Thursday, December 20, 2012

26 Acts of Kindness: Acts #1, #2, and #3


Merry Christmas Everyone! 

This is the time of year for joy, happiness, love, acceptance, and giving. If you haven't already heard of the 26 Acts of Kindness that is in honor of the 26 victims of the shooting in Connecticut then listen up. Take time this holiday season to do 26 random acts of kindness for others. It doesn't have to be something big, maybe an extra dollar or two on your next tip, giving a special card for a neighbor who doesn't get out much, or leaving a quarter in a gumball machine to make a child's day. 


A few coworkers and I have decided we want to do these 26 acts. There is nothing better in this world than a little extra kindness and compassion and I hope that you will pay it forward and help make this world a better place. 

26 Acts of Kindness on Facebook
#26actsofkindness on Twitter
or
click HERE and scroll to the bottom to get a free blank 26 Acts of Kindness sheet

26 RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS: ACTS #1 #2 and #3 
In honor of: 

Charlotte Bacon, age 6
Daniel Barden, age 7
Rachel Davino, age 29

Eric and I decided to give our neighbors a Christmas card along with $1.50 for a load of laundry. 

Please consider passing on the love this Christmas season with your random acts of kindness. 
I will keep posting our RAK's and hopefully you will share yours too!

Monday, December 10, 2012

Pantone Color of the Year 2013!

It's that time of year again! 
Pantone has announced their color of the year for 2013, and it is.... 

EMERALD! 
photo from www.pantone.com

CLICK THE JUMP BELLOW TO SEE MORE! 


Sunday, December 9, 2012

Weekend Recap


Hello everyone! 
So this weekend Eric's mom, dad, sister, and their cousin Jess came down to Cincinnati and hung out with us on Saturday. We did some Christmas shopping at the Cincinnati Outlets (which is now one of my new favorite place btw), had a delicious lunch at the Macaroni Grill, and went to the PNC Festival of Lights at the Cincinnati Zoo.  

It was a perfect way to celebrate the holiday season. The weather was really nice and it was extremely crowded, but the lights were just stunning and the atmosphere was buzzing. I highly recommend visiting the zoo this season. 


Like I said, absolutely beautiful. 
Hope your weekend was great, only a few more left until CHRISTMAS!!! 

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Holiday Happiness!


Happy holiday season everyone! 
I am one of those sticklers who refuses to acknowledge Christmas until after Thanksgiving. I believe every holiday deserves some love, and listening to Christmas music and having your tree up a week after Halloween is just crazy ridiculous. 
Sorry, it just is. 

That  being said don't misunderstand my attitude as not loving Christmas, I totally do! Especially this year since Eric and I had our very own place to decorate! Thanks to my mom who gave me a lot of the decorations she just doesn't use anymore, we were able to turn our little apartment into a cute little winter wonderland :) 

Here's a peek at the decorations we put up. 



DIY trees skirt tutorial: Tea and Lime 
DIY wreath tutorial: Mr. Kate

Monday, November 19, 2012

Weekend Recap: The Crafty Supermarket!

Happy Monday everyone! 
Be warned this post is going to have a TON of pictures :) 

This weekend was an absolute blast. Friday I was able to go out with the beautiful Britany Wendel (who does amazing photography with DreamerImage go check her work out!!!) and we had a fabulous time. It was just so great to catch up and hang out with friends. 

Saturday I went to The Crafty Supermarket . This indie craft show that had over 50 vendors, great food, demos, and a live DJ! 


BE SURE TO FOLLOW THE JUMP TO SEE MORE!!! 

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Recipe Review


A few months ago (ok...almost a year ago) I did a post about a few recipes that I've found which are both super yummy and also Weight Watcher friendly! Well I figure it's about time I did another one to talk about the recipes that I've ventured out to try and what I thought of them. 
This post is kind of long, but it's worth it, trust me! 

