Time to celebrate! ~ The TAFYs

Before the day is over we wanted to say "Thank you!" to some of the great people that we have met and that have blessed us so much this year. So in honor of the Emmys we are hosting the first ever TAFY awards! (Taylor and Frankie-y)

For the category of best follower:

The TAFY goes to

AMY ASHCRAFT!

Amy blessed us so much when she came up to introduce herself at the CHF warehouse, we became blogger friends and even had her over for dinner a few times while she was stationed in Houston for work. Thanks Amy for being such a cool friend.

For the category of most comments:

The TAFY goes to

TINA WINDER!

Moms are the best, and Taylor's Mom has supported us though out this whole adventure. Even when things got a little boring she was there showing her love for us and what we do. Thanks so much for everything you do!

For the category of most moving comment:

The TAFY goes to

DAWN!

This was so unexpected and it just lifted us up so much. We often wonder if our blog makes us seem boastful or showy, but we always remember what Dawn said-

Dawn said...

Hey guys this is your Aunt Ame's friend, Dawn. You guys are doing a great job! I am really impressed with your dedication to your project but more than that your attitude on your blog does not come across as showing off or looking for a pat on the back but one of enlightenment and encouragement - very humble. I look forward to each new entry. Thanks

through the days one after another. Thank you f

Runner up goes to

ANONYMOUS!

Another great one that keeps us going when things seem small.

Anonymous said...

I've only just discovered your blog, quite a bit after the fact! I'm finding myself deeply moved as I read through the days one after another. Thank you for sharing your project and your insights. There's much to learn from here.

For the category of first foreign reader:

The TAFY goes to

The Country of Turkey!

(This is the earliest country we have document of...)

Thanks Turkey!

So to wrap up this day we would just like to say thanks to all of you, dear readers! You make this so fun! We hope you enjoyed today as much as we did.

This is for all of you...

Thanks for a great year- making new friends has been the best part!

Time to Celebrate! ~ Menu Monday - Food Pak® Challenge

Not only is today our Bloggie Birthday and our 100th post, but it is also our Food Pak® Challenge Anniversary! For those of you who don't know, the Food Pak® is something that the Children's Hunger Fund distributes to struggling families in our cities and around the world. Through the Food Pak® they offer support and love to our neighbors, and hope through relationships with volunteers and our Savior!

When we first heard about CHF and the Food Pak® we weren't really sure we were going to donate anything, but something stirred within me and I had the idea of getting one of these boxes and eating out of it ourselves to see if it really had what it took to feed a family for weeks, like it claimed. I told Taylor my idea, and like I learned in Church this weekend- by vocalizing what I felt, I was in a way, committing to do it. Taylor was on board and she was there to make sure that we stayed on track... I couldn't have done without her. Together we went shopping, we cooked, we blogged, and at the end of week God planted an idea that then grew into what you are seeing today. We could simplify and change our eating habits and provide multiple families with a good, sustainable amount of food at the same cost. How can you argue with that? We can eat and be healthy and be happy and help others. We may not be eating our favorite foods, and it may take longer then driving through, but we do it for the love of our brothers and sisters. Our first Food Pak® experience went so well that we did it again, and at the end of our two weeks we had saved enough money to make 10 Food Paks®! God really blessed us and allowed us to greatly bless others. :)

Since then, we decided that we wouldn't be able to go back to eating normally... well, not right away. We knew we wanted to do something and we wanted to do something big, so we set our sights on 2010 and we set a goal to eat for $10 a week for a whole year. At the end of the month we take the same amount that we spent on groceries and we donate it to food and water organizations. It has been a good year so far, and it's hard to believe that we have come such a long way. But we would like to go back to where it started, and we would really love for you come along with us.

For the next two weeks Taylor and I will be taking the Food Pak® Challenge again, and we want to encourage you to try it for a week, as well. The items in the box are really common items and can be bought for around $25. If you decided to try this, we would also like to encourage you to make the same $25 donation to CHF to help feed other families through the Food Pak®. So please consider it, pray about it, and let us know! We would love to have someone to share stories, recopies, and pictures with; we would even love to offer you a chance to share with us what you learned and experienced here on our blog.

