a little art and lots of love

did you happen to see this??

2010-12-23T15:47:00.001-06:00

that room is where michael and i got to hang out at fashion week!!!! see...

it truly was a beautifully designed space... i kinda wish i had taken more pictures, now!

christmas is almost here!

2010-12-22T11:02:00.000-06:00

you had me at sparkle

2010-12-15T09:28:00.000-06:00

sarah's been sick this week... so i've had lots of time at home to sew some christmas gifts (and catch up on my favorite blogs).

while i can't show any of my sewing projects to you (just yet), i can show you some sparkly, cheery holiday goodness!!

jars and bowls full of vintage ornaments = YUMMY!

from *whatever*

a tinsel tree with tiny doll clothes for the ornaments = BRILLIANT!!

from *a beautiful mess*

sparkly sleepy owl ornament = BESTILL MY HEART!

from *michelle my belle*

Dollhouse Build

2010-11-29T09:00:00.000-06:00

welcome to the biggest project i've ever done... a project in which terms like "mitered", "gable", "facia" and "boston lap ridgecap" became a part of my vocabulary (at least in my head)

each piece had to be painted, sanded, and painted again

the shingles had to be dyed

the porch floor measured, marked, and painted

and the walls & floors glued and taped

i painted the black and white floors... this will be the kitchen & dining room

the shutters & windows painted and glued

the shingles glued on one-by-one

i didn't get pics of the railings, but they had to be assembled piece by piece as well

michael made a platform for it... with casters and handles

so she can pull it out into the center of her room and play!

she really loves it!

thanksgiving

2010-11-26T12:48:00.000-06:00

we had thanksgiving at our house this year

(for the very first time)

it seemed like a good time to get out our china and silver

that we got for wedding gifts

it was their inaugural meal

i think the table turned out pretty elegant, if i do say so myself

i hope your turkey day was wonderful!! now it's time to get ready for christmas!!

check back on monday for pics of the dollhouse i built :)

Sarah turned FIVE!!!

2010-11-20T10:00:00.000-06:00

her party was at sweet & sassy

she and her friends got their faces & hair glittered up,

mani-pedi's, and a chance to walk the runway

it was super girly-fun!!

(a HUGE thanks to my friend Melanie for taking pictures of the party!)

you're a rocking photographer, melanie :)

after the girly fun, we went home for cupcakes and presents

her "big" gift was a dollhouse

(which, btw is partly why it took me so long to blog this)

it took me about 6 weeks to build this thing! i took pictures along the way

and i will share them soon!

christmas shopping made easy

2010-11-18T17:51:00.001-06:00

my friend, sarah, of pink street is having a SALE!!

her jewelry & accessories would make any girl a happy girl on christmas day

(and yeah, that's me modeling the pretty headband)

also...

i relisted tons of baby gifts (& more) in our olive & everette shop!

what are you waiting for? get that shopping done :)

our trip to the city

2010-11-17T15:42:00.000-06:00

our first night in manhattan was perfect for a stroll across the Brooklyn Bridge

...dinner at Superfine

...and of course Times Square

this is Bryant Park... it's crazy to me that you can find such

serenity so close to the madness at Times Square

oh how I loved you, fashion week

putting on my wedges right before we went in

(i wasn't the only one doing this)

tracy reese's clothes were beautiful!

we saw natalie morales

we had access to the VIP lounge!!

and betsey johnson was like a rock concert

we saw Kelly Osborne and Denise Richards... and Carmen Electra

(we didn't recognize Carmen, but found out later she was sitting right next to Kelly)

the blonde on the left of this picture was sitting right next to me... with the little girl and her mom...

they let me go down to the floor with them to get this picture!

(I'm pretty sure she was shamelessly using the little girl just to get her pic taken with celebs.

she was a total snob to me when i was all

giddy and showing my small-town-girl-in-a-big-city-at-fashion-week side... but whatever)

what's funny about this picture, though is what's going on behind denise and the girls.

such an interesting group of people there at fashion week

and then there was MoMA... a whole different kind of magic

and of course fao schwartz

we went into the Mercedes-Benz of Manhattan dealership...

the showroom was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright

last night in New York City was perfect for a Mets game

i'm so ready to go back!!

hi stranger

2010-11-11T13:21:00.000-06:00

it's been a long time. as usual i've been too busy to blog. i tried a few times to blog a video from fashion week... but it didn't quite work. i'm sorry. i have so much to share with you now that i don't even know where to start!!

so for today... head on over here and check out the most magical video of my friends sweet newborn.

check it out!!!

2010-08-28T22:31:00.000-05:00

i'm teaching a class over at LHUCA this fall!!!

i'd love to have you in class :)

ps... click on the words above to register for the class

i HAVE accomplished something

2010-08-28T09:00:00.006-05:00

you MIGHT have noticed that little button over there ->
that says "home ec".

home ec is an online class i'm taking right now and

it's been a true lifesaver this week.

it's giving me projects to work on as i get my strength back... and keeps me from feeling

COMPLETELY lazy and worthless during this time when i have to force

myself to slow down.

i made myself a fancy new ironing board

and made a few things for a friend's baby shower

**see what i made here**

courtney, leigh ann, and rachel

are doing a phenomenal job teaching the class!!!

if you think you might be interested in taking a crafty online class, follow their blogs...

rachel and elsie have one coming up that features projects for kiddos!!!

planning...

2010-08-26T12:46:00.000-05:00

and dreaming

rainy nyc day by revsanford featuring distressed skinny jeans

our NYC trip is coming up... if only my closet contained everything found over at polyvore, i'd end up with the perfect outfit for every day of the trip!!

if you had mono like me, you'd have the time to spend putting dozens of outfits together at polyvore. is it just me or is that website pretty much like barbie for grown-ups? (my favorite toys growing up were my barbies, btw)

on this first day of school...

2010-08-23T17:07:00.000-05:00

which was a great success, by the way...

i thought i'd share with you one last installment of

sanford summer 2010

one of my favorite things we did this summer...

a friendly game of "pirates"

the kids were really into it... and made sure michael and i were really into it as well

sarah was pretty feisty... i called her scrappy the whole night

haaaapy haaaappy biiiirthdayy baaayybe

2010-08-20T09:24:00.000-05:00

on this day, 33 years ago... the world got the gift of my michael

he's my favorite. remember this post?

and today... of all days... i am sick with mono. been sick all week. maybe two... three weeks to go??

so let me add one to the list: he just wants to take care of me today.

suddenly i'm being forced to take life at a snail's pace. when this is the time of the year that i like to take life fast and furious.

i should just enjoy it right? that's what isaiah says. last night i was in tears over the whole thing and he said "i love being sick! it means you just get to lay around and watch movies!"

okay, i get it. still. maybe some sewing projects can still be in my near future?

summer part 4

2010-08-18T12:13:00.001-05:00

gray is the new orange

our house is starting to look like a completely different house! we replaced the red sofa with a black leather one and i'm about to make new pillows and curtains. i'll share more once everything's done.

summer part 3

2010-08-17T12:12:00.000-05:00

sarah totally rocked her swim lessons this year!

she swims like a little fish! and completely loves it :)

pillows!!

