i love basil

Oh basil...how I love you. And you're even better straight from our garden.

Great. Now I'm craving a sandwich with basil on it. Mmm.

-carlotta

happiness is...

Is there something that made you incredibly happy this week? Are you elated about something? Share is here at Happiness Is!

It's simple to play along. Just write a post with two things that have made you happy this past week (with a link to me), then come back here to my blog and link up! 

Also, we now have a button for Happiness Is, made by the lovely Ann...thanks, Ann! Feel free to grab it :)

<div align="center"><a href="http://pastors-girl.blogspot.com"><img alt="Happiness Is..." src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1064/4732886685_1331802b43_m.jpg" /></a></div>

Happiness is...

...delicious blackberries fresh from the garden. The best thing ever. Mmm.

...gorgeous sunsets. They're stunning. I know...I've already raved over them, but I can't help it ;)

What has made you happy this week? Link up and let me know!

-carlotta

raw(e)

This week's Raw(e) theme is summertime.

Above is my entry. It could mean a plethora of things - playing with the hose, watering summer gardens, etc. It's one thing I love about summer :)

Want to learn more about Raw(e)? Go here to the first "edition". If you'd like to see other summer photos and enter in your own picture, go here. Remember, your photo needs to be unedited!

If you haven't already done so, don't forget to enter in my giveaway!

-carlotta

ode to oklahoma weather

Oklahoma weather is so weird. It could seriously be like this one minute...

...and this the next.

A few days ago it was raining pretty heavily and thundering while sunny outside - there wasn't a dark cloud in sight. We've been having a lot of those freak showers lately. 

But when the weather is like that, it makes for some amazing things, though. Yesterday we were at a pool party, when all of a sudden we spotted a multicolored cloud. I'm not talking about the colored clouds at sunsets and sunrises. I'm talking about a cloud that looked like it was a rolled up rainbow. It was amazing. I've never seen anything like that in my life. It looked like a dove, and uncannily like how I envision the Holy Spirit to look. It totally felt like we were in God's presence. Unfortunately, I couldn't take any pictures of it, as I forgot my camera at a friend's house and my point and shoot was at home charging. Can you believe that I actually FORGOT my beautiful D3000?! I was pretty mad at myself. I had to go a whole two days without it (I'm getting it back today). Sniff sniff. I can't wait to be reunited.

I digress.

But as crazy as the weather is here, I love it. I mean, where else does the tornado siren go off three times in two weeks?! ;)

Is there anything special about the weather where you live that you love?

-carlotta

PS Don't forget to enter in my giveaway! It's open until July 4th. 

giveaway!

Today, in honor of my 100th follower and because I love all of you...I'm having a giveaway!



Amanda of Allium has generously offered to donate a beautiful pair of silver hoops to one lucky person. Aren't they gorgeous?!

Silver hoops are so versatile...whether it be dressing up jeans and a tshirt or completing a fancy outfit. The earrings I'm giving away fit the bill quite nicely, don't you think? I'm jealous. Very jealous.

Want to enter to win these? Thought so. Here's how it's going to work...

Mandatory Entry 

Leave a comment. Whether it's "I love these earrings!" or "Chocolate is God's gift to mankind", it doesn't matter as long as you leave a comment on this post. (1 entry)

If you'd like extra entries, here's what you can do.

Extra Entries 


- Become a follower of my blog. (4 extra entries)

- Write a post about this giveaway, with a link to my blog. (3 extra entries)

- My friend Louis just started his own blog. To get him started, become a follower of his blog and maybe leave a comment or two. ;) (3 extra entries)

Please leave a comment telling me what you did (Ex. I followed Louis' blog, wrote a post, etc).

This giveaway will close on Sunday, July 4th, at 11:59pm. The winner will be announced on Saturday, July 10th (Later in the evening, as that's the day I get back from Nashville.).

Have fun and good luck!

-carlotta

peaches, photography, and MeMe

Is there 

anything better 

than peaches, photography, 

and a precious girl named MeMe? 

I think not.

On a side note, tomorrow - in honor of my 100th follower (Although, I actually had 101, but lost one...sniff sniff) I'm having a giveaway! Stay tuned for details :)

-carlotta

miscellaneous ramblings

1. Last night went to another concert...this time it was music of the Beatles :) 

I saw this adorable girl with (I presume) her grandfather...I couldn't resist taking a picture. 

2. We've had lots of gorgeous sunsets recently. Absolutely stunning. 

And of course I can't miss getting my favorite thing...bokeh. :)

3. As if you haven't had enough flower overload...here's some more.

Hehe.

4. There are only ELEVEN days left until my youth trip to Nashville! I am insanely excited. (I can't wait to see you, Em!!!!)

5. Here's a sneak peek of a photo shoot I did with MeMe and some peaches yesterday...

Thanks for being so cooperative, MeMe :)

What have you been up to recently? 

-carlotta

i'm a bit obsessed

Time after time I tell myself, "No more pictures of flowers. I know they're pretty but they can get sort of boring. You really don't need any more flower pictures on your computer."

