I know it's been a while. Things look like they are calming down in the near future - knock on wood, so I am making it my goal to blog more frequently.
Anyway, with it being so crazy, I was reminded tonight - and almost every night, as this is an evening ritual - of how I need to take time and be thankful for the little things in life. I was reminded of this while feeding my girls and seeing how much joy and excitement they have when they are fed. Without fail, every time I feed them I get barks of excitement and spinning puppies. Maybe we all should take a cue from my girls and have this much excitement over the little things in life!!
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Monday, July 11, 2011
The Purpose of Pets...
Is to provide endless hours of comic entertainment for their owners, right?
Doesn't your typical Friday night involve a laser pointer and driving your dogs crazy?!?
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Domestic Diva
I don't do the lion's share of cooking in our household. But the urge hit me to cook this weekend so we invited our neighbors over for a Sunday morning breakfast. I decided to make Lemon Ricotta Pancakes. I used this recipe. Kris was nervous about straying from the tried and true Aunt Jemima pancake mix, but these were delicious! The ricotta made the pancakes light and fluffy and the lemon wasn't strong but a nice touch.
In addition to the pancakes, I also made blueberry sauce using this recipe. The blueberry sauce was an awesome compliment to the lemon pancakes. My neighbor also made homemade lemon curd from her own recipe. Here is a recipe you could use for it as well.
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| Pancake Batter |
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| Pancakes on the Griddle |
In addition to the pancakes, I also made blueberry sauce using this recipe. The blueberry sauce was an awesome compliment to the lemon pancakes. My neighbor also made homemade lemon curd from her own recipe. Here is a recipe you could use for it as well.
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| Blueberry sauce cooking |
Here is my final confection put together, the pancakes with lemon curd, blueberry sauce and a sprinkling of confectioner's sugar. Bon Appetit!
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| Finished Product |
Happy Birthday Scout!!
Yesterday, my little baby Scout turned six! I can still remember the first night we brought her home. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision. Kris made the suggestion that we should think about getting a dog. It didn't take anything more than that comment for me to have called every golden retriever listing in the papers. One that was five minutes away from us had one female golden retriever left. I said we would be there in ten minutes. We got in the car, went to the house and I was completely smitten with Scout the first time I met her. There was no discussion. Kris was writing the check and I was in the car with our newest family member. It is amazing the love people have for their pets, and vice-versa. We were truly blessed the day Scout was born!
Below is Scout the first night Kris and I had her and then on her 6th birthday yesterday sharing her birthday penguin cookie with Luna.
Below is Scout the first night Kris and I had her and then on her 6th birthday yesterday sharing her birthday penguin cookie with Luna.
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| Baby Scout the first night we had her |
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| Scout (on the right) sharing her birthday penguin cookie with her little sister Luna |
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Feeling a Little Blue
So blue has been a favorite of mine in terms of colors. It brings out my eyes, it complements my blond hair and in the summer it is the perfect complementary color to a tan. In the winter, I tend to go much darker with my nails but that is a little harsh for the summer time. I saw a post on the blog Cupcakes and Cashmere and loved it.
This past weekend I was at the store and found Essie's new summer collection full of blues. I purchased these two bottles:
I did the Aruba Blue color for the toe nails and did the Turquoise and Caicos on my finger nails. In following the idea that was on Cupcakes and Cashmere's blog, I also added a little bit of sparkle to the ring finger. I dipped a small paint brush in top coat and and then dipped it in Martha Stewart Turquoise Glitter and added it to the ends of my nails.
Here is the final result for my finger nails. I was pretty excited about it:
They remind me of the waters from my Caribbean vacation in April, and what is more happy than that?!
This past weekend I was at the store and found Essie's new summer collection full of blues. I purchased these two bottles:
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| On the right is Turquoise and Caicos and on the left is Aruba Blue |
I did the Aruba Blue color for the toe nails and did the Turquoise and Caicos on my finger nails. In following the idea that was on Cupcakes and Cashmere's blog, I also added a little bit of sparkle to the ring finger. I dipped a small paint brush in top coat and and then dipped it in Martha Stewart Turquoise Glitter and added it to the ends of my nails.
Here is the final result for my finger nails. I was pretty excited about it:
They remind me of the waters from my Caribbean vacation in April, and what is more happy than that?!
Thursday, June 9, 2011
"The Weather is Here, Wish you were Beautiful"
Since I am having to play catch-up, I wanted to share some of my favorite pictures from the Caribbean vacation. You will understand why I didn't want to return! I also was able to have a life-long dream come true on this vacation by swimming with dolphins. I have always had a love for dolphins and whales. When I was younger, my grandparents actually adopted a bottlenose dolphin in my honor.
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| St. Lucia |
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| Grand Pitons in St. Lucia |
In St. Lucia we went on a catamaran tour to the Grand Pitons and saw where the original Dr. Doolittle was filmed.
Tortola was where dreams came true with the help of Maggie the Dolphin. If anyone ever has the opportunity to do this, I highly recommend it. The trainer was asking who wanted to go first and I had already swam out to the middle of the lagoon - that was how excited I was over this.
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| Tortola |
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| Kisses from Maggie the Dolphin in Tortola |
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| Holding Maggie in Tortola |
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| Baths at Virgin Gorda |
Went to the Baths at Virgin Gorda, which was amazing. The caves were strenuous but beautiful.
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| Hanging out at Honeymoon Bay in St. John |
In St. Thomas, we walked around the dock area and then headed to one of my favorite places in the world - St. John. We hiked up Lind Trail towards Honeymoon Bay.
