Mama Bird

My Second Family

June 12, 2014 by Mama Bird

Today is my first day of unemployment, but don’t worry it won’t last long as I start my new gig on Monday as the Corporate Director of Marketing & Sales at First Supply!

Almost 7 years ago, Joe & I were still living in Eau Claire when he randomly said he wanted to move to a bigger market. Obviously we weren’t going to choose Minneapolis – we’re Badger/Brewer/Packer fans and there was no way we could live amongst the Gopher/Twins/Vikings. So we set our sights on Madison and started searching for jobs. Luckily I came across a random Craigslist posting for an entry-level Project Coordinator role at a little place called Kennedy Communication’s.

I got a call for an interview, but since it was a Craigslist ad I wasn’t quite sure if the agency was legitimate or not. At that time there was no website to learn more, but I figured – why not? I had a great interview where we talked a lot about my prior experience at a web firm and I got a call the very next day. The offer was surprising though – they wanted me to help build a web department to service their current clients. I asked what the role entailed and the response was, “we have no idea – but if you can let us know your decision this week, I’ll throw in free Badger tickets.” Obviously, the choice was clear (see: Badger fan comment above). I packed up my stuff and moved to the big city. Unfortunately Joe hadn’t lined something up yet so I went alone!

It was a risk but it was the best one I have ever taken and I can’t believe how lucky I am for finding that role! We did build a department, in fact we were so successful that we formed our own company – Kennedy Convergence, solely dedicated to the web initiatives for our clients. It started as a team of 2 and grew to almost 10!

The entire agency has grown. I was the 12th employee hired and today there are 25 awesome people… I can’t say enough about great things about the people. When we moved here, we knew very few people and had our family several hours away. We’ve made so many very close friends because of Kennedy. Some have come and gone but I will have a special place in my heart for every.single.one. Yesterday I left behind my second family, but only on Mondays-Fridays from 8 to 5!

This hasn’t been just a job for me – we really are a family. That means so many things including respect, loyalty, laughter, FUN and being extremely honest with each other. I experienced all of those things while at Kennedy. Those people truly know who I am. They’ve stood by and supported me through so many major life events (“she had a baby, got married and had ANOTHER baby!”) They’re always welcome in my home and I would do anything for them – I owe them!

Last week they threw me a going away party and kindly brought a cake that included a sentiment only they could come up with, “If you’re going to reach for the stars, reach for the lowest one!” They also left me with the absolute best parting gift a girl could ask for – a photo album full of memories that we’ve all made together. Happy hours, Badger bashes, weddings, Brewer outings, travel trips, charity events, work celebrations, Halloween costumes, volleyball nights and “normal” days in the office. It might be the best, most thoughtful gift I have ever been given.

They also gave me a card that read, “Work Hard. Be Honest. Have Fun. Dream Big. Laugh Often. Be True to Yourself.” I promise to always do those things and hope the same for everyone at Kennedy!

Filed Under: Goals, working moms

May…be I Should Write

May 12, 2014 by Mama Bird

It’s already May and since I missed all of April, I should probably write! There’s plenty of material so now it’s just deciding what’s most worthy.

This past weekend we were fortunate enough to participate in our third March of Dimes: March for Babies on behalf of The Cleft Awareness Foundation. In years past the weather has been awful, but this year Mother Nature graced us with some rare sunshine making the day absolutely beautiful. Through the support and generosity of our friends & family we were able to raise $2,000 and we had 18 walkers on our team! We look forward to this event for years to come.

The walk always falls on Mother’s Day weekend, which in the past, has always seemed really inconvenient. Of course I’d like to be able to spend that day with my mom & grandma and this event prevents me from doing that. It wasn’t until this year that I finally realized just how perfect the timing actually is. If it weren’t for Ella, I might not even be a mom at this point in my life and we’d definitely not be participating in the March of Dimes walk. In fact there are a lot of things that wouldn’t exist if there were no Ella!

Filed Under: being a mom, Cleft Awareness

Irie Mon

March 12, 2014 by Mama Bird

Last year we were bitten by the travel bug when we went on our delayed honeymoon to Costa Rica. After that trip we vowed to go somewhere new at least once a year.