And then new flowers bloom. I break any promise I made to myself about no new photos of plants.

I'm like a train wreck. I can't stop myself!

These flowers are too dang pretty to go without having their picture taken.

Can someone help me? I might need to go to a support group. Or better yet, therapy. If they have such a thing - therapy for one obsessed with taking photos of flowers.

Please tell my I'm not alone. I need reassurance that I'm not the only one who can't restrain herself from taking pictures of flowers!

(I said "flower" a lot in this post. Flower. Flower flower flower. 

I'll stop now.)

-carlotta

happiness is...

Did something that made you incredibly happy this week? Is there something that you're elated about? Share it here at Happiness Is!

The rules are simple. Write a post with two things that made you happy this week (please link back to me!) and link up! 

Happiness is...

...that I'm DONE with Latin for the summer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Today was my last class. Ahhhhh :) I'm officially done with all my school for the summer! You don't know how amazing it feels. Goodbye, Mr. Wheelock. I hope the time the time I spend away from you will go by slowly...you won't be missed. ;)

...bokeh. I'm extremely, completely, totally mildly obsessed with it. I love the way it looks, blurs out unneeded things in the background, and makes the eye focus immediately on the subject.

What has made you happy this week? Link up and tell me about it...but most of all, have fun!

Oh, and I decreased the width of my blog. I hope those who were having to scroll to the side no longer have to do that!

-carlotta

raw(e)

After a lengthly break, Raw(e) is back! I'm so happy...I seriously love this blog hop.

This week's theme is pets/animals. My photo is of our 9 month old Labrador, Sarge.

I actually was going to use a photo I'd taken of our neighbor's cat, but I didn't know if they wanted me to use it on my blog :)

Sarge is the sweetest dog. He is so tolerant and amazing with kids. We love him to death :)

Do you have a dog?

If you're new to Raw(e) and want to know more about it, head on over here to the first "edition". If you want to enter in your own pet photo, click here to link up. But remember, NO EDITING whatsoever to your entry!

-carlotta

PS It has been brought to my attention that my blog is too wide for some monitors. Do you have to scroll to the side to see everything? Please let me know ;)

summer means...

playing with hoses. Although, when I took this photo I was watering plants...but I may have managed to get myself quite wet. ;)

lemonade stands. MeMe has a summer Girls' Club...today's activity was selling lemonade. They made $21.15 within two hours! Now they're trying to decide which charity to donate the money to...good for them :)

bees buzzing lethargically from flower to flower. There's nothing I love more than lying outside listening to bees flitting around, birds chirping in trees, and the occasional airplane flying overhead. Ahh. 

grilling. I absolutely adore the smell of sizzling meat combined with the charcoal. Nothing says summer like that does!

lots and lots (and lots) of swimming. MeMe is learning to swim this summer...and Lilly, wanting to do everything her big sister does, is trying to learn too :)

What does summer mean for you?

-carlotta

fathers' day

(Jeremiah was more into it than my dad. Ha.)

(I know...I probably need to put up a picture of my dad and me...but being the photographer, I don't have any. Unless you want OLD pictures :))

"Anyone can be a dad...but it takes a special man to be a father."

Author Unknown

Today is Fathers' Day. My dad celebrated his 25th year as a father...wow. That's a lot of years of parenting. 

My church youth group did a car wash fundraiser today...so that's what I did most of the morning, after attending our early church service. I have so much soap in my hair ;) After church, we came home for a cookout. We had steak, burgers, salad, and chips (Or rather, my family had steak and burgers. Meat makes my stomach churn.) with a Bavarian cream pastry for dessert. 

We gave my dad Hostess Fudge Brownies, powered sugar donuts, and chocolate. That may seem a bit odd to you, but there's a little story behind all the junk food :) During the time my mom worked and my dad stayed home with us (about 1997-2005), my dad would always buy powdered sugar donuts and Fudge Brownies for us to eat. Around the time my mom quit working, she got more into natural eating - and "banned" the sugary food, much to my dad's dismay. My mom decided to lift the ban temporarily  for Fathers' Day. 

I digress.

Edited to add: My brother reminded me in the comments that he wrote my dad a really sweet poem. :)

Happy Father's Day, Dad. Thanks for being so great!

What did you do for your dad today?

-carlotta

miscellaneous ramblings

1. It is HOT here. The heat index today was 117 degrees Farenheit. Yikes. The only thing that you can do in this kind of weather is stay in an air conditioned house or go swimming. We went with the latter.

Have I mentioned that it's hot?

2. Yesterday I went shopping...and managed to get two pairs of shorts, a tank top, and a tshirt! That is a big deal for me, being so skinny. Ugh. I was joking (sort of) with my mom that I should start a fashion blog - An Extra Small in a Plus Sized World. 

3. Do you see the gorilla in this picture? Tilt your head to the right a bit...I've helped you a little too :)

I never would have seen it if my brother hadn't pointed it out...he and his friend found it one night.

