Our friends, Nesrine and Robert are getting married this summer in Lebanon. Robert is Dutch and works with my husband. Nesrine has moved to Holland and is getting used to the people and culture. She lived in the US for a few years for college and skiied for the Lebanese Ski team. They got engaged on 2-8-08 and are marrying on 8-2-08....I had to share their story and beautiful engagement photos.
With the sports world full of steroids, cheating, fixing games, this story is pretty refreshing. Grab a kleenex, you might need one ;) It's five minutes long but well worth the time. It's an amazing story filled with compassion and unselfishness. Here is the clip via ESPN.com.
This girl is amazing, I heard the song on the radio here this week and I had no idea who it was so I went right to youtube to investigate.
She is California-born Sara Bareilles. Here is the fabulous tune she penned, "Love Song". Her song debuted at number one on itunes also and I think she is starting to get quite a following. We need more singer-songwriters making their own music, not just the young girls that can dance, look cute and can carry a tune.
Alexa's kindergarten class went to the goat farm end of April in Voorshoten. We all piled on the bus and got to take the trip with them. They had hundreds of goats, pigs, a few horses and a bull. The kids had a wonderful time feeding and interacting with the animals. Enjoy the photos! 
I have been tagged again! This time by Honee from calico*flamingo!
You know the drill, 7 obscure facts, tag 7 people.
1. Link your tagger and list these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
Here they are!
1. I could be addicted to youtube.com.....I could surf music all day! I am an 80's music freak. I could name almost any 80's song with just a couple notes on the radio or online.
2. I was an avid volleyball player in high school and we made it to the regional finals my senior year. We were one small step away from the state finals! Too bad the dreaded Dryden got in our way every year.
3. Most people have horrific aversions to spiders and needles, I don't.....now bees are an entirely different story! They fly and sting.
4. I started selling logos about three years ago on ebay. I never thought I would have an ebay store back then.
5. My secret dream would be to design fabric. Maybe some day, after I move back to the USA I can pursue that but I have just enough work to keep me busy right now and from climbing the walls.
6. I am running out of facts... I hope I do not get tagged again for a while LOL!
7. Patrick fell off my front page so I will add him as my number 7. 
Actually he was in a movie called "Lucky 7" How freaky is that?
Now I get to tag people!
They are:
Nikki - dream*n*color
Tonya - xoxotova
Clara - mimi kattini
Shari - custom boutique child
Tammy - painted*patooties
andrea - lilgirlgemz
I have been using Photoshop for over 16 years. I am still amazed by the things you can do with it. I could play with a single photo for hours and be fascinated. This is just an example of a simple color change, and I turned it into a collage.
On this photo, I made the whole image black and white, then cut out the flower from the original and pasted it over the B/W.
Ok it's really David and David, but the Archilleta is more like the David and Cook is more like Goliath. In a very predictable finale, Cook is a gritty, seemingly poised and confident rock singer at 25, Archiletta is a swoony, 17 year wonder-kind balladeer with a lot to prove. Two completely different styles, both very talented and versatile. Who will take home the crown for Idol 7? We'll find out next week so stay tuned.
I am very happy with this new, fun, summer-lovin' Mix and Match template! The bright colors are perfect and sunny and inspired me.....you can see the auction here...
It has been unseasonably hot and gorgeous in Holland the last 10 days. 70-78 degrees every day and not a drop of rain. We went and got some nice wood outdoor furniture from Sligro, which was my mother's Day gift, and a grill finally. Kory also picked up a kiddie pool for Alexa and she was thrilled to fill it up. Do you like our big orange umbrella? I think we are officially ready for summer now!
I got to meet my groupmate Erin (anneke*panneke) and her daugher Anneke and husband mark this week. They were in Holland visiting his family and they came to see us in Wassenaar. Alexa and Anneke were fast friends and had a ball! We had to pry them off each other at the end of the night. Thanks for coming to see us Erin!
By the way, Alexa's custom dress is by pretty.me!
Ok I love Dancing with the Stars! Kristi Yamaguchi is the favorite to win, she is displaying the same style and grace she did when she won the Olympic gold medal in 1992. I met her and her family last year in Hawaii at a luau, she is so sweet and we chatted with her and she posed for photos with my niece.
Here she is on DWTS, one of her best performances this season.
My writer friend Tara turned me on to this! In only six words how would you describe motherhood??? Here are a few of my submissions:
Her tiny little grip mesmerized me.
You are a hero to them.
I hope she has hubby's eyes.
It's like looking in a mirror.
Spoil them with love not things.
Daughter can be your best friend.
Read some more of them here.