2010-08-13T09:43:00.000-05:00

i'll share more summer fun with you next week... but for today, you need to head on over here

and check out the pillows i made!

(we have a few pillows in our shop... but we will also fill custom orders!!)

one month from today

2010-08-11T13:25:00.000-05:00

michael and i will be on our way here:

our hotel looks like this

we've got 5th row tickets for this

and for

where we'll see two shows...

Tracy Reese

and

Betsey Johnson!!!!

we also got tickets for this :)

can i just say... whoa baby!!!! i absolutely can not wait!!!

fourth flava

2010-08-07T10:53:00.000-05:00

of the whopping 22 video clips i captured of the quirky fourth of july parade in arroyo seco, this is about the best one i got...

the one i really wanted to show you (the pirate float & gypsy jazz band) only shows the backs of people's heads. but this one shows you a little taste of the parade we saw on the fourth:

part 2: fourth of july

2010-07-30T14:46:00.000-05:00

road trip!!

to our favorite place in the world... taos, nm

yep, we camped out...

the tent was so massive, it was dubbed the "taj mah tent"

the kids **loved** it!!

this little town north of Taos called Arroyo Seco has a fantastically charming yet quirky parade we like to go to... michael rigged up himself to hold our umbrella. the bottom of the pole was stuck in his back pocket. people took pictures. usually we're the city folk at the parade as we marvel at all the characters who are mostly locals. but this year, people stopped and took pictures of michael!!

(ps... i've got some video of the parade. i'll share soon!)

and since uncle spencer and auntie sophia live so close, we hiked back to their casita.

and you can't visit taos without having outback pizza

... and way2cool root beer

spencer took isaiah, michael, and dad fly fishing

(spencer's my brother, btw... he is a fly fishing guide in taos. what a life, eh?)

isaiah caught his first fish!!

while the boys were fly fishing, sophia took my mom, sarah and i for a rafting ride on the rio grande!

michael had my camera, so i have no pictures to share. but we had a great time!!

remember our favorite toy store?

thanks spencer & sophia for a great weekend!!

so... yeah...

2010-07-23T16:56:00.000-05:00

i guess it is beyond time for me to let you people in on what we've been doing all summer. okay, fine.

here goes part 1:

Sarah's Dance Recital

i think if i was required to wear makeup like this, i'd make the same face too

san antonio part 2

2010-06-21T16:31:00.000-05:00

on our way back from san antonio we stopped at wildseed farms outside of fredricksburg

we saw lots and lots of plants and fields of flowers

i was dissappointed that the poppy field had no poppies. and no yellow brick road running through it.

and we saw more butterflies!!

