Darlene Nemeth

Is Your Blog Mobile Friendly?

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Wed, 17 Sep 2014 09:41:00 -0700

If you're like me, you're always wondering if your blog is set up to be reader friendly, easy to navigate and well pretty. You change the colours, the template, the share buttons. And you judge your choices by examining it on the device you worked it all out on.

And if you're like me, you have been mindlessly oblivous to your blog's appearance on other devises and more or less content with the way your blog is set up.

Then I read an article by Greg Hickman.

Is Your Blog Mobile Friendly?

Awww! What do you mean I may be losing up to 50% of my traffic? Is my blog mobile friendly?

Apparently more people are accessing the internet on some sort of mobile device than ever before and that number will continue to rise. So you better be sure your blog is user friendly on mobile devices.

How can you tell if your blog is set up properly? Greg explains it all in his article. That is if you're using wordpress. If you are interested click HERE to read the whole article.

For those who use blogger follow these simple steps.

Sign into your Blogger account and go to TEMPLATE.

This is the window that opens. Click on the star below the Mobile screen shot.

This is the new window to open. Easy so far isn’t it.

Do you see that spot where you are given a choice? You want to click on Yes, Show mobile template on mobile devices.

Now just click on the preview button.

Ta Da! There you go. Check it out. I think mine looks pretty good.

Phew! What a relief. I almost had an anxiety attack thinking no one can read my blog on their cell phones. I'm safe. But to be sure I will have to check it out on someone's phone.

Oh, oh. That’s great, my blog posts can be read easily but if someone wants to share on twitter, pinterest or facebook... they won’t be able to.

If I want sharing, (if right eh?) then I should add a pop up window. But I'll take care of that later.

Hope you come back to see detailed instructions on how to add a pop up window on Blogger.

Til then, best wishes, Darlene

Well thanks for stopping by. I hope my tips are helpful. If you like this post please feel free to share the love or opt to follow along on one of the social media platforms. Those friendly little buttons are on the right side bar.

Post a Comment

I love to read your opinions and comments. It makes my day a little bit brighter.

My apologies, all anonymous comments are deleted due to an excessive amount of spam.

Wishing You a Wonderful Week.

Recipe for Your Unhappiness

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Wed, 23 Apr 2014 11:53:00 -0700

Hi everyone. I thought I would do something different today.

I really don`t like cooking anymore. My daughter, Nicole does it now. I am so grateful for that. But I do like to eat and of course I have some favorite recipes.

I know, this is not a blog about cooking but I thought it might be fun to share this Recipe for Unhappiness with you today.

Okay, let`s get started.

Recipe for Your Unhappiness

Ingredients

A pen and paper
One set of lips
7 Ounces of Stale air
One dark and gloomy living space
7 Cups of sleep deprivation
Few pinches of lethargy
1 untrained mind
5 Cups of Negative attitude
A dash of selfishness

Directions

Everyday, take your pen and paper to write a list of everything that has ever gone wrong in your life. Remember to include those times someone has let you down, hurt you or betrayed you.

Never feel gratitude or count your blessings. It is easier to take your home, family and friends for granted.

Avoid getting a good night`s rest. Use any means available to keep yourself awake - lots of coffee helps. Sleep deprivation is a myth.

Take those lips and maintain a frown. After a while you face will stay like that. At least that`s what my Mom use to say.

Never go outside and take a breath of fresh air.

Stay clear of the sun by remaining indoors with the curtains drawn. SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) is not real.

Do not exercise. Be lethargic. Scientists have not proven a link between exercise and a healthy state of mind.

Allow your mind to wander into terrible memories and thoughts of futuristic scenarios of doom and gloom. Never stop and live in the moment.

Indulge in self destructive behavior, negative thoughts and pessimism. Watch or read and pour all your energy into an endless stream of news about tragedies, inhumanity, destruction and disasters.

Be sure to never share, be polite, volunteer or think of the other person.

Once these are combined, let it set and brew.

Enjoy your miserable life and serve to everyone you know.

Happiness is more about your attitude than it is about the circumstances in your life.

Here is a recipe card for you to print out. Enjoy.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed my Recipe but I hope you never try it out. If you do please let me know how it works out for you.

Feel free to share the love or opt to follow along on one of the social media platforms. Those friendly little buttons are on the right side bar.

Post a Comment

I love to read your opinions and comments. It makes my day a little bit brighter.

My apologies, all anonymous comments are deleted due to an excessive amount of spam.

Wishing You a Wonderful Week.

Life Is Good

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Mon, 14 Apr 2014 14:43:00 -0700

I first heard about this company a few years ago. I loved their message. Life is Good. Spreading the power of optimism.

When I saw the chance to be a part of their affiliate program I jumped on it because it is one more way that I can spread the optimism with you. Because Life Is Good!

Their Success Story

Bert and John Jacobs are brothers and co-founders of Life is Good. They struggled for five years selling their t-shirts.

Then one day they decided to print "Jake" on their t-shirts.

"Jake's contagious grin, simple as it was, seemed to express everything the Jacobs brothers believed in."

"Soon Jake was introduced to local retailers, and his simple message of optimism was embraced like nothing the brothers had ever seen."

Their company has grown and now offers a wide variety of items.

When you have some time, check it out.

Mother's Day Gift Set at Life is Good

Help spread the optimism!

Life is good has an amazing offer for Mother's Day: Enjoy any Crusher Tee, Apron and Mug for $50 + Free Shipping!

This Mother's Day, Give Her the Gift She will Brag about to Her Friends...And to Her Friends' Friends... And Maybe the Supermarket Checkout Personnel. Optimistic gifts for every mom on your list.

Shop now for tees, aprons, socks, mugs, tablet covers and sunglass cases.

Please note: This offer excludes Stack-Happy Mugs.

For a limited time, Life is Good also has available their popular Boston Love Wins collection of tees!

There are currently five styles and colors available for men as well as women.

Last, Life is Good has a catalog that includes 3,000 products!

Life is good donates 10% of it's net profits to kids in need.

**This post contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.**

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Well thanks for stopping by.

Post a Comment

I love to read your opinions and comments. It makes my day a little bit brighter.

My apologies, all anonymous comments are deleted due to an excessive amount of spam.

Wishing You a Wonderful Week.

Make a Chalkboard Printable in Minutes

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Sun, 13 Apr 2014 06:00:00 -0700

Hi there. So glad you decided to drop by.

Chalkboards are still popular. I've made a few printables myself. I thought you may like to give it a try yourself.

So I'll show you how I make them in word.

But first I will share a few images of my work so you can get a general idea of what we will be concentrating on today.

The Post is HERE.

The Post is HERE

Obviously we need to start with a blank chalkboard. I just so happen to have found one right HERE.

Insert the blank chalkboard image into word. If you would like the instructions for inserting an image please click HERE.

Adjust the image to fit an 8" x 10" standard sheet of paper or whatever size you want it to be.

Next we add the text of the quote by inserting a text box and typing in your quote. For instructions on inserting a text box and text please click HERE.

Go ahead and type the whole quote in. Now highlight the text and select your font.

There are a few nice looking chalkboard fonts to choose from. If you don't have one on your computer it is simple enough to get one. You can Google it or check out my Pinterest page titled Fonts and Digital Images.

This one is pretty good. Check it out, I'm sure you'll find something you like.

Lastly, you'll want to play around with the arrangement of the words.

Oh sorry. That's not last. The last part is saving it as a jpeg.