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| Zipline in Antigua Rain Forest |
Antigua was the zipline through the rain forest. I have always been RIDICULOUSLY afraid of heights. Somehow I was placed as being the very first person to go on the course. I quickly had to get over my fear of heights. I did have a minor tantrum when we were on a top stand and was told I just had to jump straight down 20 feet to the bottom landing. But oh no worries, the suspension will catch halfway down. My survival instincts went in to overdrive - it was not one of my finer moments. I was trying to convince a 6 year old that she should go first.
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| Swimming with sea turtles in Barbados |
In addition, to my love of dolphins, I have a love of turtles (although not the snapping variety) as well. I used to have a pet turtle named Raphael - yes I am a product of the 80's and it was after Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. So I always love turtle adventures. My dad has a video from this and we are both underwater and he points to the first turtle we see. You can hear my squealing "TURTLE!!!" in a trill voice underwater!
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| Fort in San Juan, Puerto Rico |
Lastly, Puerto Rico- we hiked around the fort, ate at the restaurant that invented pina coladas and stayed in a hotel that used to be a convent and is supposedly haunted.
Miss Me Much?
I realized the other day that it had been two months since my last blog posting. Unacceptable in the blog world, I know. In April, we went on our vacation to Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, St. John, Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Antigua, Barbados and St. Lucia. It was amazing. I did not want to return! In May, I went to Nashville for a work conference and just got back this past weekend from Chicago for a work conference. Classes are wrapping up and the couple week vacation will be a nice break for me to enjoy before chaos starts back with two classes! So with all the traveling behind me, I can get back to the important things - like blogging!
Thursday, April 7, 2011
I am still here, and having crazy ideas...
I know I have been awful about blogging lately - the ever-growing list of to-do's at work keeps growing and that coupled with completing teaching two classes, giving their finals and doing final grades all hit when pollen decided to rear it's ugly head. I got super sick with bronchitis and a sinus infection, on top of awful allergies. So that has been my past couple weeks, just trying to survive! I am finally back to feeling like me again and the teaching two classes has now gone down to only one class, so I am hopeful that my stress levels will reduce some. I have also been trying to get everything ready for vacation which is now down to only 7 days!! I cannot wait!! Sun, sand, clear oceans, fruity drinks with umbrellas, swimming with dolphins all await me!!
In other news, I have picked up running. For anyone that has known me for long, the fact that I am/can run at all with all my health problems is a feat in and of itself. For those that have known me longer, the fact that I am running considering my hatred of it is another feat. We used to have to run with dryland for swimming. It was pure and complete torture for me. I would have preferred my coach just put me in the water and let me swim five miles over running a half a mile. I would never complain about the hardest of swim practices, but the minute he made us run a mile the complaints would start flying.
Fast forward several years, and I am about to have my back surgeries. The doctor is going over the long list of things I will never be able to do again. One was running, which at the time, I was completely OK with that. My thought was, "Wow, wish I could have had these surgeries back in high school then I would have had a legitimate excuse to get out of running for dryland!" Recently, I have been trying to get back in to shape. I know so many people that run and rave about how fast it gets them in shape. Add that to the whole I-like-to-prove-people-wrong and the whole super stubborn streak that I have and I decided to just try and run to see how it felt. I ran for the first time last summer about two miles with Scout. It wasn't pleasant, but was exhilarating at the same time.
This year, one of my resolutions was to continue with the working out and getting back in shape efforts. Having a vacation and being forced to be in a bathing suit expedited that process. So a few months ago, I ran with the girls for their walk, and survived. I then went to the gym and did the elliptical and wanted to try the treadmill to see if I could. I have taken the approach of cautious optimism. I doubt my ability to run and try it just to see if I can actually do it. Then the one day, when it was all said and done, I logged 4.5 miles. I wasn't completely sore or dead and my time wasn't awful. The next day, I tried it again to make sure it wasn't a fluke and was able to do it again.
It has gradually been that approach that was now got me to the point of logging around 25 miles of running. I have been able to get my mile run time down to 10:45 for at least the first mile, averaging 11:30 a mile. The one day I wasn't going for quickness, I just wanted to see if I could go any further on distance. I ended up logging 7 miles that day. Two days later I was back in the gym and my thought was that must have been a fluke, there is no way I can run that kind of distance. So I tried it again, and logged 7.5 miles. I will say that my friends that touted the vanity aspect of running are correct. Since doing this, people keep telling me how weight is falling off of me. The other benefit is how strong and empowering it feels.
I had never considered running events at any point in my life. This past weekend I was in Wilmington for a friend's birthday and was talking to several of her friends. A lot of them are big marathon, triathlon and runners. It came up that I hated running and preferred swimming. One told me that surprised her because of being tall she thought I would be good at it. I said well I have started to run some and don't hate it, so I guess that is progress. She asked how far I had been running and I said prior to getting sick I did two days at 7ish miles and was logging on average 20 miles a week. She said, "Kelly that means you are now a runner." Those word combinations have never been put together in reference to me. Later we were talking with another friend that had done her first full marathon last year and her second a few weeks ago. They were talking over the fears and concerns of doing one and it was mentioned that if you can average on your long run 7-8 miles, then you can handle a half-marathon. The one friend said if you can finish a half-marathon, then you can do a full because at that point it is mostly mental. The one friend looked at me and said, see you could do a half-marathon.