sarah was in heaven.

~~~

okay so i've been saving the best part of the trip for last.

on the way down to san antonio (remember it was on our tenth anniversary?) anyway, michael was driving and loaded the ipod with a playlist. we're driving along. the kids are saying "mom! momma! i need the yellow marker!!" etc etc.

"with or without you" comes on, and because that's the song we played at our wedding during the recessional (perfectly timed to start right at the kiss)... i got the warm fuzzy "awwe" kind of feeling and just sat there enjoying the song (and trying to ignore the noise coming from the backseat)

and michael hands me this book

taken aback, i begin looking through it discovering that it is full of pictures from our last 10 years. memories. moments. snapshots of the magic that is us.

(yes that's us at age 13... pay more attention to his skinny black leather tie than my hair & outfit)

is he not the most amazing husband ever? completely magical.

intermission

2010-06-15T11:51:00.000-05:00

okay, so i will have san antonio part 2 posted later this week... (i know you can hardly wait)

but tomorrow i am going to ceta canyon to speak to a couple hundred 8th and 9th grade girls at one way camp and i thought i'd just ask for prayer from you. mainly that their hearts will open and that my words will not be my own, but God's.

the title of my seminar is "friends, lovers or nothing" but it's really just "evan sanford's guide to life, love, and boys". i'm taking some ideas from "captivating", wisdom from experience, and of course, God's Word. i have two goals: to inspire them to seek healthy relationships throughout their life... never allowing those relationships to get in the way of their relationship with their Creator; and to encourage them to seek who their Creator says they are, not who friends/boyfriends say they should be.

if you have not read Captivating by John and Stasi Eldridge... I highly recommend it. If you are married, have your husband read it too. Another good one by John Eldridge is Wild at Heart. A great Father's Day gift :) If you are married, read it. If you have a son, read it. If you want to understand men in any way, read it!!

san antonio part 1

2010-06-10T17:59:00.000-05:00

In addition to wedding festivities, our trip to san antonio included the typical "family vacation" activities. While Michael took his brother "The Groom" to Fiesta Texas, I took the kiddos for lunch and a movie. Aunt Jerrie and Uncle Dean joined us for the fun! Lunch at Sugarbaker's made it necessary to get these incredibly ginormous cookies for dessert :)

We then saw Shrek 4. I did not intend on seeing Shrek 4 because the previews didn't seem very good... but it got good reviews, so we decided to give it a shot. I'm glad we did... it was really good!

Saturday was consumed with wedding stuff... which I got no pictures of. But go here to see some!! You can spot michael, myself and the kids in a few of them.

As you will see... beautiful location, gorgeous bride... all was perfect!!

We spent Sunday at the San Antonio Zoo.

I think the highlight was definitely the butterflies...

quite possibly Sarah's favorite thing in the world.

This butterfly was born that morning. It had not flown yet. It's some sort of African-type butterfly... but as you can tell... was HUGE.

Sarah got to hold it!

10 years

2010-05-27T08:00:00.001-05:00

yep. michael and i married 10 years ago today. to say i love him is such a huge understatement. he is my very best friend. my favorite person in the world. i'm so lucky to get to be his bride.

in honor of our tenth anniversary, alisa did a fun retro photo shoot with us. go visit her blog to see more!!

last week of school

2010-05-25T10:33:00.000-05:00

this year for teacher gifts, i decided to attempt something new... book bags!

i'm so proud of them! i think they turned out pretty great. the pattern for these bags came from the fabulous

heather bailey

head on over to her blog and check out her beautiful patterns & fabrics!!

i cannot believe this year is over!! as always, it goes by so fast. in addition to wrapping up the school year, we are getting ready to go to san antonio for the weekend. michael's brother is getting married! ALL FOUR of us are in the wedding, so the weekend will be a bit of craziness mixed with lots of fun.

michael and i will be celebrating 10 years of marriage! it's quite fitting that we will be headed to san antonio on our anniversary, because it was there that he proposed. life is just going by so fast!!

i have to remember to soak it all in.

isaiah turned seven!!

2010-05-20T09:13:00.003-05:00

goodness he's growing so fast!!! i cannot believe i have a 7-year-old.

he's smart, athletic, fun, and loves to read. what a cool thing it is to get to be his momma :)

his bday party was at bodyworks waterpark. he had a joint party with his "girlfriend" lauren. jerrie was there taking lots of pictures. i think she even captured him with cupcake icing ALL OVER his face. literally. apparently amongst his peers, he is mr. entertainer. just like his dad.

shining moments

2010-05-19T08:43:00.000-05:00

Isaiah is playing softball this year.

I think we have found his passion. It is amazing to see this kid out there... he just comes to life. I think he enjoys the game more than any of his teammates.

Next year we'll most likely be in little league. So basically we'll LIVE at the ballpark. But seeing him happy is more than worth it!

His photogropher aunt jerrie took tons of fantastic photos of him with her big fancy camera...

check them out!

Sarah had her preschool program...

She was a little bit shy... but did most of the movements she was supposed to. And what is cuter than a little girl on stage with her finger up her nose? Huh? Anyone?? No really. She was "that kid". But she WAS the cutest one up there hands down!

let's play catch-up

2010-05-18T08:42:00.000-05:00

i've had all these images on my camera and not much time to actually transfer them onto my computer... much less this blog.

so in the next couple of days, be prepared to learn a little about what we've been up to in the last several weeks

Arts Festival

this year's theme was

Life, Lego Art, and the Pursuit of Happiness

a huge display of lego art was brought in...

scuptures made entirely of legos!! way cool, huh?

look closely at the bike... the front is a real bike and the back is legos!

needless to say, isaiah and sarah spent the rest of the weekend building things with their legos.

if i was a really good momma, i would have taken pictures of their lego art.

it's here!!

2010-04-16T16:22:00.004-05:00

www.oliveandeverette.com

go check it out and show us some love!

you can even snag a button
just like mine over there ->
for your own blog :)

pincushions!

2010-04-10T09:28:00.000-05:00

so here's the one i got from Lila... that flower is so cute!!

and here's the one I made and sent to her!!!

thanks LA for organizing such a fun project :)

bedroom reveal

2010-04-06T16:11:00.000-05:00

here it is...

our fancy new bedroom

the hat boxes belonged to my fancy grandmother

we called her "TuTu"

the white sofa belonged to her too...

you might remember it from this post

whew!

2010-03-23T09:46:00.000-05:00

the spring fling was a success! allison and i had a great time and met lots of fun folks. we're currently waiting for our new blog designs to be finished and will launch our blog, etsy, and even a funky finds shop very soon!

i've got a tiny bit of time to let you in on a few things i'm working on right now.

i signed up for leigh ann's pin cushion swap way back in february. the person i was partnered with never answered my email :(

however i was partnered up with another lovely girl, Lila. (hello new friend :)) we're each making a pin cushion and sending them to each other. she's already finished her's. but i'm working on mine today :) i'll share a picture after i send it off to her.

if you want to know how to make a pincushion of your very own, click here :)

another fun project i'm working on today is a tshirt for my neice abby. she's gonna be one!!!! sweet girl.

another huge project i've been working on is our bedroom. michael and i painted, put down new flooring. new furniture. total overhaul!! i'll share more on that later :)

hope you are having a great week!

xoxo, evan

here's your peek

2010-03-11T07:36:00.000-06:00

i cannot believe the spring fling is in 2 days!!!

i am so stinking excited!!!

come and see us if you live near ft worth :)

for more info, go here

and if you won't be able to go...

then be on the lookout for our

blog & etsy launch

(coming soon)

drumroll please...

2010-03-08T08:35:00.004-06:00

the cupcakes are made from the perfect spring accessory...

jersey knit scarves!