Highlight the text and the chalkboard image. Copy. Paste into Paint. Crop. Save as jpeg with the title of your choice.

Tadaa! You're all finished your chalkboard printable. Wasn't that easy?

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Thank you Evelyn and Jamie for featuring me at your blog party, Freedom Fridays!

The featured posts can be found HERE.

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Michelle

Thank you Michelle for choosing my blog post to feature at That's Fresh Friday.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope my tutorial was easy to follow. If you like this post please feel free to share the love or opt to follow along on one of the social media platforms. Those friendly little buttons are on the right side bar.

Post a Comment

I love to read your opinions and comments. It makes my day a little bit brighter.

My apologies, all anonymous comments are deleted due to an excessive amount of spam.

Wishing You a Wonderful Week.

Happiness is . . . Coloring - Pages for Adults

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Sun, 6 Apr 2014 17:30:00 -0700

In the middle of March I shared with you, the benefits of having a hobby. At the same time I shared my newest hobby. That post was on my other blog. You can check it out HERE.

Today I would like to share with you again. I created this fun little colouring page in time for Easter. Feel free to take a copy for yourself or someone else. Colour it any way you wish. And most importantly - have fun.

Enjoy the experience and live in the now - just for a moment get lost in the paper in front of you relax and be happy.

My daughter has been badgering me to get my drawings posted on Etsy so I will be busy scanning for the next couple of days.

I am a little freaked out. I hope you stop by once it is live and check out the images.

Bye for now.

Have a wonderful week!

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Hold on one minute. Check this out. I am super excited and...

I am so grateful to have this post featured on Bowdabra Blog's Feature Friday.

If you would like to see the other featured posts, please click HERE.

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Yikes, I've this post has been featured at Craft Frenzy Friday. I am so thrilled and honored. Thank you.

To see the other featured posts please click HERE.

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Yeehaw! Thank you so much for featuring my post at the Four Seasons Blog Hop.

To see the other featured post, click HERE.

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A great big thank you goes out to Marci for featuring my post. She says, "I love it." I couldn't ask for a better compliment.

Check out Marci's blog HERE.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoy coloring in the my drawing. If you did please feel free to share the love or opt to follow along on one of the social media platforms. Those friendly little buttons are on the right side bar.

Post a Comment

I love to read your opinions and comments. It makes my day a little bit brighter.

My apologies, all anonymous comments are deleted due to an excessive amount of spam.

Wishing You a Wonderful Week.

Can People Change?

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Fri, 21 Mar 2014 11:49:00 -0700

I say YES!

People can change. Even a negative person can change.

If you asked me that question a few years ago I would have said yes but only hoped it was true. And that was probably because I didn't know how to make those kinds of changes.

Now I not only know how a negative person can change to an optimistic one, I also know why? Do you?

Sure optimistic people are more fun to be around but what other reasons are there?

Lucky for us, more research is conducted all the time and those brainiacs have the answers.

Are you ready for the answer? Here it is. Being optimistic will make you happy.

It's that simple and isn't that what everyone wants out of life. To be happy.

Don't believe me? Go ask some random people. I'll bet they will all say that they want to be happy.

Sure they want a million dollars, a new car, a fantastic home but it turns out that they want these things because they think it will make them happy.

But wait there's more. Optimistic people aren't just happier there are two more benefits. They are also healthier and wealthier.

I'm not saying that optimistic people don't have problems. They do. They just look at it differently than a pessimist. You know that whole glass half full half empty thing.

You might come back to me and say, hey Darlene, that's just the way I am. I can't change that.

I'd have to say to you that you can change that. And I'll tell you how.

You choose how you think. You can control your thoughts. Don't just let your brain run on auto pilot otherwise it will always respond in the same old way. With negativity.

I know, I know, I know, your thinking how can I stop thoughts from popping in my head. The answer is at first you can't but eventually with practice an persistence you will notice a change in how you think.

I know this is true because it has worked for me. I wouldn't say at one hundred percent optimistic but there is a marked improvement. If you want to read more about making the change to optimism you might want to check this post out HERE.

I don't wake up in the morning with that thought popping in my head. The one that kept saying, I hate my life. I believed that I had no control over my thoughts but I do. Now I wake up and think it is a beautiful day. I am so very lucky. (Even though I am homeless and living out of a suitcase.)

In the beginning you have to stop and consciously beware that a negative thought has just entered your mind. Then you can stop yourself before the thought is complete and switch it up with an optimistic thought.

The next step is stopping the thought before it enters your brain and you think of something positive.

Eventually the negative thoughts are few and far between and you suddenly wake up one day and say HEY! I haven't had a negative thought in a long time. Am I an optimist now. Well you're definitely on your way.

If you continually practice optimistic thinking, you’ll reprogram your brain to automatically respond in a positive manner.

But remember. It takes time. It takes patience. It's like quitting a bad habit. It takes work. But it is worth it. You are worth it.

We're all a work in progress. Let's banish all those negative thoughts starting right now and be HAPPY!

Have an Amazing Day!

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Stacey chose this post as her favorite. “This is such a great post! I would also have to say yes, but I think the most important key to the change is to recognize the negativity. I used to always see the glass as have empty, until I finally realized that something needed to change and that was me.”

Thank you Stacey. To see the other featured posts please click HERE.

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How Does Your Hobby Benefit You?

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Mon, 10 Mar 2014 11:59:00 -0700

I've always thought it strange that someone could go through their whole life without a single hobby.

I actually know a couple of people who don't have one.

Maybe it isn't necessarily that they don't have a hobby, but they don't have any particular interests to occupy their time and minds. Nothing that they like to do that helps them clear their heads and rejuvenate their souls.

What Are Your Hobbies?

What is it that you enjoy doing. Perhaps it's running, baking, sewing?

I personally have to do something. Through the years my interests and "hobbies" have changed but there has always been something.

I use to love reading and went through all the Anne Rice and Stephen King books I could get my hands on. But then I found it difficult to find quite time with three girls bouncing around around.

I use to love painting - in acrylics - landscapes and portraits. But it also turned out to be a difficult hobby with children.

At this point in my life crocheting is my fav. I can crochet just about any where at any time. Unfortunately right now all my crocheting gear is in storage.

I was feeling a little lost and needed something. So of course I went online - just browsing. Then I came across some pretty pictures - doodles - tangles - in black and white.

I immediately knew that I found something I would love to do.

All I need is a sketchbook and black markers. A hobby that doesn't take up much space or cost much money. I could get these items at a dollar store. It cost three dollars for the book and one dollar for the marker.

Mind you I realize that at some point I may want to invest in better paper and markers. But for now I found my creative outlet. I found something easy to learn, relaxing and fun.

The Benefits of a Hobby

Physical activities have obvious benefits. But what about the other kind like crocheting?

There are some very wonderful benefits of having a hobby. Hobbies are a means to finding happiness, an overall sense of well being and reduce stress.

Fun

Positive psychology is a relatively new branch that studies what makes life worthwhile. They discovered that activities which bring fun into your life is a good way to relax and to live in the moment which provides an over all sense of well being and happiness.

Good Stress

Hobbies promote Eustress which is a positive kind of stress created at times of great enthusiasm. Hobbies are a great way to create Eustress because you are doing something you love to do and it makes you feel excited.

Gratification

Gratification is also a part of positive psychology. If you are like me, I enjoy activities that make me feel productive - like I have accomplished something other wise I feel like I am wasting my time. Knowing that I will have a completed project of some kind gives me a fantastic feeling of achievement which equates to happiness.