In other news, I have picked up running. For anyone that has known me for long, the fact that I am/can run at all with all my health problems is a feat in and of itself. For those that have known me longer, the fact that I am running considering my hatred of it is another feat. We used to have to run with dryland for swimming. It was pure and complete torture for me. I would have preferred my coach just put me in the water and let me swim five miles over running a half a mile. I would never complain about the hardest of swim practices, but the minute he made us run a mile the complaints would start flying.
Fast forward several years, and I am about to have my back surgeries. The doctor is going over the long list of things I will never be able to do again. One was running, which at the time, I was completely OK with that. My thought was, "Wow, wish I could have had these surgeries back in high school then I would have had a legitimate excuse to get out of running for dryland!" Recently, I have been trying to get back in to shape. I know so many people that run and rave about how fast it gets them in shape. Add that to the whole I-like-to-prove-people-wrong and the whole super stubborn streak that I have and I decided to just try and run to see how it felt. I ran for the first time last summer about two miles with Scout. It wasn't pleasant, but was exhilarating at the same time.
This year, one of my resolutions was to continue with the working out and getting back in shape efforts. Having a vacation and being forced to be in a bathing suit expedited that process. So a few months ago, I ran with the girls for their walk, and survived. I then went to the gym and did the elliptical and wanted to try the treadmill to see if I could. I have taken the approach of cautious optimism. I doubt my ability to run and try it just to see if I can actually do it. Then the one day, when it was all said and done, I logged 4.5 miles. I wasn't completely sore or dead and my time wasn't awful. The next day, I tried it again to make sure it wasn't a fluke and was able to do it again.
It has gradually been that approach that was now got me to the point of logging around 25 miles of running. I have been able to get my mile run time down to 10:45 for at least the first mile, averaging 11:30 a mile. The one day I wasn't going for quickness, I just wanted to see if I could go any further on distance. I ended up logging 7 miles that day. Two days later I was back in the gym and my thought was that must have been a fluke, there is no way I can run that kind of distance. So I tried it again, and logged 7.5 miles. I will say that my friends that touted the vanity aspect of running are correct. Since doing this, people keep telling me how weight is falling off of me. The other benefit is how strong and empowering it feels.
I had never considered running events at any point in my life. This past weekend I was in Wilmington for a friend's birthday and was talking to several of her friends. A lot of them are big marathon, triathlon and runners. It came up that I hated running and preferred swimming. One told me that surprised her because of being tall she thought I would be good at it. I said well I have started to run some and don't hate it, so I guess that is progress. She asked how far I had been running and I said prior to getting sick I did two days at 7ish miles and was logging on average 20 miles a week. She said, "Kelly that means you are now a runner." Those word combinations have never been put together in reference to me. Later we were talking with another friend that had done her first full marathon last year and her second a few weeks ago. They were talking over the fears and concerns of doing one and it was mentioned that if you can average on your long run 7-8 miles, then you can handle a half-marathon. The one friend said if you can finish a half-marathon, then you can do a full because at that point it is mostly mental. The one friend looked at me and said, see you could do a half-marathon.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Let the Countdown Begin...
I know I haven't been as good about blogging lately, but it has been insanely busy lately. I am hoping that in a few weeks things will calm down a little since I will go from teaching two classes a week to only one.
Now on to my countdowns....
First off, let March Madness begin!!! So excited that the Ohio State Buckeyes won #1 overall seed and Big Ten Champions. I am not however happy with the bracket they were placed in. It will be a tough one with Syracuse and UNC in it. Here's hoping their depth and talent can persevere!
Second off, four more days until St. Patrick's Day - who doesn't love a holiday that honors the Irish (some of my background) and perpetuates lots of drinking!
Third off, one more week until the official first day of Spring. Spring is one of my favorite seasons. It isn't too hot and muggy - which my hair definitely enjoys! The mosquitoes are not out yet - which is a major plus for me. Mosquitoes have an uncanny knack of not bothering anyone but me. The weather is perfect, warm during the days and cool at night. So what's not to love!
Lastly, 35 more days and I will be here
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| San Juan, Puerto Rico |
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| St. John (and St. Thomas not pictured) |
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| St. Lucia |
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| Barbados |
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| Tortola |
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| Antigua |
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Currently Craving....
It is a pretty common known fact that I have a love of peacok as seen here and here. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that I am currently CRAVING this. I was out on Saturday night and saw a girl wearing the long cardigan version of this Winter Kate cardigan, which only intensified my craving for finding it. Unfortunately, both the shorter version and longer version are sold out everywhere I can think of looking. The only thing left in online stores and ebay that I have found is in a size XS. If any of you out there know of any place that has either version in a size M, PLEASE let me know!
Monday, February 28, 2011
First Amendment Right?
I saw this clip on Good Morning America a week or so ago about a teacher that had a personal blog but on it, she spoke very harshly about her students. In her interview, she said that it was never about a specific student but more general venting. Now, having been a journalism student, I can appreciate the first amendment and all the rights that come with it. But with those rights, comes responsibilities.
I am also a product of corporate America, as well as higher education. By this, I mean that with most corporations or businesses, there are social media policies of what you can or can't say in reference to where you work/what you do. So the thought of randomly blogging about your work already seems a little taboo to me because of this being ingrained in me. I am also in education teaching college courses - which I know is different than K-12 because I have a little more freedom. Trust me, I share many frustrations that educators across the country have. However, there is a line that you just don't cross in terms of things you say about your students. And while I have had instances, like every educator, where you just want to take your palm to your head, I also have seen the good in my kids.