i'll post another sneak peek of our new merch later this week.

hope you have a great week!

:) evan

o&e goes cupcake

2010-03-04T17:28:00.001-06:00

can you guess what's inside?

olive & everette will have these
yummy (calorie free) treats and so much more at the funky finds spring fling
in ft worth, texas march 13th!

and stay tuned to find out what they are :)

but feel free to take a guess in the comments...

you've GOT to see this movie

2010-02-21T11:02:00.001-06:00

homemade valentine

2010-02-11T12:56:00.000-06:00

this year i decided to make valentines for isaiah and sarah to give their friends at school
(instead of buying the pre-made ones)

i think they turned out pretty cute:

they were super easy! they are coin envelopes filled with sweet tarts.

ps. lauren is isaiah's "girlfriend". this is their third year to be in the same class and they have claimed each other as boyfriend/girlfriend since they were 4! maybe they'll be like cory and topanga. ha! !

i also made these for sarah's valentine party at school:

her teacher gave us a GREAT tip for keeping all of the valentines the kids get at their parties:

get some contact paper and arrange them however you want... taking up plenty of space. place another sheet of contact paper on top and voila! you've got a placemat!!

i hope your valentine's day is full of LOVE this year!!

success

2010-02-09T09:30:00.012-06:00

well the cake treats were a success...

but there's a funny story about the whole thing...

i actually set out to make these for my friend, melanie.

her husband was planning a surprise birthday party for her and put me in charge of bringing the birthday cake. in lieu of a cake, i decided it would be a great opportunity to try these mini cake treats.

... and thought it would make a great blog post as well. i even mentioned it on facebook. i knew melanie would see that, but didn't expect what came next.

while i was making the cake balls, she calls me. not wanting to blow the surprise, i let the call go to voicemail.

she left a message saying "thanks for your blog post... and for introducing me to bakerella!! i'm going to hobby lobby today to get the molds to make them for my birthday on monday... i'd love to come by and see how you are making them!!"

shoot.

i didn't call her back... thinking at least maybe she'll decide to wait on making them.

i'm on the phone with jerrie, and the doorbell rings.

guess who...

melanie comes in and we hang out and i try to talk about everything but cake balls. but she knew why she had come over and asked to see them. i gave her one and she loved it... and decided to make that trip to hobby lobby to get all the supplies.

shoot.

she leaves and michael and i take the kids to dinner. i get a text message from her saying that hobby lobby is out of the molds and the ones at michael's weren't quite right. she asks to borrow mine on monday, to which i respond with "absolutely!! i'll bring them to you tomorrow!"

whew. crisis averted.

i show up at the party with melanie's cake treats and we laughed and laughed about the whole situation. she was truly surprised.

so here's to melanie. being thirty is completely fantastic. i love you, friend

trying something new today

2010-02-06T10:33:00.000-06:00

...we'll see how it goes. could be disastrous. could be glorious. could be the start of having to visit the gym more than three times a week.

found at bakerella

(if you haven't been to bakerella.com... what are you waiting for? go there now!!)

but be prepared. you will get a sugar craving like nobody's business.

sneak peek

2010-02-03T11:59:00.000-06:00

here are some of the valentines alisa and i did!

come see us this friday night: 6-9 at alderson mercedes
for the first friday art trail!

plus, cassie with smitten cakes will be there with yumm-o cupcakes!

and as always, sarah timmons with pink street design will be there with her "to die for" jewels!

if you are unable to attend but you'd like on of our valentine cards, just put your email address in the comments of this post and we'll contact you!! all cards are $5. :)

xoxo, evan

col-lab-o-rate

2010-01-25T11:43:00.001-06:00

1 : to work jointly with others or together especially in an intellectual endeavor.

i'm such a lucky girl...

myself and the talented

alisa joy

(who did jerrie's wedding, btw)

are working jointly on an intellectual endeavor to create

unique valentine's

the cards will be available here:

first friday art trail

february 5th 6-9pm

alderson mercedes

lubbock, tx

ps. we will have some great pictures of them and will make them available to people who want them but cannot make it to the art trail. i'll post pics of them soon!!

working on o&e today...

2010-01-21T13:23:00.000-06:00

olive & everette will be at the Funky Finds Spring Fling again this year!!
(click on the button to your right)

we have a HUGE amount of inventory to work on... AND we're currently working with

THE leigh ann of freckled nest (again... button on the right)

on our new BLOG!!!! yes, ma'am we'll be launching our fabulous new blog in March...

along with a massive shop update on our etsy! i'll keep you posted :)

... so i better get crackin'... i've got lots to do!!!

friday favorite

2010-01-15T17:21:00.000-06:00

she's got a new album coming out.

bliss.

winter wonderland

2009-12-29T11:16:00.000-06:00

i just love how snow just transforms everything.

happy birthday, jesus!!

2009-12-25T11:00:00.000-06:00

in celebration of the birth of Christ,

we pause from our daily lives to gather together with friends and family.

this is a magical time of year.

this year, in particular, i have been truly blessed.

my thoughtful husband decided to get a brand-spankin-new refrigerator for me.

the one we've had since we got married has been good to us, but it's probably about 40 years old. it was time.

i actually received this beauty last week. it's so pretty and shiny.

and gets our milk really really cold.

thank you, michael. you're so good to me.

and the ONE gift i made myself this year goes to michael's sister jerrie.

i hope she likes it.

no... i hope she really loves it.

wishing you and yours a very merry christmas

xoxo

evan

scenes from my house on a snowy christmas eve

2009-12-24T10:03:00.001-06:00

our collection of christmas cards and holiday flair

cocoa krispies and pbs for breakfast

the stockings were hung by the chimney with care...

the magical snow

still need to wrap gifts...

the "happy new year" is there from the image i took for our new year's party invites

isaiah took this one... mr and mrs gingerbread cookie

(they both made these at school. sarah's is on the left)

isaiah took this one too

they love having cali inside... and she loves having playmates

tracking santa!!

more tomorrow...

giving hope

2009-12-21T10:37:00.001-06:00

my sis-in-law and i decided that instead of our kids giving toys to each other for christmas this year, we would do something a little different.

so we filled a shoebox and sent it to operation christmas child. instead of sending yet another toy to wyatt, amelia, and abby... we sent this shoebox to a little boy somewhere in the world who otherwise wouldn't get anything for christmas.

it was really fun to pick out all this stuff with isaiah and sarah. i explained to them that we were doing it for a kid who doesn't have much. i loved teaching them about how blessed we really are.

another thing we did for each of my brothers & their wives for christmas was make donations in their names to charity water.

2 people who do not have access to clean water will receive clean water for 20 years.

i'm sorry...

2009-12-19T10:21:00.000-06:00

i'm such a bad blogger!

time is getting away from me so fast.

i guess that's what happens when you're a busy girl.

how about a christmas card and a promise i'll be back a little more often than once a month??? ehh???

isn't it a lovely card??

yet again, melanie has blessed us with her photographic talent.

if you are in need of family pictures, pics of your kiddos, or someone to come to a birthday party to capture all the fun, melanie is your girl.

i'll be back with more christmas flair, i promise!

be thankful

2009-11-24T21:31:00.003-06:00

images found here, along with inspiration for creating some fun turkey day sweets.

i hope you have a great one!!! doesn't it feel good to be thankful?

i love this time of year :)

good stuff :)

2009-11-19T10:41:00.000-06:00

i won all of this:

inspiration overload is contained in this loot. i'm so excited to start on some new projects!

thanks to the lovely and super talented lisa for such generosity.

the timing could not have been better

soccer

2009-11-09T11:33:00.005-06:00

this weekend was the end of a great season of soccer for isaiah.