-------------------- APPLE CINNAMON TARTE --------------------


This Image and Recipe is from Emily Bites 

This guy is SUPER delish. It really wasn't that hard to make, and would be a perfect dish for Thanksgiving. It tastes just like apple pie, but without all that extra calories. 

Ingredients:
3 medium apples

1 t lemon juice

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed (I used Pepperidge Farms brand which comes with 2 sheets in a box)

4 T granulated sugar, divided
1 t all-purpose flour (plus a little bit to flour the surface of your workspace when you work with the pastry dough)
½ t cinnamon
1/8 t nutmeg
1/8 t allspice



Directions:

1.    Preheat the oven to 400. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside (I used a 10 x 15” baking sheet).


2.    Slice the apples open and remove the core. Cut the apples into thin slices (about ¼” thick). Toss lightly with the lemon juice and set aside.

3.    Lightly flour your workspace surface and unfold the thawed puff pastry sheet onto the floured space. Using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the pastry sheet out to be a 10” x 14” rectangle. Place the pastry rectangle onto the prepared baking sheet and refrigerate for 10 minutes.

4.    In a small dish, combine one tablespoon of the sugar with the teaspoon of flour and stir. In a separate small bowl, combine the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar, the cinnamon, the nutmeg and the allspice. Mix until combined.

5.    Leaving about 1/2” around the edges, sprinkle the flour mixture across the surface of the pastry rectangle. Line the apple slices onto the pastry in three long rows, overlapping the slices. Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture evenly over the top of the apple slices.

6.    Bake for about 35 minutes or until the edges are browned and the apple are cooked through and tender. Let the tart cool for a few minutes. Cut tart into 12 equal pieces (I used a pizza cutter to slice lengthwise between each row of apples to form three long sections and then I just cut each of those into four equal pieces) and serve. 



Yields 12 servings. WW P+: 3 per serving (P+ calculated using the recipe builder on weightwatchers.com)

Nutrition Information per serving from myfitnesspal.com: 115 calories, 17 g carbs, 5 g fat, 2 g protein, 1 g fiber


SEE MORE AFTER THE JUMP! 

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Wedding Pictures!!!


I've gotten an AMAZING preview to my wedding photos on Lindsey Kay Photo Design's blog! I can't wait to see the rest of the pictures. To see the rest of her post go....HERE

Monday, October 15, 2012

Weekend Recap: Caring for Carter & Pole Showcase

HAPPY MONDAY!

I don't know about you, but I had a blast this weekend. Friday night the hubby and me drove up to Coldwater to go to the high school football game. This game was super special because it was dedicated to help raise money for my cousin's son who has been diagnosed with Hunter's Syndrome MPS Type II.


Friday, October 12, 2012

Fall Bliss


I LOVE FALL!!!!!!! 
Anyone who knows me understands that this is not a secret. There is just something wonderful about cozy nights with a book and hot apple cider that makes me smile. 
One of the main reason I love fall though is because of the clothes, I L-O-V-E fall fashion! Scarves, sweaters, boots, leggings, jeans, I love it all!
 Last night I packed away all of my summer tank tops and shorts and got out my sweatpants, sweatshirts, and everything long sleeved...it was a wonderful night. Though looking through everything that I wore last season of course get me itching to go out and buy new things. Especially since my size has changed so dramatically since last year. Oh well, maybe if I'm good I'll let myself go on a little shopping spree! 

Until then...
I've browsed through my Pinterest page and found my most adored outfits and hopefully that inspires you to create some amazing looks this fall!



Don't you just want to run to the store right now and buy a new scarf....or five?! I know I do :) 
Happy weekend and enjoy the weather!


Saturday, September 29, 2012

New Husband and New Stuff!!

HEY HEY! 
So as of today Eric and I have been married for one week, and so far so good :)

I love being married, it's a whole new take on life and I can't even describe how wonderful it is to come home to the apartment and someone else is there. I will eventually post more about the wedding once I get my pictures back, but until then I figured I'd give some updates on our little apartment and how its gradually looking more like a home. 


So here are some pictures that I took on my phone, its not every room and some of the images aren't the best, but I think its coming along! 

