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Click, Color, Capture Photo Challenge: Week 2 – Orange

CLICK, COLOR, CAPTURE PHOTO CHALLENGE!

Welcome to Week 1 of the Color, Click, Capture photography challenge hosted byEast9thStreetA Helicopter MomNap Time Is My Time and Sunshine and Sippy Cups!  Our color this week is Orange – And here’s my favorite Orange photo…

Nature, Orange, Flower

“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” – Lao Tzu

We moved into our new home in November of 2010 – leaving behind a beautifully landscaped home. My mother spent most afternoons at this new home working on building a new garden – She is a completely amazing Master Gardner. This is one of her beauties, taken at the end of the summer. I love the way that the light shines through the petals – Makes me feel warmer and brighter just looking at it. Oh, how I’m longing for summer to come back again!

This Week’s Photo Tip

Emily Anderson of Emily Anderson Photography has been photographing children and families in the Northeast Arkansas area for several years.  She has the patience of a Saint and an impeccable ability to capture the most innocent moments.

When photographing children, have realistic expectations. If your 2 year old can’t sit still to watch his or her favorite 15-minute television show, a 40-minute session with props and specific poses is probably out of the question. (Even for a professional this can be hard to accept when it involves my own children. J ) Arrange to have another person there to chase a runaway toddler, wipe noses, and pull dresses down to cover diapers.  Pick a time that the kids are usually at their best. I find that in the morning, right after breakfast is a great time for most kids. Have everything ready and easily accessible. You don’t want to have to go searching for a specific toy or book when you are 10 minutes in to their 20 minute attention span. If the kids are going to working on a project, think about what angle you will be photographing from when you set up the workspace. Take a few test shots of the area as you set up. Keep it fun, and never underestimate the power of candy or gummy fruit snacks.

Now – It’s YOUR turn to join the fun!

Each week we’ll feature a new color, and link up our favorite photos in that color. Whether your a pro at photography, or a total beginner – I’d love to have you join the fun! We’ll have a new photo tip each week, so we can all work on improving our photo skills together. So – Write up a quick blog post featuring your own favorite color, tell your readers about the Color, Click, Capture challenge, and link up with us!

Link Up Your Orange Photo for the Color, Click, Capture Photo Challenge

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Stumble Tumble Tuesday – 2/7 – #BloggingTips

How to use Stumble Upon for Bloggers

Stumble Tumble Tuesday

This fun weekly event is hosted by Acting BalancedSunshine and Sippy Cups and Wyoming Girl Turned Coastie Wife! The goal of this hop is to use Stumble Upon to help you promote your blog posts and get more traffic. It’s fun, it’s a big boost to your best posts, and you can find new great friends to follow too!

Even if you think you are stumbling correctly, please read this post on how to check and see if your stumble was successful. Some stumbles aren’t showing up, thanks!

TO TAKE PART IS SIMPLE

  1. Add a link to a blog post that you would like people to stumble to the linky below. It *must* be a link to an actual post and NOT your main site. Please do not list giveaways.
  2. Stumble as many other posts as you care to, check to make sure that your stumble went through by clicking on the “Info” icon. If you’d like to, you can leave a comment on their post saying something like, “I’m stopping by from Stumble Tumble Tuesday and just stumbled you – great post! My post is _____(add link)”. That makes it easier for them to return the love! The great thing about Stumble Upon is that it is fast and easy to do with the Stumble Upon toolbar.
    PLEASE DO NOT ADD YOUR LINK IF YOU AREN’T GOING TO STUMBLE ANY POSTS.
  3. Remember, link directly to the actual post, not your home page.
  4. PLEASE – Don’t list any giveaways. StumbleUpon is for Evergreen posts.
  5. PLEASE – Only one link per blog.

Feel free to post about Stumble Tumble Tuesday on your blog and help us spread the word – The more people are stumbling, the more traffic we’ll all get, and, hey – the more, the merrier, right?

HAVE FUN WITH IT AND LET’S DISCOVER AND STUMBLE SOME POSTS!

The first person to “like” a post on StumbleUpon assigns it a category. If your post has not been discovered yet, please leave the category you would like, in your link to help the discoverer assign it correctly. Example: Strawberry Shortcake Recipe (food).

If you have ANY questions on how this works – remember to read the post above, which covers some great basics. If that doesn’t answer it, leave me a comment here or on my Facebook wall – and I’ll get back to your right away. StumbleUpon can be an uh-MAY-zing new way to increase traffic to your site – and this is a fun way to use it!

STUMBLE TUMBLE TUESDAY LINKY

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Stumble Tumble Tuesday – #BloggingTips

StumbleUpon, Stumble Upon, How to Use Stumble Upon for your Blog, Blogging

Welcome to Stumble Tumble Tuesday!