4. I hit ninety followers today. Wow. Y'all are amazing. I know I say this practically every time a get a new follower, but I can't believe it!

5. I know that you're probably tired of hearing my gush over my new camera...bear with me for a bit longer. :) But seriously, check this side by side comparison out...

Both these photos were taken at practically the same angle and were edited exactly the same way. Told ya this camera was amazing. 

6. There are less than three months until our trip to Germany. Is it bad that I can't wait to go because of all the photos I can take? I mean, I'm insanely excited to see my family...but still. ;)

-carlotta

a summer concert

Last night we went to an outdoor concert at our local "it" spot...it was lovely.

It was one of weekly summer concerts. Each week the music ranges from light opera to pop to country - there's something for everyone. The music last night was country...being from Texas I can't help but like it. :)

The band was so fun. They played country classics such as "Silver Wings", "Folsom Prison Blues" and "Margaritaville" (Although, I'm not sure if the latter technically counts as a classic ;))...even though it wasn't country, my favorite song was a very cool rendition of "Wipe Out", complete with an awesome drum solo.

It was a beautiful night - as the sun started to set, a breeze began blowing and the temperature lowered a bit...and the clouds were stunning.

There was snow cone selling, dancing, laughing, lots of fun...and incredibly cute kids :) It was a very enjoyable night - I hope we can make it to the next concert...the Beatles! (Well, not the Beatles, obviously, but Beatles music.)

What did you do last night?

-carlotta

changes

Do you notice anything different around here?

I have the lovely Century Gothic font! Woohoo! I know it's rather minor, but it's a big deal to me. What can I say? I'm a (major) font snob. ;)

A million and one thanks to the lovely Kate for doing this for me! I know this is more work than you thought...I apologize...I don't know how I can ever thank you!

And now...would you like to drool over my breakfast?

Homemade waffles with powdered sugar and strawberries make the world go round. Don't you agree?

-carlotta

blogging tips

Several people have asked me how I got my blog numbers to grow. While I'm not nearly as big as some bloggers, I'm going to share with you a few tips that have helped my blog.

1. Comment, comment, comment. By commenting on other people's blogs, you let them know that you're out there. But by commenting I don't mean, "Hi, I really love your blog, please check out mine as well.". I mean actually read the post...say what you liked about it. People are more likely to visit your blog if you don't promote yourself by saying "please check out my blog", etc.

2. Write meaningful content on your blog. Blog entries like, "Well, today I got up and went to school...nothing much else happened...okay, I have to go eat dinner!" are just plain boring. And I'm definitely not saying that I didn't write entries like that! You can go to my archives to read some of my very early blog posts as an example of what NOT to do (Pretty much anywhere from 2006-2008). Also, when you write a post, don't write in one long paragraph. Have frequent spaces in the text - maybe when you switch to a slightly different topic - to make it easier to read.

3. Proofread your posts before you publish them - make sure that everything is how you want it and that there are no spelling or grammatical errors. One of my pet peeves is when people don't bother to proofread and have a million and one mistakes in their posts that could be eliminated just by reading it before they publish.

4. While writing good posts is all fine and well, it's even better if you post often, at least 3-4 times a week. I post everyday because I enjoy it, although that's just a preference. If months go by between posts, readers are probably going to stop coming.

5. I don't know about you, but I like lots of pictures on the blogs I read. Just text = a bit boring. Photos give the blog more interest...and they're so fun to look at. Stay away from photos that you found via Google Images, though. Even if you link to where you found it, more often than not, you're violating a copyright. The best photos to post are the ones that you've taken yourself.

6. Blog design is key. It could be that you have great content, but if your blog is messy, I'm going to be turned off.

Stay away from dark backgrounds with light text - it strains the readers' eyes. A completely white background (meaning COMPLETELY - no design on the sides) is the best.

Music that automatically turns on when you visit the site is also a big no-no.

Keep the sidebars clean...just leave what you think are the bare necessities. For me, that would be the follower's gadget, labels, archive, profile, search gadget, my Project 365 link and my siblings names/pictures so brand new visitors know who I'm talking about when I mention Jermiah/Lilly/MeMe. Everything else that doesn't need to be right on the home pages are in my tabs - such as recipes, more about me, contact, photography, and so on.

A three column template is also good - you can spread out the gadgets a bit more.

I designed my blog myself using Blogger in Draft (www.blogger.com/draft - sign in like normal, go to design > template designer and customize to your heart's content!).

I could go on and on, but I'm going to stop here. And I'm going to throw in a picture that has absolutely nothing to do with this post just so I don't contradict myself ;)

-carlotta

leaves

-carlotta

happiness is...

It's Wednesday, which means it's time for Happiness Is!

If you would like to join, the rules are simple. Write a post with two things that made you happy this week (please link to me so others can join in the fun!), come back here, and link up. But most of all - have fun!

Happiness is...

...sunsets. We've had so many gorgeous ones recently...they're breathtaking. 

...silly siblings. They are seriously so goofy!

What are two things that have made you happy this week? 

-carlotta