Monday, August 20, 2012

New Apartment (Part 2)

** This is for you Eric so you can see what I'm doing while you're away!**

The move went well!! I can't believe how much stuff I have. I would think "ok this is it" and then I'd notice 3 more boxes that I missed or forgot that we still had to get everything from my old place in Cincy. I now dread having to do this when we have kids. But eventually it all made it up the stairs and through the skinny kitchen! Even the super heavy sofa that the guys had to pretty much take apart and carry up in pieces (thanks again Dean for helping!).

Eric ended up staying over that night and thank goodness he did otherwise I think I would've just looked around at everything and started crying. We were up forever cleaning all our new things and putting them away in the kitchen, organizing the bedroom, sorting boxes and figuring out where everything ended up. It was a lot of work, and we were both exhausted that night.

Today was proclaimed "organize all the things!" day. I hit up 3 of my favorite stores: The Container Store, IKEA, and Target and brought home enough storage solutions to fill an entire Pinterest board. It was wonderful.

So after two days of intense organizing here is what I have to show!


Friday, August 17, 2012

There's No Place Like Home...My New Crib!

MOVING WEEKEND!!! 
I am so so sooo excited for this weekend! Do you know why? Because I get to move into my new apartment that my future husband and I will call our first home! 
EEEEEEKKKK!!!! 
Everything I think about it I just get so happy. 
I really love our apartment. It has wooden floors, high ceilings, some pretty cool lighting, an old fireplace, and all that old home charm. I already have a TON of ideas on how to decorate it, but of course that will take time and hopefully we have room to decorate after we combine all of our belongings together. Not to mention all of the bridal shower and wedding presents we have to take into consideration. But not to worry, everything will fall into place. As of now we only have a couch, table, some chairs, and my dresser as furniture so that will also have to grow over time. It doesn't matter though because its MY place!!! Even that I do have to share it with Eric, I have never lived somewhere that didn't have 3 or 4 other roommates to think about. Done with the days of cleaning messes that aren't mine, changing TP rolls because the last person used it all up and didn't think to put a new one on, having to search to try and find a space to cram my apples into the fridge because its PACKED with every one's food, or a giant case of beer. UGGG I hate that. 

But enough babbling and onto the pictures! These are from my phone, and the bare bones of the apartment. I can't wait to keep showing its progress as it transforms from this plain space into something completely our own. 



Hope you like them! Any decorating suggestions are also welcome :) 

Monday, July 30, 2012

London Baby! Summer Olympics 2012

Like so many this past weekend, I spend a decent amount of time watching the beginning of the Olympic Games in London! I did miss most of the opening ceremony, but was able to catch Paul McCartney singing The End and Hey Jude   and that pretty much made my night. 

What I want to talk about though is this year's Olympic logo. 
This logo was a topic of discussion, along with a lot of mockery at the design conference I went to last month, and it is interesting to look at how its been executed during the games. 

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Before and "Almost" After...


HELLO MY BLOGGER FRIENDS!!! 
Today I am celebrating my 1 year mark with Weight Watchers. Now I'm not here to endorse the program or try to make everyone want to join, but I do want to share a little bit of my journey with you (don't worry I'll make it short and sweet).

In May of 2011 I had just graduated college, gotten engaged, and started the job searching process. Everything was looking pretty good...except me. Now I have never fully been happy with my weight. This is something I've struggled with since I was a little girl. I always thought I would be too heavy to just run up to my mom or dad and have them lift me up like I would see my cousins do with their parents. I even remember in preschool, on Grandparents Day, telling my Grandma to let me know if I was squishing her when I sat on her lap. Although there was constantly this internal struggle with my weight, I also never looked at myself as obese. I knew I was just curvy and build a bit different than other girls. 

Once July rolled around I found myself with a full time graphic design job, an income that would pay for more than my monthly rent, and the financial means to do something I've always considered but never actually did. I joined Weight Watchers. 