Here is the list that comes with the Food Pak®.

Here are our groceries!

And our first dinner!

Look like fun? Give it a try!

To learn about the Food Pak® Challenge visually, check out the video CHF put together on our "Media" tab!

Let the challenge begin!!!

Giveaway Winners!

Okay, so we have updated all of the giveaway posts with the winners! If you are a winner please find our e-mail on our contact tab and send us your address! We are so happy for all of you and thanks everyone for entering! We hope you enjoyed the party, but it's not quite over yet... we will be posting a few more things before the night is over!

Time to celebrate! ~ Giveaway #5

For our last giveaway we wanted to do something really fun, so we are going to introduce you to "Our Friend" TOMS! That's right! Another TOMS Shoe Giveaway!

TOMS (short for "tomorrow") makes shoes that are really comfy, bright, light weight, and just plain fun! But the best part is that for every pair they sell, they send a pair to a child who needs shoes. :) (That part always makes me smile!) So go visit the TOMS site (found on the "Our Friends" tab) and pick a pair and we will let you know if you win!

Same rules apply. If you leave a commet you will be entered once, if you are or become a follower we will add your name again for a higher chance of winning. Just let us know what your favorite pair is! I wear my black classics every day and Taylor loves her Ash pair!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

UPDATE!!!!

So we really really really wish we could give everyone a pair!!!

But....

We......

Have.....

A.....

Winner!!!!!

Congrats Lexie!!! We are happy for you!!!

Time to celebrate! ~ Giveaway #4

Giveaway #4 is here and it goes back to when Taylor was living in San Antonio and we were going to Journey Fellowship (a mission community of Oak Hills Church). We made a ton of friends and Taylor had a few different titles working there. Steve Dye (an awesome friend and former pastor) even married us when the time finally came. It is a good bunch of people! Senior Pastors of the Oak Hills Church are Randy Frazee and Max Lucado. The prize this time is a hardcover copy of Max Lucado's Fearless.

Same rules apply! Just let us know your favorite party theme... Hollywood is always fun!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

UPDATE!!!

Time to celebrate! ~ Giveaway #3

Time for our third giveaway! And this one is pretty sweet! CHF has been a big part of what we do and it's because they are so awesome at what they do. Children's Hunger Fund provides help to families who are in need of some love. The way this organization presents help and shares God with locals families in our cities as well as over seas is just remarkable. We love that they do not separate the charity from the donor- you can be as involved as you want to be. They ask for help in donating for food, packing Food Paks®, back packs, or anything else that they are doing, and after a training class you can even deliver Food Paks® to a families who are ready to receive! That last one is something that we haven't done yet, but we hope to make it to a training class one of these days.

So, this time you are entering to win this great iPak, Food Pak® shirt (size medium, unisex) and/or CHF bracelets!

And everyone who enters or doesn't enter is invited to join us later today on our Menu Monday post where we will be posting the rules of the Food Pak® Challenge! It starts today and we hope that you will join us.


