Photography: Ultimate Impact For Your Blog or Website #ultimatebundles #photography

I’m about to tell you something that might surprise you…
You might think the photography industry is closed-off to people like you – that it’s impenetrable for anyone who’s always had a “regular” job and just taken photos as a passion or a hobby.
But let me tell you: there’s a HUGE market out there for digital photography. And what’s more, you don’t need to have been born in a darkroom to gain access to it. You need mad skills, of course. And passion – lots of passion. But contacts? Referrals? A studio? You need none of it to get started.
Every month, millions of digital photos are purchased online for use in websites, blogs, articles, marketing, materials and more. People like you are taking those photos… AND they’re getting paid for them! They’re making hundreds of dollars – and sometimes much more than that – per day.
If you truly love the idea of being a professional photographer but always believed it was out of your reach, it’s time to change those beliefs!
Not sure where to start? That’s where I come in. If you can bring the passion and photography skills, I can point you in the direction of a collection of resources that will teach you exactly how to start making money from your photos. It’s called The Ultimate Digital Photography Bundle (Business Edition), and it’s been created by the fantastic team over at Ultimate Bundles. It contains all the tools and resources you’ll need to start your own photography business NOW and create income with your pictures.
Inside the bundle you’ll find a whole range of ebooks, video training and useful document templates from today’s biggest names in digital photography – containing their secrets to not only producing stunning digital shots, but also their blueprints to building a profitable, sustainable business that puts money in your pocket on a consistent basis.
Here’s a breakdown of the topics included in The Ultimate Digital Photography Bundle (Business Edition):

• Marketing (techniques, strategies, templates, and even software to help you market your services)
• Adobe Lightroom (inspirational insights into how some of the advanced tools work)
• Studios (information for those who want to set up their own studio)
• Skills improvement (taking you beyond photography, with ebooks and video training on topics included videography and natural posing)
• Templates (an assortment of Photoshop templates and storyboards)
• Forms (business forms, policy documents, print release templates… rather boring but totally necessary – so it’s all here ready for you!)

The price? Well the combined value of everything inside the bundle is $2,036.36. If you were to buy each product separately, that’s what you’d pay.
But The Ultimate Digital Photography Bundle (Business Edition) will cost you just $97! That’s because the Ultimate Bundles team have persuaded these experts to provide their products at a hugely discounted rate!
Ready for even more good news? Ryan and Steph have also thrown in some extra-special gifts worth over $400 in total:

• $20 gift certificate toward any SpinLight 360 Package
• $15 gift certificate to Lightscoop (for pro-like photos with your built-in flash)
• $15 gift certificate to Porteen Gear (where you can buy custom-made, stylish and functional camera bags and gear)
• FREE choice of a premium video photography course from Craftsy.com (up to $50 value)
• FREE three-month subscription to the Light Inspired Women’s Photography Forum
• FREE marketing set of your choice from the Seaside Creative collection ($75 value)
• x4 FREE Volumes of Clarity Magazine – including video tutorials from top photography educators
• FREE FX Photo Studio Pro PLUS Snapheal Pro AND Intensify Pro software from MacPhun which will help to give you a vast number of ultra-powerful adjustments for your photos (combined value $129.97)

There’s a catch, of course – but I think it’s a pretty reasonable one. The Ultimate Digital Photography Bundle (Business Edition) is available this week only! On Monday, June 29, 2015 at Midnight, it comes off sale for good.
Click here to check out The Ultimate Digital Photography Bundle (Business Edition)!
You can buy with complete confidence because you’re covered by the Ultimate Bundles 30-day money-back guarantee. That means you have a full month to try out all the ebooks and video courses in the bundle, and if you don’t think they justify the price or they weren’t what you were hoping for, you can get a full refund.
But remember: it’s on sale for this week only – until Monday, June 29, 2015 at midnight! After that, it’s gone for good!

HURRY!! Last Day is TODAY!!

Life, Lemons and A Lemonade Cake #atozchallenge

Lemonade Cake, bet your family will love you for this one!