The rest is pretty much history. I go to weekly meetings, absolutely LOVE my leader, and have had my eyes opened to what I was doing in the past that were the major factors of my weight. I have learned that there is a reason things are measured into portion sizes, and more often than not, that is just the amount I need. Fruits and veggies have become my best friend, and I actually look forward to my work outs! 

So after 1 year, I am down 24 lbs and am getting closer to my final goal every day. The journey has been tough, and some weeks (or months) I am so frustrated that all I want is to eat a package of Oreos and call it a night. But my support team (aka Eric) always is there for me to vent, and I know that even after I eat those cookies I'm still not going to feel better. 

I'll end this by saying THANKS! to everyone who gave me the motivation to keep going or said a kind word that makes it all worth while. Thank you so much. And to everyone out there wondering if they would be able to do the program, I say GO FOR IT!!! 
You have nothing to loose, and everything to gain (pun intended).  :) 

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Wedding Invitations!

I am obsessed with paper and all things made from paper. Invitations being one of my major addictions. I have a little portfolio album filled with every wedding invitation and program I have ever been to. I just think its fascinating how each couple creates something different and it always seems to reflect their character and personality. 

When it came to designing my OWN wedding invitations though I thought to myself, "There is NO WAY I'm ever going to be able to design something and then be happy with it!" I was positive that it would never be quite done and I would always be wanted to change or improve it. So I talked to another designer to help me create and order everything I would need for my invitations. Well, being a designer and extremely anal when it comes to detail,spacing, kerning, things lining up etc... I ended up designing my own invitations anyhow.  

AND IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!!! 

I ended up with exactly what I wanted and thanks to the fabulous help from 571 Invitations  everything turned out beautifully. 

So since I can't keep anything I'm super excited about a secret for long, here are some pictures of my wedding invitations! I hope you like them and for those of you sharing my special day you should be getting your own real life invitation soon! 








There you go! 
I hope you love them as much as I do. Getting married and planning a wedding has been such a fun, crazy, exciting, and truly wonderful experience. And to all you other future brides out there congratulations and good luck!!! 










Tuesday, June 26, 2012

HOW Design Live Conference in Boston 2012

Hey everyone! Just as a warning this is a loooong post but I am just so excited to share with you guys my trip to Boston!! :D 



So this weekend a co-worker and I were able to attend the HOW Design Live Conference in Boston, MA! It was seriously one of the best weekends I've experience. There were fantastic speakers, wonderful workshops, super awesome design, an incredible bookstore, and tons and TONS of FREE STUFF!!! I seriously have a HUGE pile sitting on my bed that I just want to jump into and shove all of the great design in my face! 
GAAAAAAA!!!!! 
It was so sweet! 
I don't even know where to begin talking about all that happened. But I'm sure the beginning would work :) 

THURSDAY JUNE 21

Becca and I got to the airport and everything went well from Cincy to Washington. It was in Washington when our flight got delayed by about 3 hours that we had time to get some dinner and do THIS to the tablecloth ;) never leave a paper table cover in the hands of two designers. 


So anyhow we FINALLY got to Boston and driving through the city at night was so beautiful.

FRIDAY JUNE 22

(3 months till my wedding btw) 

So Friday morning we woke up early and took a trip on the subway to the Hynes Convention Center in downtown Boston. The conference started off with studio tours of graphic design firms around the city. 
Be sure to check out their websites they are all incredible firms with amazing work. Their offices are so open and stimulating....I LOVED THEM!!! I wasn't able to get pictures at Weymouth. But I did get some at Toth + Co. As well as Cory McPherson Nash. 

Toth + Co. 








 Corey McPherson Nash


 This studio was really really nice. They had fruit out for us and also gave us a flash drive at the end of the tour. They also had this little contest going on where they encouraged you to take pictures of their studio and tweet it #Coreylivetour. Whoever has the best picture at the end of the weekend would win of these awesome shadow boxes each of the employees made. It was super fun trying to capture their space (which was made from a reconstructed old school house). 







