Versatile Blogger Award

Thanks to misstatejones for liking my blog enough to present it with The Versatile Blogger award!!  The requirements for this blog reward are to recognize the blog who gave you the award in a post, write 7 things about myself that others may not know, and then nominate another 15-20 blogs for the award.  I don’t know if I can nominate that many blogs since I’m not out there reading blogs as much as I used to, but I’m going to give it my best shot.  So here it goes….

7 Things About Me

1.  Cell phones are a pet peeve of mine.  I dislike being in a restaurant and hearing a phone ring and then the person answer it and talk very loudly.  Excuse me, I went out to get away from home with distractions, so let me enjoy my meal in peace.  Even worse is anyone who drives while on the cell phone!!  Don’t tell me you can’t pull off the road and NOT hit me or wait until you get where you’re going to make that call.

2.  I wear reading glasses ONLY!!

3.  I’m the sports fan in the house, although I’ve turned Miss K onto certain sports.  I’m a Dale Jr. fan and I don’t care how long it takes him to win his next race.  I’m also a born and bred Green Bay Packers fan.  So much so, that my blood flows green and gold!!  I also enjoy college football and follow several different teams.  I’m not into many other pro sports, but I do keep up with the Milwaukee Bucks and the OKC Thunder in basketball and the Texas Rangers and Milwaukee Brewers in baseball.

4.  Everyone that reads my blog knows that I teach a religion class.  Most don’t know how I got my position though!!  The DRE put an ad for a volunteer religion teacher in the church bulletin and I spent 2 weeks reading it over and over.  I knew her pretty well because Miss K was enrolled in classes.  However, I didn’t think she’d even be interested in me being a catechist.  I was finally encouraged to ask her, although I was sure after that amount of time that the position was filled.  Low and behold, when I asked her she yelled and said “YES, I’d love to have you” and I asked if the position wasn’t already filled and she said “it is NOW” (or something to that effect)!!  I’ve been doing it ever since and haven’t looked back….it was meant to be.

5.  I was a good student in school and even took some AP (advanced placement) classes.

6.  I dislike cats very much!!  It doesn’t matter where we’ve lived, but especially here, cat owners are horrible and so are their cats.  My dogs potty in our own yard, but cats around us always find our yard and dig up my plants or potty all over our yard.  They also deposit flees that we fight every year.

7.  I very much want a 1977 black Pontiac Trans Am.  Yes, I’m referring to the Smokey and the Bandit TA!!

Blogs Nominated for The Versatile Blogger

1.  Bethanne Strasser – She’s a frequent commenter of my blog and I see her “chat” mostly on Twitter

2.  Training Happy Hearts – Martianne is a member of my Christian group and shares amazing stuff on her blog

3.  My Life:  Part II – J. Fabulous is a commenter on my blog and shares the trials of weight loss surgery and life on their blog

4.  Cat Patches – Barbara has a blog about quilting, life and hosts a great photo meme called Foto Finish

5.  My Shae Noel – Shauna is an ex-member of my educational group and a great online friends that shares printables and more on her blog

6.  Under the Loupe – Annette is a Aussie blogger and jewelry designer and I’ve kept up with her forever

7.  Montesorri Tidbits – Leann has a great Montessori-based homeschool blog

8.  Our Little Man – Stephanie is a mom that has a special little man and I just love seeing what they’re up to

9.  Creative Learning Fun – Elizabeth is homeschooling mom of a special little girl and she shares tons of free materials

10.  Seeds of Knowledge – The blog of a wonderful kindergarten teacher, Jenea, that shares tons of ideas, printables, and more

I think that about covers it!!  If I come up with more blogs, I’ll just add them to this list.  I’m so honored that misstatejones nominated me for this blog award.  It means so much to me and I’m thrilled that my materials are getting out there and being used!!


Please click here to vote for my blog….thanks!!

Blogiversary #4

I can’t believe that my blog is 4 years old today!!  I composed my first post on 14 April 2008.  It sure has been a learning process.  A changing one too!!