This fun weekly event is hosted by Acting BalancedSunshine and Sippy Cups and Wyoming Girl Turned Coastie Wife! The goal of this hop is to use Stumble Upon to help you promote your blog posts and get more traffic.

Even if you think you are stumbling correctly, please readthis post on how to check and see if your stumble was successful. Some stumbles aren’t showing up, thanks!

TO TAKE PART IS SIMPLE

  1. Add a link to a blog post that you would like people to stumble to the linky below. It *must* be a link to an actual post and NOT your main site. Please do not list giveaways.
  2. Stumble as many other posts as you care to, check to make sure that your stumble went through by clicking on the “Info” icon. If you’d like to, you can leave a comment on their post saying something like, “I’m stopping by from Stumble Tumble Tuesday and just stumbled you – great post! My post is _____(add link)”. That makes it easier for them to return the love! The great thing about Stumble Upon is that it is fast and easy to do with the Stumble Upon toolbar.
    PLEASE DO NOT ADD YOUR LINK IF YOU AREN’T GOING TO STUMBLE ANY POSTS.
  3. Remember, link directly to the actual post, not your home page.
  4. PLEASE – Don’t list any giveaways. StumbleUpon is for Evergreen posts.
  5. PLEASE – Only one link per blog.

Feel free to post about Stumble Tumble Tuesday on your blog and help us spread the word – The more people are stumbling, the more traffic we’ll all get, and, hey – the more, the merrier, right?

HAVE FUN WITH IT AND LET’S DISCOVER AND STUMBLE SOME POSTS!

The first person to “like” a post on StumbleUpon assigns it a category. If your post has not been discovered yet, please leave the category you would like, in your link to help the discoverer assign it correctly. Example: Strawberry Shortcake Recipe (food).

If you have ANY questions on how this works – remember to read the post above, which covers some great basics. If that doesn’t answer it, leave me a comment here or on my Facebook wall – and I’ll get back to your right away. StumbleUpon can be an uh-MAY-zing new way to increase traffic to your site – and this is a fun way to use it!

STUMBLE TUMBLE TUESDAY LINKY

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Click, Color, Capture – Photography Challenge Linky – Week 1: Red

Photography, Color, Click, Camera, Photos, Challenge

Click, Color, Capture Photo Challenge!

Welcome to Week 1 of the Color, Click, Capture photography challenge hosted byEast9thStreetA Helicopter MomNap Time Is My Time and Sunshine and Sippy Cups!  Our color this week is RED.

Cupcakes, Valentines Day, Baking, Red

“When life gives you lemons… just bake some lemon cupcakes.” – Unknown

I’m not a big fan of Valentine’s Day. It’s never really been a good experience for me. But – there’s nothing that a great cupcake can’t fix, right? These little beauties started with the new Fun-da-Middles mix from Betty Crocker, with a little bit of extra creativity thrown in. Recipe will be posted later today – so stay tuned!

Weekly Photography Tip

Our first photography tip comes from Rebecca Cooper who blogs at Simple As That.  A professional photographer, Rebecca has written a eBook called, 40 Top Tips for Better Photos that contains easy-to-follow instructions with lots of images to guide you!  Since most of want to capture images of our children, this first tip is one that is easy to apply.

No More Cheese Please. While it may seem to do the trick, asking your child to ‘say cheese’ will yeild a smile that is just that…cheesy. Try engaging your child in a conversation about something they are interested in (ie. an upcoming birthday, their favorite tv show, a recent family trip, what you’re going to do after pictures) and be ready to catch that winning smile. While it may take a little more time, that beautiful smile is always worth the wait!

Want to participate in our challenge?  It’s super easy!  Here’s how It Works:

  1. Take a picture the represents the color of the week.
  2. Write a blog post that features your picture and link it up.
  3. Visit other people’s posts and hopefully find some inspiration!
  4. You can put the button and link code on your blog if you wish but it’s not a requirement.

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Stumble Tumble Tuesday! 1/25

Stumble upon how to

Welcome to Stumble Tumble Tuesday hosted by Acting Balanced, Sunshine and Sippy Cups and Wyoming Girl Turned Coastie Wife! The goal of this hop is to use Stumble Upon to help you promote your blog posts and get more traffic.

Even if you think you are stumbling correctly, please read this post on how to check and see if your stumble was successful. Some stumbles aren’t showing up, thanks!