I had a student G-Chat me tonight for help on a project. I walked this student through things and was told the following: "Thanks again Kelly, you are a lifesaver! I really appreciate all your help!" This same student went on to tell me exciting news of being promoted for something at work. I have another former student that sent me a G-Chat asking about grammar in a press release they were about to submit and how excited they were for this event and inviting me to this event. It is things like this that make it fulfilling to do what I do. I would never think of ranting or publicly posting things the way this teacher did. I know this sounds like a complete contradiction of the journalist in me. I guess I see it more as the potential for my students to hear these rants far outweighs the gratification of the rant.
I have many friends of you that are teachers. What are your thoughts on this incident? Was Natalie Munroe within her right? Did she cross the line?
I am also a product of corporate America, as well as higher education. By this, I mean that with most corporations or businesses, there are social media policies of what you can or can't say in reference to where you work/what you do. So the thought of randomly blogging about your work already seems a little taboo to me because of this being ingrained in me. I am also in education teaching college courses - which I know is different than K-12 because I have a little more freedom. Trust me, I share many frustrations that educators across the country have. However, there is a line that you just don't cross in terms of things you say about your students. And while I have had instances, like every educator, where you just want to take your palm to your head, I also have seen the good in my kids.
I had a student G-Chat me tonight for help on a project. I walked this student through things and was told the following: "Thanks again Kelly, you are a lifesaver! I really appreciate all your help!" This same student went on to tell me exciting news of being promoted for something at work. I have another former student that sent me a G-Chat asking about grammar in a press release they were about to submit and how excited they were for this event and inviting me to this event. It is things like this that make it fulfilling to do what I do. I would never think of ranting or publicly posting things the way this teacher did. I know this sounds like a complete contradiction of the journalist in me. I guess I see it more as the potential for my students to hear these rants far outweighs the gratification of the rant.
I have many friends of you that are teachers. What are your thoughts on this incident? Was Natalie Munroe within her right? Did she cross the line?
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
My Baby is Growing Up Too Fast
Today my little baby Luna will be 18 weeks old. I see her everyday and I see the scale at the vet visits saying how big she is, but being with her every day, I sometimes overlook just how fast she is growing. My wonderful neighbor Tania came over the other day to let Scout and Luna out. She sent me a text telling me how for the first time, Luna looked like a big girl and not a puppy anymore. I thought I would share some then and now pictures of my girls with you.
It blows my mind as to how my tiny, little butterball of a puppy is now almost the same size as her big sister!
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| The second day we had her at home |
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| The first week we had her |
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| Luna last night |
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| Luna and Scout the first weekend we had Luna |
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| Luna and Scout last night |
Monday, February 21, 2011
"Books, the children of the brain." - Jonathan Swift
I openly admit that I am a book nerd. I love books, I have several bookcases full of books. They are all organized just so. I can't get enough of them. I get it from my dad. My book nerdiness is now to the point that any time Jeopardy has a category based on books, I can usually run the boards on those (especially Newbery Medal books).
Thanks to Borders filing for bankruptcy, my local Borders is being closed. This means sale on books. Which to me, is about as good as a sale on the perfect pair of pumps! I went on Saturday morning to see what I could stock up on since the books were on sale.
I had a basket full of books initially, but opted to pare that down since the sale wasn't as good as it could be yet. As I was standing in line - which by the way, was about a mile long (glad to know I am not the only local book nerd!!!), I started talking with the guy in front of me and the guy behind me. We talked for a while, since we were in line for over 30 minutes. On several occasions, I noticed the guy in front of me scanning my book pile. After a couple of times of him doing this, I looked down and realized what he must have been thinking. In my hand I had the following books:
- Wayside School is Falling Down by Louis Sachar
- Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar
- The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling
- The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (so I can return my borrowed copy that Wendy lent me)
- The Vampire Diaries: Stefan's Diaries #1: Origins by L.J. Smith
- The Vampire Diaries: Stefan's Diaries #2: Bloodlust by L.J. Smith
- Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead: What Every Business Can Learn from the Most Iconic Band in History by David Meerman Scott and Brian Halligan
After the third time of him looking at my stack of books, I finally said to him, "Yes I admit my reading choices, minus the Grateful Dead, are more akin to that of a teenage girl. I accept and embrace that!" He laughed and said he was in no place to judge, he just found my stack intriguing.
I am also one of those people that likes to KEEP their books. Again a side-effect I think I directly got from my dad. He starts asking a week after he lets me "borrow" a book to keep reminding me that it is his and will need to be returned. I have tried the library, but it has on more than one occasion just broken my heart to have to return the perfect book. My husband tries to make the argument that I will only read a book once. After all these years together, he hasn't caught on to the fact that some of my books have such tattered bindings because of the number of times that I re-read all my books.
Thanks to Borders filing for bankruptcy, my local Borders is being closed. This means sale on books. Which to me, is about as good as a sale on the perfect pair of pumps! I went on Saturday morning to see what I could stock up on since the books were on sale.