Commotion started off as my everything blog.  I had my printables and just about everything else here.  Now it’s pretty much my family life blog and a place for me to share my photos.  I started another blog just for my printables so that those that weren’t interested in them wouldn’t have to sift through my posts.  I still find myself sharing quite a few of my Christian ones here.  That’s probably because my religion class is such a big part of my life and I love talking about my kids and what we do in class.

I’ve had features like “Army Life” and “Homeschool 101″.  Neither of which I post about any longer.  They just didn’t seem to capture that much attention and I didn’t feel like I was benefiting anyone just rambling on about those parts of our life.  I also used to participate in a lot more memes and have quizzes or participate in them and post my results.  Those are gone too!!  I still do try to hold onto a few photography memes.  The days of blog awards are gone too.  There’s several that go around teacher blogs, but none on the few blogs that I actually have the time to read. 

Maybe that’s it.  Maybe time is the issue.  I just don’t go around reading blogs any more.  I can barely keep up with my own.  I know that I have some great readers and followers, because I’ve seen their blogs.  I just can’t find the time to write on regular basis, much less read.  When time is short, blogging is one of the things that I sacrifice!!

Well, I ramble and really all a blogiversary means for me is a couple days from being another year older!!  HAHA  Can’t have that now, can we!?!?  Before I give you a bunch of useless facts and statistics about Commotion, let me just say THANK YOU to all those that do take the time to read and follow this little blog.  I know it’s not much, but some of your are so loyal and I truly appreciate it.  And for those that give that little extra to comment, you make my day!!  You’ll never know what just a little comment does for me.

Now, for some worthless facts about Commotion….

Akismet has protected your site from 81,642 spam comments already.

244,698 total views.  3,865 views on the busiest day of 23 March 2011.

692 posts.  2,964 comments.  26 categories and 1,386 tags. 

37 blog followers, 18 comments followers, 80 Twitter followers, and 25 Facebook fans.

Comments:

Comments per month:	12
Total comments:	2,964
Most active recent day:	August 9, 2010
Most active time of day:	03:00
Most commented recent post:	Wordless Wednesday: Puppy Love

Top Posts and Pages:

Home page / Archives		55,332
Thursday Thirteen: The 13 Most Beautiful Classic Movie Stars		41,435
Thursday Thirteen: The 13 Most Handsome Classic Movie Stars		25,648
Homeschool Printables & Educational File Folder Games		8,381
Christian Printables & File Folder Games		7,367
NOthing to Say		6,044

Search Engine Terms:

elizabeth taylor eyes	11,991
elizabeth taylor	10,174
frank sinatra	6,764
bette davis	5,554
kirk douglas	5,090
funny church signs	3,324

Top Views by Country (since 25 February 2012 when they started this statistic):

United States	8,126
Canada	561
United Kingdom	431
Australia	415
India	330
Germany	285
Philippines	266

Referers:

Search Engines		26,551
en.wordpress.com		2,048
oneprettything.com		1,737
mail.yahoo.com		1,447
scrapbook.creativebusyhands.com		910
theokschoolhouse.wordpress.com		740

And there you have it.  That’s what this little blog is all about!!  I know it’s not much, especially compared to many blogs out there, but I’m not out here to be the best or the biggest.  I’m only there to just be ME and share a little bit of my life, my photography, my faith, and maybe help a few people along the way!!

 

Please click here to vote for my blog….thanks!!

Macro Monday: Bug on Flower

For my Macro Monday selection today, I chose a shot of a bright green bug on one of the flowers in my garden.  I just had to go with this one because I fell on my butt to get it!!  HAHA  My flower garden is at the end of my swing and I was backing up and trying to maneuver and the swing itself was moving with me.  All of a sudden the swing moved and I went BOOM!!  HAHA  It was so funny!!

Here’s my bug on flower for Macro Monday…..

If you enjoyed my Macro Monday, please leave a comment.  Then, click on the Macro Monday at the top of my post and visit other great macros from all over.  I know I love browsing them every Monday!!

Will You Help Make This a Top 25 Homeschooling Blog??

I blogged a few weeks ago about being nominated for one of the “Top 25 Homeschooling Blogs” over at Circle of Moms.  Because of your support, I’d done very well and stayed right around number 25.  However, over the past couple of days, I’ve dropped out of the top 25.  Today is the LAST day to vote and I fear that I can’t catch up to get back into the top 25 blogs.