As the winter months drug on & on we decided there was no better time and booked a trip to Jamaica. Our previous trip was 7 days which was too long to be away from the kids, so we settled on 4 nights/5days. We left early Friday morning and after a chain of comical events, landed in Jamaica a little before 1:00 p.m. We stayed in a town called Runaway Bay which allowed us to take in the local scenery during our hour long drive to the resort.

Up until now, I had never experienced blue-green water and it definitely did not disappoint. The weather was a beautiful 80 degrees, a vast difference from the below zero temps we left behind. Our room at Grand Bahia Principe wasn’t ready for check-in so we walked down to the beach. At the very end of our walk we were delighted to find a full bar overlooking the waves. Just as we sat the clouds rolled in and the rain poured down. Our last trip started with rain and that ended well so we weren’t overly discouraged.

Since we were in Jamaica, it only seemed fitting that we went bobsledding while there, so the next day we set out on our first excursion to Mystic Mountain. We didn’t really know what to expect other than we were going to fly down the mountain in bobsleds connected to a metal track. We made our way up via a sky car overlooking the forest and ocean, which was absolutely stunning! Once we got to the top we were met with even more activities than we expected. There was a hummingbird garden, a museum, an infinity pool complete with water slide and a restaurant perched at the very top. As expected we did fly down the mountain in the bobsleds, rounding the tight corners at speeds faster than recommended. After partaking in all that was offered we made our way back down the sky car in the pouring rain.

While we had a great time, I was really looking forward to our Day 3 activities. Dunn’s River Falls is a popular tourist attraction that lets you walk from the bottom of the falls all the way to the top by climbing the rocks through the water. After an hour & a half of frigid cold, crystal clear water we hiked all the way to the top and we were off to the main event-swimming with the dolphins!

I have always wanted to swim with the graceful animals and could barely contain my excitement. With the sun hiding behind the clouds, we entered Dolphin Cove where we got up close & personal with sharks, iguanas, parrots, & stingrays. After meeting all the other animals it was our turn to enter the water with the dolphins. We swam with two different dolphins and got to touch them, ride on their bellies and ended with a kiss. They were amazing and felt like rubber to the touch.

Since Tuesday was spent traveling, Monday was our last day on the island. We hadn’t seen much sun and were looking forward to relaxing so we spent the majority of the day next to the ocean on the beach. We found the kids plenty of seashells and got more than enough sun (ouch)!

What a great vacation! I’m so glad we took the time to get away and discover more of the world together. I’m happy to get back home with our kiddos and can’t wait until they are big enough to go along and experience some of their firsts!

(Please ignore the photo quality, I didn’t take the time to scan them)

Filed Under: vacation

Luck

March 7, 2014 by Mama Bird

Good or bad, everyone believes they have one or the other and some people strongly believe the mantra that you make your own! Personally I’ve always said that I have bad luck, but a few years back I met someone who told me that I should stop saying & believing that. She felt that attitude was what was causing the bad luck to follow me.

So I listened to her and whenever anything bad happened I resisted the urge to say, “I have the worst luck!” That was almost 5 years ago and while I’d like to say that my changed perception of luck has in turn changed the outcome of all situations since then, that’s sadly not the case.

Let’s discuss the most recent example. The morning started with a bright & early wakeup call at our hotel. There was a fire in the kitchen at 3:30 a.m. forcing all the guests to evacuate the building. Luckily we were already up & moving for our 4 a.m. departure.

We arrived at the airport with plenty of time and boarded our plane. We found our seats located right behind two men, who were meeting for the first time & both baptist. Let’s be clear – I was raised in a Catholic family and have no problem with religion, but I’m also not interested in listening to an entire conversation about, “if you pray to God to find the Christians, he will!” Luckily my earbuds were readily available and able to drown out the early morning gospel.

With a tight connection to catch, we prayed (see what I did there) to depart on time. Just as we were set to lift off, a fellow passenger had a seizure, causing us to sit tight. Luckily there was an EMT on board and the man will be okay.

I’m currently mid-air on our way to Jamaica and I know most of you (especially those still battling the never-ending Midwest winter) will say, “well, that’s pretty damn lucky.” You are right, I am fortunate to be sitting here – happy & healthy, next to my loving husband, with our kids in the care of their generous grandparents.