I had a basket full of books initially, but opted to pare that down since the sale wasn't as good as it could be yet. As I was standing in line - which by the way, was about a mile long (glad to know I am not the only local book nerd!!!), I started talking with the guy in front of me and the guy behind me. We talked for a while, since we were in line for over 30 minutes. On several occasions, I noticed the guy in front of me scanning my book pile. After a couple of times of him doing this, I looked down and realized what he must have been thinking. In my hand I had the following books:
- Wayside School is Falling Down by Louis Sachar
- Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar
- The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling
- The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (so I can return my borrowed copy that Wendy lent me)
- The Vampire Diaries: Stefan's Diaries #1: Origins by L.J. Smith
- The Vampire Diaries: Stefan's Diaries #2: Bloodlust by L.J. Smith
- Marketing Lessons from the Grateful Dead: What Every Business Can Learn from the Most Iconic Band in History by David Meerman Scott and Brian Halligan
After the third time of him looking at my stack of books, I finally said to him, "Yes I admit my reading choices, minus the Grateful Dead, are more akin to that of a teenage girl. I accept and embrace that!" He laughed and said he was in no place to judge, he just found my stack intriguing.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Special Bulletin
UPDATE:
I thought I would share these pictures and video for proof of the snow dusting we got Thursday. Let me preface this with my girls love snow. They love ice cubes, and so snow to them is like a giant, edible ice cube. They also like to do doggie snow angels, which is what Scout was trying to do on the deck in the video - prior to Luna pouncing on her.
I interrupt your normal programming (for most of you that would be the Duke/UNC basketball game) to bring you this special weather update. My ankle started to swell some around 5:30 tonight - soooo I am thinking there will probably be a small dusting of snow in the Raleigh area - Enjoy!!
I thought I would share these pictures and video for proof of the snow dusting we got Thursday. Let me preface this with my girls love snow. They love ice cubes, and so snow to them is like a giant, edible ice cube. They also like to do doggie snow angels, which is what Scout was trying to do on the deck in the video - prior to Luna pouncing on her.
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| The light dusting on the grass provided by my friend Jenn (after a lot had already melted) |
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| Scout and Luna chomping away on the snow in the chair. |
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| Scout in the snow on the deck (again, much had already melted by this point) |
I interrupt your normal programming (for most of you that would be the Duke/UNC basketball game) to bring you this special weather update. My ankle started to swell some around 5:30 tonight - soooo I am thinking there will probably be a small dusting of snow in the Raleigh area - Enjoy!!
Super Bowl Advertising
Overall, I was a bit disappointed with the Super Bowl ads this year. Especially in the beer genre, which usually does not disappoint. I thought this ad was done well, visually:
I thought this one was a good phoenix rising from the ashes commercial, but I don't think it would cause me to go out and buy a Chrysler
I also thought the NFL commercial was good showcasing major television shows through the years and how much impact football has had in those.
My favorite of all the ads though was the Motorola Xoom commercial, especially because the Apple 1984 commercial was drilled in undergrad to us advertising majors as being the epitome of advertising. We were taught that this was the best Super Bowl ad that had been created. The Motorola Xoom commercial I thought brought the Apple 1984 commercial full-circle.
Monday, February 7, 2011
"Everything I know, I learned after I was 30"
Last Thursday I entered in to my last year of my twenties. I know to some people turning 30 is something they dread. I have friends that have had serious struggles with the big 3-0. My husband has been mocking me all last week about how I was getting so close to being old (to those over 30, do not take offense - he has a crude sense of humor)! However, I am actually excited to turn 30.
In my 20's, I have encountered enough struggles to last me a lifetime. I feel like you stumble through your 20s. It is hard to feel like you are on solid ground so much of your time during your 20s.
You are in your safe little haven of college, where professors tell you how great you are. They paint grandiose scenes of what it is going to be like when you graduate. You are spoon-fed these ideas that you are going to graduate and go to these glamorous parties, working on big client accounts and making the big bucks. You think that you are easily going to find this great job - that you will graduate and in the same time they hand you your diploma, you get that cushy job offer.
For me at least (and I know I was very fortunate), I was on mom and dad's dime all through out college. Graduating and then the months-long search consisting of eight-hour days looking for and applying to jobs is not what I had envisioned. Then soon thereafter, mom and dad have the conversation of when is the appropriate time for me to start taking over some of my bills. After countless disappointing interviews, I finally was offered a job that was definitely not the glamorous gig that college described. I was making barely more than minimum wage, working long hours and stressed out. I feel like this is the story of your 20s, professionally. You are trying to find your grounding. You get knocked back down to reality more times than you care to admit. It hasn't been until my late 20s that I finally do not feel like I am grasping at straws to make it through a business meeting, and I think that it is only going to get better.
The other part, for me at least professionally, is being a blonde girl in my 20s, people always assume I am young and not to be taken seriously. Even though I have had positions of responsibility, I haven't ever felt like I was taken seriously. I have had comments made to me that I am too young to know what I am talking about. Some people will hear the year I was born in or what year I graduated high school from, and then automatically start to question things I could possibly know or experience I could possibly have. So as corny as it may sound, I guess I sometimes think that if I am 30, at least maybe some of those comments or questions may subside.
Then you have personal struggles. I have lost friends and made new ones. I have learned the hard truth that certain people come in to our lives for only a short time. Others are there for a lifetime. I have been fortunate enough to learn the definition of a true friend and been blessed with some of the best friends a girl could have. I have had to let people go way before their time and experienced death to a point that I fully understood its true pain. I had to say goodbye to one of the greatest men in my life during my 20s - my grandfather. I had my heart broken a few times and broke some hearts along the way during my 20s. Finally I found my husband, so at least in the romantic department - I got that part taken care of during my 20s.
