Santa & a Shiner

So Ella took a tumble and got her first black eye this month...it made for some pretty nice shots with Santa, who probably wondered if her Christmas list should include a new set of parents :) 

Later that night, we took her to the local Holiday Parade. A Merry Go Round, free hot chocolate, and a chance meeting with her BFF Lilia. What more could a 3 year old ask for? 

Thanksgiving in Louisa

Included a nice hotel stay, a long game of hide and seek in which Ella found the perfect hiding spot, an opportunity to spread the love to baby Adelaide, and some good laughs watching Grandma and Great Aunt JuJu in their ballerina debut. Lots to be thankful for, indeed. 

Three months pregnant!

We are due on June 29, 2009 :) Needless to say, Ella is very excited to be a big sister. I spent the last 8 months losing weight and getting in shape to prepare for a healthy pregnancy. Time to say goodbye to my new 27" waistline, and hello to a new little life. The shot above is my 2 month photo, but the new (considerably different) one will come this weekend. I'll be updating the photos monthly. We are thrilled! 

A retreat to Hocking Hills

My friend Patty and I both needed a little time away, so we opted for a retreat to Hocking Hills. We started with a treetop zipline adventure, then checked into the B&B and spent the rest of the weekend reading and enjoying the great meals, beautiful hikes, and of course...the day spa. 

that's the group we zipped with...they're all watching the last of the crew rappel down from the tree tops. It was definitely something I'd do again, preferably with a little more foliage on the trees and a few less layers of clothing. 

A Creeepy Party at the Sands House

Phelps and Johnson, all washed up. Prize-winning. 

Who invited Sarah Palin? Mr. Donahue got the interview of a lifetime! 

Two sisters, two witch hats, two...er....rakes. We tried. 

Costumes. Bonfires. Spiders. Prizes. You know the deal. Good Times! 

My only regret is that i didn't get very good shots that night, being the hostess with the mostess. I'll have to check in with Jiminy Hendrix to see what he got with his Nikon. More shots could be added later! 

Derek's 34th Birthday

We decided to get a sitter and spend the evening together alone...so we headed out on a great hike to see the Three Sisters in Bellbrook, followed by a steak dinner and a nice quiet evening at home. Little did I know that this photo would be the last one taken of me before I'd be carrying baby Sands #2! 

One of the Three Sisters (some of the oldest & largest trees in SW Ohio) died last year. You can see the magnitude of its base as Derek poses in front of it. 

October 2008

Lucky Ella got to enjoy a few different Halloween celebrations...one as a princess, complete with the 22-bobby-pin updo, and one as a bumblebee. In the shot above, she was painting her Aunt Andrea's face. Andrea held breathlessly still for a solid 10 minutes while Ella created a lovely paisley-amoeba on her cheek. Now that's love. 

Getting Candy at Mimi and Papa's house, then on to Aunt Annie's...

We headed down to Lexington to celebrate Cindy's birthday and spent a Sunday afternoon at the pumpkin farm. The weather was perfect...my favorite time of year. 

Gulf Shores, Alabama

The whole Sands clan headed out on our annual pilgrimage to the shore. The 14 hour drive to the Gulf coast went by quickly as we drove through the night. 

The view from our condo's balcony. Beautiful! 

Every car ride meant some kind of entertainment for Ella. Chris is practicing for his spot on "So You Think You Can Dance." Ella is his protege. Scary! 

Recent hurricanes have uncovered a mysterious ship that has been buried under the beach in Gulf Shores for hundreds of years. Not a soul knew it was there until its protective blanket of sand was blown away by the storm. The skeleton was amazing...ropes, wood, nails still intact. 

The Isenhours return from Sweden!!

It was a long, long year. We are all so thankful to have Amblen, Cindy, Ben and Luna back home safe and sound. 

Mama Bird always flies back home

Ella is starting to get the hang of our weekly routine, and is paying attention to weekdays and weekends. Every mornings she asks "where will I go today?" "Is it the weekend yet?" and "are you sure you have to go face the day without me, momma?" (yes, I know. Heartbreaking.)

Since we recently upgraded her to a big-girl bed, we moved the furniture around in her room—leaving a few blank walls that needed some artwork. I decided to do a piece that would show a mommy bird coming home to her family, so it would assure Ella that my favorite time is truly when I fly back to the proverbial nest of 2124 Belvo. I watched her face as I unveiled it. I thought she was terribly moved but she was actually focusing in on the second baby bird. She has determined that this is the little brother she will have someday...and his name is Alex. LOL!! 

It's mostly cut paper. All the patterns are either from found objects, poetry, musical scores or printouts of patterns I made to build texture.

I did an Eric Carle-style dry brush painting and cut some of the leaves from that.