Source: 10 Things To Expect The Day After A Creative High #writers #amwriting
How To Become A Successful Blogger: Part 2 – How To Create A Pingback
How To Become A Successful Blogger: Part 2 – How To Create A Pingback
Source: How To Become A Successful Blogger: Part 2 – How To Create A Pingback
Great video on how to create pingbacks. Thanks, Hugh!
United Kingdom Afternoon tea…
Source: United Kingdom Afternoon tea…
I love afternoon tea! One of the fanciest places I’ve enjoyed high tea with friends is in Seattle, WA, at the Queen Mary Tea Room. I wish afternoon tea would take off here!
Adding Text to Images
I’ve been playing this morning.
For quite awhile, I’ve been trying to figure out how to add text to my images, as I’ve seen so many other talented photographers and writers do. Using my computer programs has given me a total of zero successful moments.
But thanks to Sue Vincent and her post “Looking good -10 simple tips for adding images,” I have now found an online program that helps me add text to my images. Thank you, Sue!
I chose an image I took in the Napa Valley. Of course, these grapes could have been growing in my own Yakima Valley, as our vineyards are abundantly heavy with weighty vines each fall. But the Napa picture was right on the computer, waiting for some attention.
I used pixlr.com/express/ as my first foray into visual + words experiment. This program is quite simple to use and the options are wide and varied. Best of all? FREE.
Oh, I do believe this is just the beginning of playtime for moi.
How to Become a Children’s Author
Source: How to Become a Children’s Author
Great info from Tara Lazar.
Caramelized Onion and Ricotta Tarte Soleil
The whole house smelled of caramelized onions, thyme, and butter this weekend. Which is to say, I didn’t want to leave the kitchen. I’m going to go ahead and ignore the negative 10 degrees outside that caused a winter scene of ice to develop on our kitchen window. That may have also had something to do with […]
Source: Caramelized Onion and Ricotta Tarte Soleil
I really really need to make this dish. Delish!
Friends forever
Source: Friends forever
Girls, you have to read this!
Never Use Scissors as a Tool
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Mabel, expressing her disappointment. “I can’t believe you did that, mom.” |
I’m embarassed to admit that I misused the scissors this morning.
The cat food container was stuck closed. It was very tightly sealed.
The food dishes were empty.
The (in their minds) gaunt kitties were starving.
The husband was already gone, so help was not available except for the above mentioned wasting-away gray girls.
What to do? What to do?
The not-intelligent thinker in my head suggested that I use scissors to pry up the lid.
Not the round-tipped kid scissors. No. Let’s try the pointy-tipped very sharp scissors. Yes. Those will help tremendously.
I didn’t need to be told twice, but grabbed the pointy-tipped scissors and began trying to pry up an edge on the food container.
Just as I was thinking This is not a good idea. These scissors could slip off of the metal and poke me. the unthinkable (apparently not unthinkable, as I had just thought it) happened. The scissors skidded off of the metal tin and slid right into my face!
Yes. Berating myself, I immediately felt blood running down my cheek.
Yes. I stabbed myself on the face.
As Hermoine Granger said in one of the Harry Potter movies, “What. An. Idiot.”
I am forever grateful that God saved me from my poor choice and protected my eyes, nose, and lips. He did not save me from crumbled pride. How humiliating to admit the error of my ways.
I am grateful that the small puncture and slice wound is tiny and the rest of me works quite well.
Warning from one who used scissors improperly: DO NOT use scissors as a tool. They are for cutting. Not prying, digging, scooping, or any other chore. Cutting. Period.
When was my last tetanus shot?
Quick and Easy Nutella Brownie Cake
Source: Quick and Easy Nutella Brownie Cake
I don’t know if I could avoid eating too many spoonfuls of Nutella to get enough in the brownie mix! Sounds very yummy.
Mr. Rogers Lives Here
Yes. It’s true. We are a family of Mr. Rogers’ mini-me’s.
I just caught myself making the correlation between one of his daily rituals and a habit of ours.
As soon as we enter our home (sooner for my husband), we remove our outside shoes and don slippers. Coats come off and I add a sweater to keep me cozy, as our indoor temperatures never get above 66 in the winter.
This process is reversed as we prepare to leave. Away go the slippers and on go the outside shoes. My sweater is tucked away and a jacket or coat is worn to protect me from the elements.
Do you remember what Mr. Rogers did each time he came inside at the beginning of his show and and reversed at the end of the show?
Mr. Rogers removed his outside shoes and replaced them with indoor shoes. He also took off his outdoor jacket and put on an indoor cardigan, all the while singing about the beauty of the day in the neighborhood. Yes. That song.
Mr. Rogers was so organized. He didn’t just toss those shoes and jacket on a couch or floor. He tucked away the shoes and carefully placed the jacket on a sweater in the closet. I may occasionally toss my sweater on the washer, but I also have a designated cupboard right by the door for jackets, and shoe racks for both of us.
You have no idea how many times I compare myself to Mr. Rogers when I change gear as I am going out or coming back inside the house. I think his habits were ingrained in my subconcious as I watched his television show. Maybe that was one of his purposes, to model tidiness, organization, and care for our belongings.
And this is a good thing. We are a shoes-off household. Not only does this habit keep icky germs and gunk on shoe bottoms out of the house, it also provides a cleaner environment for my babies to crawl around on and plenty of (mostly) dirt-free floor space for playtime. Mr. Rogers’ transfer of clothes and shoes fits perfectly with our efforts to keep as much of the outdoors, well, outdoors.
That Mr. Rogers was ahead of his time, yet many considered him a fuddy-duddy. I disagree. He was a great role model.
Sitting here in my cardigan sweater and indoor slippers, just humming a certain melody.
It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood, isn’t it?
Love, Laughter, and Life 