A perfect treat for a spring picnic, let the kids help you measure out the ingredients (Math lesson), talk about how this cake starts with the letter L...always make a lesson out of cooking or household chores. Living school is how we learn at our house.

Ingredients

Cake
• 1/3 cup butter, room temperature
• 3 eggs
• 2 1/4 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/4 cup buttermilk
Frosting
• 1/3 cup butter, room temperature
• 3-4 cups powdered sugar
• 1/3 cup plus 2 Tablespoons frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

1. Beat butter and sugar together. Add eggs one at a time. Add lemonade concentrate and vanilla.
2. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl.
3. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture. Add 1/2 of the buttermilk. Repeat until all of the buttermilk and flour is incorporated.
4. Pour into a 9×13 that has been coated with cooking spray. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes.Cool completely.
5. Beat the butter until smooth. Add 1 cup of sugar. Add in 1/3 cup of the lemonade concentrate and vanilla. Gradually add the rest of the powdered sugar. Add remaining lemonade until you get a nice consistency.
6. Spread frosting over cooked cake.

Recipe from Better Homes and Gardens

 

Beauty of Homeschooling #atozchallenge

B is for Beauty

Homeschooling for our family has brought us so much closer together. The beauty of homeschooling for our family is that we can spend precious time together, time that will one day be no more. Yes we started out with the traditional school model, but found that it was just not for us. Staying home was a decision that came  easily, with prayer and guidance from above. Some of the most Beautiful things have experienced in the last 7 years of homeschooling are:

• Sleeping later
• Schooling in bed/pj's
• Saving money on gas
• School with your pets
• Knowing exactly what our children are learning
• Seeing the light bulb go off in your child eyes when they finally understand something
• Teaching your children to read and write (and other basics you know they need)
• Learning is not based on a end of grade test
• Spending time with ill grandparents for weeks at a time
• Being there when grandfather was in hospice for cancer and his last days here on earth
• Vacations, day trips, field trips on your schedule 
• Schooling when it snows and during the summer if you choose
• Taking time off when we want too
• Knowing exactly what your kids are eating (because you are fixing it)
• Deep discussions about life issues 
• Learning life skills they can actually use
• Able to move forward in a grade is learned and child is ready
• Learning is on the child's schedule not a schools
• Experiencing each season as it changes and doing school outside
• So many wonderful life experiences shared, it is hard to list them all.....

Our homeschooling kiddos have grown so much over the last several years, it has been a beautiful journey that is only just begun.

Awesome to be a Homeschool Mom #atozchallenge

Being a homeschool mom most days is very challenging, but with all the frustrations and challenges it has to be the most awesome job I have ever had. There are many reasons to homeschool here are just 20.

A Berry Sweet and Baked Day~

 

This recipe can be redone in a variety of ways, try blackberries or rasberries maybe? I like almond milk, but have used coconut milk before. Greek yogurt is so much higher in protein, and adds to the smoothie consistency. Play around with your smoothie to make a healthy snack for yourself or your family, kids love the color.

Blueberry Boysenberry Smoothie

• 1 cup milk of choice (I used unsweetened almond milk)
• 1/3 cup plain greek yogurt
• 2/3 cup frozen wild blueberries
• 1/3 cup frozen boysenberries
• 1 Tbsp chia seeds
• 2 Tbsp old fashion oats
• 2 tsp honey

Puree all ingredients in a blender and enjoy!

Recipe credit to http://www.tasteofhealthygoodness.com/2012/02/snack_attack/#

This delicious treat can be made Sunday night and then eaten all week long as breakfast. Just cut a piece and heat up. What a mommy timesaver! Yummy and healthy.

Blueberry Baked Oatmeal

adapted by The Curvy Carrot
from Super Natural Every Day by Heidi Swanson
via Annie's Eats
makes 6 servings
nutritional value will vary depending on the fruit and ingredients you use

ingredients:

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/4 cup chopped walnuts, divided
1/2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup maple syrup (I used sugar free)
1 cup milk (I used skim)
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2-3 ripe bananas, peeled and sliced
1 cup blueberries or raspberries, fresh or frozen, divided

directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375F.

