I've Been A Busy Squid-Bee and I Became an Angel

First, I'll give an update on my new lenses. I realized that I am a little behind on posting about these, so here is a list:
Stuffed Animal Storage Bag - 09/18
Halloween Holograms - 09/20
Delightfully Easy Fall Casserole - 09/22
Scary Halloween Rats - 09/26
Instant Costumes With Hats and Ski Masks - 09/29
Carved Gourds-The Perfect Fall Decoration - 10/02
Take Along Toys for Babies - 10/05
Haunted Hayride Madness - 10/12

Holy cow, I didn't even realize how much I have done in the last month until I listed it all out like that!!! I've been writing a lens about every three days, with the exception of the last one.

Now, for the story behind them...better get some popcorn, this is going to be a long blog entry!




Stuffed Animal Storage Bag: I created this article to complete a quest to write about an Amazon product.  I absolutely love this product!  My son loves it too and everyone that comes over asks us where we purchased it.  I am so glad that we bought this, as there are no longer a pile of stuffed animals all over the house.  I thought those that completed the quest would be spotlighted or featured somewhere, but I haven't seen anything.

Halloween Holograms:  I LOVE holograms!  I can't get enough of them.  When I was little my dad worked at a mall or something where they had this really neat studio (a different store from where he worked, not that where my dad worked wasn't neat or anything) that featured all holographic art.  The pictures looked like they were moving and could jump out at you and I was just mesmerized by them and I have fond memories of going there.  What better time to feature these awesome creations than Halloween?

Delightfully Easy Fall Casserole:  I also was completing a quest when I shared this recipe.  It was something I was waiting to make until it was officially fall.  It is great resolution for Thanksgiving left overs too!  My grandmother made it the best, but couldn't remember how when I asked her, which I talk about in the article.  It is a comfort meal for sure!

Scary Halloween Rats:  A Halloween quest had gone out to write about a Halloween creature.  Some examples were listed, but I didn't want to write about what everyone else was writing about.  I bounced a few ideas off my husband, who really didn't add much input.  I had almost settled on crows, but that night I was sitting watching my son's favorite movie with him, which is Disney/Pixar Ratatouille.  That was it!!!!  After that I just started searching for the scariest rat items I could find on Amazon.  I also discovered Zazzle, while I don't sell anything on that site directly, there are some great images you can use and the HTML code is already provided and your readers have another product option that they might love.

Instant Costumes With Hats and Ski Masks:  I felt like I hit the jackpot with this one and it has been viewed a lot, but not the most.  I think it is a great idea; put on a hat or ski mask that is a character and you've got your costume!  No hassle, inexpensive, and simple.  It was featured on the Happy Happy Halloween Squidoo Online Magazine and on their Facebook page.

Carved Gourds-The Perfect Fall Decoration:  I literally got goose-bumps from writing this article!  I wrote this to complete my final RocketSquids challenge, which was to use the new autumn theme.  I was looking at the fall decor we have and realized my all time favorite piece is the carved gourd we have.  Growing up, my family always loved to go into art and gift shops and thankfully my husband still likes to do this.  We were is a tourist town that we visited often in the fall and we picked out this great decoration there and also bought an owl gourd tree decoration for my mother-in-law, as she loves owls and these were just so beautiful.  The lamps I found for this lens are AMAZING, I can't say enough about them and can not do them justice.  Thank goodness the creature puts pictures of his latest projects on his site and includes the RSS feed - I used the RSS module for the first time for this lens and it was great because I didn't have to site the pictures or include links, it is already done and when that page gets updated, so does my article!  I was just a little sad to realize I would no longer be part of this group, so I immediately applied to be a Squid Angel.

Take Along Toys for Babies: I completed yet another quest when I created this article.  It was for a Gift Guide topic and there is going to be a new Squidoo online magazine called Celebrate that will be coming out soon.  I thought this might be featured on there, but it doesn't look like they have it up and running yet.  I'm guessing it won't come out until after Halloween.  Here is a thought though, to keep sales lenses and fresh and up to date I'm guessing that you could keep the Gift Guide topic and change the subtopic to the holiday or event that is most popular at the time, especially if it is a gift for any occasion.  I might play with this theory and get back to you on my findings. ;)  Also, check out this great lens that I found to get great tips about writing sales lenses: Why I Write Sales Lenses on Squidoo.