So after the tours Becca and I headed out to find some lunch. We walked around and came across this sweet restaurant called Max Brenner. It was delicious! The whole place smelled of chocolate and the food was super delicious! It also had this BEAUTIFUL branding, as well as KILLER desserts :) (see below!) 



After lunch we went back to the Hynes center and went to our workshop! It was "Change the Way You Think About Type" with Dr. Shelley Gruendler. We spent 2 hours working with other designers doing these little typography games that actually were a lot of fun! We also learned so much about type, the history of type, and how to look at it as an art form. 
During the summer she teaches at Type Camp. She gave us this YouTube channel to watch. 
She also gave us some great resources to check out. 

That evening we walked back to the hotel, checking out the city along with way. Here are some of the beautiful buildings we saw! 







Once we were ready we headed to the Quincy Market. A hoppin place with a market (not a lot different than Findlay Market here in Cincy) with tons of food, music, restaurants, shops, and bars. We had a great time eating at Cheers and just taking in the culture! 


GELATTO!!!! :) so yummy 

SATURDAY JUNE 23

So Saturday was the first day of the conference where we had the speakers. I don't want to ramble on and on about how AMAZING everyone was...but it might be hard :) 

Our first designer we got to listen speak was Chipp KiddUnder the Covers with Chipp Kidd. 

Chip is a book cover designer who does fantastic work. He's actually incredibly raunchy and dropped the F-Bomb about 15 times, BUT he's super interesting and his design thought process is fascinating. 
He's actually created a new Batman Novel titled "Batman: Death by Design". He showed us part of the story and it looks like it'll be a great read. 



-----------------------------------------

Next we heard Johanna Bjoerk talk about The INs and OUTs of Working In-House
She was especially awesome since that is what Becca and I are, in-house designers for Matson Money.  It was so nice to see that the issues and barriers that we run into at our job, everyone else in an in-house position are running into them too. But it also made us be appreciative of the benefits and perks of having a corporate job. Johanna had a list of points to help in-house designers be their best. 

Johannah's List: 
- Make Friends (or at least not enemies)
- Respect Corporate Policies (there are worse things than dress codes)
- Beware of Greige (make your workspace creative) 
- Stay Curious (the world is very inspiring) 
- Have Side Projects (they make you a better designer) 
- Learn to Write (it makes you seem smarter and more professional) 
- Write Great Creative Briefs (to get your work approved) 
- Become a Storyteller (makes your work come alive) 
- Learn to Speak the Language (otherwise they won't understand you)

Another thing we covered were the positives of in-house positions such as stability, tech support, name recognition, being able to use a mail room, and awesome corporate outings :) 

-------------------------------------------

Drawing Conclusions with Von Glitschka  was our next lecture. 
This guy was great. He really pushed the point that drawing and sketching out an idea is super important to the design process. We as designers need to not LOOK, but CREATE!!! Looking will put us at the risk of copy-write....and that's never good. 
KEEP DRAWING!!! 

------------------------------------------
Next was Type Lessons From Young Guns with Allen Haley. 
Allen talked about the incredible work that is coming out of  the next generation of designers; college students, recent graduates, and 30ish professionals. Every designer he showed us was under the age of 30, and it was beautiful!

Characteristics of a young-gun designer: 
- Seductive Typography
-Typography that creates a venue
- Type that changes a venue
- Type alluring lettering 
- Engaging typography
- Making a typographical game 
- Provocative typography 
- They are UNAFRAID!! 

BE BOLD!!! 

------------------------------------------

Our last speaker of the day talked about The Standard 5: Special Effects with Sappi paper and Kit Hinrichs of Studio Hinrichs
Mr. Hinrichs introduced the Standard 5 book and showed how the creative use of special effects can make a printed piece dimensional, tactile, intriguing and even interactive. This book is AMAZING I've looked at it at least a dozen times and it just fascinates me. What can be printed on paper today is just so cool!!! 
Another thing that made this lecture so neat is that Sappi, also has worked with the Organization 826 National a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students with their writing skills, and helping teachers inspire their students to write. Its an incredible cause and there is one located in Boston. After the session we each received a free copy of The Standard 5 and also a poster signed by Kit Hinrichs. As well as an awesome octopus tattoo! 

