Work Update

I'm realizing that while this started as a blog about life as a grown up...implying work...it has slowly transitioned to be more about the fun things in my life. While that is probably more fun to read anyways (and a bit more fun to write about!) but, today let's go back to the roots. Here is your update about what has been keeping me busy at work:

Social Venture Institute (SVI)
I have started hardcore planning for the SVI in August. I will be working with a group of students on social entrepreneurship initiatives-basically teaching them how to put their ideas about social change into action within their communities. It has been a bit more difficult to find organizations to work with for this than it was for the Environmental Leadership Retreat. The concept is a bit more abstract and requires a more innovative organization which is harder to come by when it comes to finding service projects. I have the core group all signed up but I am hoping to fill 2-3 more positions between now and August.

Summer VISTA trainings
I am responsible for helping to plan 2 training days for the ICC Summer VISTAs. ***ICC is now its own VISTA program so I am no longer under the Red Cross! The Red Cross was great to me but I'm really happy for ICC and it is great to see a program coming from such hard work! I have put together presentations/resources on Building Community Partnerships and I am currently working on pulling stuff out about Marketing from our summer intern.

Student Role Committee
Part of the Advisory Council Meeting last week was to discuss the role of students and ICC. I volunteered to be the head of a committee to redefine that role as well as what we can do to be more attractive for students. This will consist of basically building on the alternative breaks program that I am helping to build and providing leadership trainings for students. We want to come up with a curriculum and give them like a certificate or something to show that they have completed our program.

So, those are my 3 big projects that are taking most of my time at work these days. I'm excited about them all and loving the experience I'm getting! I feel like I'm learning something new all the time-whether it's a new topic I've never worked on, how to develop a new program, or just how to take a different role in a similar situation. In one week it will be my 6 month mark which blows me away. I can't believe I'm halfway through my year already! Back to work :)

Bella is 2 months old!

In honor of Bella turning 2 months old, I have some updated pictures of my baby for you :) She is getting bigger every day and is a little ball of energy. She absolutely loves having so many people around to play with her and just can't get enough attention!

So, I'm not sure why I can't get the formatting to work on here tonight...I was going to put captions, but you get the idea. Special thanks to Mom and Dad for teaching Bella to love milk so much that I can't eat a bowl of cereal without her attacking me to get to the milk! :)

Cemetery Tour

We live a couple blocks away from Crown Hill Cemetery which is the 3rd largest non-governmentally owned cemetery in the country. We drive by it every day and we've gone to just drive around and look several times. I saw on the website that they had private group tours for as low as $50 for the group so I decided to round up some friends and schedule a tour! We chose the "John Dillinger and Notables" tour and learned about bank robbers, those that were robbed, etc. around the area. It was really interesting and fun to learn about! Here are some pictures :)

Sunset behind James Whitcomb Riley's (yeah, like Riley's Children's Hospital) tombstone. This is also the highest point in Marion County and one of my favorite places in Indianapolis.

This is the tombstone for the man who our freshman year dorm, Schwitzer, was named after. Everybody in this picture was a proud Schwitzer alumn

The top of Schwitzer's tombstone

The plaque by Riley's tombstone

My favorite view of Indy- from Riley's monument

pretty sky

This is a monument for all of the individuals who donated their bodies to science for the IU school of medicine. After the bodies are cremated, the ashes are buried here so that the families have somewhere to go to visit their loved ones.

This is not only an awesome tombstone but the inscription is priceless.

"Here lies the body of Peter Grootendorst, born in Holland, September 29, 1918. I came to America in 1949 and wanted to love this beautiful country and I found out it was corrupt and that there is no opportunity for people who want to do right. So I am gone and may the Lord take my soul."

Tom Davis, the tour awesome tour guide.

Camping at the Dunes

The morning after the Coldplay concert Chelsea, Katie O and I got up early to head to Chicago for some camping in the Dunes. We got in some great hiking and had awesome weather for the camping! Here are some pictures from our adventure :)

The "big waves" on Lake Michigan

We went to the highest dune in the area to watch the sunset Saturday night...the sunset was kind of a flop but when we climbed the dune to head back to the parking lot, we were pleasantly surprised by the beautiful moon! The picture definitely doesn't do it justice.

A tree, some sand, and the twilight sky

My tent- many thanks to the Schluep family for my graduation gift :)

After we went hiking, we got back to Katie's car to find a flat tire...we drove to a gas station a couple miles away, filled it with air, then heard the air coming out. Long story short, on an almost 3 hour adventure we discovered a piece of metal in the tire, went to 4 different places, and got it fixed at the Sears in the next town over. Our potentially really bad experience with a flat tire on a Saturday evening worked out just fine compliments of Sears being open until 8 pm.

Pit stop in the nature center: I have the wing span of a Canadian Goose!

Dune #2 on the "rugged" trail

first view of the beach

So, those are some of my pictures from our camping adventure! Sorry again that I am kind of far behind...I have our cemetery pictures to post still as well as some updated pictures of Bella who is growing so fast!! Thanks for being so patient with me :)

Concert videos/pictures

Therese, Brian, Berg and I got to go to the Snow Patrol and Coldplay concert in Indy last weekend! It was absolutely amazing and if you ever have the chance to see Coldplay in concert, do it. To show you just how amazing it was, I will now spend forever uploading videos and pictures for you to see :)

Singing "I'm a Believer" on the small stage right by where we sat in the lawn!

Pretty sunset at the Verizon Center

Snow Patrol singing Hands Open

Snow Patrol singing Chasing Cars

Coldplay singing Yellow

Coldplay singing Viva La Vida

Coldplay covering I'm a Believer

Coldplay singing The Scientist

I know I'm failing miserably with posting lately...I have lots of updates with pictures and videos coming soon! Hopefully tomorrow evening. Here's a preview: Coldplay concert, camping at the Dunes, a private tour of Crown Hill Cemetery. Yeah, get pumped :) Thanks for your patience!

Bella comes home!

So, it is official- I am responsible enough that I have a legit pet other than a hermit crab. I have one of Molly's kittens who I have named Bella! She looks exactly like Sully and has been very entertaining so far. She has only been waking up once a night to play-usually around 4:30 or 5ish but then she falls back asleep until it is time to get up for the day. Bella likes to sleep curled up on my shoulder purring in my ear :)

It's been a bit of a rough start with Remy (Lew's puppy) but they will learn to get along soon! Remy is 22 pounds and Bella is just over a pound-I think once she gets a little bigger she won't be so scared of Remy. Right now Remy is ready to play, but her playing usually involves snapping her teeth which freaks Bella out a little bit so then she starts hissing and it all goes downhill from there. Once she's comfortable I think they will get along well and be friends :)
I got to spend the weekend at home last weekend and it was really fun! I got to spend some time with Dad while he was planting and hang out at school with Mom and Teese on Friday. It was relaxing but fun and it was great to see everybody :)

So, for those of you who haven't gotten to meet Bella yet, here are some pictures!

She loves sitting on top of any bag that is on the floor!

Remy's nose and paws underneath my door trying to visit Bella