Haunted Hayride Madness: This was a big quest sent out from the Happy Halloween Magazine, the first 250, I think it is, will be featured on Halloween!  I sure hope I made it, I completed it two days after the challenge went out I believe.  I shared a true story about the hayride I will never, ever, forget.  I had been saving this story for the perfect moment and I hope I did it at the right time.  It has been very popular already (already 60 visits and counting) and it just got featured on the Squidoo main page, not lens of the day, but still awesome!  The child that was on this ride was actually rushed off by the adults that brought him as soon as the mishap occurred, as they thought it was part of the scare as well.  When we were walking back to the parking lot in the dark one of the actors was guiding us and an actor was just sitting out in the field and scared the living day lights out of me!!!  It was also so dark that I stepped in a hole and twisted my ankle.  My mom has this sixth sense kind of gift when it comes to her kids that she just knows deep down when something will go wrong and we took my sister who was older because she could make the decision on her own at that age, but we really tried to convince my mother to let us bring our brother.  For whatever reason she said she felt he shouldn't go.  Boy, was I glad he didn't go on that ride with us, it was too scary and his leg had already been injured from sports or something, so the walk back would have made him hurt even worse!

 ^ Haunted Hayride

I also reached some major mile stones this last month that I'd like to share:

~ First Sale! ~

My goals now are to update all my lenses at this point and write a lens about my RocketSquid experience and then I will be applying to be a Giant Squid, hoping to join soon!  I am so excited this experience is going well and hope I am giving people added motivation to join or stick with it!  I love this community!  Many blessings to everyone!

For more Squid Images like the animated SquidAngel visit: http://www.squidoo.com/animatedsquids.

Scrumptious Food = Purple Star!

I received my first purple start on Squidoo!!!!  Before we get to all that though I wanted to talk more about my Spooky Zombie Party Food (Going to make you wait in suspense for a little while.)

I created this lens to complete the "S" RocketSquid Challenge, see more here: Letter S Challenge Lenses.  It was my first Halloween article and I might have over done it!  I found some of the neatest and horrifying zombie food out there!  Unfortunately, it has continued to be a little too gross for some, but when you are having a party theme that is the undead, what can be too icky for that?!?  It is not like I included real brains....okay, maybe I did, but they aren't human brains people!!!  I personally loved making it and know that if anyone tries some of the recipes, candies, food molds, that their party will be a complete hit at Halloween!

Back to the PURPLE STAR AWARD!!!

The purple star is a coveted award that lensmasters (authors on Squidoo) receive for out of this world awesome articles!  I received one for my Scumptious Italian Chicken Sandwich!


This was the first time that I had created a food article (lens) where I actually make the food.  I thought it would be hard, but it was actually really easy because I just took pictures as I made one of my favorite recipes, original recipe courtesy of my amazing sister, and then wrote it all down when I was done.  I had received a quest at the time to write a recipe article that featured chicken.  At the same time I had a RocketSquids challenge to create a super-niche lens.  What is a super-niche?  It is a very specific idea or subject that has been whittled down from a very a very broad subject.  Take the subject photos for example, then from that you could get landscape photos, then trees, then birch trees, Alaskan birch trees, and finally you could have photos of Alaskan birch trees in the fall - it is so specific it is hard for anyone else to cover the topic and it makes it easier for you to STAY on topic.  Anyway, I decided to submit the article for both the quest and the challenge; best decision I ever made!  It received double the amount of views and because it turned out so great it also was mentioned and noticed by some of the top volunteers at Squidoo - you really want them to notice you for good stuff that you do because that is when you will get mentioned and featured!  I actually submitted this later in the week for the RocketSquids challenge and was still number two on the list - kind of blew my timing theory out the window, but I was excited none the less!  My lens was also number two out of six of the "Eat More Chicken" featured from the quest recipes submitted!