The difference though is that it has nothing to do with luck. We’ve worked hard to be able to enjoy a vacation. Lucky things do happen to me and I will continue my pledge to not talk about bad luck, but more than that I like to focus on the bright-side!

Everything that has happened today could have been worse. The hotel could have burnt down, I could have forgot my headphones, the man could have experienced a more serious medical issue. We’ll likely catch our connecting flight & be sipping rum punch in a few short hours!

There’s always a bright side! That’s my mantra – things can always be worse and someone else is handling more. Things WILL work out & I know that for a matter of fact because the two gentleman just prayed for that mid-flight. If not, I’ll just drink more rum. Jamaican Me Crazy!

Filed Under: vacation

Adventure’s

February 25, 2014 by Mama Bird

Will – Will has experienced a couple of “firsts” in the last month and loved them both. We took him to his first Badger basketball game and he was thrilled with every second. He cheered the entire time and pointed out Bucky whenever we spotted him! We also took him to the circus and he loved all the bright lights & music, but was jealous of Ella riding the camel.

Everyone knows that Will is a smiley, happy man – but I feel like I have neglected to mention that he is also sensitive, has a terrible temper and HATES to be told no. Actually, you don’t even have to verbalize the word no – just think it in your head and he’s upset. You can say something like, “hey buddy, let’s not do that” as he’s throwing & breaking things and he reacts by hanging his head, sticking his lip out and throwing himself to the ground.

Some of it may be due to the fact that he’s basically had an ear infection since last October. You’re probably thinking we’re terrible parents but I have taken him in plenty of times. Unfortunately all of the meds they try to treat it with, just don’t work. The poor guy just had to keep enduring infection after infection before we were finally able to be referred to an ENT to discuss tube surgery. We have that appointment this week and while I don’t want to go through yet another surgery, this one is a breeze (in our books) and it will make him so much happier & healthier in the long run. Bring on the tubes!

Ella – Joe & I both grew up with team sports playing a huge role in our lives. We want our kids to experience the same thing so we signed Ella up for soccer! Our small towns didn’t offer soccer as an option so neither of us have played but jumped on the opportunity for her to meet new kids and run some of that energy off! She’s only had three practices, but seems to love it so far.

I don’t know how it’s possible, but I also registered her for kindergarten in the fall. It’s crazy to think that she is 5 years old already! She is so clever & funny that I wish I could just keep her exactly as she is forever. Yesterday we played a memory game where each person takes a turn laying a card with one word on it, with the goal of crafting a story. With each card laid the story adds up.

I have always said that she has a fantastic memory but this game is a perfect example. The level of detail she has in everything she does is impressive. As the cards spread across our entire dining table, I was beginning to wonder how she would be able to remember all of the details and was trying to wrap it up. As I drew the next card with a clock on it I said, “then the clock struck 9:00 p.m.” Her face quickly grimaced and she said, “awww man, that’s bedtime!” She then drew her next card which was a hammer. As she laid it down and told her story I almost died at just how smart she is! Ella’s story:

Once upon a time there was a “owl” who lived in the woods when a “fish” swam by. It started to rain so he grabbed an “umbrella” and tied a “bow” on top. The bow belonged to a “teddy bear” who wanted to go on a “boat ride.” On the boat there was a “bike” and on the bike there was a “violin” with an “apple” stuck to the very top. They got hungry so they ate some delicious “pizza” but it was cold outside so they had to put their “socks” on. Then an “astronaut” came by so they watched the man putting the flag on the moon. Then the “clock” struck 9:00 p.m. ….so the bear grabbed the “hammer” and smashed the clock to pieces so they could go on their next adventure!

Speaking of adventures… This winter has been painful to say the least and with more negative temps upon us, there seems to be no end in sight! Obviously the only solution is to pack up and head towards warmer land, so next week we’re traveling to Jamaica! Our life is so busy that I haven’t even had time to get excited but I know it’s going to be a blast. At this point almost anything would be a welcomed change.

We spent a week in Costa Rica last year for our honeymoon, which was a bit too long to be away from the kiddo’s so we’ll be going for 4 nights/5 days.

Filed Under: being a mom, family, Kiddos

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