How To Embed a Youtube Video into a Blog
by Amy Stevens Adams
Last Saturday night I embedded my first Youtube video into our blog. It was a 22 second clip of fireworks, taken with my new iPhone 3GS as a sample and review of the new Apple feature. It was the first time I’d used Youtube, and the first time I’d added a video to our blog. While it was an extremely simple process, I had to google how to do it as it was new to me.
Here are the steps;
1. Find or upload to Youtube the video you want to put on your blog.
2. On the right-hand side of the Youtube video you’ll see an HTML code labeled ‘EMBED”. (I’ve outlined it in red in the screenshot below.)
3. COPY the html code.
4. Open a new or in-process blog post in the [Wordpress] control panel and click open the “HTML” View in the right-hand side at the top of the blog content box.
5. While in the HTML View, PASTE in the code you copied from the ‘Embed” box on the Youtube video you want to include in your blog.
That’s it! Now you can add your content and post your blog. If you’d like to read my review of the video feature on the Apple iPhone 3GS (which was the article prompted by my fireworks video), you may find it here; “July 4th & iPhone 3GS Video Review”.
-Amy Stevens Adams of Cape Cod Branding
July 4th and iPhone 3GS Video Review
by Amy Stevens Adams
Happy 4th of July! John and I are spending it this year in his hometown of Cleveland, OH. Tonight we attended a fireworks display in Shaker Heights, OH with John’s sister, brother-in-law and new niece (who is now 7 weeks old and did a great job staying calm during the fireworks!).
I used it as my first real opportunity to try out the video feature on my new Apple iPhone 3GS (other than taking a couple random videos of the cats at home, that is). Here are my initial thoughts on the iPhone video feature;
1. No ability to zoom. While you can focus, the lost option to zoom makes it less than ideal if you’re planning to use the iPhone for important videos, such as vacations and holidays, etc.
2. Steady picture. I was impressed that my outdoor-fireworks-watching-atmosphere didn’t result in a shakier, blurry mess of a video- but it didn’t. Good job Apple!
3. Good sound quality. As it should be since this is an iPod and a cell phone, I would expect nothing less than clear sound and Apple delivers.
4. Battery life was good. I recorded a total of 6 clips, totaling 4:10 minutes. This was AFTER my phone told me I had only 10% of battery life remaining. It never died and I still got to make a phone call afterward.
All in all the video feature was great to use, although a zoom feature would have been a welcome addition. Below you can see a 22 second sample of my video from this evening. You’ll see we had an ‘Awesome’ spot right behind a tall tree for the fireworks display. 
For more reviews on the new iPhone 3GS, refer to my previous article; “Apple iPhone 3GS-First Impressions”. On Monday I’ll be posting a quick how-to for adding a YouTube video to your WordPress blog. Enjoy the remainder of your Independence Weekend!
-Amy Stevens Adams of Cape Cod Branding
Vegetable Garden-Week 3
by Amy Stevens Adams
Three weeks ago John and I planted a vegetable garden in the planter on our back deck. Each week since then, I have photographed the progress to post on our blog. To read about our previous weeks with the garden, and to pick up a couple recipes, refer to my articles; Vegetable Garden-Week 1 & Vegetable Garden-Week 2.
This week was a tough one. It has rained almost every day here on Cape Cod and yesterday the wind was extremely rough. As a result, my garden is a bit damaged. The orange ‘dreamsicle’ flowers are crushed against the side of the wooden planter and all of my herbs and veggies are covered in mud and debris (dead leaves, blossoms from our Wisteria in the trees overhead, sticks, etc). The soil has been wet for a week straight and my plants are looking very fragile and sickly. I think they need sun, lots of it.
On the bright side, my garlic is growing like a weed! Some of them are almost a foot tall now (compared to 4-6 inches last week). Also, the lettuce, radishes and carrots I planted from seed are growing quickly and filling in the bare spots in the soil. It is starting to look like a real garden. 
A few of my herbs are getting bushy; parsley, thyme, lemon thyme and rosemary. Over the next couple weeks I’ll be posting recipes for each with my garden update. Today’s recipe is for rosemary. Do you think I’m about to give you a recipe for the standard Rosemary Chicken? Think again. I’m a pastry chef remember…
Rosemary Lemon Shortbread Cookies
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cups granulated sugar
2 TBSP fresh rosemary, chopped
2 3/4 cups All-purpose flour
1 TBSP lemon zest
1/4 tsp sea salt
1. In your KitchenAid mixer, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. I usually start it mixing and let it go for about 10 minutes while I get all my other ingredients measured out. The fluffier the butter, the nicer the cookie texture.
2. In a separate bowl, combine flour, rosemary, lemon zest and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix just until incorporated. Don’t over-mix it.
3. Cover dough and chill one hour (or overnight).
4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
5. Roll out dough 1/4 inch thick and cut with cookie cutters. Line on cookie sheets about an inch apart.
6. Bake for 8 minutes. Cookies will still be pale in the center, and slightly golden on the edges. Don’t over-bake.
This is a recipe that gets better with age. Try the cookies after two days (if you can stay away that long). For an added twist, try substituting fresh lavender for the rosemary. Lavender Lemon Shortbread Cookies are a real treat!
Check back next week for more updates. Happy Baking!
-Amy Stevens Adams of Cape Cod Branding
