David, Julie and Ms S Vineyard

David, Julie and Ms. S were a treat for me today for several reasons. One is that David is my 2nd cousin, he was raised by his grandmother who is my mom's sister. David's mom passed when he was a little guy so my Aunt Dodie raised him as her own. So needless to say we spent our childhood years together, he is a few years younger than I am, right David?

Another reason as these two have been together and married for quite some time and their friends and relatives their ages have been having kids, growing their families and Julie and David just weren't able to. They did start a home for wayward weiner dogs, hope to catch them in another blog! But as fate would have it 11 and a half months ago, they got pregnant. 2 1/2 months ago, Ms S came to be part of their, our family. They have an obvious love and admiration for little Ms. S, who wouldn't? Look at the little Stunner!! David, you better get to watching for those boys that will be calling in a few years!

David, I know Sandy, Aunt Dodie and Charlie Baby are smiling down and loving this baby girl from a far!

Without further adieu, my lovely cousin David and his wife Julie and Ms. S to the Blog!

Thank you for letting me capture your family!!! I enjoyed it and I look forward to watching your family, and little Ms S grow and taking pictures for years to come.

~Until we click again, 

Alisha

Create a Form For Blogger Using Google Docs

Hey Gang,

Sometimes it is said that the more you pay for something the more you get. While sometimes that is true, however, in the world of websites and blogging you have to find ways around and makes things work. There are some really exciting technologies out there for forms, but for those who are starting out and need to work on a tighter budget, or even for those who want to keep funneling more of their business funds into other areas of their business, this is a great option, in this blogger/photographers opinion. So here we go!

So it was asked in one of my Photography groups, "Is it possible for clients to email/contact you straight through your website if you use blogger but have a domain name?" Thank you Jessica Burns :D

The Answer is yes, and you don't even HAVE to have a domain name, how great is that? A quick note here, in doing this I will also show you how you can create other types of forms and questionnaires (like Family Questionnaire's, Senior Questionnaire's) and use them right on your Bloggity Blog, Blogger Style!

Go to http://docs.google.com


Log in with your Blogger Username and Password

Left Side of Page Drop down box Click on Create Then... CREATE FORM

NAME YOUR FORM

TYPE IN QUESTION ONE 

ON THE QUESTION TYPE DROP DOWN BOX NOTICE YOUR OPTIONS (you can use text, paragraph text, multiple choice, check boxes, choose from a list, scale, or grid. These will come in handy when creating forms like Questionnaires for Pre-Consultation, Seniors, even Weddings.)

MAKE SURE THAT WHEN YOU TYPE IN YOUR QUESTION YOU ALSO CHECK THE MAKE THIS A REQUIRED QUESTION BOX BEFORE HITTING DONE

Repeat this process with Sample Question 2 (hover over it and to the right you will see a pencil to EDIT) 

Once you repeat this process with Sample Question 2, you will notice there are no other obvious options for more questions.....

In the Upper Left Hand Corner under the +Add Item Drop down box you will see your options for Question Types (here I chose Paragraph Text)

Here you can add text like (If you would like to book a session or have any questions please respond here ) in the Question Title 

MAKE SURE THAT WHEN YOU TYPE IN YOUR QUESTION YOU ALSO CHECK THE MAKE THIS A REQUIRED QUESTION BOX BEFORE HITTING DONE

Here is what it will look like at this point

In the Picture just above this and all the others, you will notice at the bottom of your page a BLACK bar with a "You can view this published form here and a link" If you click that link a new tab opens (don't worry you won't lose your work) and you will see what it will appear like on your Blogger page! COOL HUH?

Go back to the Other tab where your work space is.... Do you see Next to the +Add Items button is button that says Theme: Plain if you click that you will see the below images

If you click on any of these images (CLICK ON the image itself not the name under the image)

 It will take you from plain like above to this

ok SORRY for side-tracked  just don't want you to miss any steps and have to start over if you want it "pretty or funky"

Now we are here again...

On the Right is a Button that says See Responses (click this to reveal Dropdown box) Click SPREADSHEET                             A new Tab opens up!!! 

Click on TOOLS -----> Notification RULES

Check boxes for A USER SUBMITS A FORM and EMAIL - RIGHT AWAY (Or once a daily if you prefer) Check Save and then Done

CLOSE that Spreadsheet tab and go back to your Form tab. In the Upper Right hand corner you will see a button More Actions - Dropdown box to Embed

COPY this EMBED link (this is what links your form to your Email)

Go to Your Blogger  and Go to Add new Blank Page

NOW KEY PART Make SURE you are on HTML and NOT COMPOSE

COMPOSE

HTML - SEE HOW DIFFERENT THE INFORMATION BAR IS?
PASTE your EMBED information into your HTML page

To check it Click on Compose and you will see your Contact Form or Whatever form you created
Now Name your Page - Save and Publish

You will see your New Page appear wherever your pages are listed, mine happen to be under my header

Let's Test it

OK Let's go to email and see what we have

Click the link provided in the email (if you choose to be notified every time you will get a notification PER instance but if you click on the most recent email and go to that link you will see all the previous contacts)

IF you click the View Full Spreadsheet next to Highlighted, there are tons of things like email the spreadsheet, adjust it...all kinds of things to do!!!



So that's it for this part of the tutorial, there are a pretty endless amount of things you can do with these contact sheets. I will prep a new Step by Step on Questionnaires and Online Forms.




