Amy's Blog

As the new year gets off to a decent start, I’d like to use my blog to thank some people for their love and support during a challenging 2011.

I was promoted to a new position at my company in October of 2010, so 2011 got off to a challenging start as I learned the new position, managed my time, tried to find work/life balance, and study for a rigorous professional exam.

In July, I was home celebrating Independence Day with Grandma when she had a stroke in the dining room at breakfast.  It was devastating.  The next several months of Grandma’s recovery were very tough on our entire family, especially me because we have been so close for so long.  Grandma has slowed down a lot since July, and it has been an adjustment for all of us.

Those that are close to me know that stress management is not always my strong suit.

There are a lot of people that have helped me through the last few months.  First of all, Grandma’s siblings and their spouses have been fantastic.  They were there at the hospital the day of the stroke, and have been there for me every step of the way with phone calls, emails, and words of encouragement about the test and Grandma’s recovery.  Secondly, Grandma’s nieces, my cousins have also been an incredible source of support for me with their phone calls, texts, emails, and just lending an ear to listen and a shoulder to cry on.

I have a core group of Kansas City friends who have also been great to me over the last several months. Putting up with me stressing out, being socially unavailable, and lending their expertise in various fields related to psychology and stroke recovery.

There are also a handful of colleagues who have kept in touch and helped me get through the professional exam and always ask how Grandma is doing with a genuine care and concern.

I am so thankful and appreciative of all of the love and support that so many family, friends, and colleagues have shown to me over the last several months.  You have definetely made the tough times not seem so tough.  I hope that I can continue to show you how grateful that I am for you.

Most people that know me know that I LOVE birthdays, my own and others.  I love mine so much that I normally plan to celebrate for an entire month.

I kicked off the month in usual fashion – with a happy hour for my friends and coworkers at Blanc Burgers and Bottles.  Every year I start the month off with a happy hour where I ask guests to come and enjoy food and drink specials while they drop off school supplies for a local domestic violence shelter that I volunteer at.  I’m so lucky that my birthday falls so close to back to school time!

The evening was a success for several reasons…one, we collected a ton of stuff for the kids at the shelter, two, I got to see several people that I hadn’t seen in a while, and got to help people make connections with each other. I also got to connect with the staff at an establishment in my new neighborhood.  Lastly,and most importantly, I discovered the greatness that is Crispin!

I’m not a beer drinker, and that includes any malt beverage, including cider.  My friends were at the bar during happy hour drinking a large beer glass full of ice and a light amber colored beverage.  I asked what it was and they said, hard cider.  I said, ick, no thanks.  All I could think of is that disgusting wood chuck stuff.  Well, they insisted that I try a sip of the Crispin, and after much prodding, I did.  How awesomely refreshing! Crispin is a hard apple cider made from freshly pressed and fermented apples, with no malt liquor added.  It is almost like an apple sparkling wine, and not sweet at all.  The makers of Crispin suggest that it is best served over ice.  I was in heaven.

The next night, I happened to find Crispin at the happy hour spot that I was at and decided that I was hooked.  I will spend my entire birthday month getting my hands on as much Crispin as possible.

I try to take a trip to celebrate my birthday every year as a part of the birthday month celebration. This year, I had been scouting out for things to do that were affordable and that wouldn’t keep me away from work for too long.

Everyone knows that I have many boyfriends, Bradley Cooper, Channing Tatum, Bill Rancic, etc, etc. Well this time, I was scouting for my British love, Chris Martin. Coldplay didn’t put a Kansas City date on the Mylo Xyloto tour, so I thought about trying to travel to see them on the tour as a part of my birthday month festivities.

They were playing at the United Center in Chicago on August 7th and 8th, and in Minneapolis/St. Paul on August 10th. I thought that driving up to MN would be cheaper than flying into Chicago, especially if I could find someone that wanted to make the trip with me. So, thank goodness for Facebook, I posted, “who wants to go and see Coldplay” and right away I got a response from a friend in Lawrence. She said that she would love to go and I sent her all of the details. No dice she said, as she would be in Chicago on business that entire week.

WHAT??? I was ecstatic! I explained that they would be playing two shows that week and it would be perfect. She responded with an invite for me to share her free hotel room. UMMM…FREE hotel room, downtown Chicago, and my boyfriend Chris Martin??? Does the birthday month schedule GET any better? On top of it all my friend also had another friend that would be meeting us in the city and we just happen to share the same birthday. BONUS!

So, it was settled, I booked my travel and was headed to Chi! The only bad news was that tickets to see my boyfriend were astronomically expensive. I mean, I couldn’t drool over Chris Martin in nosebleeds, right?? I didn’t worry about it, I would figure this out. Where there is a will, there is a way!

As the new year gets off to a decent start, I’d like to use my blog to thank some people for their love and support during a challenging 2011. 

I was promoted to a new position at my company in October of 2010, so 2011 got off to a challenging start as I learned the new position, managed my time, tried to find work/life balance, and study for a rigorous professional exam. 

In July, I was home celebrating Independence Day with Grandma when she had a stroke in the dining room at breakfast.  It was devastating.  The next several months of Grandma’s recovery were very tough on our entire family, especially me because we have been so close for so long.  Grandma has slowed down a lot since July, and it has been an adjustment for all of us. 

Those that are close to me know that stress management is not always my strong suit. 

There are a lot of people that have helped me through the last few months.  First of all, Grandma’s siblings and their spouses have been fantastic.  They were there at the hospital the day of the stroke, and have been there for me every step of the way with phone calls, emails, and words of encouragement about the test and Grandma’s recovery.  Secondly, Grandma’s nieces, my cousins have also been an incredible source of support for me with their phone calls, texts, emails, and just lending an ear to listen and a shoulder to cry on. 

I have a core group of Kansas City friends who have also been great to me over the last several months. Putting up with me stressing out, being socially unavailable, and lending their expertise in various fields related to psychology and stroke recovery. 

There are also a handful of colleagues who have kept in touch and helped me get through the professional exam and always ask how Grandma is doing with a genuine care and concern. 

I am so thankful and appreciative of all of the love and support that so many family, friends, and colleagues have shown to me over the last several months.  You have definetely made the tough times not seem so tough.  I hope that I can continue to show you how grateful that I am for you. 

One of my best friends in Kansas City is also a trusted colleague in a professional association that I belong to.  We share ideas when it comes to personal and professional development.  He introduced me to the Napoleon Hill Foundation and the books, Think and Grow Rich, and Three Feet From Gold.  I signed up for a daily emial from the NHF.  The email contains a thought or quote related to personal and professional development.  This morning’s was just timely and made me think and I just wanted to share it. 

Friends must be grown to order — not taken for granted.

Your friends will be what you make them. If you are the kind of friend who freely gives of your time and always shows consideration for others, your friends will be generous and kind. If you are the kind of person who takes your friends for granted, neither giving nor expecting much in return, you will attract friends who exhibit the same qualities. In friendship, like attracts like. Assess your behavior occasionally to determine what kind of friend you are. Are you the kind of person you would like to have as a friend? Do you freely give more than you expect in return, or are you always asking and never giving? Do you take the time to stay in touch, to remember friends’ special occasions? When you become so consumed with your own interests that you forget about your friends, you are well on your way to becoming friendless.