 To take part is simple

  1. Add a link to a blog post that you would like people to stumble to the linky below. It *must* be a link to an actual post and NOT your main site. Please do not list giveaways.
  2. Stumble as many other posts as you care to, check to make sure that your stumble went through by clicking on the “Info” icon. If you’d like to, you can leave a comment on their post saying something like, “I’m stopping by from Stumble Tumble Tuesday and just stumbled you – great post! My post is _____(add link)”. That makes it easier for them to return the love! The great thing about Stumble Upon is that it is fast and easy to do with the Stumble Upon toolbar. PLEASE DO NOT ADD YOUR LINK IF YOU AREN’T GOING TO STUMBLE ANY POSTS.
  3. Remember LINK TO AN ACTUAL POST, NOT YOUR MAIN SITE.
  4. PLEASE DON’T LIST ANY GIVEAWAYS.
  5. PLEASE ONLY ONE LINK PER BLOG.

Feel free to post about Stumble Tumble Tuesday on your blog and help us spread the word – The more people are stumbling, the more traffic we’ll all get, and, hey – the more, the merrier, right?

Have fun with it and let’s discover and stumble some posts!

The first person to “like” a post on StumbleUpon assigns it a category. If your post has not been discovered yet, please leave the category you would like, in your link to help the discoverer assign it correctly. Example: Strawberry Shortcake Recipe (food).

If you have ANY questions on how this works – remember to read the post above, which covers some great basics. If that doesn’t answer it, leave me a comment here or on my Facebook wall – and I’ll get back to your right away. StumbleUpon can be an uh-MAY-zing new way to increase traffic to your site – and this is a fun way to use it!

Stumble Tumble Tuesday Linky

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Stumble Tumble Tuesday

StumbleUpon for Bloggers

Welcome to Stumble Tumble Tuesday hosted by Acting Balanced, Sunshine and Sippy Cups and Wyoming Girl Turned Coastie Wife! The goal of this hop is to use Stumble Upon to help you promote your blog posts and get more traffic.

Even if you think you are stumbling correctly, please read this post on how to check and see if your stumble was successful. Some stumbles aren’t showing up, thanks!

 To take part is simple

  1. Add a link to a blog post that you would like people to stumble to the linky below. It *must* be a link to an actual post and NOT your main site. Please do not list giveaways.
  2. Stumble as many other posts as you care to, check to make sure that your stumble went through by clicking on the “Info” icon. If you’d like to, you can leave a comment on their post saying something like, “I’m stopping by from Stumble Tumble Tuesday and just stumbled you – great post! My post is _____(add link)”. That makes it easier for them to return the love! The great thing about Stumble Upon is that it is fast and easy to do with the Stumble Upon toolbar. PLEASE DO NOT ADD YOUR LINK IF YOU AREN’T GOING TO STUMBLE ANY POSTS.
  3. Remember LINK TO AN ACTUAL POST, NOT YOUR MAIN SITE.
  4. PLEASE DON’T LIST ANY GIVEAWAYS.
  5. PLEASE ONLY ONE LINK PER BLOG.

Feel free to post about Stumble Tumble Tuesday on your blog and help us spread the word – The more people are stumbling, the more traffic we’ll all get, and, hey – the more, the merrier, right?

Have fun with it and let’s discover and stumble some posts!

The first person to “like” a post on StumbleUpon assigns it a category. If your post has not been discovered yet, please leave the category you would like, in your link to help the discoverer assign it correctly. Example: Strawberry Shortcake Recipe (food).

If you have ANY questions on how this works – remember to read the post above, which covers some great basics. If that doesn’t answer it, leave me a comment here or on my Facebook wall – and I’ll get back to your right away. StumbleUpon can be an uh-MAY-zing new way to increase traffic to your site – and this is a fun way to use it!

Stumble Tumble Tuesday Linky

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Facebook Blast Event – Join Today & #RockYourBlog2012

 

FacebookBlast

Join me in a totally cool new event – The Facebook Blast!

What is a Facebook Blast? You the blogger can join for only $1.50, and everyone links up just one social media account – Facebook. Then, the amazing Jennifer over at Sason & Pobi will provide the prize – a $100 Amazon code.

What do you need to do to join? 

  • Post about the event with the button linking back to this post. (Right click save the image)
  • Send  a PayPal payment to jennifer@makobiscribe.com with your email address. After she receives the payment, she’ll send you the form to fill out. This way she won’t have to track payments at the end of the event.
  • You will get the instructions once you send payment.
  • Instructions on posting to your Facebook page can be found here.
  • Then schedule the giveaway post to go live on Feb 1 at 9:00 am EST to Feb 15 12:01 pm EST.
  • Easy peasy and super fun, right?

The More the Merrier!

You can sign up more than one blog if you have one – just make sure to post about the event on EACH blog you’re using to join. Jennifer will email you on the 30th to remind you about the event – but grab the button and code today when you sign up, to make sure you’re ready to go! #RockYourBlog2012 with me – and get signed up!

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