Maybe just a couple...

of sneaks? Just two? Okay, okay...



Lots of playing around with some Label Tulip goodness goin' on around here lately. July's kit is yummy! I have a mini-book, my monthly canvas, and at least one more LO to finish up before Monday. So, I should have some more sneaks in a couple of days. Plus, I have to get started on my first LO for So...Tell Me Your Story. I'm so excited to work for this new challenge blog, and I hope you will all play along!

Other than tons of scrap deadlines, we've been busy as a family as well. Hazel started her cheerleading summer camp yesterday, and loves it. I love the fact that I've only got Luka to worry about for a whole 4 1/2 hours! We got to play without anyone fighting over toys, and I got a TON of cleaning done while he took his nap. So, it's a win-win situation all around!

Sake got spayed yesterday. It wasn't quite the ordeal I remembered from when my mother's dogs were spayed years ago. They don't use stitches anymore (just glue), and the incision is smaller. So, she is pretty much back to her old self today. Although, she does want to snuggle an awful lot.

I bought some digi elements for the first time yesterday. I will never be a digi-scrapper, but I thought they would be the perfect thing to spruce up the old blog. So, be on the look-out for a fresh new look around here pretty soon! Well, I have lots of scrapping to do while the kids are napping, and I think I might catch a few winks myself. The warm little doggie nuzzles in my lap are too much to resist. I think we could both use a good nap. *sigh*

P.S. Thanks for all the congrats, and the well-wishes for the Chatterbox call-backs. Your sweet comments really made my day!

Holy...NO FREAKING WAY!

Did you see this?!?

Seriously? Chatterbox? No way! Okay, okay. Deep breaths, Holly. Deep breaths. Wow. I just don't even know what to say. Okay, so I made it to round 2 of the DT auditions. But, I'm still not holding my breath. Not just yet. Did you SEE some of the talent on that list? That's some MAJOR competition, folks! And, we all know how well I do with the whole "Round 2" bouts. But, I'm still going to try my little heart out. I'm just waiting for my box of yummy Chatterbox goodies to arrive on my doorstep so that I can get my next submission all ready to go. Wish me luck! Big, BIG luck! I'll need it! I'm just honored to have made that list up there...out of 438 applications!

Okay, so everything else that's been happening pales in comparison to that news. But, how about 7 little randoms? It's been a while since I've done that. So, let's roll...

1. I won $7 in the lottery on Saturday. That's the 2nd time. We've only bought 4 tickets, and won a total of $14. Not bad. We've made more than we've spent. And, we NEVER win off the quick pick...it's always the numbers we hand-picked. I guess we're on the right track. LOL!

2. This is top on my wish list right now:

How lame is that? Top of my wishlist is a treadmill. Lame. But, I yearn to get into shape, and my blood pressure isn't gettin' any lower. TIme to start walkin'.

3. I tried eating wild boar for the first time at our 4th of July BBQ. One of our guests brought it. I must admit, I wasn't too thrilled to put that in my mouth. I don't like gamey food. But, it wasn't bad. I didn't taste like chicken. LOL! More like a salty, more tender version of jerky.

4. I just got these pretties hung up in my kitchen.

I've wanted them FOREVER, and Urban Outfitters finally had a killer sale on them. Gotta' love a good bargain!

5. I just adore this girl. She's just amazing! And, her Frenchie, Hugo is pretty cute too. Too bad he's a little too old for Sake. Anyway, this gal and I...we've been a talkin'. She's got a pretty fabulous idea in the works, and I'm really excited to have the opportunity to be a part of it. Stay tuned on that, and we'll see what happens.

6. We've had some killer meals around here lately: crab stew, herbed beef roast with tomato gravy, and maple-glazed salmon with pineapple salsa. All yummy. All worth a try. I promise...they're delicious.

7. I'm addicted to watching The Two Coreys. I promised myself that I wouldn't watch it again this season. But, it's like a train wreck...you just can't stop watching no matter how appalled you are.

Anyway, that's it for now. Hope everyone's week is off to a great start!

So, tell me your story.

No. Seriously. Tell me your story! So, that was my exciting new for this very Saturday. I was selected as a designer for the fabulous new challenge blog, So, Tell Me Your Story. And, wow, so many other talented ladies on that team. I mean, Jo-Anne te Raa? Come on! How can you not love her work? She's fabulous, and so is the rest of the team! Check out the first challenge, leave 'em a comment, let 'em know that Holly sent you, and there just might be something in it for YOU. :wink: Plus, it's our first challenge as designers...to see how many peeps we can send their way. So, help a girl out would ya'?

What's my story, you ask? Well, my story for the week went a little something like this...

*Spent HOURS picking lavender from my garden. I mean HOURS. It didn't look like much from the window, but when you actually get to picking, it was tons! I have 4 vases this full:

But, isn't it gorgeous?!? And, it smells divine! I planted it a couple of years ago. Nothing. Nothing but a plant. Nothing for 2 years. When we were visiting my great aunt a couple of months ago (who is an amazing gardener), I asked her what to do about my lavender. She asked, "You mean it's still alive after 2 years?" Yeah. She told me, "Well sweetie, if you didn't kill it the first year...it will bloom. It will bloom. Be patient. I killed plenty of lavender over the years. It's finicky. But, if it lived this long, it will bloom." Lo and behold, she was right. It bloomed...did it ever! But, I had to cut it down because the bees were INSANE. And, we were having a big party for the 4th. I didn't want the littles to get stung while playing in the pool and sand box. Back to the week in review...