My 20s have been full of ups and downs, struggles and triumphs. I will cherish everything I have learned and experienced during my 20s, but you will not find me being one that is freaking out about being 29, or saying this is the last birthday I will celebrate. This time next year, I will kick off my 30s with a great bash and welcome the age. In some respects, I feel like this song is a good representation of your 20's:
Monday, January 31, 2011
Perspective
So I posted earlier about being so nervous and worked up about giving a company-wide presentation. Well, we had a guest motivational speaker prior to anyone's presentations. His name was John O'Leary (http://www.rising-above.com/) - if you ever need a motivational speaker for religious, personal or business reasons - he definitely fits the bill.
At nine years of age, John was playing with fire one day while his dad was at work and his mom was out. He ended up catching on fire and his older brother found him. It took his brother two minutes to put the fire out. When John got to the hospital, they found that he was burnt on 100% of his body, with third degree burns on over 85% of his body. Every healthcare professional gave him a 0% chance of surviving the night. You wouldn't think this story would have application in a business setting, but he was able to apply it to business.
He gave us a booklet and said that in life, just like at the airport, there are three questions that need to be asked. They are:
- Who are you?
- Where are you going?
- Who is going with you?
He was able to relate each to his life and to business. With the question who are you - he talked about how certain "fires" happen in life. While they may be negative at the time, there is always a positive that results from it. These fires change you. We had to fill out a workbook page that had what is your most difficult experience in both business and personal life. Then we had to answer what we learned from this and how it changed us. Then John really pushed us, asking us to share it with the group. He said that no matter what you have to go through today, nothing compares to these fires. He even said that sharing this would make anything else we did today seem minor in comparison. Hearing all of this brought a lot of perspective in my fear of presenting.
For John, his life-changing moment was the fire. He was told he wouldn't live, then that he wouldn't walk and a list a mile long of other things he wouldn't do. He did them all. Not to the scale of John's experience is mine, but I could definitely relate. Enduring two back surgeries and being told I have an autoimmune disease that has no cure and will probably get worst was hard. To go from being an active athlete able to do anything to not being able to use the bathroom on my own was hard. To be told a list of things I would never do again was hard. But it did change me and it inspired me to push through things. I have now done almost everything on the list that I was told I would never do. It has tested my limits in terms of what I thought was pain. It has made me a determined person.
The next question was where are you going. This ties in to the prior part of everything John was told he wouldn't do. He gave a great quote of "when you know the why, the how doesn't matter." He pointed to these life-changing events sometimes providing perspective on what you are to do with your life. For him, he endured his experience and recovery and it was never talked about again in his family until five years ago when his parents wrote a book about the experience. He bought the book and realized how much the experience impacted others. He had never been a public speaker. In fact, he made a D in public speaking in college. But he realized his story was one that needed told. He started to speak and has now made a business out of it. With the where are you going, we had to answer questions like five year plan, 12 month plans and what you will do to achieve those. He also asked the question of, if I knew I wouldn't fail, what would I do both personally and in business.
The next question was who is going with you. On this one, he talked about all the people in his life that made his recovery possible. The first night in the hospital he asked his mom if he was going to die. Her response was do you want to die. He said no and she said that he had to fight like he has never fought before and that they would be there every step of the way. He thought his dad would be furious with him since the house was burnt too. His dad came in and grabbed his hand and said how much he loved him and how proud he was of him. He had a nurse that every morning would come in and give him a bath and redress his wounds. His nurse would come in and say to him that he was going to walk again, and in the meantime I am coming along and will help you. The nurse would pick him up hover John's feet over the floor and carry him to the bath. John said he knew he would never walk - he was burnt to the bone on his legs. But he said after months of this nurse telling him this, he finally bought in to the sentiment.
He had therapists that would come and stretch him every day. John would make so much noise screaming that they had to move him away from other patients and give him a towel to bite on. While he was crying through this, he noticed the therapists crying too. He said his thought was I am the one that is going through this, what do they have to cry about. But then he realized that they are the people that come in to our life, not for the money and endure with you.
Right after he was put in the hospital, the St. Louis Cardinal's announcer Jack Buck came to visit him. He had never met John before, but he came in and told John that he was going to live and that they were going to have a John O'Leary day at the Cardinals Stadium. Jack walked out and crumpled on the floor crying. The nurses asked if he was all right, and he asked if John would live. The nurse told him that it was just a matter of time. Jack asked the nurses what more he could do. John pointed out that he never asked what was that kid thinking or where were his parents, it was what more could he do. Jack came back every day that he could while John was in the hospital. When he couldn't, he would announce a shout-out to John on the radio while commentating. There was a John O'Leary day at the stadium. Jack continued to ask what more he could do.
It is people like this that are also part of your journey. He was able to equate it to business in terms of this being a team that is there to support you. For me, I was so fortunate to have people like this in my life during my hardest time. I had amazing parents that moved their grown daughter back home to care for her after they thought their caregiving days were behind them. I had an amazing husband that sacrificed selflessly too many times to name. I had a puppy that served as my nurse - she would get up and walk beside me when I did laps. When the pain was too much and I was crying, she would lay her head in my lap. I was also blessed to know who my friends were during this. I had friends that would travel hours to come and spend a weekend with me, despite their lives and busy schedules.
So needless to say, John O'Leary's speech definitely was motivational and had an impact on me. So, who are you, where are you going and who is going with you?
At nine years of age, John was playing with fire one day while his dad was at work and his mom was out. He ended up catching on fire and his older brother found him. It took his brother two minutes to put the fire out. When John got to the hospital, they found that he was burnt on 100% of his body, with third degree burns on over 85% of his body. Every healthcare professional gave him a 0% chance of surviving the night. You wouldn't think this story would have application in a business setting, but he was able to apply it to business.