 

Once that started happening I received the following email:

Boy, I was elated!!!   I couldn't believe it!  I thought it would take a lot longer to get one, but it just goes to show you that any article can do great.  I am so appreciative of it and very honored!  Part of the honor of getting this star is nominating someone else for it.

People are still saying good things about the sandwich recipe and I really owe a lot to my sister!  She was trying to find something to make for dinner one night and basically just started pulling stuff out of the pantry and fridge, only had enough cash on hand to buy bread and mozzarella cheese, and presto - started something amazing!  When she texted the recipe to me I took it, cut down the time & changed some ingredients to fit my family's tastes and now it is a family favorite!!!  I have included the original EXCLUSIVELY for those that read my blog, no where else will you find this!  If you want the new recipe though, you'll have to visit my lens:
Scumptious Italian Chicken Sandwich.  If you add changes to this recipe when you make it that you love, then let me know what they were and you may get some credit on my article!  There are already some variations listed there, including vegetarian and gluten-free.

 


Doesn't it make your mouth water?!?  It is so good and smells amazing when you make it!  Give it a try!

(For more chicken recipes visit: Eat More Chicken)






To find out more about the purple star award visit: Purplestar - Why You Might Want One

Needing Motivation and Ideas ~ Getting on the Early Halloween Bandwagon

Well, I haven't been good about keeping up with challenges or quests the last little bit.  Our little family went on a mini vacation and while we were on it I found out my sister had gotten engaged.  I also am planning a party at our new house - life is good and we are so blessed!  It has been hard to get excited about writing though with all this amazing stuff going on, but I am trying to get back into it.  My two latest articles are: Sack Lunch Ideas, great stuff for parents that make their kids lunches or even make lunches for work, and Easy Indoor Grill, all about the George Foreman grill - my kitchen tool I never want to be without and has saved me many times while preparing meals.  The first was actually a Rocketsquids challenge that I turned in late, hence not getting a lot of views, and the other was a quest that I missed the deadline for, but at least I finished them - woo, hoo!  It was really hard to just pick one kitchen tool that I love and I wish I could have just submitted my Must Have Helpful Kitchen Gadgets lens, but it had to be one tool and when completing a challenge or quest they ask that you create a new lens.  How was I doing so great and now am down to feeling like I am completely lost on what I should be writing about?!?!  Uhhhhhhg!!!  Side note:  I haven't gone back to Squidutils - I need to do that and maybe I can get my low ranking lenses back to a good spot.

Anywho, they are celebrating Halloween like it is October already on Squidoo and I'm really excited about it, even joined the Squidoo Halloween Club, you can find out more here: Halloween on Squidoo.  Hopefully it will get me motivated to kick out some great lenses.  I feel like I'm kind of running out of creative ideas, especially in my lens design.  Really hoping the money starts coming in next month, even if it is a few cents - that will help get me more motivated for sure!  Until next time - keep creating!

* Surprise!  I guess it has been 6 months since I joined Squidoo, I really had hoped I'd be further, but I feel good things are around the corner and that it will just keep getting better. *

Food, Kitchen, Cooking and Featured Articles!

Wow, these were a couple of BIG weeks for me and it has taught me that I need to be patient and just keep the creative juices flowing.  I have a feeling this journey on Squidoo will continue to be a roller coaster of feelings, doubts, success, emotions, and more, but in the end I really enjoy it.  Writing has pulled me through some tough times or just helped me get thoughts out into the world that I didn't know how to share.

Video not for viewing - screen shot only.