if you didn't know already, when he was 4 we tried soccer and he hated it. we quit mid-season.

but he wanted to try again... and he LOVED it.

and at the last game, he scored his first goal. way to go, isaiah!!!

i'm in the woodlands for a week with michael, who has to be here for work. i get to be here for fun :) spending lots of time catching up on by blog-reading and on the indie business class. doing a little shopping, movie-watching... and people-watching. it feels really weird to have so much time to myself. i'm really trying to embrace it.

we watched this last night.

i'm planning on seeing this sometime this week.

and when i get home i really REALLY want to try to make these. yum!

dear blog

2009-11-03T09:36:00.007-06:00

we have a lot of catching up to do...

october was a blur, so i'll share the highlights and leave out the stories of swine flu, lysol, and hand sanitizer.

my life was full of fun things like getting international mail...

i ordered a kit to make my own little clutch. it was my first attempt at such a project, and i have to say, it went pretty well. i'll share pictures soon. as well as another super exciting thing that happened resulting in more international packages. when they arrive, i'll share :)

i also did a little bit around the house... adding some autumn loveliness:

and artwork given to us by one of our dear art trail artist friends (the rose below). such a special piece merited an arrangement of other items that are special to us.

i was even able to get a lingerie bag done for a friend. she needed a special gift to give her future sis-in-law.

but the absolute highlight of october 2009 was a trip to vegas to see u2 and hang out with some great friends. words really cannot describe how amazing this concert was.

we also got to take a limo from the bellagio to downtown vegas for dinner at the swanky hugo's cellar. we're talking old school swanky here. they give each lady a long stemmed red rose. it was fantastic :)

and since vegas is so close to cedar city, utah... where jerrie & dean live, we had to make a day trip out of it. jerrie is a photographer and took us to this old mercedes for a little shoot.

and then there was halloween. isaiah was a tech baseball player and sarah was a kitty cat.

i resisted buying pre-made costumes this year because they seem to be getting more and more expensive every year. the baseball costume was easy... just a quick trip to academy sports and we're good to go. but sarah's took a trip to hobby lobby and a little creativity.

and there you have it... all the fun events from october and none of the yucky, swine flu-infested-couch-quarantined-puking-fever-coughing part of october. we survived with better memories that that :)

stay tuned for more on my first handmade clutch

xo, evan

happy four!

2009-09-26T16:06:00.004-05:00

would you agree that this girl's quite the character?

she keeps us on our toes for sure.

happy birthday, sarah grace!!

so in honor of the birthday girl...

i'm a busy girl these days

2009-09-19T09:21:00.003-05:00

...so the time i spend online is mostly here:

allison and i are getting so much inspiration from

jill & leigh ann

we're developing an action plan for

olive & everette

soon we'll have a huge update for our etsy!!

it's all so very exciting... so stay tuned :)

xo, e

32 reasons to love michael sanford.

2009-08-19T09:36:00.009-05:00

1. the way he teaches his son about life

2. he's crazy funny

3. his smile makes my heart h.a.p.p.y.

4. he loves intensely

5. he believes its important to do the right thing

6. he loves the things i create

7. he's really good at talking to people he doesn't know

8. he's devastatingly handsome

9. he makes life an adventure

10. he used to come knock on my window late at night

11. he would also call me to tell me random funny stories

12. he is a loyal friend

13. he is not afraid of hard work

14. he sings with passion

15. he's an incredible musician

16. he looks great on stage

17. he believes his salvation comes from jesus

18. he loves jesus deeply

19. he loves to play with his kids

20. he shows them how to use their imagination

21. he's the coolest dad ever

22. he loves to make people laugh

23. his heart is huge

24. he and sarah have a magical connection

25. he's a really good cook

26. he doesn't always play by the rules

27. and i learn a lot from that

28. he wishes for a ferarri

29. he wished for me and his wish came true

30. he tells me that i get better looking every day

31. he still takes me on dates

32. and sweeps me off my feet

Happy Birthday Michael.

I love you for all these reasons. And many many more.

new work!!

2009-08-16T18:22:00.003-05:00

blooms of red lollipops

a bit of collage using fabric and a little experimentation with stitching directly onto the canvas... it was super fun!

hello mr. red owl

that toy store in taos...

and some handpainted journals

a perfect combination

2009-07-31T18:22:00.002-05:00

i have found a new love

jif *natural* creamy peanut butter

pbj's are made daily in our house,

so peanut butter is a staple

i used to buy simply jif but

decided one day to pick up this new kind

well... it's fantastic.

absolutely yummy

it's perfect on a slice of green apple

it's perfect on a slice of toast

it's perfect on a dark chocolate hershey bar

it might be perfect for making peanut butter cookies...

but i have yet to try it

if you wanna know how to make amazing peanut butter & jelly sandwiches,

go here.

she made one for my husband one time

and he thinks it's the best ever.

ever.

goodbye to another tooth

2009-07-13T11:27:00.003-05:00

i made isaiah a tooth pillow a long time ago... and i was excited that we finally got to use it! i had found some cuuuute ones here and decided to make a similar one.

June part 3

2009-07-06T11:29:00.005-05:00

road trip!

headed to Taos, NM for a weekend of fun and another wedding...

we found a super cool toy store in Taos... it's called TWIRL.

my brother, spencer and his lovely bride sophia got married here. not too shabby, eh?

i didn't take very many pictures, but here at least you can see the bride & groom!

and isaiah lost his first tooth!!

Where did June go?

2009-07-01T14:37:00.006-05:00

i can't believe it's july... already! i knew going in to june that it would be crazy, that it would fly by and i was completely right. here's part 2 of our june (part 1 was sarah's dance recital, btw)

swim lessons!

we've done swim lessons at Texas Tech for the last 6 years. this year was different because #1: i didn't get in the water with anyone (we've outgrown the "parent & me" class!) and #2: the lessons were relocated to a brand-spankin-new pool... a pool so fantastic that i'm really bummed i didn't get to participate other than acting as the observing parent. but the kids loved it, learned new things, and on the last day they got to take a ride on the lazy river.

jerrie's wedding!

michael's sister, jerrie got married. this was the first of two weddings our family experienced in june. this one was fun because, well, jerrie is just so stinkin fun to be around. i participated as a bridesmaid... sarah was the flower girl... and isaiah was a ring-bearer.

sarah LOVED dressing up

and isaiah, well... after my dad helped him get dressed up in his tux he refused to come out of the bathroom. it took much coaxing and a bit of force to get him out. notice the look on his face in the family picture above. good thing we had lots of time before the ceremony for him to warm up. in situations such as this, i have learned "no talk, no touch, no eye contact" is about the best policy. i learned that from the dog whisperer... but it worked and isaiah handled his job like a pro.

here he is with scooter. scooter's been in michael's family for a very long time.

at the reception, sarah discovered the microphone and proceeded to sing. she sang 3 songs. i couldn't break her away.

but dancing with this man... well i'd put down anything for such an opportunity :)

ps... the photographer jerrie hired was amazing. visit her blog so see some fantastic images of this wedding!

cutie patootie

2009-06-16T14:34:00.005-05:00

happy happy happy am i that sarah got to be in her dance recital :) this little girly-girl emerged from within her. the make-up, the costume... performing on a real stage... she really enjoyed the spotlight. my amazingly talented photographer friend melanie agreed to be there with camera in hand to get good shots of the moment. after the show, we took sarah off to get some more pictures.

that's sarah... the tiny one on the end. :D

thank you so much, melanie... i love them!!!

ps... i did do a little editing on the ones that have that vintage look. not the last one, though... that one's all melanie-goodness! i think i will use it for my new blog banner!

