Merry (Belated) Christmas!

Hope you had a great Christmas!

We did things a little different this year. Instead of having a traditional Christmas tree we opted for a tropical one. A palm tree which we will keep up all year:

Not the best picture but you get the idea!

We also brought home "Elf on the Shelf". Oh my goodness! Why didn't we do this before?!? It was SO.MUCH.FUN. And with the help of Pinterest and my friend Michele (the QUEEN of Elf trickery) our Elf, Ed brought us a lot of excitement, anticipation and laughter!

Here are some of the places we found Ed:

On the shelf above the doorway.....

Hanging from the ceiling fan.....

Cruising around in Barbie's car......

Piggy back ride on (or choking out?) Santa......

Helping himself to some juice......

Writing on artwork!

In the refrigerator!

Opening a present! (Boy did he get an earful for doing that!)

Toilet papered the tree!

Busted the girls!

Took a ride on "Chomper".....

On Christmas morning he was found hanging out with the princesses!

 

 

We are already looking forward to next year to see Ed and his mischievous self! I think we should have an elf all year long! A Valentine's elf, Easter elf, 4th of July elf.....  :)

 

Fold-Up Car-Mat For Your Purse or Pocket (or Christmas Stocking!)

A long, long time ago (in a land far, far away) I made a fold up car mat  but I wasn't thrilled with the results. Then I made a larger car mat for my  nephew. Loved it but still wanted to make a smaller one to fit in my purse. Well, I finally made one that I am happy with! Since then I have made more but with different prints and different styles:

Vintage Cars

Cars, buses and trucks!

Airport on blue or red

Flip it over and drive on the tarmac!

Girls like cars too!

Flip it over and check out some Honolulu hot spots!

The car mats measure approximately 10" x 8" when open and 

2.5" x 4" when folded: 

 

The perfect size to stick in your purse, pocket or Christmas stocking! Each car mat can hold two of your kiddo's favorite cars!

If you'd like one I have several car mats listed in my Etsy shop and they include one new car with purchase! Unfortunately with only nine days (NINE?!?) left until Christmas I cannot guarantee Christmas delivery! 

I also want to thank my talented and crafty friend, Amy from Pineapple Spice for helping me come up with the design! Mahalo! :)

Why, Hello There!

Thanks for stopping by! 

I am alive and well, just been incredibly busy. I've been wanting to blog but every time I log on to do so I start thinking to myself,  "You really need to be sewing!" The other thing that prevented me from hopping on here is that I am a very chronological-thinking person. I didn't even want to publish my last post about voting in the DIY Halloween costumes (thank you to those that did, BTW!) because I hadn't blogged about my Halloween crafts! But at this rate I am never going to catch up....so there! I will let it go! (Well, for the most part. I haven't even put away all of our Halloween stuff because my intention has been to blog about it!)

So where do I start? How about I work backwards and start with the most recent project? Getting ready for Christmas! 

While there are 12 days left till Christmas (YIKES) there are only two more days of school left before Christmas vacation starts! What to get for the teachers? I really loved what I did last year for my daughter's teacher so why not do it again? I also made some for a dear friend:

Oh those dirty little kids!

Last year I made a set including one extra large bottle (hand sanitizer) and two small bottles (hand soap):

And then sets for friends: 

Truly fun and unique...and EASY to do! Want to know how to do it? Click on this link for instructions: Personalized Hand Sanitizer & Soap Bottles.

Whew. I did it. I blogged! Hoping to get back into the groove of it! Meanwhile don't forget, you can find me on Facebook under "Happy Hapa!" I check in there at least once a day!

*Post shared with:

 

Check out Katie's Nesting Spot's "A Crafty Soiree" for fun, Christmas crafting ideas!

Have a great week!

Parents' Magazine's DIY Halloween Costume Contest - I Need Your Vote!

After posting pictures of the lovebird costumes I made for Halloween my friend Yong encouraged me to enter Parents' Magazine's "DIY Halloween Costume Photo Contest." At first I was reluctant but then I figured, "why not?" Plus, Yong is the photographer and creative genius behind "True Colors Photography of Las Vegas". Who am I to not take her advice?

To my surprise I received an email today notifying me that my photo is currently in the running to become one of Parent Magazine's weekly Reader's Choice finalists! How cool is that? (Granted, for all I know EVERYONE that entered may be a finalist...but who cares! Ha!) 

With your vote I could win an award certificate, which basically makes me feel better about spending all that time on the costumes. :) 

Grand prize is $250 - but that is in the hands of the editor. 

So if you're feeling generous, go ahead and vote for my costumes and my girls! 

Here's the link:

Parents' Magazine DIY Halloween Costume Photo Contest - Lovebirds

Thanks!

Through the Eyes of a 4-year Old.....

What makes a 4-year old bust out into an uncontrollable fit of laughter? 

When chicken breasts looks like a butt:

I swear I would have never noticed. *Sigh*

*A note to my sweet nephew and daughter: Is this what is considered a "chicken-hot-bootie?"