Thank you and I hope this helps

Until We Click Again,
~Alisha

For Jordan.....

I got a message on Friday from a fellow photographer that a family was in need of a photo shoot for the project I am part of The Gold Hope Project. I was excited for the opportunity on one hand, on the other my heart upset a little at the thought of another child with this dreaded disease. I spoke with his cousin on Friday, you see Jordan is 4 and has been battling leukemia most of his little life. He was supposed to get a bone marrow transplant but his mother was told last month that his marrow is 100 percent infected with his cancer. As an RN I know that means no transplant and that means not much time. We spoke quickly as I could feel the urgency in her message, I reached out to Jordan's mom and we had moved forward with plans to do his session this week.

As a mom, as a nurse, as someone deeply affected by others suffering I have never been able to wrap my head around the suffering people must go through in life, as part of life. A broken arm, bad eyesight, those are things easily corrected but the diseases now that truly take away everything about living and life, including the ultimate price life itself, I can't understand. I don't want to understand a world where children are cold, hungry, harmed, and ill. As a nurse I try to better the people I am around so that I at least feel like I am combating some of that ugliness. As a mom, grandma I do the best with what I have to give back so that they don't do without in hard times. As a photographer I try my best to deliver my best at that moment, to capture those times that are so fleeting but so momentous to a parent, a loved one.

Our photography community just went through a harsh loss with Jen Burgess Thompson, those of us who didn't know her personally either followed her work already or began following her journey with Cancer. She has two small boys who are now left without having what others have seen by this video, an incredibly amazing, fighting woman. The world needs more people like Jen, not less, the world has lost a true treasure. 

I went for a drive today for a project I am working on and the leaves are changing from shades of green to yellows and reds. The sun kissed my face as I drove around the lake, the wind blew my hair and I felt a sense of freedom. One of the pictures I took today is here, this flower that was still fighting to stay in bloom. Much like these kids and patients who fight this awful disease, fighting to keep the colors of their lives blooming and swaying. I stood for awhile at the lake thinking of things in my own life, nothing like cancer, just things I wish I had ways to change to turn and make better for the ones around me. I thought about Jordan as I was standing there next to a playground at the lake. A place I had been as a child so many times, a place I took my own children to learn to swim in the summers, to camp and roast marshmallows. Jordan was in a hospital fighting for his life, it's so unfair and so incredibly sad. 

I came back to upload my images from the day and upon opening Facebook I was left this hallowing message from his cousin.... 

Alisha, I first want to say, thank you for trying to make this a special occasion for Jordan. 

I appreciate all you do for children with cancer. I don't have many words right now, but 

Jordan lost his battle with cancer this morning.

My heart broke, it is still breaking for Jordan, for his mom, his family. The things in life he will never get to experience, times at the lake roasting marshmallows with his family by the fire, snuggled up in bed with his mom reading bedtime stories and chasing away the boogie man in the closet. He will never have a prom, rent a tux with his dad, learn to shave. He won't have a first kiss from that pretty little girl in class he always had a crush on. He won't get to graduate high school or go to college. He will never stand at the end of a church aisle waiting on his lovely bride or groom to be, waiting to start their forever. He won't get to watch his own child come into this world and share all those hopes and dreams his own parents had for him and saw him fulfill. His forever is no more.

If you read this, if this reaches you somehow and you can do something, anything for these kids, these families, do.  If you sew, make some animals for them to snuggle with. If you paint, go to your local hospital and paint with the kids. If you bake, take a family a warm meal, let them know that someone is thinking outside of themselves. If you are a photographer, join a Project like The Gold Hope Project and leave these families with something tangible for them to hold on to on the days and nights when their forever is gone.

If there was ever a reason to do something....anything...it's Jordan. I may not have got to know you, Jordan, but you've made an indention on my heart, on my soul. From the depths of my soul I am SO incredibly sorry for your suffering and that you won't get your forever. 

Here is Jordan.....  TEAM JORDAN


until we click again
~Alisha

The Taste of Le Flore County Event!

I spoke with Lorie Rutledge about two weeks before the event about shooting the event and she was happy to have me as part of their team in this capacity. The event sponsored by the Le Flore County Historical Society, were for monies to go towards turning the old 1922 Lowery Hotel in Poteau, Oklahoma, into the Le Flore County Museum. My understanding is they set out to sell 200 tickets and that was accomplished, CONGRATS!  

I was there most of the evening photographing the evenings food and festivities, there were in my own guesstimation close to 180 people in attendance at the event that night. It was a great night, I arrived before the guests and helped with a few odds and ends with tables and what not. The ladies worked feverishly to get everything just right! Jody Hoffman at The Purple Plume had an amazing table set up where the guests turned in and purchased any last minute tickets. 

FOOD, food, food and more food and desserts lined about 6 full size tables outside and desserts were housed inside on 2 tables. People from local towns brought some of their favorite dishes to share with the local community in an effort to give back. 

Eric Standridge one half of the the team that brought us The Birth of Poteau was in attendance to answer questions, and get the word out about his current and future projects, which I can tell you are SUPER for this community and Oklahoma as a whole! 

There was an amazing Dulcimer band from Heavener, music to my country ears, hard to find  music like that nowadays. 

As you can see, lines and people, fun, sun and GREAT food! 

Thank you for allowing me to capture this evening!!

Until We Click Again,

~Alisha