some custom work...

2009-06-09T17:06:00.004-05:00

my olive & everette partner, allison did these burp rags for a girl who lives in ft. worth... they're so cute, i had to share!! if you are interested in custom burp rags, bibs, onesies, blankets, kitchen towels, lingerie bags... feel free to shoot us an email! olive.everette (at) rocketmail (dot) com. the diaper cakes pictured here are also available!!

i did some custom bachelorette party invites for a co-worker of michael. a girls-only weekend in vegas deserves a glam-ed up invitation!! the little organza bags contained little cards with the weekend itenerary.

i hope your summer has been a great one so far! we've been busy busy with swim lessons, dance recitals, and wedding preparations (the kids and i are in one on the 13th and then we go to taos for my brother's wedding on the 21st... the kids will be in that one too!)

after all the craziness, i promise i'll share pictures. i've already got some good stuff to share, just need the time to get it post-ready :)

best friend

2009-05-27T08:18:00.004-05:00

... it was 9 years ago today that I married my best friend. i still feel like the luckiest girl alive.

a few weeks ago we took a trip to San Antonio. we went to see michael's brother austin graduate from law school. however, we took the opportunity to revisit the location where michael proposed. the parking garage of the rivercenter mall, downtown San Antonio.

he had planned to propose out on a jetty in South Padre Island, but hurricane brett set us back a bit on that trip, forcing us to spend a night in San Antonio. we spent the day walking around the Alamo and the Rivercenter Mall. he carried the ring in a camera case inside his backpack. we walked back to the car and he just decided right then and there... that it was time to ask me. as we approached the car (a red ford explorer) he opened the back end and as he placed the backpack inside the car i noticed that his shirt was shaking... he was nervous. michael never gets nervous. so i knew it was coming... and sure enough... he got down on one knee right there in the parking garage. i was completely surprised. it was perfect.

so our recent trip to San Antonio was a fun way to walk our family through that day... the day that started it all.

it's really amazing what has happened in the last 9 years. what a fantastic journey we're on!

SpringFling!

2009-05-08T15:50:00.006-05:00

the first craft fair for olive & everette was a success!! here are some images of our inventory.

and here are a few custom orders I finished this week...

if you're interested in custom baby/children's apparel, dish towels, cloth napkins, etc... visit our etsy and convo us. a few of the items shown here are available. all of the diaper cakes are available too!

ps... we'll be updating our shop very sooooon with lots and lots of fantastic hand embroidered and appliqued goods!

new favs

2009-04-28T08:36:00.009-05:00

i've got some new daily reads... amazing blogs: fresh inspiration, sweet creativity, and beautiful families. stuff good enough to share with you. here we go...

"whatever"

"messy canvas"

"hello my name is heather"

btw, check out her trash ties!

the funkyfinds springfling was so much fun!! i've got photos... i'll share them soon.

ps... don't forget about my

giveaway!

details in the post below...

welcome to the planet

2009-04-23T08:35:00.007-05:00

I can't believe he's turning 6 years old today! Wow, time has flown by.

In honor of Isaiah's 6th Birthday... and the fact that olive & everette will be doing our first craft fair this weekend, I'm doing my first giveaway!!!

Here's the deal: I'm in desperate need of a new blog banner. So, to enter my giveaway, create a blog banner for me! The banner I choose will win a set of two custom dish towels! You can either include a link to your banner in the comments of this post, or email it to revsanford@gmail.com ... I can't wait to see all the creativity!!!

PS... if you're in the Dallas/Ft Worth area this weekend, come see me on Saturday!!!

lovelove, evan

we went on a cruise!

2009-04-15T17:04:00.009-05:00

... and it was amazing, to say the very least. Here's a bit of evidence:

We spent the night in downtown Miami, where we went to Bayside Marketplace. My goal was to find a photobooth (because Bono says... ;) And we did! I don't have a scanner, so I can't show the pics to you... well I guess I could take a picture of them, but I'm feeling lazy. Oh well. We came across this tree and thought it looked like an Ent (Lord of the Rings).

Tuesday in Nassau was a chilly, windy day. Good thing we didn't plan to go to the beach that day. We did, however roam the town in the morning and in the afternoon we took a ferry to Paradise Island, where we explored Atlantis, a massive hotel/casino/beach/seaquarium. We spotted some huge manna rays, posh yachts (like the Casino Royal pictured below). We even saw a group of local school children dressed in uniform who were on a field trip at the Atlantis.

We spent our Wednesday at Half Moon Cay, and absolutely beautiful island. We jet skied (my first time to do it) and relaxed on the beach. They (Carnival) even had a barbecue lunch prepared for us right there on the island. It was fun eating the fresh pineapple and seeing roosters roam around. If we would have had our kids with us, we might not have come back home :)

Thursday we were in Grand Turk. A very interesting island that was devastated by Hurricane Ike. A cab driver told us that the entire island was covered in 3 ft of water and that all the roofs were destroyed. Every building we saw had a new roof. The town is virtually untouched by commercialism... a lady riding in the Taxi Van with us asked "Where is the downtown? Don't you have a WalMart or something??" I didn't say this, but I was thinking... you came on a Caribbean Cruise so you could go to WalMart?? Anyway, there are wild horses, donkeys, and pigs roaming the island. They get the run of the land, apparently. We spotted this little boat in a place called Cockburn Town: their "downtown shopping" experience. The downtown included 5 tiny little shops and a snack bar. It was our taste of native culture for the week.

Our last night at sea... here's to a great vacation!

The day we disembarked we got to go to Miami Beach and explore the Art Deco District on South Beach. It was incredible. I loved the architecture of all the buildings. We saw the home of Versace and a hotel called Casablanca where some inside scenes of the movie were shot. Such a cool place.

well hello there...

2009-03-28T13:23:00.002-05:00

i'm finally able to share some new things with you! the old laptop was put to rest and i'm now the proud owner of a macbook. it's an entirely new world for me... but i'm slowly getting used to it. if you're a mac user and you have any information you think would be helpful to me, please share :D

i recently filled a custom order for birthday invitations for a little girl who's turning 9. these were so fun to make!

and for good measure, here are some recent photos of the kids:

sarah LOVES lipgloss. apparently, this particular day she was experimenting with a clown-inspired look.

isaiah is now the proud owner of leather vest and chaps. now he's REALLY a cowboy. unbelievable that he's about to be 6!

dear blog

2009-03-16T14:22:00.002-05:00

i'm so sorry i have neglected you. my plate is full and somehow you've gotten shoved off of it. part of the reason is that my laptop died. and it took lots of pictures and all my "favorites" with it... i just don't feel like myself much without it. my blog-reading and blog-writing has come to a crashing halt. sad i know. anyway, hopefully i'll have another laptop up and running sometime in the near future and i'll have lots to blog about.

in the meantime, please accept this apology. sometimes absence makes the heart grow fonder. i hope you understand.

sincerely,
evan

projects!

2009-02-17T15:46:00.004-06:00

here's a peek at a series of pieces i've been working on for a friend

melanie... i'm so excited for you to see everything!! i've had a lot of fun with this project :)

... and i pulled this down from the attic (well, michael did... thanks, honey!) and have spent a little time getting re-aquainted with it. i kind of feel like i'm in girl scouts again working on a merit badge. ha!

this is sarah's cat... her name is lobby. and sarah loves playing with her little wand. she calls it a "gleen"...

and her little twinkle toes! here she is showing "pizza feet". she learned how to do that at "dancing school". yesterday before class she said "mommy... i love dancing". someday maybe i'll get a good picture of her in her ballet shoes or tap shoes, but we were in a hurry when i took this picture.