I don’t know why it’s important to me.  I just know that being nominated was awesome.  I typically don’t get many comments, although the few I do get, are always so positive and absolutely supportive.  They’re such nice people and it constantly reminds me of why I created and share my printables.  Maybe just knowing that my followers, readers, and printable users voted me into a top 25 spot let’s me know that what I do matters.

No matter how long you’ve been reading my blog or using my printables, you know that I put alot into this.  So for all of those who’ve voted for me…..THANK YOU!!  I appreciate you helping me get here.  For those that haven’t voted…..PLEASE go vote and help me be one of the TOP 25!!

Voting ends TODAY at 5pm PST!!  All you have to do is click the button below and then click on the orange “thumbs up” button to vote!!

Happy Blogiversary!!

Today I celebrate my 3rd blogiversary.  I can’t believe that it’s already been that long!!  I guess that’s how much I really enjoy it.  As they say….time files when you’re having fun!!

Before I blab on too much, I want to give a few stats for my blog for the past 3 years.  They are….

587 posts 11 pages 26 categories 1,103 tags

2,760 comments

Akismet has protected your site from 36,471 spam comments already.

172,270 views all-time            3,865 views on busiest day (23 March 2011)

Top 10 search terms for all-time:

elizabeth taylor eyes  11,615            elizabeth taylor  9,859

frank sinatra  6,738            bette davis  5,553

kirk douglas 4,662            funny church signs 3,318

cary grant 2,476            donna reed 2,401

church signs 1,642            clark gable 1,585

Top 5 posts and pages for all-time:

Thursday Thirteen: The 13 Most Beautiful Classic Movie Stars            40,577

Home page            30,777

Thursday Thirteen: The 13 Most Handsome Classic Movie Stars            24,131

NOthing to Say            6,006

Homeschool Printables & Educational File Folder Games            4,936

Site subscriptions:  16 active subscribers (via e-mail)

Comment subscriptions:  14 subscribers, 140 subscriptions

Top 10 referrers for all days:

en.wordpress.com      2,067 mail.yahoo.com      1,623

WordPress.com      716 groups.yahoo.com      479

ccdmom.blogspot.com      287 scrapbook.creativebusyhands.com      242

printables.craftcrave.com      237 almostdailybrainfarts.blogspot.com      168

oakes.scsk12.org      167 en.search.wordpress.com      159

Top 10 clicks for all days:

armyfamilyok.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/gp_liztaylor_1080.jpg  1,054 armyfamilyok.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/betted_468x654.jpg  568

wordpress.com      531

armyfamilyok.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/ava-gardner-biography.jpg  483 armyfamilyok.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/kimnovakcopy_of_kim.jpg  470

flagcounter.com/more/9In  451

picketfenceblogs.com/vote/1140  375

armyfamilyok.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/donnareed.jpg  365 armyfamilyok.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/oliviadehavilland004aj5.jpg  330 armyfamilyok.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/frank_sinatra_bio_1.jpg  320

Now I know that for the most part, stats are pretty boring.  However, I always find mine to be quite interesting.  Actually they’re almost funny!!  For a blog that “specializes” in Christian and educational printables, the way most people find me is through searching “Elizabeth Taylor”.  Mind you, her recent death has really made that number jump up and it does effect the total overall.  The things that are clicked most on my blog….images of classic movie stars.  You’d think it’d be my downloads!!  HAHA  I can say that I find all this interesting.  Well, I actually already said it, but I have to reiterate it!!

