Author: Steph E.

I am a public relations, communications, and marketing integrator who has a passion for learning, consuming, and communicating that can’t be satiated. I believe that communication is at the core of all things. When done right, it can ignite change, sell products, spark ideas, strengthen relationships, and even change history. To me, for these reasons, having the opportunity to create someone’s message or tell a story is an awesome responsibility. Whether it be for a brand, a global corporation, or a population in need, I have the duty to be an ethical leader, creative genius, idea generator, content creator, and any number of other things. I can’t imagine waking up to do anything else. Life is short, but it is amazing! Take chances, be creative, work hard, lead with your heart, always be kind, give back, and never stop learning. My goal in life is to always love what I do, and try to handle every situation with grace and humor. P.S. Go Spartans! "Never let the odds keep you from pursuing what you know in your heart you were meant to do." -Satchel Paige

And the Winter Fun Continues

I was woken up from a deep sleep in the early hours of the morning by a massive snapping and crashing noise.

I shot straight up out of bed, smacking Paul in the chest yelling, “what was that?!”.

I scramble out of bed and go flying down the stairs like a bat out of hell, as fast as I can without falling in the dark, and dart from window to window to see what the culprit of this noise was.

When I get to the fourth window, and still see nothing, I am starting to question whether or not I was dreaming. I don’t hear Paul getting out of bed yet either, so I start to think, “oh God, it must have been part of my dream. I look like a complete fucking lunatic right now!”.

Determined to prove my sanity, I race to the back door. Imagine my relief to find this waiting for me: *pictures were taken in the light of day*

the poor patio chair never had a chance…

Paul finally lumbered down, took a look, and said, “huh…thankfully it didn’t hit a car or come through the roof. I’m going back to bed,” and with his signature kiss to the top of my head, made his way back up stairs.

This morning, I was able to investigate more. We had been his by a huge ice storm, coating our whole world in ice. While walking around the house taking pictures, I could hear limbs and trees crashing all over our neighborhood. For as awful as the fallen trees and damage is, there is a beauty to everything being covered in ice.

Hope everyone getting strange weather is safe!

Back/side of our house

P.S. Our snowman was murdered 😦 He lived a mere 24 hours.

It’s Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas

It has been a snowy few weeks here in Mid-Michigan, and the temps have been sub-zero for a number of days. So imagine the joy and surprise of the people when it hit a balmy 40 degrees yesterday.

Annually, whenever the temperature dips below 50 degrees for the first time in “winter”, I sternly declare, “Michigan is too cold! I will never survive another winter!”… yet any Michigander will tell you that in the depths of winter, if the temp rises anywhere near 35 degrees or higher, you mine as well declare it a heat wave.

Enter this gentleman:

I get it, it’s 37 degrees out and feels like spring break, but sir, this is just inappropriate.

Luckily for my Christmas loving significant other, the balmy weather did not melt all of our snow. There was still plenty left over for us to make a snow man, an activity I have not partaken in for years!

Making a snow man is harder than it looks! Snow is heavy, and molding a perfect or even presentable “ball” of snow is damn near impossible. Alas, after a few failed lifts to give him a mid-section, a number of facial reconstructive surgeries to take him from looking like a bunny to the predator then ET, we finally sort of made a lawn ornament we can be proud of:

Spartan pride and Detroit represented

It is kind of hard to tell, but he is smiling

And the puppy helped of course:

He’s so handsome!

Then, we retreated to our living room to sit by the Christmas tree and drink home-made Baileys, compliments of our dear friends. (We didn’t actually just sit by the tree, mind you. You just burned through our DVR then ended up watching Wheel of Fortune. I know what you are thinking; we are one hot couple).

At this point in the story I need to tell you about what has been haunting me this Christmas. A little, professionally wrapped box that was placed in my stocking. Any girl will probably know what I am referring to when I say “a little box”. Oh yeah, that kind of box:

Paul put this in my stocking about 2 weeks ago, and I am convinced it has been just to mess with my head. He is NOT a Christmas engagement person; it is just not his style, but a girl (especially me) just has to wonder.

