changed things up by eliminating the “Become a Fan” button and inviting users to “Like” different businesses and pages. The change kicked off an effort to put the “Like” button on pages across the web, and Facebook is optimistic that the new feature will soon expand the network’s reach online.
Many people are starting to wonder if the new feature is working as well as Facebook had hoped. There’s been a recent jump in users trying to delete their Facebook profiles, and sites like Gizmodo.com are aggressively encouraging people to delete their accounts for the sake of privacy after introduction of the new “Like” button.
xtra xtra is no stranger to Facebook. We have our official business page and a unique account that lets us talk directly with our fans and supporters. We know that millions upon millions of users visit Facebook every day, so we allow posting to the Facebook wall while also offering Facebook Connect to help more users access xtra xtra and share milestones.
We like Facebook, but like many others, we wonder what will happen next. Mashable.com is doing a poll to see who prefers the “Like” button over the old “Become a Fan” option, but we want to know what you’re thinking about Facebook these days. Are there other social media tools you prefer, or are you a Facebook fan for life?
Let us know in the comments below!
Till next time,
CH
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Meet the Team: Chris Cochrane
It’s very challenging to “talk to” a website. You can have a great idea for how it should look, what it should do, and how it should work, but turning ideas into results can be tough. When you’re setting out to build a website, you need an interpreter who can translate your ideas into the computer’s language.
That’s why we have Chris Cochrane and the TDJ team working with xtra xtra.
Chris is one of our lead web developers for xtra xtra. He makes the site work and feel the way it should, and he’s always on hand to answer our questions and make things happen on the site. We asked Chris a few questions about his experiences with xtra xtra, and his answers are the next installment of our spotlight series!
Name: Chris Cochrane
Communities you’ve called home: I was born and partly raised in Peekskill, NY. I moved to Lake Orion, Michigan for my teen years; Ann Arbor, MI for college, then Millbury, MA and Manchester, NH as a (very) post-teen. I went from the East Coast to the Midwest and back again; I still haven’t been anywhere long enough to develop an accent.
Schools you’ve attended: I attended Lake Orion High School and graduated from the University of Michigan with undergraduate engineering degrees in Computer Engineering and Electrical Engineering. Seems like I was trained to build computers, but I’d much rather program them.
How long have you been with xtra xtra?–Since the first wireframes – you know, those ugly web site mock-ups that everyone pretends to like but no one wants to see a second time. That would be April of 2008.
What do you do with xtra xtra?–Web site software development, focusing primarily on the back end and business logic.
What’s the most exciting thing about working with xtra xtra?–I truly enjoy the diverse programming opportunities presented by such an expansive site. There’s just a ton of variety in everything we do: server side PHP code, SQL database design, and Javascript/jQuery usability features. Then there are 3rd party APIs like Facebook and Twitter to code against, too. It’s all fun and fresh.
You’ve been through a lot with the site. What’s a memorable challenge you’ve faced?–The site refresh in late 2009 was quite a challenge. Although it might appear to be “new skins” to the casual user there was a lot of infrastructure work to be done. It was also, in many respects, a validation of the development framework we use – symfony. This tool set made it easier for multiple developers to contribute in an environment with rapidly changing requirements.
What’s your favorite part about working with xtra xtra?–xtra xtra has a great team. Did I mention diverse programming earlier? Well there is a good deal of diversity in the site development and administration staff as well. That makes for lively planning sessions, innovative concepts and terrific collaboration. The team comes in with ideas from many directions – youth and experience, national and international – all mixing together, and hopefully resulting the best experience for a site user.
xtra xtra is all about milestones, so tell us about a personal milestone in your life (i.e. graduation, wedding, getting a job, etc.)– I run 1200 miles per year and take 365 vitamins. But enough about me! I have 2 wonderful kids who seem to be creating new milestones every day. And when I’m done driving them to and fro, I like to watch their school plays, athletic events, and holiday pageants. My parents recently celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary and my wife and I are almost half-way to that mark ourselves.
Check out Chris’ work by visiting xtraxtra.com, and let us know if you have any more questions for him to answer!
Till next time,
The xtra xtra team
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Make Mother’s Day Memorable
Mother’s Day is just two days away! Whether you’re going to relax with Mom and watch Betty White’s turn on Saturday Night Live or you’re planning an excellent brunch on Sunday, here are a few more tips to make Mother’s Day weekend more memorable.
- Say It In a Letter: Gifts and cards are special, but a handwritten letter to your mom is a meaningful gift she can keep forever. Take some time to write a special
note and tell her how much you appreciate all that she’s done for you.
- Change The World: If you have a Twitter account, tweet the phrase #ToMamaWithLove and OrganicBeautyNow.com will donate $1 to Epic Change, an organization raising money for kids in Tanzania. If you follow @1800flowers, the folks at 1-800-Flowers will also be donating $1 to Epic Change for each new follower they get through Sunday. Write a tweet about how much you love your mom, and use phrases #ToMamaWithLove and @1800flowers to make change in her honor!
- Create an xtra xtra milestone: Of course you can create a special holiday milestone to honor your mom and all of her achievements at xtraxtra.com. It’s free and simple, and it’s a great way to share how much you care with the whole community. You can also share photos on the site if you’re attending a cool Mother’s Day event or activity.
- Give a Gift that Makes a Difference: A lot of great causes are doing promotions for Mother’s Day. The Breast Cancer Awareness Site’s Store has great merchandise for any mom, and each purchase helps fund mammograms for women in need. You can also support Boston Bakes for Breast Cancer Week by ordering some special whoopie pies from our partners at Cakes for Occasions. All sales go to the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, and they can be shipped across the country!
How are you planning to celebrate this Mother’s Day? Let us know in a comment below!
Till next time,
CH
- Celebrations/Events
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Spotlight on Cheerful Givers
When I was a kid, the coolest birthday parties in town were held at the skating rink. They were evenings of breathless fun, 90s pop music, and cake-fueled sugar highs. We gave each other Beanie Babies, board games, Silly String, and posters of the Backstreet Boys (again, it was the 90s). We were excited and exhilarated, but we didn’t really realize how lucky we were.
There are many kids who don’t get that sort of thrill on their birthdays. For children in poverty and those in need, a birthday wish is just that: a wish.
Cheerful Givers has been helping to make those wishes come true since 1994. This nonprofit 
organization is one of xtra xtra’s earliest partners, and we continue to be inspired by all of the work they are doing for children in need. Based in Minnesota with a reach across the country, Cheerful Givers organizes special gift bags so that parents living in poverty can give their kids a special birthday.
You can get involved to make a child’s birthday a milestone to remember. Invite some people over and make it a group effort with a Birthday Bag Blitz! You can also get involved in your community by delivering your bags to a local shelter to make birthday dreams come true. Let Cheerful Givers know where you donated them so they can keep track of the impact they’re making on these special birthdays, and don’t forget to follow them on Twitter!
Till next time,
CH
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