wrap it #3 giveaway winner!!

Happy Monday?  I'm not so sure.  We've returned from vacation and I'm always sad to leave NY because that's where I'm from, that's where my family is, and in my heart, it will always be my home.  I'm happy to live in CA with my husband and his side of the family, not deal with snow in the winter, and experience a completely different suburban lifestyle here than my rural upbringing.  Here in Orange County we have 5 Targets in a 3-mile vicinity; back in NY the closest one is an hour away.  So, quite obviously, there are pros and cons to both places, but, the convenience of Target aside, it's always bittersweet going back to NY for visits because I know leaving will be incredibly hard.

I will tell you that I am so happy to BE home and not be traveling, though!  We came back on Saturday and it was not a fun experience...3 out of the 4 of us ended up being sick during the trip and Saturday was the worst for Hoss and Mr. Bagubian.  Our journey was 13+ hours.  We left my dad's at 9am EST; it's an hour and a half drive to the airport from his house.  Then we flew from Rochester to JFK and arrived in NYC at 1:30pm EST.  Our flight to Long Beach didn't leave until 6:30pm EST.  Not sure if that was a blessing or a curse since most of Mr. B's ailments took place during the layover and by the time we boarded the flight to LGB, he was fine.  Thinking it was definitely better to be in the airport, not on the plane, while that was happening.  But poor Hoss did not fare so well on the second flight and I'm sure he just wanted to be at home, not in the air for 5 1/2 hours.  I think we finally made it back to our house around 10:30pm PST (1:30am EST), which was a very long day.  Lest we forget the highly active 2 year old who only slept for 2 hours during the whole trek!  But we made it.  And worse things could have happened, so we're thankful for that!

Yesterday, Mr. B and Hoss rested up and guzzled Pedialyte while I unpacked, did laundry (yuck!), and cleaned.  So I guess it's almost back to normal around here, though a little while ago, we discovered Nemy has a fever of 102.6 so maybe not.  She was the only one who stayed healthy during the trip so maybe it's finally catching up to her.  At. Least. We're. Home.

Remember that giveaway I had a couple weeks ago (it seems like a lifetime ago now)?  The one where I said I was giving away one of my Dunne With Style Wrap It kits?  Well, I didn't forget about it and I wasn't teasing you!  I've got a winner announcement...

CONGRATULATIONS, JULIE!!!

"I love the wrapping sets. They are beyond cute. I love making fun cards and invitations so I would definitely use that for this! :)" 

I'll be sending you one of my kits just as soon as you email your address to thurstonpostblog@gmail.com :)

Thank you to all who participated!  If you didn't win the giveaway but would still like to purchase a Wrap It kit, you can find them in the Dunne With Style shop.  And I've been LOVING Sam's take on the kit (below)!  She just knows how to make a gift look amazing and her gorgeous photos really sell it!

{ photo credit: Dunne With Style }

I hope your Monday was happy!  XO