I have been bugging him since the first present went under our tree to start opening them. I am a child, I just don’t wait well. Finally, last night, whilst watching Wheel of Fortune, Paul says that I can open one gift. I completely froze. He had this ethereal, loving, can’t-live-without-you, could-never-love-anyone-more, how-are-you-mine? look on his face.

Was this it? Was he thinking that it had been such a great night that it would be the perfect moment to propose?

My heart started racing. Beads of sweat started to form on my nose. It was as if my parents had just caught me drinking and I was trying to hide the fact that I was drunk… Play it cool, just play it cool.

“Which one?” I ask… totally normal and level-toned I’m sure.

“The little one in your stocking.”

I sort of turned down the TV thinking, “I don’t want to be a brat about it, but are Pat Sajak and Vanna White going to be the witnesses to my engagement?” Don’t get me wrong, I would say yes to him any where, but part of me just felt like the situation was off… or maybe it was just the heaviness of the situation. I have never dealt with this kind of thing before. Was this the moment that I was going to be telling people about for the rest of my life? The moment I would call all of my friends about and have to repeat over and over in the coming months? Was I about to throw up? Did I look at all calm and unsuspecting?

“Steph, it is not an engagement ring, this is not Paul’s style”… I kept reassuring myself as I took the 6 foot walk from the couch to my stocking where the little box was resting.

“I’m in pajamas… I really wanted to be in a cute outfit…. Christ that could not matter less” I can argue a lot in my head in 6 feet.

I finally pull it out and make my way back to the couch when Paul says, “I really wanted to get this for you last year, so I am so happy I can give it to you this year.”

Female over-analyze activated: What the f**k does that mean?… Just open the present you weirdo. But my hands are sort of trembling (sort of = a lot), and I still can’t really breath. Would it be wrong to hit my inhaler real quick? As if that wouldn’t be a give away that I wasn’t completely emotionally collected.

Slowly tearing through the gold paper, I unveil a beautiful little white box with a very reassuring and fabulous little word embossed in the top of it: Pandora. All levels returned to normal, breathing again was possible.

All was clear, all was safe; it was a beautiful Michigan State Pandora bead for me to put on my ever naked yet daily worn Pandora bracelet.

I couldn’t love it more. Sorry, Pat and Vanna, you will not be witness to my engagement 🙂

It’s so perfect!!!!! He wanted me to have extra Spartan pride before the Rose Bowl game.

P.S Congrats, Paul, you officially made me squirm and I know you loved it.

The Rebuild

One of the greatest facets to taking a break from running is starting back up again.

Those first few steps during your first official “training” run, or rebuilding your base run, feel so light and easy (for me at least). Then you hit the wall of “OMG, I have lost all of my conditioning”, only to be soon followed by the victories of every longer run from there on out.

Sometimes, I can’t help but see the parallelisms between running and life. I love running because each run is an opportunity for victory (or defeat). The outcome is more dependent on my attitude about it rather than the actual run itself, kind of how you can treat your day.

Each new day offers an opportunity for victory or defeat. Whether you are conquering that pile of laundry, getting a promotion or bombing a presentation. Whatever it is, YOU decide whether you rocked your day or failed at it, and your attitude, not the checks marks on your to-do list, can determine that.

I don’t know how we just went from running to my soap box of positive thinking, but there you have it. I guess what I set out to say was that my efforts to get my base back and prep for a spring marathon are working 🙂

I hope everyone is having a very happy holiday season so far! I know this guy is:

He’s so mad!

Love these words of wisdom

“Cutting people from your life does not mean you hate them, it simply means, you respect yourself.”

—	(via beyoursledgehammer)

The Oddity of Human Nature

Humans are a funny species, and sometimes not in the “ha-ha” way. I am often surprised by the hurtful things that people can say and the terrible things that people are capable of doing. I just sit back in shock thinking, “how can someone be so disgusting?”.

Call me naive, but I still find it hard to believe that some people can be so evil and thoughtless.

