Hospitality, Friendship, Encouragement

Wednesday, August 2, 2017

Our Trip To California, Part One

When my nephew got engaged, and then we realized that he was going to be married in Central California, I contacted Sherry, my longtime blogging friend, who blogs at and wear pearls, and said that we must get together for lunch!  She wrote back and said that she lived very close to the wedding area and that she wanted us to come and stay with her!  It was a generous offer, and she willingly hosted not just Rachel, Sarah and I but, Emily, Vinnie and Isla, but Lindsay for two nights as well!  

 I looked forward to this trip for many reasons, and one of them was the opportunity to have a special girls trip!  The girls hadn't flown for many years and were excited!

 Rachel took this photo from the plane.

 Sarah enjoyed the window seat, and with books and our phones, the five and a half hours flew by. (see what I did there?)

Sherry picked us up at the airport and took us to her beautiful home.  This photo is of the dresser, in the guest room, where Sarah and I slept.
Sherry's home is a delightful mix of vintage and English cottage style.  I love it!
 I'll get her permission before I share any other photos, but she is truly and incredible hostess.  It was like staying in a high end Bed and Breakfast.  

She bought this sweet princess castle for Isla, too.



Its very hot in the afternoons in Central California so these beautiful plantation shutters are used to keep the bright sun out and help keep the heat out of the house as well.
 Sherry has sweet Evelyn, the most darling dog ever.  During this week, we shared the grandbaby, and dog between us all.  We were all happy.  Isla loves Evelyn!


On our first full day in CA, Sherry arranged a blogger lunch!  We met at Chick-fil-A, and it was so fun!  Next to me is Debbie, who doesn't blog but should, then Cheryl who blogs at Copper's Wife, Sherry, then Susan who is no longer blogging.  These are really lovely ladies.  We had such a great time together!

Thursday, my parents and Lindsay were flying in for the wedding, so we spent the afternoon in the city doing a little exploring.  

 It was interesting for me, as a native born Californian, to see this part of history up close.  This is a Conestoga style wagon, but was not made in Conestoga, Pennsylvania.  Can you imagine packing up what you could of your live in the East and hauling it, while you mostly walked, all the way to California?

It was really hot, so we found a local, famous coffee shop, called Temple Roasting Company and hung out for a while.  This shop has an amazing selection of quality hot teas, also!  I got a cold tea drink that was really good and helped me to cool off!  This photo is of the floor in the shop.  The whole floor is pennies.
It was very cool.

We visited a thrift store across the street, that was run by an Egyptian woman.  She was very outgoing and we found out that she feeds the homeless people in the area.  She even had a letter hanging from a former president who commended her for her work.  She talked about her life a bit and how God had saved her life five times, which she attributes him doing this because of her work with the homeless.  We had a nice chat, and if I lived in the area, I'd go visit her often and bring things for her to share with the homeless, but also to share truth with her.

After this we met up with Sherry and Clark, my parents and Lindsay, too, at Ernesto's where we at amazing Mexican food!  I don't have any photos of this, so you'll have to take my word for it!  
I'll stop here for today.

I'm happy to be home, but loved my visit with Sherry and my nephew's wedding!  More to come!

Now I'm going to try to catch up with you all!



10 comments:

  1. Oh, my goodness! I can only imagine the great fun you're having...the wonderful memories you are making...the friendships you're building! (And that doesn't even BEGIN to address the family/wedding, etc.) ♥ SO happy for you.

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  2. Love the photos, Deanna. That penny floor is amazing!

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  3. How wonderful! I would love to meet up with blogger friends in person! What a special trip!

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  4. Amazing how you met Sherry through blogging and she opened her home to you all! And a visit back "home" for you, since you were born in CA.

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  5. You really do meet the most amazing people through blogging, don't you? I have to say that was a wonderful way to spend your trip, at a friend's home instead of a hotel. What a lovely gesture.

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  6. Sherry must be an amazing hostess! I know that you all had sweet fellowship together. (I love that Isla and Evelyn hit it off too!)

    What a wonderful trip for all of you!

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  7. Oh how wonderful it was that your sweet blogging sister opened her home to you and your family! I have never been to CA but my hubs has family out there that I have "met" on facebook and I feel like I know them! That floor made from pennies is just fabulous and the story about the Egyptian woman was so very touching.

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  8. Deanna, what a wonderful trip you had! And what a wonderful example of hospitality!

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  9. It was so nice to meet you and your family. Lunch, chatting, and laughing til my sides hurt was so much fun!

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  10. I'm so glad you were able to spend time with Sherry. She and I are dear friends who met through blogging, too. I live in Oregon and she in California. The day we met in person was at my home - where I had invited her to stay while she was in this area. It's such fun to meet friends who've blogged and shared lives together with me. Your trip sounds absolutely wonderful!
    ~Adrienne~

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