He gave us a booklet and said that in life, just like at the airport, there are three questions that need to be asked. They are:
- Who are you?
- Where are you going?
- Who is going with you?
He was able to relate each to his life and to business. With the question who are you - he talked about how certain "fires" happen in life. While they may be negative at the time, there is always a positive that results from it. These fires change you. We had to fill out a workbook page that had what is your most difficult experience in both business and personal life. Then we had to answer what we learned from this and how it changed us. Then John really pushed us, asking us to share it with the group. He said that no matter what you have to go through today, nothing compares to these fires. He even said that sharing this would make anything else we did today seem minor in comparison. Hearing all of this brought a lot of perspective in my fear of presenting.
For John, his life-changing moment was the fire. He was told he wouldn't live, then that he wouldn't walk and a list a mile long of other things he wouldn't do. He did them all. Not to the scale of John's experience is mine, but I could definitely relate. Enduring two back surgeries and being told I have an autoimmune disease that has no cure and will probably get worst was hard. To go from being an active athlete able to do anything to not being able to use the bathroom on my own was hard. To be told a list of things I would never do again was hard. But it did change me and it inspired me to push through things. I have now done almost everything on the list that I was told I would never do. It has tested my limits in terms of what I thought was pain. It has made me a determined person.
The next question was where are you going. This ties in to the prior part of everything John was told he wouldn't do. He gave a great quote of "when you know the why, the how doesn't matter." He pointed to these life-changing events sometimes providing perspective on what you are to do with your life. For him, he endured his experience and recovery and it was never talked about again in his family until five years ago when his parents wrote a book about the experience. He bought the book and realized how much the experience impacted others. He had never been a public speaker. In fact, he made a D in public speaking in college. But he realized his story was one that needed told. He started to speak and has now made a business out of it. With the where are you going, we had to answer questions like five year plan, 12 month plans and what you will do to achieve those. He also asked the question of, if I knew I wouldn't fail, what would I do both personally and in business.
The next question was who is going with you. On this one, he talked about all the people in his life that made his recovery possible. The first night in the hospital he asked his mom if he was going to die. Her response was do you want to die. He said no and she said that he had to fight like he has never fought before and that they would be there every step of the way. He thought his dad would be furious with him since the house was burnt too. His dad came in and grabbed his hand and said how much he loved him and how proud he was of him. He had a nurse that every morning would come in and give him a bath and redress his wounds. His nurse would come in and say to him that he was going to walk again, and in the meantime I am coming along and will help you. The nurse would pick him up hover John's feet over the floor and carry him to the bath. John said he knew he would never walk - he was burnt to the bone on his legs. But he said after months of this nurse telling him this, he finally bought in to the sentiment.
He had therapists that would come and stretch him every day. John would make so much noise screaming that they had to move him away from other patients and give him a towel to bite on. While he was crying through this, he noticed the therapists crying too. He said his thought was I am the one that is going through this, what do they have to cry about. But then he realized that they are the people that come in to our life, not for the money and endure with you.
Right after he was put in the hospital, the St. Louis Cardinal's announcer Jack Buck came to visit him. He had never met John before, but he came in and told John that he was going to live and that they were going to have a John O'Leary day at the Cardinals Stadium. Jack walked out and crumpled on the floor crying. The nurses asked if he was all right, and he asked if John would live. The nurse told him that it was just a matter of time. Jack asked the nurses what more he could do. John pointed out that he never asked what was that kid thinking or where were his parents, it was what more could he do. Jack came back every day that he could while John was in the hospital. When he couldn't, he would announce a shout-out to John on the radio while commentating. There was a John O'Leary day at the stadium. Jack continued to ask what more he could do.
It is people like this that are also part of your journey. He was able to equate it to business in terms of this being a team that is there to support you. For me, I was so fortunate to have people like this in my life during my hardest time. I had amazing parents that moved their grown daughter back home to care for her after they thought their caregiving days were behind them. I had an amazing husband that sacrificed selflessly too many times to name. I had a puppy that served as my nurse - she would get up and walk beside me when I did laps. When the pain was too much and I was crying, she would lay her head in my lap. I was also blessed to know who my friends were during this. I had friends that would travel hours to come and spend a weekend with me, despite their lives and busy schedules.
So needless to say, John O'Leary's speech definitely was motivational and had an impact on me. So, who are you, where are you going and who is going with you?
Monday, January 24, 2011
All About Presentations
"It takes one hour of preparation for each minute of presentation time."
-- Wayne Burgraff
Awesome - so that means I need to spend 30 hours of prep time for my upcoming presentation on Thursday!! (In between everything else I have to do in prep for this meeting.) I have never been a fan of public speaking. I took my college teaching position partly because of my fear of public speaking. I know that sounds counterintuitive, but I like to challenge myself. I also know that public speaking is a part of life. It is something that is done daily in business settings, and if I want to grow professionally - it is something that I WILL have to do. So I thought, what better way to get over speaking in public than forcing myself to do it once a week. It has helped some.
There is a direct correlation between my comfort with/knowledge of the subject area and how uncomfortable I get with speaking. For example, my principles of advertising class - I know the subject inside and out. I can speak for over two hours on it and not once check the clock to see how much longer I have to stand at the front of my class and keep talking. It is also noticed by my students. They can tell how much I enjoy and how interactive I make the presentations. I have been told by numerous students how excited they are to take my advertising class, despite knowing how much work it will involve. Now the same can't be said for other subjects.