I am no saint. I make mistakes, I put my foot in my mouth, but I never act with the intent to hurt. I have always said that I want to live my life like my mother did: with grace and humor. I may not always succeed, but I do my best.

Times like this, I try to focus on the good that people do. Good deeds with no agenda, no want for reward, and no need for recognition.

Without the negative we wouldn’t know the beauty that this world is capable of, and I try to do what I can to add to it.

I pray that you all get daily reminders of all the good in this world and that you are able to flush away negativity that comes your way.

Happy Thanksgiving, and love to all ❤

This photo always makes me smile 🙂

An arthritic 19-year-old dog named Schoep is cradled by his owner, John, in the waters of Lake Superior, where the buoyancy eases the dog's pain, allowing him to fall asleep comfortably in his owner's arms.

This makes me so very happy….

(from Buzzfeed)

Is This Real Life?!

Relationships are tough, in the best way possible though. Paul and I aren’t even married yet, but I see what people are saying when they say that marriage is hard.

I am learning though that the hard part isn’t us, or making “us” work. That is the easy part. The hard part is making sure that I am giving it my all every day, because that is what Paul does. He is such a great example of what it means to love unconditionally, always treat me fairly, and to be consistent in his love and what he gives to the relationship.

And then there is me… the hot mess of the duo…

The great thing about a healthy, loving relationship (in my mind) is that it demands the best of you, but loves you still at your worst. It forgives your faults, reminds you of your strengths, and kicks you in the ass when you need a push, making you grow. I can only give as much to my relationship as I am giving to myself, if that makes sense. If I am suffering, my relationship suffers.

Paul, sometimes to my chagrin, knows what I am capable of, knows what I deserve, and is there to push me if he thinks I am accepting less or performing below my best.

I am a creative soul who happens to be a Gemini, and painfully stubborn (sorry about this, world, it is just the way my cocktail was mixed), so sometimes I need this push (as I am confident he will in the future… he can’t be perfect forever!), and a reminder that I owe it to myself to bring my A game every day.

Damn, I hate it when he is right.

Just to prove I’m not the only child in the relationship

Adventures at Art Prize

Paul and I had the pleasure of heading to the west side of Michigan yesterday for a friend’s birthday party, allowing us to sneak into Grand Rapids on the way home to check out Art Prize.

I have referenced my love for Grand Rapids in previous posts, but I love the city more and more with each visit, and this time was no exception.

Art Prize is an art contest in which artists from around the world create, install, build, etc. art throughout the entire city; in restaurants, businesses, hotels, on the street, in the river, and the public vote on the winner.

This was my first Art Prize experience, and it did not disappoint.

This guy, who was in Founder Brewing Co., was a little bit scary. Very cool at the same time because it was made entirely of natural materials like moss, sticks, etc. (except for the light up eyes).

My angle could have been better on this photo, but he is actually fishing…

There was an amazing Buddah fixture that looked to be made of hanging tiles

Buffalo sculpted out of wood

My favorite of the day

There was also a baby panda 🙂

The pandas were made out of bike tires

I am not even sure what this was made out of. Some sort of media art, but it was beautiful.

The art was amazing, but it was invigorating to see the city so alive with energy. There were people every where! Grand Rapids always has a great vibe, but adding in street vendors and performers gave it a whole new atmosphere.

Juggler

And then there is the architecture in Grand Rapids. There are streets that, to me, feel like Chicago collided with Europe. It really is a beautiful downtown.

Beautiful Grand Rapids

The sweet sound of bath water “tap-tapping” onto your dining room table…

Not the norm for a Wednesday morning? … It was at least an exciting way to start the day.

I was taking a shower, all innocent like, when I noticed that the water wasn’t draining. After attempting to clear a hair clump from the drain, and only realizing there was not one there, I decided that the stopper must be down. Low and behold, the stopper was broken. The water continued to collect in the tub, but it was a shaving day, I had to keep going!

Five inches of water and two bare legs later, I step out of the shower, take one quick glance at our new plumbing issue, and decide it is best to wake up the manlier half for him to deal with (sorry, hun).