and i just noticed this... see it? right there at the bottom. have you ever noticed it? took me by surprise.

a day for love

2009-02-14T10:46:00.002-06:00

it's one of my most favorite days of the year. i've spent the morning re-organizing my art supplies and i had intended on sharing some photos with you along with some valentine flair.

however, i came across something today that i feel the need to share instead. notice the little pink button over to the right? clicking on it will take you to a page on etsy.com where sellers have listed items that they are selling to raise funds for the cora paige project.

i had learned about cora through an amazingly creative and fun blog i've been reading for a while. the mcclenahan's story has struck me in a big way. my heart hurts for this sweet family. i'm amazed at the way God is moving through their lives and into many others.

take the time to read if you feel compelled. happy valentine's day. i hope it's full of love.

finally... a little time to breathe

2009-02-07T10:22:00.007-06:00

and share the cards i've made!

i've become a little obsessed with making cards lately... i made them so i'd have something to sell at the art trail last night. well i did sell a few but there are some left over. take a lookie:

(i carved my own little heart stamp for the one above)

(sorry this one is blurry!)

(again, the hand-carved stamp)

this one's a set of 8 cards... same design, different colors

if you're interested in getting a hand-made card to give to your valentine, let me know... they're for sale! i can also customize a card or set of cards for you... just leave your name/email in the comments. (if you don't live in Lubbock, i'm thinking it will be tricky to get the card to you in time for Valentine's Day. but please keep me in mind for other special occasions!)

did you know you can buy a whole bag of green m&m's?? michael and i saw this at walmart the other day. it made us laugh. notice the text in the lower right corner: "sweetie... it's all true". so funny!!

valentine's day is my favorite holiday. ever. the pink and red hearts hanging from the ceilings at target, the gorgeous flower arrangements in the floral section of the grocery store... completely irresistable. i just love the idea of celebrating love. giving little gifts. m&m's. valentine cards. [sigh]

here's to a great week... lovelovelove, e

Isaiah can ski!

2009-01-26T17:08:00.009-06:00

There he is in the red coat... he's following his teacher, "Coach Al". We spotted him while we were on the lift. I was so excited to see him skiing... it was about 20 minutes into the lesson!

We had an amazing time this weekend in Ruidoso, NM... we took Michael's parents with us for some much needed R&R. AND... we took the kids skiing - they loved it!

We also went on a 2 mile hike...

and threw rocks into the river...

and climbed a big rock...

Part of the hike included crossing the river... on a log. It was a bit scary for some of us, but we all made it across! (somehow we didn't get any pictures of that log)

What an amazing time we had. I was so proud of Isaiah for being such a good sport. I can't believe how fast he learned how to ski. We stayed on one run the whole day, but Isaiah never got tired. Riding the lift, we watched skiers below and played a game called "Who's gonna fall next?" And one time as we approached the top of the lift, Isaiah said "Alright, this is where the fun begins!!" I loved seeing him so happy and confident.

note: I do have video of Isaiah skiing... and I tried to include it in this post, but I'm having technical difficulties.

meow

2009-01-12T17:09:00.004-06:00

a dancer? a kitty cat? or maybe just Sarah...

sarah took her very first dance class today. she was all decked out in a pink leotard, black skirt and striped legwarmers. we get there and as soon as we walk in the door she said "i have to get my tap shoes on". she was ready and willing. i think she was even excited about it. (and maybe a little anxious too) they lined up all the girls, marched them into the studio and shut the door. i didn't even get a peek inside.

45 minutes later they open the door and she comes out, her teacher behind her... who makes a b-line towards me. the first thing out of my mouth was "did she do good?" expecting to hear "yes, sarah is so cute... she did such a great job. your daughter is beautiful and graceful and is destined to be a dancer!!"

instead, her teacher said "she pretended to be a cat the entire class... crawling on the floor. rolling on the floor. licking her paws and meowing. i'm going to hold off on ordering her costume for the recital in june. she needs to be able to get through a class without pretending to be a cat." lovely. i mean... the girl is 3, right? 3 year olds are all about pretending, right?

needless to say, we'll just have to give her a little time to adjust to this new class... all the while teaching her a little lesson: "when you're at dancing school, you need to be a little girl. you can be a cat at home, but when you go to dance class you need to be Sarah."

she does make a beautiful cat, though. maybe she needs to be in theater. we'll see.

God's doing something big...

2009-01-02T09:59:00.002-06:00

here. check it out. sign up for if you're interested. hope to see you there!!!

oh, happy new year:)

my favorite christmas present

2008-12-27T15:46:00.000-06:00

it's the real thing. an original elsie painting. michael is the best:)

more creations and some holiday love

2008-12-17T16:25:00.000-06:00

i made this little owl pillow... i painted the owl onto canvas and then stitched the details.

this little sticky was waiting for me this morning. i'm so blessed to have michael as my husband. he's the sweetest:)

speaking of sweet... isaiah made this gingerbread house at school. he's quite the artist. i think he even has that "artist" look on his face (making such art is serious business).

and michael brought home some sweet treats from his "secret santa" at work. we have enough hot cocoa mix to last us through may. maybe.

and a little glimpse of our christmas decor. it won't be long and all this will be packed away. hmmm. christmas is approaching way too fast.

and another owl stamp that i carved...

i hope you are embracing each moment of the season... it will all pass by way too quickly.

lovelovelove, e

in love

2008-12-13T18:58:00.000-06:00

isn't this beautiful? i found it today... as well as this incredible site. inspiration city.

there are fun things going on in my world...

2008-12-09T20:15:00.001-06:00

geoff & ashley are getting married! we had ashley's lingerie shower at my house and then went out for her bachelorette party. i think she looks especially beautiful wearing pink feathers;) btw emily, we missed you!!

excuse me, ma'am... is that felt??

yes, folks i've been felt-crazy as of late. i've made little felt pendants, pouches, animals. i can't stop. there are many more felt projects up my sleeve, just wait and see.

and here are some naked clay sculptures isaiah and i made. (we'll paint them later) he did the snowman and some other tiny creatures not pictured. and then there is a branch and an owl (laying on it's side) i'll be painting them and gluing them together. and then on the right is pingu. my children are big fans.

and i've discovered a love for buttons. this is my starter collection. it's so full of possibilities!

and i've been spreading christmas cheer all over the house.

a little glimpse of our tree this year. it's magical.

and my kitchy garland!! this is one of my class projects. it's gaudy and messy and random and i love it;)

we sure had fun over the thanksgiving holiday. isaiah and sarah adore their cousins, wyatt and amelia. lots and lots of laughter and giggles from these four.

and we went on the polar express! it was an actual train ride... and so magical!

these two have such a sweet moments together.

isaiah and wyatt with the bells they got from santa when he boarded the polar express!

**i've seriously been crafting nonstop lately. i really want to make all my christmas gifts this year... my mind is racing with ideas. i love it! and i love that everywhere i go there is christmas music playing. and today it snowed in lubbock. sarah and i watched it for a while. she kept asking to go outside so she could eat it. she said "you can eat white snow but you can't eat yellow snow. can i go outside and eat that white snow?"

until next time... :) evan

it's here!!!

2008-11-30T17:26:00.000-06:00

the Christmas season is upon us. today we put our tree up and decked our house with all our favorite decorations... we even listened to BEAUTIFUL Christmas music. magical.

isaiah took the baby jesus out of his manger and placed him in mary's arms. it was sweet:)