Just leave us a comment about what your favorite birthday cake flavor is and you will be entered! Ever try banana cake? It is so good! First name drawn will receive shirt and bracelet, next two winners will receive bracelets! Winners will be announced at 4:30PM!

~~~~~~~~~~

UPDATE

And the winners are...

Anna wins the shirt + bracelet!

Lexie wins the bracelet!

Kara wins the bracelet!

(Sorry for my lack of process photos, Taylor ran off to school and I am working with a camera phone and a busy work load)

Congrats to the winners and in about an hour we will post the last giveaway! You won't want to miss it!

It's time to celebrate! ~ Giveaway #2

nother great non-profit that we love is our current church, Ecclesia!

We love their heart and their passion for the poor and the hurting. We love their vision for the city of Houston. We love that as they seek to purchase a new building to worship in they are on a mission to raise funds for new church buildings in Haiti. This is a great group of believers that we are glad to be a part of.

Our pastor, Chris Seay, is also an author, and has written some great books! One of his current projects is The Voice, "a fresh expression of the timeless narrative known as the Bible". We each received a copy of "the voice of psalms" as a gift recently at a Children's Ministry Volunteer appreciation dinner and we'd like to share one with you!

Again, everyone is welcome to enter every giveaway today! Our typical rules do apply- you must leave a comment to enter and if you are a follower your name will be placed in the hat twice! You may become a follower to get a second chance as well. Since this is a birthday party, in your comment be sure to tell us your favorite party game! Mine is Musical Chairs and Frankie's is Blindfolded Musical Chairs! :)

The winner will be announced at 2:30PM so hurry and enter!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

UPDATE!!!

Congratulations, Anna!

It's time to celebrate! ~ Giveaway #1

In our past year of blogging we have made some great friends and have discovered some great organizations. We would like to formally introduce you to some of them through our giveaways today, as well as share them with you via our new pages feature on the "Our Friends" tab.

The ALS Association is one of those organizations that we love.

We have a big tie with this association because of our aunt "Tia Chita".

She was diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease) about five years ago. Chita has been strong through the whole process and has had our support as one large, loving family. One of the many fundraising events that we are a part of each year is the ALS Benefit and September 11th is our 4th one! This year, Taylor and I are putting together a small carnival to offer some entertainment for the kids. :)

So, for the giveaway part... Our first gifts are three Strike Out ALS bracelets!

And if you're near the Devine/San Antonio Area we can also offer you two free tickets to the event!!!

The evening includes: Dinner, Dance, Silent Auction, Live Auction, Games, and a Bake Sale. You will be able to meet Chita and hang out with us! (If you want to see Taylor dressed as a clown you may want to enter this one! ;)

Everyone is welcome to enter every giveaway today! Our typical rules do apply- you must leave a comment to enter and if you are a follower your name will be placed in the hat twice! You may become a follower to get a second chance as well. The three winners will be announced at noon today and so will our next giveaway!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

UPDATE!!!

Congratulations, Rachel! You win the two tickets, and everyone gets a bracelet!

It's time to celebrate!

Woo Hoo!

Today is our 1st birthday and this is our 100th post! Thank you for coming to the party! If this is your first time to visit our blog have a look around, and if you have been here before you should also go exploring because we have changed a few things up! First, a new picture!!! Second, we have tabs - it is so nice to be organized! Through the tabs you can learn about us, see links to non-profits that we like, see what other's are saying about us, and info on contacting us. We would love to hear from you! (We are also working on putting up a button so that you can share us on your blog if you would like to. :)

So, now to the party!

Today is our Menu Monday and that means it is the kick off to our Food Pak Challenge (for more info on what this is see our Media tab and click on the "From the Frontlines" link). We hope that you feel moved to follow us this time around as we will eat for two weeks. If you want to give it a try a week is worth so much! We will update with a little more info and photos of our box items.

Also, we will be doing giveaways all day long! Nothing better then giving away gifts on your birthday to your friends! So make sure you come back throughout the day to get your name in the drawings. First drawing will be at 10 am and then every two hours till 6 pm we will be giving away something new! Then at 8 p.m. we will be posting a special treat for the people that have made this past year a really great one! We owe you so much- you have encouraged us to the moon and back and we would just like to show you how much you mean to us! :)

So, welcome to the new and improved Adventures of Taylor and Frankie! We hope you stay around and follow us through our adventures!

Don't forget to sign our guestbook, aka "kind words", to let us know you are here!

Sunny Saturdays - at the Beach!

This Sunny Saturday was a very good one!

We started out with some...

(free breakfast!)

Then we...

Happy Sunny Saturday!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now for last Sunny Saturday's giveaway!

We had three Sunny comments! Kathy our sister, Talley a fellow blogger, and Tina our cousin.

And the winners are....

First Winner!

Second Winner!

Third Winner!

Congratulations and thanks for sharing your Sunny Saturdays with us!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now for some more news...

Taylor and I will be taking a small break from blogging this week. It's a little sad :( but there is a reason and boy it's a good one! One week from today is our 1st Blogger Birthday and our next post will be our 100th post! We plan on celebrating big time! God has blessed us so much through this blog and through you readers and we just want to pay some of that back on our day. So we invite you to come back on the 30th for the kick off of our second annual Food Pak Challenge and for more giveaways, new layouts, better features, and who knows what else! ;)

See you soon!