2. Lightly grease a 2-quart baking dish. In a medium bowl, mix the oats, half of the walnuts, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir to combine. In a liquid measuring cup, combine the syrup, milk, egg, butter, and vanilla.

3. Spread the sliced bananas in a single layer over the bottom of the baking dish. Top with half of the berries. Sprinkle the dry oat mixture over the fruit in an even layer. Pour the liquid ingredients evenly over the oats.

4. Sprinkle the remaining nuts and berries over the top. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the top is browned and the oats have set. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

Recipe and photo credit: http://www.sohowsittaste.com/2012/06/blueberry-raspberry-baked-oatmeal.html

Enjoy and have a Berry sweet day today!

 

 

Photo A Day Jan. 2013 (challenge)

Join us on Instagram for some fun photo sharing with the bloggers at 7onaShoeString and DaysofaDomesticDad.com , use the hashtag #7SDDPhotoADay on each photo to tag your daily photo's and lets learn more about each other! So much fun!  Follow me on Instagram as @Blockmomnc and I will follow back. I love sharing pictures of my life and my family as we learn and grow daily here at home. Plus the antics of some spoiled rotten animals that think that they are people too.
I will try to post the entire month of photos here on this blog at the end of January. I challenge you to come along and join in the photo a day Instagram fun!

Life's Little Instructions~~

                                                                       Source: sueswink.tumblr.com via Brittany on Pinterest

Changing your Life via Dr Seuss {quotes}

                                                   Source: twentytwowords.com via Jody on Pinterest

Fascinating Facts Friday~~ The Human Body

                                                              Source: visual.ly via Theresa on Pinterest

Blog Buttons 101: A How To

How to Make a Button For Your Blog

My fabulous pal Amy at Consider Me Inspired  has been posting some great information for

the techno challenged bloggers out there (me included) and I would love to share what I
learned. 

Once again another code thing that took me a little bit to figure out. 

I wanted to have the blog button that had the code below.  

Simple and easy....just wait you will have a button made in no time.

Step 1:
Decide on the image you will be using and upload it to a photo editing program. 

Amy used Photoscape because it is awesome and it was free, I prefer my Photoshop Elements

Step 2:
Alter your image to an appropriate size that will fit on your sidebar.

Step 3:
Upload your button to Photobucket, ImageShack or some other photo storage
program that creates an HTML code that you can copy and paste.

Double check your photo size before you grab the direct link code.

Step 4:
Go to: http://www.mycoolrealm.com/sandbox/gbgen/ and follow the instructions.  

It doesn't save your code, just gives you an easy and effortless button experience. 

All you do is preview and if it looks the way you want it then copy the code.

Head on over to your Layout page in Blogger; click Add a gadget; 

pull up the HTML option and insert your code; move it where you want it.  

Preview your page before you save.

Here is my button created with the code box:

<div align="center"><a href="http://chipsofftheoldblock.blogspot.com/" title="Chips Off the Old Block" target="_blank"><img src="http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg121/blockmom/blog%20images/chipsofftheoldblockbutton.jpg" alt="Chips Off the Old Block" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

And here is Amy's button you can share ~~ you can click on the snippet of her button and it will take you to her blog, it's awesome!

That was super easy, Thanks Amy for the info and teaching me how!

Elfishki and the Unwelcome Guest iPad App review

Elfishki and the Unwelcome Guest

An iPad app for ages 6-9 available via the iTunes Store.

Brilliantly done graphics and stunning color! Keep the kids entranced with this cute story app.

Once upon a time, on the beautiful Rainbow Island in the middle of the Sparkling Sea lived magical little people called Elfishki.

Some of them could fly like butterflies and some could swim like mermaids. They shared the island with animals who could speak and trees who did not talk, but understood everything. All in all, this was a place where miracles happened every day.

One morning, an ice cream seller named Vince and his friend, a dragon named Brungildo, went to their garage for the freezer boxes. But they couldn't get inside. Vince kept putting his key into the keyhole, but it would just fall out—as if somebody pushed it back. Vince peeked into the keyhole and was dumbfounded—inside the lock was a tiny blue person with a tail...