i hope you're as inspired as i am... and that this season is one of family, friends, and love.

i'll post pictures soon!!

things i'm thankful for:

2008-11-22T15:44:00.000-06:00

getting to kiss my michael. every. day.

hearing my sweet sarah say "mommy i love you".

imagining all the amazing moments i'll get to have with my kids as they grow.

ps. sarah is officially potty trained! she's done it mostly by herself, so easy!!! yay!

having lots of family come in town for thanksgiving. i LOVE the holidays.

getting inspiration from elsie. i've had some time to actually make some of the things she's teaching in the class, and here are some pictures of elsie-inspired craftiness:

these dolls are made from felt. the one on the left is "straight out of the box". it's basically exactly like the one she made with exception of the colors. the giraffe was my own variation of the project. i think they turned out pretty cute!

this is a journal i've had for a very long time. i think my dad gave it to me and i've never written in it. part of the class is journaling, and so i got this journal out and altered it a bit to make it a little more modern. i used burlap, handmade paper, scrapbook paper, and a love, elsie rub-on.

and a bit of personality on the inside. the owl is a stamp i made a while back. for a stamp-making tutorial, visit leigh ann.

and i also got a journal for sketching out ideas and designs. this was altered a bit using paper, a couple of stickers, and a love, elsie rub-on. inside are pockets, so i can stash magazine tear-outs.

i'll have crafts coming out my ears in the next few weeks, so stay tuned! if i don't get a chance to post before, then HAPPY TURKEY DAY!!! lots and lots of love to you.

our howaween

2008-11-01T16:48:00.000-05:00

the first thing that was said in our house on the morning of halloween was spoken by sarah: she announced "happy howaweeeeen!!!" i'm NOT a morning person and little sarah wakes up happy as can be every morning. i love it:)

and so here come the pictures...

sarah the spider! (the first picture was taken last week right after we bought her costume... she wanted to put it on, so i got her picture. she was proud!)

isaiah, aka: anakin skywalker

"trick-or-treat!"

perusing the loot...

it was a fun night for the kids. we trick-or-treated with some dear friends who are about to move to dallas. this is the 3rd year we've done halloween with them, so we're very sad that next year they won't be around to trick-or-treat with.

tonight texas tech plays ut. a big game to begin with, but add on the fact that both teams are 8-0, and espn practically moved to lubbock for the weekend (and have been broadcasting all day from the stadium). so much attention is being put on this game. it's really amazing that we're getting so much attention. the student section is filled as "first-come-first-serve" and so all week the students have been lining up in order to get in to the game, thus creating "raiderville", a tent city. the population grew to over 2000 students. crazy!!

happy halloween.

2008-10-30T10:53:00.000-05:00

i just discovered an artist... so i thought i'd share. stash it in your pumpkin with all the candy and enjoy. i'm so inspired by this girl's work!

have a fun and safe halloween!

my last word on the subject

2008-10-28T09:22:00.000-05:00

i'm really tired of hearing people say things about barack obama that just simply are not true. people have formed opinions based on misinformation and it is driving me nuts. people are most definitely entitled to their opinion, but lets base those opinions on truth.

i'm still here:)

2008-10-27T13:28:00.000-05:00

sorry i've been m i a lately. part of the reason is that our router went out and i couldn't get my laptop online. the other part of the reason is that i've been a bit under the weather, and super busy all at the same time.

but things are beginning to slow down just a tad. i'm super excited because i just joined an online class by the oh-so-talented elsie. i'll have lots of new things to share along the way and i'm really looking forward to that!!

i've been creating lots of things lately, and haven't gotten any pictures of any of it. sorry for that! i think this class i've signed up for will force me to document my creations a little more diligently. my creative chops ARE still in tact, and as time allows i'll make the effort to get pictures taken of things i've made:)

halloween this year will be so much fun... isaiah chose to be anakin skywalker this year, which works out really well for him because he looks a bit like anakin. sarah mentioned a while back that she wants to be a spider for halloween. so we found a great spider costume for her, and she loves it! i've already got a few pictures of her in her costume, and i'll share them with you later.

hope your last week of october is fantastic!!

lovelove, e

i feel the need to share

2008-09-25T08:59:00.000-05:00

this video:

if you don't already know who he is, this is a guy by the name of donald miller. he's written several books, two of which are searching for god knows what and blue like jazz. both books i have read and completely shook me up... revolutionized and strengthened my faith. i also had the privelege of seeing him speak at a conference at willow creek. he's the real deal if you haven't read his books, start with blue like jazz. it's truly amazing.

anyway, donald miller gave the convocation at the democratic national convention. a seemingly bold move. i was really encouraged to hear that he's "there". and to find this video and hear his statements on why he's supporting obama. not completely surprised though. from the beginning i've really liked barack obama. i like his style. yes, he's a good speaker. he's also a good leader. and his wife, michelle... she seems to be amazing.

but i'm surrounded by people who support mccain. in a town like lubbock, tx if you claim to be a christian you're expected to vote republican. period. but i've chosen to go to the "dark side".

recently i found a website called votesmart.org. this website is a comprehensive record of all candidates. you can go through lists of how those candidates have voted on issues, statements they've made... etc. it's a great research tool. i encourage you to do what i did... instead of blindly supporting a candidate (which i was), do your research. know why your supporting a candidate. i did that and i feel even stronger that barack obama should be our next president.

i married a rock star

2008-09-19T16:11:00.000-05:00

michael's band cyrus will be opening up for the toadies next week! the show is thursday at 7 at the lonestar amphitheater. you can get your tickets here.

have a fabulous weekend! e

this is funny

2008-09-12T08:40:00.002-05:00

a while back michael came home from work with one of those laser pens. as sarah was finishing her dinner, he hid behind her and made the light dance all around her. the first time he did it she didn't know quite how to react... she kept calling it a ladybug ("laggy bug") and proceeded with lots of giggles and "awww's". then we decided to get her reaction on video. the first reaction was a bit more dramatic, but it's funny to see isaiah get in on the fun...

a little art and lots of love

did you happen to see this??

christmas is almost here!

you had me at *sparkle*

Dollhouse Build

thanksgiving

Sarah turned FIVE!!!

christmas shopping made easy

our trip to the city

hi stranger

check it out!!!

i HAVE accomplished something

planning...

on this first day of school...

haaaapy haaaappy biiiirthdayy baaayybe

summer part 4

summer part 3

pillows!!

one month from today

fourth flava

part 2: fourth of july

so... yeah...

san antonio part 2

intermission

san antonio part 1

10 years

last week of school

isaiah turned seven!!

shining moments

let's play catch-up

it's here!!

pincushions!

bedroom reveal

whew!

here's your peek

drumroll please...

o&e goes cupcake

you've GOT to see this movie

homemade valentine

success

trying something new today

sneak peek

col-lab-o-rate

working on o&e today...

friday favorite

winter wonderland

happy birthday, jesus!!

scenes from my house on a snowy christmas eve

giving hope

i'm sorry...

be thankful

good stuff :)

soccer

dear blog

happy four!

i'm a busy girl these days

32 reasons to love michael sanford.

new work!!

a perfect combination

goodbye to another tooth

June part 3

Where did June go?

cutie patootie

some custom work...

best friend

SpringFling!

new favs

welcome to the planet

we went on a cruise!

well hello there...

dear blog

projects!

a day for love

finally... a little time to breathe

Isaiah can ski!

meow

God's doing something big...

my favorite christmas present

more creations and some holiday love

in love

you had me at sparkle