Staying In the Moment

A hobby can engage you in a sense of flow, which can put you in a near-meditative state.

I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. It's the kind of activity where you lose track of time and before you know it hours have passed by. You are concentrating so much in what you are doing that everything else (including stress) disappears. The end result is feeling less stressed out and feeling over all pleased with life - happy.

Hobbies Help Prevent Burn Out

What is burn out? It's the result of stress. If you are feeling overwhelmed at work, a hobby gives you something non work related to look forward to and it relieves stress. Your hobby may be the one thing that reduces the impact of chronic stress.

Health Benefits of Hobbies

Hobbies are great for the body. Research has found that leisure time fun activities are associated with lower blood pressure, total cortisol, waist circumference, and body mass index.

Hobbies are great for the mind. There is also a relationship between enjoyable activities and an increase in a positive outlook -reducing levels of depression.

Hobbies Promote Socializing

Hobbies can bring people together. Even if your hobby is meant for one person, there are groups out there composed of others who also enjoy that activity. Connecting with people in a fun way relieves stress and contributes to your overall happiness.

Now we know why I have been so desperate to find a new hobby. I need something to to get me in the zone - flow (refer Mihály Csíkszentmihályi's concept of "flow") - to decrease stress and depression - to increase my positive outlook - - to make me feel HAPPY.

So next time someone you know is feeling stressed or down, ask them what is their hobby. What do you do for fun? Then tell them to get out there and get a hobby!

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I would like to thank Maz Kwok at Crafting Along Blog Hop for featuring my post. I am extremely grateful.

This post was one of four most clicked at the party. To check out the other features please click HERE.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

If you would like to receive my blog updates please subscribe via email . . .

I look forward to reading your comments.

Make my day and leave one!

Make Your Pics Pinteresting - Part 5 - Make a Collage

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Tue, 4 Mar 2014 09:52:00 -0800

Hi, this is the last of a five part series.

So far we have learned how to:

And now we are creating a collage. Which actually is a great way to end the series because we will be using what we have already learned to complete this project.

So here we go.

Make Your Pics Pinteresting - Part 5 - Make a Collage

Why would I want to make a collage?

The simplest answer is I need an image to represent my blog post and my post just happens to be a round up.

Here is another example of a collage. Check it out HERE.

Do you have a few pictures in mind for your collage? I do. Insert your pictures. Do you remember how?

Format Pictures

I want all my pictures to be the same size. So I am cropping them to size.

I also want a simple frame around each picture to give them a finished look.

Creating the Collage

This is where you get to have fun and be creative.

Once I have all the pictures the same size with the same border, I place them together in the order that I want them to be.

Now I need to Group them. See the tutorial for grouping HERE.

For this collage I started with a grey background. I don't know what I was thinking. I am not a huge fan of grey so I switched it to blue. What was the purpose of the background? All the pictures are so different, I wanted an element to pull them together as one. This is created by inserting an object with no border filled in light blue.

Even with the blue background I was still not impressed. It looked humdrum.

I changed the borders to white so they would pop instead of fizzle.

Then I deleted the hat picture and switched it up with a picture of my granddaughters wearing the hats. So much nicer looking at their pretty little smiling faces. Don't you think?

Oh, plus I made the girl's picture bigger to add more visual interest.

How is your collage coming along?

Don’t forget to insert your blog title and post title.

See, so, finished. An expression my Mom uses.

So how did you like testing your knowledge from the four previous posts to put your collage together?

I hope your imagination is inspired because you now have the tools to make some very pinteresting images for your blog!

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Thank you Linda for featuring this post on your blog. I always look forward to joining your party.

To see the other featured blogs please click HERE.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

If you would like to receive my blog updates please subscribe via email or follow me on Twitter, Pinterest or Blog Lovin.

I look forward to reading your comments. Make my day and leave one!

Make Your Pics More Pinteresting - Part 4 - Cropping

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Mon, 24 Feb 2014 15:44:00 -0800

Hi. Welcome. I am so very happy that you decided to stop by for a visit.

This is part three of a series where I explain how to use Word to manipulate your photos to make them Pinteresting. Or really just for fun.

If you missed week one, please click HERE or week two - Removing the Background please click HERE. Week three – Adding Text, HERE.

As a recap:

When it comes to photos or images, Microsoft Word and Paint have all the features I need. I’ve used to these programs so I was glad to be able to find a laptop that at least had the Starter version already installed. Buying Office Premium is on my list.

Realistically though the program does not cost too much. Plus you can work on your blog off line which can come in handy if for some reason your internet is not cooperating with you.

So, for all those bloggers out there who also have Word and Paint, or are considering getting those programs, I am going to show you what they can do.

Today we are cropping a picture. Sometimes there are elements in the photo that are wanted or needed and should be cropped out to focus on the important stuff.

So here we go.

Insert a Picture

Insert a picture. Click on the Insert tab then on the Picture icon. Find your picture and open.

This is the picture that I will be using.

Cropping

I want to crop out the pink case from my picture.

Click on your picture to select it. When you do this a new tab appears at the top of the window that says Picture Tools, Format. Click on that tab.

Diagram 3 depicts the Picture Tools Tab. Look over to the far right. Do you see the Crop icon? Good. Now click on it.

Do you see the lines on the pictures corner and in the middle of each side. See Diagram 4.

In this example, it is pretty easy to remove the unwanted parts. I put the curser on the middle black lines and pulled the whole side over and removed all of the pink case. I did this to all four sides. You can still see the unwanted parts of the photo but it is greyed out. See Diagram 5.

Once you click somewhere on the screen away from the picture the greyed out section disappears revealing your newly cropped photo. See Diagram 6.

If you look at Diagram 6, you will see the other cropping options. You can crop to shapes. See Diagram 7.

That's about it for now. Those are the most commonly used cropping options.

If you have any questions, I would be happy to help out.

Next week I'll show you how to make a collage of your photos.

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Thank you Debi and Charly for featuring my post at your party.

To see the other features, please click HERE.

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Thank you for featuring my post at your party.

To see the other features, please click HERE.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

If you would like to receive my blog updates please subscribe via email or follow me on Twitter, Pinterest or Blog Lovin.

I look forward to reading your comments. Make my day and leave one!

Pinteresting - Part 3 - Adding Text to Your Photo

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Sun, 16 Feb 2014 15:32:00 -0800

Hi. Welcome. I am so very happy that you decided to stop by for a visit.

This is part three of a series where I explain how to use Word to manipulate your photos to make them Pinteresting. Or really just for fun.

If you missed week one, please click HERE or week two please click HERE.

Recap

When it comes to photos or images, Microsoft Word and Paint have all the features I need. I am familiar with these programs so I was glad to be able to find a laptop that at least had the Starter version already installed. Buying Office Premium is on my to do list.

Realistically though the program does not cost too much. Plus you can work on your blog off line which can come in handy if for some reason your internet is not cooperating with you.

So, for all those bloggers out there who also have Word and Paint, or are considering getting those programs, I am going to show you what they can do.

Today we are adding text to a picture. I think the techy term is add a layer.

So here we go.

Insert a Picture

Click on the Insert tab then on the Picture icon. Find your picture and insert.

This is the picture that I will be using.

~~Just give me a minute to remove the background and make it black and add a border.~~

Insert Text

Let’s add a few words.

Click on the Insert Tab at the top of the window.

Click on the icon that says Text Box.

Now you will have a few options to choose from but I just go right down to the bottom and click on Draw Text Box. Diagram 1.