On the iPad app you will find~

1. Original, not found anywhere else captivating texts, designed to develop your child’s conscious reading skills - according to the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.

2. Stunning interactive art, classic animation and videos.

3. Professional Audio Voice over of the story, so your child can listen along with the text.

4. THREE(3) Questions on every page of the book specifically designed to help your child analyze the text, boost their imagination and make predictions about the story.

5. A bonus game specifically designed to test your child's attention to detail - Help Jeanso Pack his Backpack.

For more information about more stories, please visit our website where you can find a list of fairy tales all based on our Elfishki characters.

I was totally in awe with this app, my daughters loved the animations and it kept there interest. It was educational and playful all rolled into one?

We will definitely be looking into more apps from this company to add to our homeschool iPad library.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Leslie~~

Blogging Success Tips!

How Awesome, found this infographic on Pinterest of course (I love that place) and it has so many great tips and ways to help you promote your blog posts it was worth the share! Whether you are a mommy blogger or a hot shot corporate blogger all of these tips apply to you. Find that niche, your audience and go for it. Be yourself, honest and your own voice. Consistency is key, you don't have to blog daily if you can't! Just stick with it! Be social and make friends, comment on other blogs, join a blog hop or twitter party, get your name out there, just like real life be dependable. Just be you, we love to read about real life and see your real life pictures (I know I do), giveaways and coupons are wonderful, even lots of charts and statistics, but an interjection of your own personal style, humor and humanism goes a long way to get people back, commenting and following you via all your social media platforms.
Man there are some tips that I did not know about, gotta try them all!!

 Do the 30 things on this infographic and I guarantee that you will notice a huge difference in your traffic and blog followers! Ready ....Set.... Go!!

                                                                             Source: launchgrowjoy.com via Stephanie on Pinterest

Random Acts of Kindness ~ 700 Teddy Bears

Such a sweet story, I had to share it ~~


"As a parent, I couldn't help but pass along my daughter's story.
My daughter, Taylor Marie Crabtree (age seven) started a business called TayBear Company. She makes and sells hand painted hair clips at local stores. When she started her business I assumed that she wanted extra spending money, but then she told me the purpose of her business.

Taylor was going to buy teddy bears for children with cancer. She said the kids probably have a lot of sadness in their lives and she wanted them to have something special to hug and to hug them back. Taylor wanted them to know that even strangers care about them. She set her goal at 500 teddy bears. I thought her too high goal was that of a child that didn't really understand. I was the one that didn't understand.

The media picked up on Taylor's project and our community has embraced her efforts. But help has come from far beyond our little community. Taylor has received donations from strangers that live thousands of miles away, just from word of mouth. It has been rather like a chain letter from the heart. With her scribbly second grade handwriting, she wrote each person with her appreciation and an update on her project. She has also expanded her project to include over 100 other children (including special needs kids) as helpers. Taylor wanted other kids to feel that they too were capable of helping others in their own way. Along the way she also raised her goal to 700 teddy bears.

Each day after selling, Taylor and her helpers talk about the people who had touched their hearts. Maybe it was the homeless man that had donated 11 cents and was surprised when he was told that was plenty of money to buy a hair clip. He and Taylor stood together choosing just the right hair clip for his lady friend. Or maybe it was the young woman who was flying back home the next day to say goodbye for the last time to her father, who was dying from cancer. Perhaps it was the man that drove all the way to his bank and back in order to buy a hair clip for his Mom. He said that his Dad had recently died from cancer. He wanted a child to have a teddy bear in his Dad's memory. With each hair clip or donation has come so many memories and a realization that when working toward a goal from your heart, the journey too is part of the experience. Taylor once told me "how could people not see Angels, they're everywhere.
- Tricia Crabtree"

More inspiring RAK stories here http://www.peopleandpossibilities.com/33kindnessstories2.html

How To Make A Smoothie ~

                                                  Source: superskinnyme.com via Leslie on Pinterest

Tuesday Twitter Hopping with Friends!

So, link up your Twitter account, find some new tweeps and have fun!