Assuring me he can handle it, I head down stairs to make breakfast and continue my beautifying ritual to start the day. My english muffin preparation was interrupted by a slow “tap… tap… tap” sound coming from the dining room. I walked over just in time to see it turn into a solid stream of water coming from the ceiling.

“Paul!?” I yelled up the stairs.
“Yeah, I need you!”

I can’t explain the mechanics of it all, but in an attempt to check the stopper, another piece of the drain system revealed itself as broken, draining water out of the tub.

Paul, kneeling in an attempt to stop the bleed made an ever so calm request: “I need you to hand me towels and go get a bucket or something to get the water out of the tub and pour it into the toilet.”

I frantically dashed downstairs, knowing full well the only bucket we own is in the basement. Forget that! I don’t have shoes on, it is scary, and it smells. I opted for a crystal bowl (it was the first I could find). FYI, lead crystal is not the easiest thing to scoop water with, but my arms felt amazing later that day.

Once that situation was somewhat under control, I headed back to the hazard zone that was our dining room. Water was now coming out of two spots in the ceiling and dripping down the wall.

Paul came down to join me in the containment process once he had the bathroom situation under control. After tag teaming towel placement and the strategerie of various bowls and chairs, we stepped back to admire our work.

Paul just put his arm around me, kissed my head, and said, “good morning, beautiful. I’ll call a plumber today.”

And we just moved on with business as usual. I’m lucky to have such a calm, capable, loving partner in crime 🙂

I hope you all had a less adventurous hump day. I will have more to come later 🙂

A hiatus of the mind and the body:

I will be the first to admit it: I have been pretty lazy the past month, and I am completely okay with that. Sometimes, you just have to give yourself some time off.

Running wasn’t fun or motivating for a while, it had become just a chore. Workouts weren’t getting me excited for my next bout at the gym. I didn’t know what to write about. I just kind of wanted a break.

So, I took one.

This isn’t saying I was unhappy in anyway, I think I just recognized that things had started to shift from passions to items on my to-do list. After taking some time to reflect on the first two-thirds of the year, I realized that my body had been through quite a bit. I deserved some time to just slip back into neutral and recharge the batteries.

After about a month off, I started the final third of the year yesterday, went out for a great, fall run; no pressure, no goals, just a run, and kicked off a refreshed mind-set.

Sometimes we need breaks from personal pressures. I, personally, have a very hard time staying in the moment, always thinking about the future and my next run or where my career is going to take me. Where am I going to go to grad school or where will my next job be? How will I reach my goals? I don’t want to be so caught up in the next step that I miss the beauty of getting there. This is why I sometimes need to give myself time to do a status update on life.

What have you missed?

A Michigan Society of Association Executives Diamond Award that I took home for my association’s e-newsletter. It was a big win and a huge honor for my whole team who help put it together.

George Blaha was the MC that night. If you are not a Michigan sports fan, you probably don’t know who that is, but to Spartans, he is the voice of Michigan State athletics. When I bounced across the stage in shock and amazement at our win, I was so excited I didn’t even shake his hand! When I realized I had passed him by I just turned around and cheered, “Touch Down, MSU!”

I felt like an idiot the whole way home for not shaking his hand. Any respectable Spartan does not pass up the chance to shake George Blaha’s hand!

They always say when God shuts a door…

The very next night, who would happen to be sitting at the next table at the bar, but Mr. Blaha himself.

God had opened a window!

Freaking out, I told Paul that God does not present you with George Blaha two nights in a row only for you to not make up for your social blunder from the previous night.

So I walked up to his table, introduced myself and explained that I was the girl who was too excited to shake his hand the night before, and I just wanted to take the opportunity to do so now. He couldn’t have been nicer and more congratulatory on my award 🙂

Other than that, I am down about seven inches of hair. I decided that I needed to refresh my look while I refreshing my mind. I now look more like my mother than ever (not a goal, and not a bad thing, just something I noticed after it was cut).

With my body and soul restored, I am feeling pretty damn good.

I hope all of you are also doing well 🙂

Cheers!

Adventures of S

Maybe life can be a collection of experiences that make you smile