Your little pointer will look like a cross. So just right click and pull the mouse to make your text box. See mine in Diagram 2.

Okay, think of something clever to write and type it in. Sorry, I’m not so clever. I`ll just write Peek a Boo.

Format Text

I don’t want my text box to have a background so I need to change it. Click on the text box.

Go to:

Drawing Tools,
Format,
Shape Fill,
No Fill

See Diagram 5.

Because my picture background is black and the text is black you can’t see my clever words. I need to change the colour of the font.

Double click inside the text box to highlight the lettering. Go to Home. Select the colour you want. I’m picking white because it is a nice contrast to the background. See Diagram 6.

Grouping

Lastly you want the picture and text to act as one. Right now if you move your picture the text will stay right where it is. You need to group them.

Click on your picture. Hold the shift key with your left hand and click on the text box with the mouse. Now both picture and text are highlighted.

Go to:

Picture Tools Format,
Group
Group

No I did not stutter. Check out Diagram 7 to see exactly where you should be clicking.

Now you have successfully added text to your photo and grouped the two together. Congratulations. Now that wasn`t so hard was it?

Well that’s it for another week.

Now you know how to add text to your picture. Oh, and you know how to group separate items. I guess you got a bonus this week. LOL.

Until next time, best wishes, Darlene

You won't want to miss next week's post. I’ll have a tutorial ready for you about cropping pictures.

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Thank you so much Katie for featuring my post on your blog. I am very grateful.

If you would like to see the other features please click HERE.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

If you would like to receive my blog updates please subscribe via email or follow me on Twitter, Pinterest or Blog Lovin.

I look forward to reading your comments. Make our day and leave one! We all learn and grow together when we share!

Make Your Pics Pinteresting - Part Two - Remove Background

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Sun, 9 Feb 2014 02:00:00 -0800

Hi. Welcome. I am so very happy that you decided to stop by for a visit.

This is part two of a series where I explain how to use Word to manipulate your photos to make them Pinteresting. Or really just for fun.

If you missed last week’s post please click HERE.

As a recap:

I’ve read quite a few blog posts lately with instructions for PicMonkey. It seems to be very popular with most bloggers.

I personally haven’t used it. When it comes to photos or images, Microsoft Word and Paint have all the features I need. I’ve used these programs for a lot of years so I was glad to be able to find a laptop that at least had the Starter version already installed.

So, for all those bloggers out there who also have Word and Paint, or are considering getting those programs, I am going to show you what they can do.

Today we are removing the background from a picture.

There are several reasons you may want to get rid of a pictures background or actually change it. Maybe there are too many distractions from your center of interest. Maybe you want more impact or less.

Anyway, I’m sure you’ll have a reason to get rid of it. So here we go.

Insert a Picture

Click on the Insert tab then on the Picture icon. Find your picture and insert.

This is the picture I’ll be working with.

Remove Background

Select your photo by clicking on it once.

You will see a new tab appear at the top of the page that says Picture Tools and Format.

In the left corner is the Remove Background button. Click on it.

Your photo and screen will look like Diagram 3.

You will need to make a few adjustments to customize your photo.

As you can see I need to remove some areas and add some in.

I start by pulling the frame of the picture out to the edge of the photo as seen in Diagram 4.

Now you will mark areas right on your picture that you want to keep and other areas to discard.

Look at the top left of the window. There are plus and minus signs.

Click on the plus sign to add more areas to keep. Then click on the area you want to keep on your photo.

Do the same with the minus sign.

Diagram 5 to see the plus and minus signs that I had to add to my photo to get the areas I wanted removed.

Click anywhere away from your picture to see what it looks like.

If you need to make adjustments then go back and click on the Remove Background button to remove or add to your picture.

You can even delete a mark when you have to.

Now what? You have no background. There are a couple of things we can do.

Add a Border

The first is to put a border around the picture – it looks a little weird right now.

Click on your picture to select it.
Click on the Picture Tools Format tab.
You have loads of options here.

Picture styles. I’m just selecting the simple black frame for now. See Diagram 7.
Picture Borders. See Diagram 7 & 8.

Color
Weight
Dashes

Picture Effects. See Diagram 8.

Insert a Background

Oh boy. Look what I did. I was only going to show you how to remove the background in your photo but I have also showed you how to add a new background and add a border. Sorry about that. Maybe next time I will be able to keep to the topic that I choose. No wonder it takes me so long to write a blog post. I go over board with the information.

Was that too much info for one post?

Well that's it for this week's tutorial. Next week I'll show you how to add text to your image.

What program do you use?

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I was featured at Momma’s Meandering Mondays 33.

Co-host, Lydia, from Lydia’s Flexitarian Kitchen chose this as her favorite!

Saying, “Most of us are familiar with Office software, but I wonder how many know just what it’s capable of? I rarely used MS Word for more than typing a memo, so to find out I could use it to edit photos like a boss was exciting.”

Thank you so much Lydia, for making my day.

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A great big thank you goes out to the hosts of the Four Seasons Blog Hop for featuring this post.

As always, I am grateful and thrilled.

Check out their sites:

Terri/Shawna - Easy Life Meal & Party Planning
Betty - Loosing My Gut While Gaining My Insanity
Kenneth - Guai Shu Shu
Lynn - Turnips2Tangerines
Sandra - Scruptilicious4You

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

Make Your Pics Pinteresting - Part One - Formatting

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Mon, 3 Feb 2014 12:28:00 -0800

Hi. Welcome. I am so very happy that you decided to stop by for a visit.

I thought I might share something a little different with you today.

I’ve read quite a few blog posts lately with instructions for PicMonkey. It seems to be very popular with most bloggers.

So, for all those bloggers out there who also have Word and Paint, or are considering getting those programs, I am going to show you what they can do.

Today I’m going to share the many ways that you can format a photo. Are you ready? Let’s go!

Insert Photo

First you will need to insert a picture into a word document.

Click on the Insert Tab as shown on the Diagram 1.

A window pops up. Locate your picture on your computer. Select it by clicking on it once then press the insert button or double click the image.

Formatting the Picture

Now comes the fun part.

Select your picture by clicking on it once.

A new tab will appear on the top of your screen. It will say, Picture Tools, Format. Click on that tab.

Look at Diagram 2. These are all your photo formatting tools. We’re concentrating on these three: Corrections, Color, and Artistic Effects.

Correction Tool

Each photo adjustment tool has set variations you can choose from. Look at Diagram 3.

You can tell which variation is being used on this particular photo because it is outlined in yellow. This one is set as the original image.

Sharpen and Soften.

Any deviation to the left of this section makes the image less in focus – a little blurrier. Moving to the right sharpens the photo image. This can help slightly if you photo is on the blurry side or you want to see more detail.

Brightness and Contrast.

If your image is too dark or too light this is where you can make those changes.

Picture Correction Options.

Each adjustment tool also has further options where you can fine tune the variations – in case the standard ones aren’t to your liking.

Select the Picture Correction Options button as shown in Diagram 3. The Format Picture window pops up as shown in Diagram 4. Now you make very specific changes as required.

Color Tool

Each photo adjustment tool has set variations you can choose from: Color Saturation, Color Tone and Recolor as shown in Diagram 5.

Once again, you can tell which variation is being used on this particular photo because it is outlined in yellow.

This one is set as the original image.

Color Saturation

And now the complete opposite side of saturation.

Color Tone

Recolor

Artistic Effects Tool

Each photo adjustment tool has set variations you can choose from. Look at Diagram 9.