Well, for me it seemed to be a food, kitchen, and cooking focus these last couple weeks.  I may have even found my niche, but I am not going to single out an account for it and all things pertained to those subjects are very broad...I feel I found that things have helped me when it comes to being in the kitchen or foods I really enjoy and it seems this is what people are looking for and that is exactly what I've been looking for.  First, I finished the Letter "A" Lens Challenge from RocketSquids with the article Anytime Foods. It was number two on the list and after having some time to play with it I can safely say that submitting your lens (article) sooner will put you higher on the list. They may change that in the future, but it has worked for me so far, so it is worth giving a try if you are a member and take part in the challenges. I actually had the idea for this article a long time ago and jot my ideas down somewhere when I have them. When the challenge was presented I suddenly thought to merge the words any and time to make one word to include in the title; the original title I wrote down was Foods You Can Eat Any Time of Day....pretty long, huh? The idea came to me after eating a breakfast burrito for lunch and it suddenly hit me that there were foods I liked to eat any time of day, then I started checking the internet and seems I wasn't the only one that didn't care what time it was to enjoy this delicious foods, which so far includes pizza, chicken sandwiches, macaroni and cheese, and burritos, but I will probably add more as time goes on.


Then I received a Monday Squidoo quest that said to create a lens that talked about something you did the day before.  Well, I was thinking about how we go to church, then relax, sometimes watch a movie, but then it came to me that Sunday has been deemed our easy dinner night.  Suddenly my Easy Dinner Sunday lens was born!  I usually outline my articles, but the deadline was 24hrs, so I created the entire thing on Squidoo and published it all in a matter of hours.  I didn't think anything would really come of it, to be honest, as it was just a fun quest and I threw it together so quickly that I wasn't sure if it was really had good quality stuff.  I fiddled with it for a few days and then yesterday saw it featured on the the front page of Squidoo!!!  I was sooooooo excited!  I certain amount of lenses that they choose, I'm not sure how many, get rotated in 15 spots on the front page and about every third time I clicked on the page it was one of the 15 and I think they run the same ones for a week!

*Side note:  we are about to potty train my first born and this lens was also one of the 15 that day, this article had some great books for kids on potty training: Top Toilet Training Books for Children.

When Monday rolled around it was time for another RocketSquids challenge.  Go figure, it was a food or cooking challenge!  It was a sign for me that I needed to keep going on this route.  This time I wrote about Must-Have Kitchen Gadgets.  There a some items in my kitchen I just can't imagine being without, so I went through my kitchen and picked out all the gadgets that I believed would help if everyone had them in their kitchen.  Once again it was listed as the second lens to complete this challenge, as I completed it early.  To keep up with all the RocketSquids lenses visit: The Rocketsquids Lensography.

My article is highlighted in yellow.

Well, if this wasn't all great enough, in between all these great happenings, I finally got my points for the Favorite Toy Quest, which I was already really excited about, but then I found out that my lens about the Skip-It Toy was featured as one of the top 30 favorites.  I also found out this quest was sent to the "top lensmasters in the Hobbies, Games & Toys category," which I apparently was because of my spoon collection lenses.  This is all so awesome and I very happy and excited to be receiving all this great exposure!  I so appreciate it and am really happy people are enjoying my writing.

I haven't made any money yet, but we will see what next month turns out, as I have said before pay outs lag by two months, so I won't see the profit from this month until November I believe.  I really hope it turns out well.  A quick update on my little boy; he is doing better, saw an allergist two times, and he may not need ear tubes.  Hoping his ears start to drain properly soon.


Good luck to anyone else that is also going on a Squidoo journey and may you have a great week!

A Little Discouraged

I've been working my butt off and networking like crazy and my lens rankings are getting better, but my top three are getting worse, so it is more or less evening out.  I also worked really hard on my Top Ten Heroine Suspense Movies for this week's RocketSquids challenge and our computer ran out of juice late Saturday night because our power cord had apparently stopped working.  Sunday night I created as much of my lens on Squidoo as I could using my iphone as I could, but it is tough to do it that way and my phone wouldn't let me do everything I can when using the computer.  Monday morning we had a doctor's appointment for my little boy, then went and got a power cord.  I was an hour late submitting my lens.  However, I left a comment on the Rocketsquids Top 10 Lens Challenge lens and the lensmaster kab added my lens to the list, which I really appreciated.  There were so many lenses included for this challenge, which is great, but mine is not getting a lot of views from being so low on the list.  Better luck next time I suppose.