*Took Hazel to see Kung Fu Panda. Cute movie! Hazel's first time in a movie theatre..she did great!
*Bought another PowerBall ticket for tonight's drawing. Didn't win the one on Wednesday after all.
*Made some killer bruschetta.
*Had a heart to heart with the hubs about his dad. Rick was in a terrible motorcycle accident on the 4th of July in 2006. He was left completely paralyzed, and died about a year later. We loved him dearly, and are still trying to process it. The 4th of July isn't really a happy holiday for us anymore, but we tried to make the best of it for the kids. We miss you, Rick!

*Had a fabulous BBQ on the 4th. Good friends, good food, good margaritas, pretty fireworks. Perfect! Hazel had a blast playing with sparklers for the first time.

*Went window shopping at Hobby Lobby for a doll house for Hazel. They sell some pretty great kits there. Bryan and I plan on building her one for Christmas. Just getting ideas today. On a side note...can you BELIEVE they were already putting up the Christmas stuff?!?
*Went to Michael's. Finally broke down, and bought one of these. Gotta' love those 50% off coupons to M's, right?

Speaking of which, I had better get that beauty hung up in my scrap room so I can get that area prettied up. After all, the new Label Tulip kit is my hot little hands, and I have my first challenge at So, Tell Me Your Story to get workin' on. Hope everyone had a great holiday yesterday, and is enjoying their weekend.

At the beach.

That's where we've been. This time, we decided to try Carolina Beach, and were pleasantly surprised. We've tried Myrtle Beach. Meh. We've tried Atlantic Beach. Loved it, but a little too far to drive with gas prices such as they are. So, Carolina Beach. Yep. I think we'll be going back there again. Next time, we'll make sure to save up enough money to spend the weekend, and rent a condo on the beach.

But, the day trip was good for now. Hazel just loves the beach. Loves it.

As for Luka, this was the first time he actually enjoyed himself. The only time I took him last year, he screamed bloody murder every time I took him near the water. THIS TIME, it was all we could do to keep him from running full-force into the ocean. It was an exhausting game of chase all day long.

And, yes, my son is sporting a mohawk. It's no secret...Luka needed a haircut. I spent the last 2 weeks telling Bryan that I absolutely REFUSED to let my 18 month old son have a mohawk. (That's probably shocking to any of you that have known me for any amount of time in real life.) Anyway, there I sat. Luka in my lap at Fantastic Sam's. Both Bryan and the hairdresser spent the better part of 15 minutes convincing me to give it a try. Apparently, it's all the rage with the little boys this summer...lots of requests at good old FS's for that hairstyle. Whatever. I could see this was an argument I was not going to win. Thus, the mohawk. Not that the mohawk was enough, though. Oh, no! The lovely stylist mentions to my husband that they have temporary hair color for kids. Oi. So, not only does my son have a mohawk, but it is blue. Fortunately, after 1 shampoo and a dip in the ocean, it is almost completely back to blonde. For a kid with nearly white hair, the color sure didn't take very well. Probably all for the better. Although, Bryan mentioned that Luka was quite the chick magnet at the beach. Too bad he's not a single dad, I guess. LOL!

Anyway, right before we left, I was playing in the water with Hazel. We were trying to catch some little minnows in her sand pail to no avail. But while I was sitting there, digging my fingers into the sand and watching Hazel with the pail, I felt something wriggle into my fingers. Ewww! I immediately dropped it. Not one of those cute little clams that burrows into the sand. Nope. I caught a glimpse of it as it dropped back into the water. Determined to find out what the weird little thing was, I grabbed Hazel's pail, and dug up the sand around where I saw the little creature burrow back in. And, this is what I discovered...

That weird looking little thing is called a Mole Crab. It took me nearly an hour on Google to figure that out. Pretty cute, though. Well, cute at least for some albino crustacean. Tee hee!

So that was our little trip to the beach. I love the water. If I won the lottery, first thing's first...we would be buying a house somewhere near the ocean. There has been lots of "if we won the lottery" talk around that Hanks' house lately. We just started playing Powerball last week. I've bought a few scratch tickets over the years, but this was the first time we've ever actually bought "real" lotto tickets. I've had a streak of luck over the last few months so we figured, what the hay. It's only $4 a week (we play one same set of numbers PLUS a quick pick for each of the 2 drawings a week). And, I can think of a lot worse things to blow $4 a week on. Hey, I don't need that drive-thru meal from Mickey D's anyway. You can't win if you don't play, right? Hopefully my luck will extend beyond winning scrapbooking supplies and INSANE amounts of tickets at Chuck E Cheese. Ha!

In the meantime, I have a box full of July goodness from Label Tulip on its way to my hot little hands. So, be on the look-out for some scrappy goodies in the next few days. And, I have some EXCITING news to share. But, that will have to wait until Saturday. :wink:

Show-N-Tell Time

First of all, I can't tell you how excited I am to be a part of this over at Label Tulip:

You have to be there! So many fun activities planned! Including, this fun little Hambly mini-book that I will be teaching a little tutorial for. (Date and time of class TBA).


It is a GREAT way to use up all of those Hambly bits that I hoard (and, I know you do too *wink*), and all of those miscellaneous alpha stickers you have hanging around. I made it for Hazel. She loves looking at pictures of our family. So, now she has her own little book that is a constant reminder of the ones we love. It's also part of my submission for the Hambly DT try-outs that I am absolutely STOKED for! You can view the album in its entirety here. And, speaking of the Hambly DT try-outs, here is another LO that I just created for it...


Probably my new favorite LO. I just love how all the yummy, bright colors came together! I'm not gonna' hold my breath on this try-out because I know a TON of way talented ladies that are trying out. But, wish me luck anyway. Tee hee!

Well, I am off to enjoy a weekend of going-away parties, beach trips and some yummy food. Happy Friday everyone, and hope you all enjoy your weekend!