Once again, you can tell which variation is being used on this particular photo because it is highlighted in yellow.

This one is set as the original image.

These are all the artistic effects:

None
Marker
Pencil gray scale
Pencil Sketch
Line Drawing
Chalk Sketch
Paint Strokes
Paint Brush
Glow Diffused
Blur
Light Screen
Watercolor Sponge
Film Grain
Mosaic Bubbles
Glass
Cement
Texturizer
Criss Cross Etching
Pastels Smooth
Plastic Wrap
Cut Out
Photocopy
Bright Edges

From Microsoft Word Picture Format 7 to 15 are examples of the artistic effects.

Well that's it for this week. Which is your favorite?

Next week I'll show you how to remove the background in your picture.

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I have to share this exciting news. This post was featured at All Things Pretty Thursday. Check it out HERE.

I just want to say thank you Leslie, Chrissy, and Kathy for hosting each week.

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Yippee Hooray. I've been featured today. Thanks so much Jennifer for featuring me at your party.

This is what she had to say, Make Your Pics Pinteresting with these Tips from Darlene Nemeth. These were some great tips. I've seen too many wonderful posts that would have easily been passed over because of their "Pinterestability"

Check out Jennifer's blog and the other featured posts HERE.

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Thank you Linda and Carol for featuring my blog post on your blog - Crafts a la mode.

To see the other featured blog posts at What To Do Weekends #59 please click HERE.

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I am so grateful Susie for featuring my post on your site - Bowdabrablog.com.

"How to Make Your Pics Pinteresting by Darlene Nemeth - She shares a lot of great tips to help you with your photos. If you aren’t using good photos on Pinterest then you are missing out on a lot of free traffic to your blog."

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This post was featured at Maz Kwok.com. It was linked at the Crafting Along Blog Hop and was included in the top three most clicked projects at Party #28.

Thank you Maz Kwok for hosting the party and thanks to everyone who clicked on my post.

Click HERE to check out the other featured posts.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop ,Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

If you would like to receive my blog updates please subscribe via email or follow me on Twitter, Pinterest or Blog Lovin.

I look forward to reading your comments. Make my day and leave one! We all learn and grow together when we share!

Join Me For a Coffee?

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Sun, 26 Jan 2014 19:08:00 -0800

I love flowers. I love looking at flowers. I love taking pictures of flowers.

They are so pretty. Glorious and vibrant.

They always brighten my day. I don’t like to smell them – I have allergies. But I sure love lookin at them. Did I already say that?

Problem is I rarely take the time to enjoy them.

As I get older time flies by so much faster. And faster. And faster.

The days, weeks and months pass by and I can’t remember what I did with all that time. I need to slow down and enjoy the moment.

I’ve been doing much better – living in the moment that is.

I am always in the moment with my granddaughters. I smile. I feel my heart swell. My whole being sits in peace and joy.

I need to do this when I’m not with them too.

I thought you just might like to slow down with me. Just for a little white. And enjoy being present in the now. So let’s take a moment to stop. Look at the flowers. And just be. In the moment.

Grab a coffee and join me.

Ahh. What can I say. This Black Eyed Susan is stunning. The colour soaked petals pulling your eyes to the center where you can get lost in the minute details we would other wise miss.

I love the composition of this photo. My eye is drawn into the image on the bottom left flower then up to the center cluster of blossoms. I pause to enjoy the sun rays dance on the petals before I glance down to the bottom right flowers and back to the left where I began to repeat the whole process.

These delicate white bell flowers stand at attention all in a row but it’s the cluster in the foreground that demand you to stop and appreciate their beauty.

The colour of these flowers is just amazing. I tweaked the pictures just a bit to add warmth and make them stylized.

Are you still with me? Bored yet?

This flower makes me laugh. This little cutie is right smack in the middle.. Saying Hi. Look at me. I'm right here.. Smile.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

If you would like to receive my blog updates please subscribe via email or follow me on Twitter, Pinterest or Blog Lovin.

I look forward to reading your comments. Make my day and leave one! We all learn and grow together when we share!

How Gratitude Changed My Life

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Mon, 20 Jan 2014 12:39:00 -0800

Hi. I am so happy you decided to stop by for a visit. I hope everything is good with you.

I'm actually feeling pretty excited today. I have a guest blogger here. Her name is Nicole Nemeth but she prefers to be called Cole.

If you haven't guess, Cole is my daughter. Isn't she beautiful? She is here to talk about gratitude and how it has changed her life.

Cole has her own blog. It's called Peace and Chaos.

Please give her a warm welcome. Yahhh Cole!

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Hello and Welcome!

My name is Cole. I am a journalism student, and a mother.

I hope to be able to inspire, encourage and support other young moms.

Life can be hard, and it can be much harder once you have a little one depending on you for everything, and even harder when you’re not quite independent yourself. Without my family and friend’s support I don’t think I would have made it even this far.

But I believe we can have it all, and deserve the best for not only our children but ourselves, too.

I had my daughter Sidney when I was 17 with my boyfriend Nick. Over the past few years we have grown and matured a lot. Even through everything we’re still growing and maturing every day.

Chasing dreams, and achieving goals; my blog is about what it’s like to be a young parent through the struggles and successes we face every day.

Being a parent is the most difficult, and the greatest thing I have ever experienced.

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Here is my gratitude story.

Gratitude is something I've been exploring for more than a year now. It's been a life changing experience for me and so I want to share how I first started learning about the benefits of gratitude and how it's helped me.

Last summer while I was working at an art studio I fell into a pretty bad depression. I had a ton of support from my co-workers, supervisors, friends and family but if you've ever experienced depression you know that other people just can't help you.

I ended up seeing a doctor and got antidepressants which kept me neutral, but I wanted to feel happy, or even just content, not neutral. Sometimes neutral is worse than sadness, it's like you don't feel anything at all. You're just numb.

Finally, I realized that if I wanted to feel happy again I was going to have to do something about it.

So one day after work I went over to the public library and wandered around the self-help section. The first book to really jump out at me was The Secret by Rhonda Byrne.

I had heard about The Secret before. I knew there was a DVD, and my mom tried to get me to listen to the audio CD a couple of years before, but I had brushed it off.

All of a sudden I found myself curious about it. Reading The Secret helped me to view life a little differently.

Mind you, I don't believe that just thinking things will make them exist. I truly believe in working for things and such, but I took what it had said and applied it a little bit differently to my own life. I started thinking that things were possible.

But I needed more than that.

Then one day I came across another book by Rhonda Byrne called The Magic and it was exactly what I needed.

This book talks a lot about gratitude! It's the reason I got into writing gratitude lists. It has 28 exercises for you to do in 28 days. Things like; writing gratitude lists, feeling thankful for what you do have and appreciating the people who are in your life.

For months I carried The Magic everywhere with me along with a journal and a pen.

After I completed the 28 days I would still flip through my copy of The Magic whenever I felt I needed some inspiration, or if I was having a bad day. It was my reminder to feel grateful.

I used to be the most pessimistic person I know. I'm not even kidding!

Now I'm optimistic most of the time.

But learning gratitude can be really difficult for some people. At the beginning I felt like I would never be able to apply it to my daily life and I constantly had to remind myself to be grateful every time a negative thought popped into my mind, which was often.

Now feeling grateful comes naturally.

Do you practice gratitude? Isu it something new, or have you been doing it for a long time?t

Thanks, Cole

Connect with me on:

Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Etsy, Youtube, Google+, Bloglovin

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This is just too awesome. Thank you Carol and Linda for featuring this post.