I also completed a squid quest on the 28th that was to write about a toy.  I came up with the idea to write about the Skip It Toy.  It was a quest I was so excited to do and when you completed the quest you were to get 250 points, I think it was, and also have the chance of getting a purple star, which are given to exceptional lenses and really help you to get recognition.  Well, today the quest has disappeared, as the the due date was yesterday, and still no points and don't know who was awarded the purple star.

Upon visiting my blog I also find that I still don't have any followers.  I'm hoping I just need to work on being more patient and that good things will come with time.  I keep reading about how to do better, get more traffic, and all these other great tips and I try to apply them, but I'm not seeing results right now.  It makes it tough, especially when my hubby doesn't really get why it is so important to me.  Although, he has been very supportive when I take the time to publish my lenses, which for me can be quite a process, and wanted to get the power cord ASAP, so I could finish my challenge.  Besides all that, in the all too real world, my little boy has been having problems with his ears, was sick with strep and a chest infection this last week, and has been cranky because of it.  Our vacuum also stopped working and the place we were last renting from is holding part of our rent.  It has just been one of those weeks and I really could use some good news.  Just gotta look towards this week with hope that will go better.  I'm off to get breakfast with my baby boy - I know that will help us both feel a little better! :)

I Like to What?!?!

That's right I said I Like to Spoon - the title of my last lens!  Did I mean to put that?  Yes, it was a "play on words" so to speak and I wanted to catch people's attention.  Hopefully it worked!  This was written to complete a quest using the new "Do the Polka" theme - it has pastel colored polka dots and is really fun.  I received 200 points for completing it and I might get featured in an HQ lens - we will see.  You learn a lot more about me, as I write more lenses and I gave away my identity in this lens!!!!  Not sure if I like it or if I am warming up to the idea of sharing my secret life with family and friends.  Whenever I decide to reveal my true identity to those that are closest to me you will have the first notice and inside on how it all goes.  I try to be funny in this lens and hope others share my humor.  I talk about being a spoon collector, which I have to admit is kind of geeky, but I like being different.  What is geeky really anyway?  Definition one, according to Google: An unfashionable or socially inept person.  And number two: A person with an eccentric devotion to a particular interest.  I'm going to go with the later in this case.  Either way, I don't really care, all I know is I like doing it and it brings back so many good memories for me, as I started collecting them while on a family vacation.  I don't know if it because it is summer or because I am missing my family so far away that this subject seems to be on my mind a lot.  I actually featured my Summer Trips Driving as a Family lens as well as a lens I read that originally inspired me to write about my spoon collecting. (Check out this lensmaster's stuff: Scarlettohairy)  I actually have another lens on this topic already in the works, so stay tuned!

A Lot of Quests and Challenges = Overload!!!

I don't think I have mentioned this before, but Squidoo will send out SquidQuests that allow you to increase your level and trophies...I think it is just a way of helping people get more involved in the community and makes the whole experience a little more fun, but there might be another reason I have yet to discover.  Anyway, these are done at random and there are two quests that I really would like to complete within the next week that each can give me 200 points if I complete the task well.  I also have my second RocketSquids challenge that we are to write a lens in which we ask a question.  With fourth of July today, closing on our home, packing and moving I just couldn't imagine writing so many lenses at the same time.  Thus, as I just wrote my Dragons Myth or Real Creatures lens that would fit this not too long ago, I decided to submit it for this week's RocketSquids challenge.  I fully understand that the point of joining this group is to create new lenses, but I did not want to miss this challenge or create a completely new lens right now with everything going on, especially as I already had one that I could submit.  The question is, will it be accepted?  I tried asking if there is a rule against it and the general answer seemed to be that it is frowned upon, but permitted.  I did revise my lens and republish it from the things I learned from my last RocketSquids challenge, which I think counts.  Just something I wanted to jot down quick for the night - to be continued...

UPDATE:  The article was not only accepted, but mentioned and number three on the list of articles submitted!  I didn't realize I had gotten featured until people started leaving me comments.  I still wonder how they decide to put that list in order on RocketSquids - maybe it is the order that they are received because I put that one in pretty early.  Here it is in all it's glory. lol: