San Elijo

Well, the break is over, and it's back to the grind.  But, that little break from life last week was pretty nice.  We had a very full week, full of family and fun. 

This is how we started our week:

...with a little beach camping.

We got all crammed into the car:

Craig even tagged along on our little excursion.

Poor Brontie :(

And, we made our way down to San Diego.

Nick and Craig spent their days surfing.

And I spent my days hanging out with the pups and doing this:

I didn't even bother to go take pictures of the boys on their toys.

We had so much fun, and the dogs loved it!

Belle had never been camping in all her sixteen years of life.  She was actually the inspiration for the trip because I wanted her to have this experience in her little lifetime.  She quite enjoyed herself and made sure to find all the comfy places to sleep.

My little Brontie poop just followed her where ever she went.

I had to take a picture with my little beach buddies (even though I didn't get a picture of Nick and his little beach buddy, Craig).

And then, Nick joined us.

I wish we had stayed longer.

We'll be back...

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Giveaway Winner!

Sara Ancich

Congratulations!

I know you are going to put the most beautiful picture ever on that card!

Just email Plum with the card of your choice at info{at}plumpaperdesigns{dot}com.

Thanks everyone for entering!

Don't forget to head over to Plum Paper's blog to see if you are the winner there.

And no need to fret if you didn't win, because Plum Paper has a sale going on RIGHT NOW!

You definitely want to take advantage of this!

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Happy Thanksgiving

It's been a very busy, very fun Thanksgiving break so far.  I have lots to share, but first, a story...

At church on Sunday, as I was singing along to the worship songs, I spotted someone sitting alone.  I don't know if this guy was feeling lonely, or if he has a perfectly happy and fulfilling life, but in that moment, my heart broke.  It broke for all the lonely people in this world.  And all of a sudden I was crying.  And, as hard as I tried to avoid the embarrassment of public tears, I could not stop thinking about it, and I found myself praying for all the lonely people who are hurting.  Praying that they would know Jesus, that they would feel loved, that they would find people who care for them.

And then I felt convicted.  I have spent a good amount of time these past couple of years feeling sorry for myself.  Sorry that I don't have kids, sorry that I (along with Nick and our families) have experienced so much loss, sorry that my life doesn't look the way I thought it would at the age of 30.  But through all of that, I have never, ever felt alone.  I have always been and will always be surrounded by people I love and by people who love me.  And, I have Jesus.  Too many people live without that love.

So, in this moment of realization, I concluded that I am done feeling sorry for myself.  Because, I would much rather face the difficult things I have had to face with people I love than go through an easy life alone.  I am blessed....even in the midst of pain.

And I want to use that to be a blessing to others around me who are hurting and in need of someone to care for them.

So, this Thanksgiving, I AM THANKFUL.  For my saviour, for my family, for my friends. 

Thank you all for being here for me.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Can anything ever seperate us from Christ's love?  Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?....No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ who loved us.  And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love.  Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow--not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love.  No power in the sky above or in earth below--indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:35, 37-39

(New Living Translation)

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Double Holiday Card Giveaway!!

........Giveaway Closed........

Plum Paper Double Giveaway!

It's that time of year!  I am teaming up with Plum Paper again to do a Holiday Card DOUBLE GIVEAWAY. Both blogs will have a winner...yes that's right....there will be 2 winners - 1 from each blog.
What will you win? 

25 FREE Plum Holiday Cards!

You choose your favorite design, send Plum a picture and your information, and they will be printed and mailed to you complete with envelopes and ready to send!

Check them out on Plum's Website and see them on Plum's blog here. 

Why, you may ask, is Kristina doing this giveaway on my blog, as well as hers?  Um, hello! Did you see that beautiful model in a lot of her holiday cards, who just so happens to look like me?  Well, that is not a beautiful model people...that is me.  But I wouldn't let her pay me.  Sisters don't do that.  So, this giveaway is her payment to me.

Alright, alright...

Here is how you win:

1. You must be a follower of Finding Sunday to enter.  You can also do ANY of the following for additional entries:

2. Like Plum on Facebook and comment that you did. 

3. Become a follower of Plum Paper's blog and comment that you did.

4. Post this giveaway on Facebook and leave a comment with the link.

5. Post about this giveaway on your own blog and comment with the link.

6. Tweet about the giveaway and comment with the link. 

Don't forget - Plum Paper is also doing this same giveaway. 

You can DOUBLE your chances by heading over there. 

Winner will be announced next week. Good luck!

And, no worries if you don't win.  Plum is offering Finding Sunday readers 10% off these beauties through the end of November.  Just use coupon code SUNDAY10.  
Go get yours NOW!!

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The Big 6-0

Though it may be shocking due to his youthful good looks, my dad is now a 60 year old.  And that, my friends, is cause for great celebration.  So, we decided to take my dad on a trip.  A trip down memory lane, that is.  (Pardon my cheesiness.)

My dad's journey began at the train station, where we enjoyed a nice, relaxing breakfast.

Next stop:

Memory Lane

(the cheesiness continues)

After breakfast, Kristina met us at the house, and we gave my dad his "luggage" for the trip.

My sisters and I totally stole this idea and then tweaked it to make it our own.

We emailed any and everyone we could think of, trying to collect 60 memories for my dad's 60 years of life.  And, believe it or not, we actually got even more than 60. It may have taken a couple of pleading emails and a bit of a guilt trip, but we managed to get all those memories.

It took quite a while to get through all those fun memories.  There were serious memories and funny memories, sentimental ones and embarrassing ones.  It was SO MUCH FUN to hear all the stories, some that had been long forgotten.  And there was SO MUCH LAUGHTER.

The girls and I did not write memories.  There were enough without us.  But, that didn't mean we didn't have lots and lots of memories to share.  So, we made a bunch of videos of our memories and uploaded them to youtube.  Dad would read a few memories, then we would show him a video.

When we made the video, we skyped Kristina in.  Hence the computer in my lap.

Once we finished the hours of memories, we sang to my dad and ate some delicious carrot cake made by Kim. 

Of course we took some group pictures.

Then, it was time for Mom and Dad to head back to Arizona.

We all thoroughly enjoyed the day and even learned a few things about our dad that we didn't know.  It was definitely another successful birthday celebration.

Happy 60th Dad!!!

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Another Big One

Today is another huge huge birthday!

My sweet little Beller-butt is 16 today.

Can you believe it?

SIXTEEN!

This pup is no joke.  She blows my mind with her youthful ways.  We really are going for the world record.

Since my parents were home over the weekend, we decided to do

Belle's Birthday Brunch. 

We were missing Kristina and Sean and Lily, which was sad, but we made due.  I was feeling all inspired after eating at Ramos House Cafe the day before, and decided to whip out their cookbook to make some recipes from there.

They turned out amazing.  Maybe my culinary skills are improving?

Of course, this breakfast was a little more for the human beings than the canines, but I did at least attempt to get Belle a treat.  They have all these cute birthday goodies at the pet store by us, but when I went to buy one, I quickly changed my mind upon seeing the $10 price tag on a little cookie.

Ridiculous!

Nonetheless, we did have a grand celebration.

We tried to get all the dogs looking at the camera in a picture, but after about 26 tries, we gave up.

We did manage to get a great group shot.

And today, on Belle's actual birthday, rest assured that she will be treated like royalty. 

She deserves it!

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we really are obsessed...

For us, a day off school means breakfast at Ramos House Cafe.  We really only go there on weekdays because they only offer a pricy brunch on the weekend.  And, since there was no school on Friday, thanks to our veterans, we got to enjoy ourselves a breakfast straight from heaven.   This trip, we got to sit on the front porch of the house.

I have never gotten anything from Ramos that I have not absolutely loved.  I ordered the peanut butter and banana pain perdu and Nick ordered the fried chicken scramble.  I won't even try to describe their goodness because there are just not adjectives that exist that could do it justice.

You may get tired of me posting pictures of our visits to Ramos House Cafe, but I will never get tired of eating there, so you will just have to deal with it.

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I didn't get a chance on Friday to post about it, but I am very thankful for all our veterans, especially my Grandpa....

I love him and everything he did for me, my family, and our country.

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On a random exciting sidenote, Kristina's business, Plum Paper, was chosen to be featured on Katie's Nesting Spot.  And almost equally as exciting, our family's Christmas card picture made it into the blog post about Kristina!

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Coming soon.....
Highlights from a weekend spent with family celebrating some majorly important birthdays! 
Stay tuned....

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