This is what Linda has to say, "

Darlene Nemeth's daughter, Nicole, talks about gratitude and it's beautifully written."

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I am doing my happy dance.

Thank you ladies for featuring my post.

Check out all the features HERE.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

If you would like to receive my blog updates please subscribe via email or follow me on Twitter, Pinterest or Blog Lovin.

We look forward to reading your comments. Make our day and leave one! We all learn and grow together when we share!

Today I Choose To Live With Gratitude

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Mon, 13 Jan 2014 12:26:00 -0800

Hi. I am so happy you decided to stop by for a visit. I hope everything is good with you.

I'm actually feeling pretty good all things considered. I've had a few rough years and 2012 was the worst.

I lost my job from restructuring. My husband was diagnosed with PTSD and can't work. We lost our home of ten years to the bank. And I lost my mind. Well, maybe I still have that.

It is gratitude that helped me cope because with everything bad that has happened I still have so much to be grateful for.

When I practice gratitude I feel different - optimistic - happy.

Today the sun is shining. I have a roof over my head and food in the cupboards. I'm healthy and alive. And so is my family.

I choose gratitude.

Yes, it is a choice. It's true. So today I choose to be grateful. I choose to live with gratitude. What about you?

I wonder why more people don’t choose to live their lives with gratitude in their hearts. The world would be a better place if we did!

Don't you just love flowers.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

2014 Calendar Printable - Start Each Day With a Grateful Heart

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Mon, 6 Jan 2014 22:11:00 -0800

An attitude of gratitude has made a huge change in my life. Unfortunately I have a little bit of trouble remembering to be grateful each day. A little reminder will go a long way for me. How about you?

Let's make each day of 2014 fantastic!

Start each day with a grateful heart!

Feel free to copy and print this 2014 calendar at a glance.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

If you would like to receive my blog updates please subscribe via email or follow me on Twitter, Pinterest or Blog Lovin.

I look forward to reading your comments. Make our day and leave one!

And What Makes Me Think These Are The Top Three Posts for 2013?

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Sun, 29 Dec 2013 23:02:00 -0800

Hi. I'm so glad you decided to stop by.

I thought the best way to end the year would be to review my top three posts.

There are two reasons. One, I have a reason to share my posts again. :) And two, we can figure out what I may have done right so we replicate it.

Well, I looked at my post stats and got confused. I had to stop and ask myself, what makes me think these are the top three posts of 2013?

1.) You Can't Live a Positive Life With a Negative Mind

2.) 8 Reason Someone Envies You

3.) How Random Acts of Kindness Improve Your Life

How do I determine which posts are the most popular - the most successful?

Pageviews

If this is the determining factor, then yes the three posts shown above would be considered the most popular posts.

Comments

1.) You Can't Live a Positive Life With a Negative Mind

57 comments including my responses

2.) 8 Reason Someone Envies You

61 comments including my responses

3.) How Random Acts of Kindness Improve Your Life

60 comments including my responses

These three pretty much seem tied when it comes to comments.

Featured

1.) You Can't Live a Positive Life With a Negative Mind

Twice

2.) 8 Reason Someone Envies You

Twice

3.) How Random Acts of Kindness Improve Your Life

Once

The top two are tied. Unless I missed being featured somewhere which is quite possible. It's rare for a party host to send an email announcing that you have been featured.

Pinned

1.) You Can't Live a Positive Life With a Negative Mind

RePinned 99

2.) 8 Reason Someone Envies You

RePinned 4

3.) How Random Acts of Kindness Improve Your Life

RePinned 67

Well those are pretty sad numbers. Especially number two which would probably put this post way back to tenth place or worse.

It's probably because it doesn't have a pinnable image. I'll have to work on that.

Number one does have the prettiest image.

1.) You Can't Live a Positive Life With a Negative Mind

Google Plus 15 Times
6 Tweets
31 Facebook Shares
1 Stumble

2.) 8 Reason Someone Envies You

Google Plus 13 Times
9 Tweets
19 Facebook Shares
1 Stumble

3.) How Random Acts of Kindness Improve Your Life

Google Plus 9 Times
7 Tweets
9 Facebook Shares
1 Stumble

These numbers fall in line properly for Google+ and Facebook shares but the Tweets are out of whack.

So what is the answer? How do I figure out which of my posts are most popular? That is if I am comparing my posts to each other as apposed to other bloggers.

These blog posts were from March, April and May of this year. Maybe they are more popular right now because they are older and time is on their side?

Sorry. I'm not suppose to be figuring out why they are popular but how their popularity is determined.

Ahhh! I could make myself crazy.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

I would love for you subscribe and follow along!

You can also find me: Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. See you there.

I look forward to reading your comments. Make my day and leave one!

Have a Fantastic Day!

When The World Says Give Up . . .

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Tue, 17 Dec 2013 15:28:00 -0800

Hi, I am so happy that you decided to pay me a visit.

No need to grab a coffee today. This is a quickie.

Not too long ago I wrote a post about my granddaughters' perseverance when learning a new skill.

I asked this question, "What could we accomplish in life if we still had that kind of determination?"

If you missed it, you can read it HERE.

Anyways, I thought it might be nice to make a printable that expresses the kind of determination and perseverance that a child possesses.

I am hoping that this quote can inspire and remind us all that we can achieve the unbelievable as long as we remain steadfast in spite of difficulties, obstacles or discouragement.

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I have been featured. Yahooo! I am so happy and honored to be chosen.

A special thanks to the lovely hosts at the Four Seasons Blog Hop.

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Thank you, thank you, thank you, Stacey from Along Came Life chose to feature my post, When The World Says Give Up . . .

This is what she had to say, “This is so true, sometimes we parents have so much that weighs us down, that we might be quicker to just give up or not do something. When maybe if we tried that one more time to achieve our goals, because perseverance pays off. My kids have proven it so many times, while trying to master, even something as simple as a video game, they learn that if they keep trying they will eventually master that level.”

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

I would love for you subscribe and follow along!

You can also find me: Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. See you there.

I look forward to reading your comments. Make my day and leave one!

Have a wonderful week!

Happiness is . . . Shopping?

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Wed, 11 Dec 2013 11:02:00 -0800

Who loves to shop?

I do. I do.

HAPPINESS IS SHOPPING!

Okay, I'm sure there are a few out there that just dread going into a store but hey, I bet you're not one of them.

Oh what a happy day it is when I have some money in my pocket and nothing in particular to buy. No time limits, no kids distracting me or spouse asking me if I'm done yet. Just shopping for the sheer pleasure of it. Perfection.

So that's the ultimate shopping experience for me. It doesn't happen very often but when it does, I feel a little bounce in my step. What about you?

I also love finding a bargain. Time and a bit of perseverance and I find that perfect item at an unbelievable price. Now that's something that can make me smile for years.

That kind of happiness I need to share. So I am teaching my granddaughters at an early age the joy of shopping. LOL

Thrift Shopping

My girls love garage sales and thrift shopping.

Talk about a bounce in your step. The girls literally run and skip through the doors with huge smiles on their faces.

They grab their baskets and race to the toy section with my Mom and me taking up the rear.

The girls fill up their shopping baskets with all kinds of stuff. Toys, books, shoes.

But the main fun for them is playing with all the toys.

Honey Bunny is wearing her favorite high heel shoes. They click when she walks.

We bought those at Value Village in the summer for $3.99.

She still loves those shoes and wears them every chance she gets.

The girls sure love their shoes. And dresses.

Check out Honey Bunny's favorite dress. She feels like a princess when she wears it.

In fact Baby Cakes loved this dress too. They took turns wearing it up until it was too stained and scary. They would still be wearing it if I didn't hide it.

I bought that dress at the Salvation Army for maybe six dollars.

Once I've had a chance to look through the store I call my Mom and the girls over to the shoe area which is also the same place that the purses hang out.

Dress up time!

So many shoes, so little time.

I sometimes think my granddaughters love the shoes and purses more than the toys.

Can't you image the conversation taking place here?

"I found this gorgeous purple purse with black feathers and now this awesome purple sparkly wallet to go with it!

"Cool! Check out this cute little wallet that I found."

"Oh my gosh! I love these boots! They have my name on them."

"Look at those black boot. I have to try those on."

"I feel good in these boots."

"Ta Daa!"

Happiness is Having Fun. Living in the Moment.

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Can I get a high five? Look! This post has been featured at Meandering Mondays!

"This Momma’s Meanderer’s from last week, and boy oh boy it was a difficult choice! Don’t forget to grab your “I Was Featured” badge of honor! Congratulations to you all!"

Mrs Tee from Love Life and Laughter choose this post as her favorite.

Saying, “I loved this post because I am in a place where I myself am learning to find happiness in even the smallest moments and I think this post was a great example of that!”

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

To receive my blog updates - please subscribe via email or follow through one of the other social medias. And don't forget to share the love. :)

I look forward to reading your comments. Make my day and leave one!

HAVE A FANTASTIC DAY!

7 Things I Look For On Your Blog?

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Wed, 11 Dec 2013 11:01:00 -0800

One of the things that I love most about blogging is visiting my fellow bloggers and checking out their amazing posts.

Of course when I find something particularly interesting I want to share it. I want to know more about the blogger and I want to be able to follow them.

Sometimes it can be so frustrating. But more importantly, that blogger is missing out - missing out on the sharing and following. Not that I am a super star blogger but every bit helps right.

7 Things I Look For When I Visit Your Blog

1. Awesome Images

No matter where I start from, whether it is a Linky Party, Pinterest, Google Plus, what ever, I am first and always attracted to your post by the image you have on display.

Everyone knows that. ~~But did you know a tree in the forest does make a sound when it falls and no one is around to hear it?~~ And that is something I am definitely working on.

I started off with my regular digital camera but have upgraded to a Nikon DX. Mind you I love taking photographs and I wanted a better camera anyway. But holy cow, what a huge difference! I'm going to eventually go back and put better pictures on my older posts.

Many bloggers use IStockPhoto, or Flickr for images and that's great if it works for them but it doesn't for me. I wasted so much time looking for pictures just to be disappointed.

Oh ya, an awesome image isn't necessarily a professionally taken photograph. An awesome image is one that shouts out for attention.

There are many different ways to attract attention, like through colour, lack of colour or just something plain fun.

2. Sharing

Sharing is caring! When I read something good, I want to share it. The easier you make it for me to share the better. If I have to work too hard at it I'll just skip it and move to another blog.

I like Pinning. As soon as I realize that I like your post, I want to PIN it. And the easiest way for me to do that is to click on the Pinterest icon that appears right on your pictures when I hover over it. I don`t have to search for it or strain my eyes to see it.

(There are all kinds of places on the net to get instructions for putting the Pinterest hover button. This is just one. Click HERE.)

Done and move on. It has to be that simple.

If you make it easy for me, I`ll even share your post on Twitter and Stumble. I`ll like your Facebook page. Make me search for those sharing buttons and I`ll likely just skip it.

This is where I got my share buttons. Click HERE. It's free and easy.

3. Showing Off Your Best

So I`m on your blog and I`ve shared your post. Now what?

I want to see more. What else do you got? Anything interesting?

Try showing off your popular post in your side bar.

Or put "You Might Also Like" at the end of a blog post. Click HERE to add it to your blog.

Either way, you'll keep me on your blog longer while I bebop from post to post.

4. Your Picture

I don`t know about you, but I love seeing a picture of the blogger. It`s you that I can relate to. It`s you I want to follow. And it`s your writing I want to read. Plus I tend to remember you face more than a blog title.

To me, your face is like your business logo. Memorable.

5. Your About Me Page

Everyone likes to feel like they fit in.

It`s a good feeling when I get to read more about you and find we have something in common. This alone could be the reason I follow you and share your posts. Is this true for you too?

6. Follow Me Buttons

Once I decide to follow you please make it easy for me to do it.

There`s nothing more disappointing to really like a blogger but can't follow them because you can`t seem to figure out where the follow me buttons are.

I just changed my buttons. They were spread out but now they are grouped together. We'll see if it makes a difference.

This is where I got my follow me buttons. Click HERE. It's free and easy.

7. Subscribe by Email

It`s all about the list. Well, that`s what everyone is saying. So make sure that is an option for me.

Besides, lately I`ve noticed that I prefer to subscribe by email. Sure it means loads of mail but I find it a challenge to get my email back down to zero. I scan emails, reading and deleting as I go.

I actually just moved this box to the top of my right panel and I already got more email subscriptions in this last couple of weeks than I did in the last year. Bonus.

I use FeedBurner. Click HERE. Or if you prefer MailChimp, click HERE.

To be honest, I don't know what the difference is and I can't remember why I choose FeedBurner. It works.

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I'm jumping up and down with joy. I can't thank you enough ladies.

This mother and daughter dual, Debi and Charly featured this post on their fabulous blog Adorned From Above.

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This is too exciting.

I would like to thank the hosts of the blog hop for featuring this post. I am honored.

To see the other featured posts and meet the hosts, please click HERE.

Terri Henkels publicly sent out this invitation, "Stop by and see the post Features of the week by some creative and great bloggers."

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I'm doing a happy dance now!

This post has been featured on the Blog Strut as the most clicked.

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I'm dancing again.

Thank you Carol and Linda for featuring my post at your party.

Check out the smiles on these lovely ladies.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

Happiness Is .... Blowing Up a Balloon All By Yourself

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Tue, 26 Nov 2013 22:20:00 -0800

When you were a child, almost everything was new. You were experiencing so many things for the first time. And when you accomplished something for the first time it was miraculous, exciting and rewarding.

It was the simple things in life that made you feel so good. Like doing a somersault or blowing up a balloon all by yourself.

I watched my daughters try to blow up their balloons. For a long time they would send the balloon flying out from their fingers as they blew as hard as they could.

Yes they giggled because it was funny but it was also disappointing because they still could not fill up the balloon.

They were determined to blow up their own balloons. Then one day it happened. I don't know if the balloon was especially thinner or the girls lungs got stronger but low and behold they each were able to blow up their own balloons all by themselves.

Look everyone. Look what I can do!

Hooray! What an accomplishment. The joy. The pride. The ear to ear grins.

What could we accomplish in life if we still had that kind of determination?

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High Five! Vashti choose this post to feature at This Momma’s Meandering Mondays #24. Saying, “It’s a cute post that put a smile on my face and I believe she is right when she wrote that we as adults would be able to accomplish so much more if we had the determination of a child.”

Please visit Vashti Q Vega at Vashti Q Vegas Blog.

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Yahooo. I have been featured as the post with the most likes. "Turn It Up Tuesdays is all about being happy and excited and energetic, and having fun!"

