Every other Wednesday when Chris gets paid, I spend a day running errands. We have a couple of bills that are just easier to pay in person, so after I drop him off at carpool and get Kaitlyn on the bus, I spend several hours driving around town taking care of bill paying and any shopping that needs doing.

A week ago Wednesday was payday so it was errand day. I take my Motorola Xoom in the car on the way to dropping Chris off, I get about 20 minutes or so to check email or catch up on the news, and because it has Verizon Wireless service, even as we drive down the highway I am continually connected.

So, my first stop was the credit union to withdraw all the cash for the bills and shopping. While I was waiting in the drive-thru line (drive-thru opens earlier than the main building), I suddenly remembered Nathan needed money in his lunch account or else they were going to give him a plain cheese sandwich for lunch. I powered up the Xoom, browsed to the account page, and in a few clicks, while I was still waiting in line, I had made the lunch payment.

A couple more stops and then I was headed to Target where I needed to pick up a prescription and pay my Target Visa bill. After I parked, I decided to double-check the amount of the bill before going inside to pay, to make sure I had enough cash. I browsed to the Target website, checked my balance due, then headed in.

While in Target, I pulled out my Xoom and fired up the Evernote app. I create shopping lists using Evernote on my laptop, and then while I’m out, use the Android app on my Xoom or phone to look at the list. No more carrying around lists scrawled on the backs of junk mail envelopes that I always was setting down to read labels and then leaving behind. The Evernote app is one of the best apps, hands down.

Now, everything I just mentioned using my Xoom for, yes I could also do all that on my Droid phone. But the main difference for me is visibility. My eyes aren’t so young anymore, and even with bifocals, I can’t always see small print on screens. So on my phone, I end up maximizing the screen, but then I can only see a small portion of the text at a time. With the Xoom, I can see everything on the screen, and if I maximize small print to see it better, I can still almost always see all of it without having to scroll.

It was just so cool, being able to take care of so many things at once. We live in an information age and we want access to our information wherever we go. The Motorola Xoom Tablet is making that possible for me in a way I had never dreamed of, and is actually making my errand day enjoyable!

disclosure:  I’m working with Verizon Wireless for six months as a Verizon Midwest Mom. They provided me with a Xoom tablet and six months of Verizon Wireless service in exchange for posts about my experiences.

Last month I got an email from Rauxa PR with an incredible offer to join the Verizon Midwest Moms blogging program.  They asked if I would be interested in getting a Motorola Xoom Tablet with six months of Verizon Wireless service to check out, plus the chance to try out a new Motorola phone.  AND, I would get to KEEP either the Tablet or the phone!

Now, you know I love gadgets and technology, so you’d better believe I replied yes to that email!

My introduction to the Xoom came the day before the Brands & Bloggers Summit, when the Midwest Moms got together for a day of training.  The tablets were pretty much set up and ready to go, ready for me to use to check Gmail, send Facebook updates, tweet, watch YouTube, browse the web – you name it, the Xoom does it!

The Xoom has a decent two-way 5 megapixel camera with dual flash and digital zoom.  When I say two-way, I mean it can take regular photos, or I can tap to turn the camera around and use it as a webcam or for Skype. (I may have used the camera to apply lipstick in the elevator at BlogHer once, allegedly.)

The music player came preloaded and sounds amazing. I played Sara Bareilles’ “Love Song” on it earlier and Ryan thought I had turned on the stereo! Video playback/YouTube looks great, and I especially love the movie app that let me purchase “The Adjustment Bureau” and watch part of it while waiting for a plane. If I had the right cable, I could have come home, hooked up my Xoom to my home theater with an HDMI cable, and played the movie from my Xoom onto my TV!

What I’m really using my Xoom for the most though is keeping up with my everyday life. I’ve got it loaded with Gmail and Hootsuite, PayPal and Bank of America, CNN and Huffington Post, Foursquare and Facebook.  On days when Chris carpools, I drive with him to drop him off, and while he’s driving, I use my Xoom.   Between WiFi and the Verizon Network, I have yet to find a place where my Xoom doesn’t work, including out in the country.

But my very favorite reason to have the Xoom so far is as an eReader!  Google Books looks AMAZING, and there are Nook and Kindle apps in the Droid Market. Hold the Xoom vertically and it’s like reading a hardback-sized book. Now, I LOVE books. I love the feel of the paper, I love that sound it makes when you turn the page, and I would never stop reading books. But when I was packing for BlogHer, getting my carry-on totebag ready, it was such a relief not to have to make room for my usual two paperbacks. And, knowing that I was basically carrying around a bookstore with me, between the Google Books, Nook, and Kindle Apps, that’s pretty cool.

I have become an absolute total fan of the Xoom. I was already a card-carrying member of the “We Love Android” club, and the Xoom just takes everything I already love about Droid and amplifies it. It’s hard to even write this post because there’s so much more I could say!  Part of my agreement with Verizon is to write two posts a month about my experiences using the Xoom, so on Tuesday I’ll have another post for you.

If you’ve been contemplating getting a Xoom and want to ask me a question about it, please leave your question in a comment!  I could talk about this thing all freaking day.

disclosure: I’m part of of the new Midwest Moms group from Verizon Wireless. They have provided me with a Motorola Xoom and a Verizon data plan for six months and all they ask in return is that I share my experiences.