I’ve never had a huge following.  The e-mail subscription that WordPress offers, I only have 16 following in that manner.  I believe my Feedburner is about 23 currently and that’s about average….it goes up a little and down a little.  I rarely get comments.  I used to wonder what I was doing wrong.  For quite awhile, I tried to please others and make it what they wanted to read or get something from.  Then I realized that I’d lost part of myself in the process.  I wasn’t having fun and it is my blog.  So now, I blog when I can.  I share what I want and when I want.  No, I’m not popular, but I know my readers are loyal.  I found out that even in the blogosphere, there’s cliques.  I definitely don’t fit in them, but I’ve realized that some of my “friends” do….and that leaves me out drifting alone.  I guess I like it that way though because I only have to make myself happy.  My blog does make me happy.  I’d like to blog more, but I just can’t.  It takes over my life so fast and I refuse to let it.  I look at these blogs where they post once a day, if not more.  I just can’t believe that things in their life don’t go ignored.  Nobody, no matter how talented or how capable of multi-tasking, can post that often and not have it affect their life.  Nope, I’m not that kind of girl!!

So here you have me 3 years after my initial blog post.  Pretty much the same blogger that I’ve always been.  Looking back, my posts haven’t changed much.  Maybe that makes me boring….maybe it makes me stable and reliable.  If I’ve learned anything, it was to keep being myself and that I am!!

To my readers, thanks for staying with me and reading my posts, no matter what I had (or didn’t have) to say!!  I’ll keep sharing my printables, recipes, photos, and stories of life.  To my friends, I’m glad that you use this to stay in touch and keep up with what’s going on with us.  To my family, I’m so blessed to have you and know that you’re there for me no matter what.  You never fail me and always let me know that you’re there and that you care.  So…..

Happy Blogiversary to all of you

and to…..

Commotion from the Ocean of Life!!

UPDATE:  I’ve decided to do a whole kit or packet for my blogiversary.  That means that it won’t be completed until tomorrow.  So please, check back tomorrow for some exclusive freebie printables for my readers!!

Hello!!

Hello all of you out there reading this!!  It’s been so long since I just blogged, that I thought I’d get you caught up on a few things going on around our household.

With the holidays fast approaching, things have been pretty hectic, just like they are with most people.  Last week, I had something to do literally every day.  There was appointments and hubby’s work Christmas party.  It was pretty fun, but cold as heck in the building.  We played a fun game at the party where you toss a wrapped box around the table and the person holding the box when the music stops has to sit down.  We played for 2 bottles of local wine and the centerpiece.  I got the centerpiece!!

Over the weekend, my 3 goddaughters were here.  Of course, I love my time with them, but it’s crazy!!  They never stop moving and they’re always hungry.  They really are good girls though and they love it here as much as we love them.  I did find out though that mom requested that I watch them this coming Saturday so that she can do her Christmas shopping.  I balked, but knew that she really needed me.  I’m having a hard enough time shopping for one, much less the 3 she’s got to shop for!!

Lean Green and Miss K both had the sniffles for 2 days last week.  I told them they better not get me sick.  Then the goddaughters show up and have the sniffles and coughs.  The next day in the afternoon, Sunday, I felt like I got hit by a mach truck.  My nose was running and I was sneezing like crazy.  Monday I took it easy and napped.  Today, I’m already feeling much better, thank goodness!!  On the downside, now kiddo is getting sick.  She has a sore throat and has the chills.  I’m going to give her the day off tomorrow to rest and try to beat this thing so that she doesn’t get bad sick.

Being so busy and then getting sick as slowed my creative process.  I don’t think I’ll fully get back in the swing until after the New Year.  After all, it’s mid-year, so I’ll have to get the rest of the lesson plan ready for the homeschool year.  I have to take a good look at her grades and make sure K is where she needs to be.  I’m sure she is, but I’m not happy unless I check and re-check!!

No, I’m not done shopping this year.  No, I don’t have my Christmas cards wrote out.  That’s just been the way it IS since around Thanksgiving.  We’re planning a small Christmas and well, not being ready is one way to do it!!  I haven’t even receive any Christmas cards though, so they just might be saving me some money.  HAHA

Alright, that’s the way things stand around here!!  We had our Christmas party in religion class tonight.  The kids were great and there was plenty of food.  One of the parents made goody bags, which were a huge hit.  The Christmas gifts that we got for the kids were an even bigger success!!  They just loved them and were so excited.  It’s amazing how happy you can make a kid by spending around $1.50-$2.00 on them!!