So that was the end of our first day! On our walk home we ran into this food truck that sold cupcakes! 



We shared a chocolate chip cookie dough one that was sooo delish! 
Boston really is a great city to go out in. 


SUNDAY JUNE 24

Sunday was an absolutely beautiful day!!! Our first speaker was Debbie Millman talking about Brand Thinking and Other Noble Pursuits. She was fabulous, she talked about how the brands we use today have been transformed because we as humans are constantly in need of change. Our history has moved through 5 waves; 
Wave 1: (1875-1920) - brands guaranteed quality and greatness, we expected them to be safe. Coca-Cola.
Wave 2: (1920-1965) - Brands become identified by people. Betty Crocker, Uncle Ben. People related these characters to their brands and associate with them. 
Wave 3: (1963-1985) - Brands as self-expresssive, they provide status such as Nike, Levi, and Malboro cigs (which were actually advertised for women at first!) 
Wave 4: (1985-2000) - Emotional Transformation such as Disney, Starbucks, and Apple computers. They created these emotions that people identified when they saw the brand. 
Wave 5: (2000-present) - Limbic brands, creates an experience to connect people. Facebook, LinkedIN, Twitter, MySpace, Pinterest, ect. 

Its not what the next new trend is that makes it hot, its what we do with it! 

----------------------------------------

Our second speaker on Sunday was Armin Vit talking about How to Make Killer Logos and Identities in the 21st Century. This guy is funny. He went through tons and tons of logos and talked about why they worked...and why they sucked. One of his main suggestions is just to not make a logo look like a penis. 

Simple! 

No penis logos! 

His idea of a logo that works is: Simple, Memorable, and Perfectly executed. He also brought up the topic of trends and whether you should avoid them or ride them out? His suggestion was to avoid them if you can, but if they are relevant to what you're final design needs then go for it. Haters are gonna hate no matter what. 

To create a great logo you must: 
1. Pick a story - a relevent story - and tell it! 
2. Execute flawlessly 
3. Blend the austerity of mid-10th-century design principles with the robustness of the 21st century innovation. 

------------------------------------------

So I know  I don't have many pictures of the speakers, but it was really hard to get a good one with my phone unless they were projected on the big screen like Chipp, and most of the time they were not. But I do have more of our lunch outings!!! 
Today we walked around a different block and found a really REALLY cute street that had a lot of different independent businesses as well as some more commercial stores. 

The first one we went into was Johnny Cupcakes. 


NO SUGAR! NO CARBS! NO FAT! 



Johnny Cupcakes is a company that sells t-shirts, buttons, magnets, boxers, and other items. They are super nice and have a killer branding! 


How sharp is that business card! 

After not actually buying any cupcakes, we had lunch at this extremely yummy italian cafe where the birds were not at all afraid to pay you a visit. 


Why hello there! 

Another place we stopped at was Fish and Bone, an urban pet essentials store. Becca found this adorable collar for her dog Lilly and there were also these sweet dog treats that looked good enough to eat myself! 


After looking at dog treats..we did finally get some treats for ourself :) 



Lemon Blueberry cupcake! Probably the fanciest cupcake I've ever had. 

------------------------------------------

Once we got back to the conference we went to see Mikey Burton (from OHIO!) speak on Will Work for Work. His topic was  about turning your freelance/extra projects into a profit for yourself. His story of his own journey was really fascinating. One of the coolest thing he did was create a project re-designing book covers for classic novels such as "Lord of the Flies", "Animal Farm", "The Great Gatsby", and "The Outsiders". Check them out, they are fantastic! They also got him an article in The Daily Heller. 

His tips to making your work work for you are: 
1. Make lots of stuff! 
2. Be Patient
3. Good things happen
4. REPEAT!

LOVE WHAT YOU DO! 

