we survived our 18+ hour road trip, many hours of which were foggy and rainy.  but thanks to my dad's trusty GPS and skillful driving, we made it without incident.  thankfully, we flew home and didn't have to hop back in the car.  i dig road trips, but almost 1,000 miles in a day is pushing my limit.  my all time record was vermont-st. louis SOLO and STRAIGHT.  20 hours, i think it took me?

anyway, we're home and ready to serve!

we had a lovely time.

the reason for our visit...to see grandma dodo.

flashback...a couple of hours into our drive, we passed through metropolis, illinois, home of superman.  who's more super, i might ask?

somewhere around chattanooga, tennessee...

on pine island- my first "beach" fix.  i use the term beach loosely because it was kind of mucky, sticky goo on which i didn't really want to walk shoeless, but it was nice to be near the water nonetheless.  if you know me, you know i'm pretty low maintenance, but this was just kind of icky. 

and this is my dad, the reason i became a photographer.  i love that adam shot this because it represents my entire life to date.  my favorite dad-videotaping-experience was moving into the dorms freshman year at university of dayton.  fun stuff.

adam shot this, too, at pine island.  LOVE the composition.

i flew through this book, banker to the poor, by muhammad yunus.  it is the most inspiring thing i have read in a long while.  the nobel peace prize winner started grameen bank in the late '70s.  if you're not familiar with the idea of micro-credit, this is a fabulous introduction.

the screened-in pool of the house we rented...

yesterday, we ventured down to clearwater beach.  not our cup of tea.  after driving around for at least a half hour trying to find a parking space, we ditched the area and ended up at a fabulous little restaurant in dunedin called sea sea riders.  it was a delightfully happy accident.  our waiter then sent us to honeymoon island state park, which was gorgeous.  adam shot this there.  i love this photo because my back becomes part of the horizon.  totally sam abell.

meet the bijou:

same beautiful leather cover and flushmount pages as the other pictobooks albums, but a touch slimmer with quicker turnaround time.  pictolight, let's call it.  simple and classic.

and meet bijou's fashiontastic big brother, mr. wood. hehe. this is andrea and gerrit's way-cool album, to be hand delivered next week. andrea, are you drooling yet? notice the beautiful monogram on the case, super-fab zebra wood veneer with chocolate padova leather and the fun ring shot cameo. mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

we hope everyone has a fabulous holiday!  we will be away from email (GASP!) from 12/24-12/28, so if you drop us a line and don't hear back right away, please be patient and know that we'll get back to you ASAP.

cheers,
becca + adam

one of ours just ate SIX giant costco muffins while i was upstairs checking email.  she likely would have devoured all TWELVE had adam not walked in the door.  she is now twice as wide as she was an hour ago.  the second labrahoover was kind enough to lick up the crumbs for her.

my favorite jessie-inhaling-something-she-shouldn't-be-inhaling story is when i came home from a restaurant job years ago with a fabulous dinner i was really excited about.  i took two minutes to say hello to my neighbor and POOF.  there was no evidence of its existence.

and then there was the time...

share your favorite pets stealing your food/eating your shoes story here please.

if you're still struggling for that special sustainable something, i have some ideas for you.

you can buy beautiful jewelry made from recycled magazines by the acholi women in uganda through project have hope, my friend karen's organization.

sigg water bottles rock the house.  be gentle, though.  unlike nalgene bottles, siggs dent when they get dropped on hard surfaces. 

my new favorite magazine is plenty.  my old favorite magazine is ode.  plenty offers a digital subscription.  ode focuses on positive news from around the world.  yes, positive news.  no, it's not an oxymoron. 

you could subscribe to your local NPR station.  ours is KWMU.

the london tea room has a good selection of fair trade, organic teas.  the passion dragon and plum berry white are both amazing.  i have also recently fallen in love with mighty leaf tea.

peace out for now.