I have presented before to my students, which has never been more than 15 students. I have presented to an audience of about 50 for a National Student Advertising Competition in college, consisting of students, faculty and industry professionals. In professional settings, the most my presentations have entailed have been to a group of maybe 8-10 people. I have yet to present to a large audience in a professional business setting.
After Thursday, I will be able to mark that off my list of to-do's. It will be my first large-scale, company-wide presentation I have to do. To say I am nervous is an understatement. Thankfully, I will be presenting on marketing - which I know and am comfortable talking to people. Another plus is that practice makes perfect, and the more I do this (large-scale, professional presentations), the better/more comfortable I will get. So despite my extreme level of uncomfortableness right now, if you don't push yourself to the point of uncomfortable, you will never grow. Bring on the growth!!! (And LOTS of happy thoughts/well wishes/prayers my way on Thursday would be appreciated)
-- Wayne Burgraff
Awesome - so that means I need to spend 30 hours of prep time for my upcoming presentation on Thursday!! (In between everything else I have to do in prep for this meeting.) I have never been a fan of public speaking. I took my college teaching position partly because of my fear of public speaking. I know that sounds counterintuitive, but I like to challenge myself. I also know that public speaking is a part of life. It is something that is done daily in business settings, and if I want to grow professionally - it is something that I WILL have to do. So I thought, what better way to get over speaking in public than forcing myself to do it once a week. It has helped some.
There is a direct correlation between my comfort with/knowledge of the subject area and how uncomfortable I get with speaking. For example, my principles of advertising class - I know the subject inside and out. I can speak for over two hours on it and not once check the clock to see how much longer I have to stand at the front of my class and keep talking. It is also noticed by my students. They can tell how much I enjoy and how interactive I make the presentations. I have been told by numerous students how excited they are to take my advertising class, despite knowing how much work it will involve. Now the same can't be said for other subjects.
I have presented before to my students, which has never been more than 15 students. I have presented to an audience of about 50 for a National Student Advertising Competition in college, consisting of students, faculty and industry professionals. In professional settings, the most my presentations have entailed have been to a group of maybe 8-10 people. I have yet to present to a large audience in a professional business setting.
After Thursday, I will be able to mark that off my list of to-do's. It will be my first large-scale, company-wide presentation I have to do. To say I am nervous is an understatement. Thankfully, I will be presenting on marketing - which I know and am comfortable talking to people. Another plus is that practice makes perfect, and the more I do this (large-scale, professional presentations), the better/more comfortable I will get. So despite my extreme level of uncomfortableness right now, if you don't push yourself to the point of uncomfortable, you will never grow. Bring on the growth!!! (And LOTS of happy thoughts/well wishes/prayers my way on Thursday would be appreciated)
Sunday, January 23, 2011
"Much Ado About.." Feathers, Part 2
So in a prior post, I posted of a) my love of feathers - whether they be actual or print and b) use of feathers in fashion. This one is dedicated to the use of feathers in home decor.
I will start out with tableware. There are lots of options in terms of plates and drinking utensils. You can go abstract to literal, expensive or reasonable.
| Hand painted glasses on etsy, hand painted plates on etsy Bottom: Kate Spade plates |
Feathers have made their way in to bridal settings, with putting them in invitations, menu cards, programs and centerpieces. I don't think this is limited to only weddings. I think feathers make great centerpieces. Over Thanksgiving, I made a centerpiece of brown feathers with branches and some plastic cranberries in the bottom of the vase. It was about the same price, if not less than, a traditional flower arrangement. The bonus is that in a week's time, I would have to throw the flower arrangement away. The feathers lasted and are now stored for next year's fall decorating.
| Feathers used in centerpiece on mantel and feathers in invitations/menu cards |
Holiday decorating has even gone to the birds, so to speak. This year in many places I found feather trees that served as decorations, in addition to feather wreaths. The peacock wreath could definitely extend past Christmas in its use.
| Feather trees found on etsy.com, Peacock wreath at Pier1 |
There is the option of peacock printed bedding, like Dwell's below. I also have seen many start to incorporate a peacock theme in to nursery decoration.
| Dwell Studio Peacock Bedding Duvet Cover For the bold, there is the option of feather-printed wallpaper. I don't know that I could handle a whole room done in this print, but I love the idea of it for an accent wall. In fact, in our next house it is something I am seriously considering for the office. |
| Fern Living feather wallpaper |
 |
| Feather letterhead on zazzle.com |
So, what is your favorite use of feathers? Has anyone seen other great uses of feathers in home decor?
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Clever Advertising
I apologize for the lack of posting recently - starting a new job, teaching two classes and having a new puppy have all resulted in little to no time right now. My husband was even lecturing me on not keeping up with the inclement weather we had recently and my lack of blogging. He said I lost readers because of not giving weather updates. So to all of you that did not receive your weather updates, I apologize!!
Since I have been in advertising mode with my Principles of Advertising class starting last night and working on some ad campaigns at work, I thought I would share some pictures of some great outdoor advertising that I have seen.
Let's just say I am getting excited and have some high expectations for the Super Bowl advertising that is coming up in a few weeks. I am actually very excited to have my advertising class during the time when the Super Bowl is going to be played - a great extra credit assignment!! Which outdoor ad is your favorite? Have you seen others that are unique or clever? If so, please share!!
Since I have been in advertising mode with my Principles of Advertising class starting last night and working on some ad campaigns at work, I thought I would share some pictures of some great outdoor advertising that I have seen.
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