While we were talking to Mikey afterwards about Ohio (he was the first person we met at the conference from Ohio) one of the workers from HOW approached us and was like "I'm from Ohio too! I'm from Cincinnati!" and of course we're like SERIOUSLY!? And according to her, and we felt super dumb for not knowing this, HOW Magazine is based in Blue Ash! Right outside Cincinnati!!!!!!!! WWWWHHHHAAAATTT???? How sweet is that! 

--------------------------------------------

Our very last speaker for the HOW Conference was Melissa Ivone Morris talking about How to Survivie Your Soul Crushing Day Job. Now I know the title is a little harsh, and there is no way I would describe my job as "soul crushing", I really enjoy my job! But as any in-house design position, sometimes it is not as creatively stimulating as one would wish. 
Melissa is an extremely entertaining speaker as well as an avid blogger, designer, and crafter. Her blog Operation Nice has been talked about on Good Morning America and received national recognition. She is sooo funny and cute and you just want to go up there and be her best friend. She worked for a medical supply company for 9 years where she created pamphlets and brochures about wound care, signs to be hung in the bathroom, and other hospital issues. Sounds exciting right? :( 
Her talk was about keeping your creative muscles strong even though you may not be passionate about your day job. 

She had 6 tips for helping you survive:
1. Think Positive
2. Let Your Freak Flag Fly!!! - be yourself and don't conform to the office
3. Join a Gang - get a design posse and keep them close
4. Get Passionate - about anything and go for it! 
5. Get Busy - get more skilz, get out there and be involved
6. Don't Stop Believing - go for what you want, make a goal list. 

Protect your soul and don't get crushed! 

---------------------------------------------

Another cool thing we did was get posters signed by these rockstars; Jake and Pum Lefebure from Design Army!!!!!!! Check out the website, their work is A-MAZING!! 



OK so finally we heading back home and on our walk we passed by a street with these incredibly stunning homes as well as a park with tons of weeping willows and a charming pond. 





MONDAY JUNE 24 

A.K.A. airport D-Day

OOOOK so I don't need to bore you with our travel adventure home, but lets just say that I now feel comfortable handling ANYTHING the airport throws at me. We had 3 delayed flights, 2 of those being completely canceled, about 5 lines to stand in, and lots and lots of waiting. We got there at 9:30am and left around 7:00pm. There was weather, airplane problems, Obama landing, New York's airport closing, and 2 guys who almost got into a flight because one of them "pushed the other!". It was crazy. 
Silver lining!! We did get to see Debbie Millmanm, and tell her that we thought her talk at HOW was super. She said we made her day, and gave us two sketchbooks she designed. It was great :) 

So finally we got our hotel room for the evening figured out and the airport was actually extremely nice. They paid for our taxi cap to and from the hotel, as well as the hotel room, and they gave us meal vouchers. They also gave us this STELLAR overnight kit that included an extremely large t-shirt, razor and shaving cream, cotton balls with q-tips, as well as a toothbrush and the smallest bottle of toothpaste in the world! 


So tiny! 

The rest of the night involved a trip to Walmart (since our luggage was on the plane to New York we decided to not get on), ordering takeout from a local pizza place, and watching Shawshank Redemption on TV. 

The next morning we went back to the airport, and buzzed through security again. One of the guards recognized me from the day before (probably because I was still in the same clothes) and said I looked "Wicked Familiar!" haha made me laugh :) 
Our flight did get held back by about 40 minutes but we boarded and FINALLY flew home to Cincinnati! 

I ended my day by doing laundry, laying out int he sun, and going to a Zumba class to buzz off some steam. It actually was a great day :) 


SO! To any other designers out there, if you ever get the chance to go to HOW Design Live TAKE IT!!!! I want to go back so bad next year it isn't even funny. I hope that my job feels like it was worth sending us because we absolutely loved it and appreciated it soooo much! So thank you Matson Money, my boss Kim and my other boss Michelle for deciding it was a good idea to send us. We are so grateful! :)