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So check out our hosts:

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

Happiness Is . . . Picking Apples

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Wed, 20 Nov 2013 10:30:00 -0800

Hi, I am so happy you decided to visit today.

I have a few pictures to share with you. I had planned this post quite a few weeks ago but for some unknown reason I just didn't get it done. Better late than never. Right?

Normally in the fall we go to a farm where they have fun activities like corn mazes, petting zoos, scary hay ride . . . Know what I mean?

Anyway, we decided to try something different this year because our usual haunt is closed this season for construction.

We decided to go to an apple orchard.

Happiness is Picking Apples

I've never been to an orchard for fun. The last time I was in an one was many moons ago when I was a kid helping my Mom earn money picking apples.

I don't know about the kids, but I was pretty excited and looked forward to eating some fresh crisp apples.

Here is a picture of my daughter Cole leading the crew down a row between the apple trees. She is followed by her daughter Baby Cakes, Beth's daughter Sweetie Pie and Christina's daughter Honey Bunny.

Oh my, that apple looks delicious. My mouth is watering. Those ones were a bit sour and juicy.

One of the frustrating things about going on an outing with kids is their small bladders. We weren't in the orchard more than fifteen - twenty minutes when we heard the first cry, "Grandma, I gotta pee."

Aw, the washroom is way far away at the front of the orchard. What can I say. I didn't remind the girls to take a pee before we left the house.

Of course when one girl needs to pee another one chimes in that she has to pee too.

Now I am frustrated. I guess it is just one of my pet peeves. I really don't like stopping to pee.

I take a deep cleansing breath and we head over to the washroom. We're done picking apples anyway.

In the area near the washrooms, the girls found these tall stacks of corn stalks.

I thought they were cool and imagined one of them in my front yard for a Halloween decoration.

At the same time they freaked me out. Children of the Corn anyone?

In the same area were pumpkins and more pumpkins.

The girls squealed with delight and immediately buzzed around the pumpkins trying decide which one they liked best.

Now who needed to pee? Oh ya, all three of the girls.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

Happiness is . . . Craft Night

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Wed, 13 Nov 2013 07:42:00 -0800

Now that the cold weather is here, we need to find activities to occupy our time in the evenings after supper.

Friday night has typically been movie night for us.

Wednesdays, we spend with my Mom. She picks us up in her mini-van. By us I mean, me of course, and my three granddaughters. We go to a fast food restaurant where the girls can play on a climber. They love spending time with Great Grandma.

So three evenings are open.

I've always kept an ample supply of craft supplies around the house. My granddaughters love making things. So do I. Naturally I decided to have a craft night. I haven't picked a night for it yet. I am thinking Thursdays. We'll see.

So here is one of the crafts we worked on.

About twenty-five years ago, I was into embroidery. I actually completed a couple of store bought kits, one project from a magazine and a few of my own creations.

I liked embroidery and it was different than my usual drawing and painting. My little angels just might like it too.

My daughter, Cole completed her own embroidery project some time ago and still had some supplies laying around the house. She had a couple of embroidery hoops and material. That was a good start.

I had a couple of needles and lots of yarn. Yarn is easier to work with and it fills the space faster. A project was in the making.

My granddaughter just turned five not long ago so I wanted to make this project easy - fun. I didn't want them to get frustrated and quit. So we made straight lines. They got to pick the colours of yarn.

Honey Bunny Posing For Her Picture

I asked the girls if I could take pictures of them with the embroidery. Honey Bunny and Sweetie Pie wanted to dress up like princesses for the pics.

Sweetie Pie Posing For Her Pic.

At first the girls had trouble figuring out which side of the material they had to push the needle through. I had to pull the yarn out a couple of times because they had it wrapped around the hoop.

They worked on their creations for about a half hour. Not bad for their first time.

Honey Bunny wants to hang her embroidery up on the wall while still in the hoop.

Honey Bunny said, "we could push this material to the back and it will look great. Won't that be a good idea Grandma?"

Of course that would be a good idea. I asked her what made her think of that?

She said, "I don't know. It just popped into my head."

She's so smart!

Craft night was a success.

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Well thanks for stopping by. I hope you enjoyed reading this post. And maybe you are inspired to have a craft night too.

And don't forget to stop by my Etsy Shop, Little Shop of Treasures or check out a few other posts.

Happiness is . . . Playing With Lady Bugs

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Sat, 2 Nov 2013 14:19:00 -0700

Oh my gosh, we had snow here a few days ago.

And to think, just a couple of weeks ago the weather was so nice that we didn't need sweaters, jackets, hats or mitts.

In fact not long ago my granddaughters were in the backyard wearing shorts and t-shirts while playing with bugs.

Happiness is playing with Lady Bugs.

Hang on. Those aren't cute little Lady Bugs!

Those are Mulit-Coloured Asian Lady Beetles!

What am I talking about. Well, Lady Beetles look a lot like our Lady Bugs but there are a two main differences to help you distinguish the two apart.

Lady Bugs are red with black spots but Lady Beetles are orange with or without brownish spots.
Lady Beetles swarm in large numbers but Lady Bugs don't.

The Asian Lady Beetle was introduced to the United States to control aphid numbers in orchards.

They have now spread throughout North America.

Asian Lady Beetles swarm in large groups during the spring and fall because they secrete a pheromone which summons other Lady Beetles.

In the spring they will reproduce. Late in the fall, they will seek out warm places to hibernate for the winter. Your home just might be an attractive place for them to stay for the cold months. But don't worry - they don't cause property damage.

However, Asian Lady Beetles are more aggressive than Lady Bugs.

They will bite if aggravated. Lady Beetle bites are not poisonous but they may be painful. However, if you are allergic to their bites you may get rhinoconjunctivitis (pink-eye).

As a matter of fact, Honey Bunny did get pink-eye the next day. Holy cow. I wish I knew that tidbit of information before letting the girls play with those bugs.

Strange, none of the girls complained or commented on being bit.

Oh ya, Lady Beetles will also secrete a yellowish fluid as a protective mechanism. My girls thought the bugs were peeing on them which made them a bit squeamish but not enough to stop them from picking up more bugs.

Yes I made them wash their hands thoroughly after playing with the bugs.

Now that I've read up on these "Lady Beetles" I'm wondering if I should have let my granddaughters play with them. Would you?

Honey Bunny did get pink-eye but Baby Cakes and Sweetie Pie didn't.

Oh, but they had so much fun. They would catch one beetle and it would fly away. Two seconds later they had their hands on another one. The three girls had such a great time hopping from one spot to another picking up bugs and watching them fly around.

Happiness is living in the moment. Stopping to play with bugs and have fun. Happiness is appreciating and being grateful to the little things in life.

Well thanks for stopping by.

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Happiness is . . . Fresh Raspberries

noreply@blogger.com (Darlene Nemeth) — Mon, 21 Oct 2013 10:25:00 -0700

Every time I stop by my daughters apartment, my Honey Bunny jumps out of the vehicle and happily skips over to the raspberry bush.

The raspberry bush is kinda picky so she slowly reaches in to snag the juiciest, reddish raspberry then quickly plops it into her mouth.

Awe. Pure bliss.

At this time Baby Cakes has already spied us from her bedroom window and is gleefully trotting down the metal stairs with a huge smile on her face. She's waving madly at me and yelling, hello Grandma.

Then comes the feeding frenzy as the two five year olds try to out eat one another. You know it has to “be fair” and it just isn't fair if “she” gets more.

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Darlene Nemeth

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Happiness Is .... Blowing Up a Balloon All By Yourself

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