If you've never linked up before, use this format:

http://twitter.com/twitterhandle

Like mine is http://twitter.com/BlockmomNC
and twitter.com/ERNursescare

If you'd like to help spread the word, grab the button, tweet, post to Facebook or +1 this post! Or, you can grab the linky code below and post the whole hop on your blog!

Twitter Hop with my fellow blogger Heartfelt Balance/Handmade Life

Meow Monday (on Tuesday) with Smokey & Lucy!

This week has been so long, and lazy and long......at least for us girls. It is so hart to be a Diva Kitty and sleep all day, eat fancy can food, all natural dry food from the posh pet store and get carried around by our people.

Our Top Ten Tuesday List~
We decided to make a list this week: 10 reasons why we like homeschooling!

1. Our people are home all day and all night just about everyday!
2. Our mommy is happy all the time
3. We like unit studies about cats
4. We get fed more
5. Our litter boxes get cleaned more often
6. Those girl people will do anything to avoid schoolwork and play with us more instead...lol
7. We get fed more
8. We sleep more (we don't go to school really)
9. They cook more at home and then drop food on the floor....heheheh
10. Homeschool is cool (shop or home ec class- they make cat toys and houses---he he)

Until next week, Meow!!

Recycle and Recraft our world, teach our kids now!

                                                     Source: shabbychicinspired.blogspot.com via Leslie on Pinterest

What a better thing to teach your children than to recycle and reuse the common things that we might have just thrown away in the trashcan and that might have just ended up in a landfill somewhere or outside rusting away breeding mosquitoes. Coffee cans or old metal cans are a perfect example of refuse that just gets tossed and ends up just anywhere on our Earth. 
So this week we have talked at home about what kind of things we can do to recraft, recycle and reuse those common cans. This office/craft organizer is so shabby chic and pretty that we are going to make another just like it to hold makeup and brushes. The neutral colors, the lace and the embellishments are just perfect. I found this one on Pinterest of course as Sarah and I were searching for recycled and recrafted items to pin to our board all about recycling. 
It is from this cool website Shabby Chic Inspired (love love the vintage looks here)

Off now to save and clean up our cans, we have a few left overs from dinner last night and some extras in the recycle bin now......oh boy!!


Another idea!! how many kitchen utensils do we all have anyhow? I have a gazillion!

                                                   Source: br.mulher.yahoo.com via Leslie on Pinterest

Meow Monday with Lucy & Smokey

This weeks cute photo of us, we are so cute! Pin us!

Our Mommy let us use the computer thing each Monday now to do a series called "Meow Monday with Lucy and Smokey" we want to tell other kitties out there all about our life in this crazy house with these crazy people who carry us around all the time and talk to us like we are babies. They even dress Lucy up sometimes and that little one tries to put makeup on her.
Our brother kitty Catboy (real name Tom, they called him Fat-boy and then Catboy stuck) has finally gone to the great kitty cat heaven in the sky  so we are sad today, but then again happy that he is in kitty heaven with grandpa and others that have gone on before us. 

He was about 12-13 yrs old,with Feline FIV (like HIV)in humans , diabetes and arthritis (we have tested negative for that bad stuff so far and had our shots, ekk) . Our Mommy has been running a kitty cat hospice here for about 6 months now. He has been declining fast, loosing weight and looking ruff for a while now. Mommy has been medicating him for comfort and letting him have his favorite canned kitty food every day. She even let him pee in the floor (well on the pee pee pads), we don't even get to do that, we have to go potty in that box thing.
Catboy died happy, but outside , my human brother Kris found him Sunday near his favorite sleeping spot outdoors and he was gone. They buried him in our yard so the girls can make him a proper tombstone, as they want to. We don't get to go outside, we just get to watch from the window. Mommy does not allow us to go outdoors, she says that Lucy can't behave herself outside so we have to stay in.
Here are some pictures of Catboy we found on this computer thing, and Mommy said we could share them.

We just showed some of the happy pictures, he was so funny and fat, until he started getting sicker, he lived for a long long time with our family, many great memories of our brother Catboy!

Rest In Peace dear brother!

Love your kitty sisters Lucy and Smokey!