oh, yeah. this is big.

Know what this Saturday is? May 1st. Right. Good. Know what else it is? National Scrapbooking Day. Did you know that? True story. But you know what ELSE it is? I'm kicking off a little party here and you're invited.



That's right. It's time, people. It's time for my big photography giveaway! In honor of National Scrapbooking Day, we'll be giving away photo shoots. As in ... remember when Kara Layne and I did that giveaway last month?

Well, many of you know that I found that to be just way too fun. Couldn't stop there. Nooooo. HAD to be all inspired to do it again and again and again. Had to open it up to photographers everywhere, didn't I?

Oh yes. It's true. I did. Remember the map? Right. That one. With a few dots here and there, marking where photographers were interested in being a part of this whole thing.

Well, folks. The map has filled in. I have been swarmed by emails from all over the country this month. (And even a few countries outside the U.S.) And it's awesome. It's photographers everywhere who want to GIVE AWAY a photo shoot to a deserving family in their neck of the woods.

How cool is that, right?

Very. It's very, very cool that they're willing to do it because when a photographer - a true artist - gets behind the camera, it's so much more than just "taking pictures". It's work. And it's work that they love, but it is work. So major kudos to all the photographers who are participating in this. Amazing people. Sharing their gift, their talent, their time.

And many, many of you are about to be blessed with the news that your family has been chosen to be photographed by one of these cool, talented people.

So be sure to stay tuned in. We wouldn't be celebrating National Scrapbooking Day if we didn't have scrapbooking. And we wouldn't have scrapbooking if we didn't have photographs. So we're celebrating BIG -- to honor all of that, and ... because I love my blog readers.

graduation announcement

Speaking of gathering opinions ... remember this blog post, where I shared a handful of favorite senior pictures of my niece? Well, the verdict is in. The photo was chosen and Kyra's graduation announcements are made.



Congratulations to all students and families who are celebrating a graduation right now! Awesome.

Added note: The fonts I used are CK Becky (the big "Kyra" title) and American Typewriter (for "mae higgins" and "graduating") and everything else is Gill Sans, in a couple different thicknesses. If you want to download CK Becky for free, just click on the grey button to the right of my blog here.

will these towels work?

About a week and a half ago, I blogged about kitchen towels and how I wasn't finding really absorbent ones. You guys offered some great ideas and suggestions, both here and on Facebook and Twitter.

By the way, several of you mentioned the don't-use-fabric-softener-when-laundering-your-towels tip. I agree. Using softener really does seem to hinder the absorbency.

Anyway, there was an overwhelming sense of loyalty to a particular brand of kitchen towels that convinced me to give them a try. Williams-Sonoma. Many of you have been using & loving these towels for many, many years. So I'm on my way to becoming convinced myself. We picked up these and these.





Today is Day One of using the towels and I have to say ... things are looking good. These towels just may have a bright future in our kitchen.

the pantry.

I promised I would show you what our recent organizational project was. THIS is what did with those Snapware containers:



But that won't do. You want to see more.



We maximized the space in our pantry last year by having the shelves torn out and putting in drawers. Makes a whole lot more sense so as to not forget what is hiding in the back. And of course ... it's so much prettier. There's just something about a pretty pantry.

Labeled pulls were a must. We found these online at Spokane Hardware.



We know what's in each drawer. We know exactly where to put stuff away and where to find things.



I labeled the drawers (and everything in my house) with our handy dandy label maker.



A few other things found in the pantry, such as grissini (new to us).



Familiar with them? They're all natural, low calorie, low fat, low carb kind of breadstick. I enjoy a couple of these each day and reach for them instead of Oreos, peanut M&M's, and other delectable but not healthy snacks. I'd rather have the other stuff, but we're working on some habits and these are actually tasty.

Back to the pantry. Let's see ... a few aprons.



I know you're curious to have a peek inside one of those drawers, right? Alright. But don't judge.



And because everyone loves before & after shots, here you go my friends.





If you happen to be local (AZ) and happen to need any woodwork done, John Broderick is the man. He is genius with anything wood and has done a few amazing projects for us. bbfurn@juno.com | 623.566.2232. I'm sharing this with you like I would share a great resource with any friend. Not because John asked me to say anything (I'm not sure he even knows how many people read my blog) but because he is just darn talented.

And I like to share.

cool stuff.

1. Have you heard of the Magic Bullet? Very cool. We got ours at Costco and have officially become fans. Every morning I enjoy a smoothie made of frozen berries, exactly 5 pieces of ice, a little water, fresh spinach, vanilla protein powder, and a dropper full of vanilla Stevia (it's a natural sweetener). Way delish. Completely healthy. And I can make it as fast as pouring a bowl of cold cereal.



PS - Yeah, I kind of broke up with Raisin Bran. I know. Shocking. Actually, we're just on a break. We'll see each other again, but only once in a blue moon.

2. Ali Edwards is doing a very cool "Week in the Life" project right now. Another really fantastic way to document life. Most of us are on some sort of quest to try to document in our life as best we can. Project Life, A Week in the Life, some other system of scrapbooking or memory keeping or documenting. Whatever you're doing, head on over to Ali's blog for some fantastic everyday photography inspiration.

3. Have dry skin? I've been noticing my hands to be extra dry lately. You? For years I've been using Aquaphor ointment on my feet at night. I slather it on my feet, wrap them in plastic bags, put socks on to hold it all in place. No, not every night. Yes, it's very attractive. And I wake up with amazingly soft feet. So anyway, the other night my hands were especially dry. I rubbed some Aquaphor only on the backs of my hands and it totally healed my skin overnight. Very cool. I will be doing this more often.

current organization project

Exciting things happening. If you consider organization to be exciting.

I do.



These are from The Container Store and our pantry thanks us. More pictures to come.