You all take care and I’ll post some more printables as I have time to create!!  If you don’t mind and if you have a little time on your hands, I’d appreciate it if you’d vote/rate my blog.  You can find the buttons over in the right hand column under “rate my blog”.  Thanks!!

Behind

I’m so behind on my blog posts.  I type them up and then I keep them as a draft and say that I’ll post them later.  Somehow later, they just don’t seem to matter or need to be posted.  I’m not sure if I’ll post the ones I have for the past week on the missing days or not.  The one that I know I’ll get posted is from Wednesday for our final religion class.  I just have to put the watermark on the picture, but I’m procrastinating. 

After church today, we went to Wal-Mart.  Let me tell you, that store is no longer “cheap”.  The prices are crazy!!  We haven’t been there in almost 2 months.  We don’t just go to the store any more shopping for things we really don’t need.  We do all our grocery shopping at the commissary and I buy my fruit, vegetables and certain pieces of meat at Sam’s.  We’ve saved quite a bit of money doing it this way.  So, to go into Wal-Mart and spend as much as we did for things that we really needed was mind boggling. 

I’m also working hard at creating my file folder games and other educational materials.  I do that while kiddo is doing her school work or we’re relaxing at night.  I have so much started, but I never seem to finish it.  Then, all of a sudden, it’ll come together.  Maybe this blog is a little like that too!!  HAHA

Alright, I’m off.  I will get that picture of our final class posted….one day soon!!  HEHE

Buttons I Made (for Friends)

I’ve been working on creating “buttons” again.  This time, I decided to make them for my friends.  I think their blogs are worth being linked to, so hopefully by giving them a button, it’ll give them the viewers they deserve.

This button is for Debbie.  Her blog is “Almost…Daily Brain Farts of an Airhead Mom”.  It’s fun, lighthearted and about the life of a mom.  She has a tween, teen and twins!!  You can copy and paste the code below the button into your sidebar.

<a href=”http://almostdailybrainfarts.blogspot.com“ target=”_blank”><img src=”http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k350/armyfamilyok/DailyBrainFartsbutton.jpg“ border=”0” alt=”” width=”150” height=”150” /></a>

 

The next button is for Laura.  Her blog is “Still Crazy After All These Years”.  This blog is great.  She shares Christian games and lessons, as well as blogging about life as a mom of a teenage son.  She also has great quizzes and fun things posted.  You can copy and paste the code below her button into your sidebar.  Just a note, this button may change if I find an image that’s “more appropriate”.

 

 

<a href=”http://ccdmom.blogspot.com” target=”_blank”><img src=”http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k350/armyfamilyok/AmazingGrace215.jpg“ border=”0” alt=”” width=”150” height=”150” /></a>

 

Check out their blogs and be sure to add their buttons to your sidebar!!  If you’d like a button made, just let me know!!

 

NOTE:  When you copy these codes, they will paste fine.  Then, they might not show up.  If this happens, go in and check the code.  They might have a double set of quotation (“) marks around areas.  If this happens, delete the curled set and save again.  It should work fine after this.  That’s a technical issue I’m going to have to work on. 

My Button….I Made It!!

My Button

I did it!!  I was playing around and I created my own button.  I visit all these other blogs and sites that you can link to or join or whatever.  I decided it’d be pretty cool to create my own button for the same thing.  It’s not like anyone is going to use it, but it’s fun!!

 

If you know me and enjoy my blog, please consider adding my button to your sidebar or someplace on your page.  You know I’d truly appreciate it!! It’ll look just like the button above.   Just copy and paste this code:

 

 

<a href=”http://www.armyfamilyok.wordpress.com” target=”_blank”><img src=”http://armyfamilyok.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/commotionoceanlife.jpg” border=”0” alt=”” width=”150” height=”150” /></a>

 

 

Leave a comment if you like my button or if you’d like me to try to create one for you!!

 

Oh, and maybe I’ll even learn how everyone does those little code boxes too!!

 

Blog Addiction

Today, I decided to meet Laura’s challenge. After taking the “How Addicted to Blogging are You?” quiz (and being totally honest) the result is:

Alright, so I’m almost gone!! Just how addicted to blogging are you?? Take the test and let me know!! Be sure to be honest with your test replies!!