Kappa Weekend

This past weekend was the 2013 Zeta Province Meeting for Kappa Kappa Gamma in Lawrence, Kansas.  Jessica and I drove over to Lawrence after work on Friday and spent the weekend with four chapter officers from Iowa State, as well as a couple of hundred other women from chapters from Iowa, Missouri, Kansas and Nebraska.  We had the opportunity to network with other chapter members, advisers, and alumnae.  Also, our Province had the honor of hosting Fraternity president, Julie Leshay, at our meeting.  I've admired her since she spoke at Convention this past summer (read about Convention here and here), so seeing her up close and attending a seminar she hosted was quite the experience.  I love listening to her speak.  I swear she has the same voice as Ethel, Lucy's neighbor on I love Lucy.  She's classy, smart and poised.  I hope I'm as cool as Julie one day. 

During the Candelight Banquet and awards ceremony, our chapter received the Jane Froman Philanthropy Award, and the Ames Alumnae Association received honorable mention for the Tradition of Leadership Award.  Kudos to Jessica who is the philanthropy adviser and also president of the Ames Alumnae Association.  It's nice to see her hard work recognized and awarded.

my favorite college sweatshirt

our fabulous chapter leaders and advisers

it's so great to share these moments with a good friend!

imagine running into you!

oh, hey, Julie!

my favorite dinner

I love advising these girls!

Erin's Wedding Invitations

My friend, Erin, is getting married this August.  She's such a cool person, and I'm so happy for her!  She's a Kappa, too, and I've always thought of her as my little sis since she was smaller than me and was a school year (and pledge class) younger than me.  She even lived with Josh and me for a few months after she graduated from Iowa State.  Anyway, I digress.  So, she's getting married, and asked if I'd help out with her wedding stationary   Since that's one of my favorite things to do, I was more than happy to help!  I showed her the invites I made for Cody and Tiff, and she loved them.  I did a little customization to personalize Erin's invitations, but here's where I landed this week (without changing the fonts or the artwork from Tiff's invite template; that might come later).  I'm really looking forward to her big day!

There's No Place Like Ames

I love Ames.  I love Iowa State.  I love Kappa at Iowa State.  Ames has a very special place in my heart.  Today, I read that Ames was voted the number two Best College Town in America (read the full article here).  Ithaca College in New York came in first; The University of Iowa in Iowa City came in fourth.  I'm proud to say I'm part of the proud group of Iowa State alumni.  And I'm happy to learn Iowa City isn't as trashy of a town as I once thought (it is still the current #2 party school according to Princeton Review)...until about six months ago...

(source)

And here are some fun facts about Ames (taken directly from here):
Population: 89,575
Student concentration: 285.4 (per 1,000 people)
2-bedroom apartment: $740/month

Earning Potential: $35,426

Colleges: Iowa State University

Read more here.

Sweet Home Kappa Gamma

I lived in Ames for four years (except for the two summers I spent at home - one summer was spent living at a fraternity...more on that experience later!).  Three of those years were spent living at 120 Lynn Avenue at the Kappa house.  I had my own fair share of struggles living with 60+ girls, but I wouldn't trade that experience for anything.  A couple weeks ago, I participated in house tours given by the new sophomores.  It was wonderful.  I walked through all the rooms I'd lived in.  Hello, memories...

Anyway, on Monday night, I had an alumnae association event up in Ames, and I was happy to attend since I knew I'd also stop over at the house to meet with my advisee. Jessica planned the alumnae event - wine tasting at a self-serve wine bar. When she told me about the place, I had visions of Lemon Tree, Cherry Berry, and Orange Leaf in my head...turns out, that's not actually correct, but the basic gist of things. You purchase a pre-paid card, insert the card in the machine, then press the amount of wine you'd like (the prices and quantities are all marked on the machine). It's pretty simple. And quite innovative. Congrats, Della Viti. We had a great time tasting wines and catching up with one another. I love chatting with the "older" ladies in our association. They were advisers when I was an undergraduate...and I think they've been advisers for about 50 years. They're wonderful ladies.

Jessica trying out the machines.

Anyway, after wine tasting, I drove over to the chapter house to meet with my advisee, Annie. She's great - so prepared, so eager to do big things, and so down-to-earth. Before I walked in the house, I had to stop to take in the moment. It was the first chapter meeting of the school year, and all the new members were at the house for formal pledging. The actives were wearing black dresses. The new members were wearing white. But, while they were all down in the chapter meeting room, the house was quiet. And it made me miss college and all my friends living under one roof...for three glorious years.

120 Lynn will always be Home Sweet Home

It's a beautiful sight!

The Key is Online!

I'm a huge Kappa Kappa Gamma fan.  I wasn't a huge fan of Kappa in college (probably because I was working about 40 hours a week, involved in way too many activities, and switched my major five times so I always had a full class load).  The fever hit me after graduation when I realized my best friends from college were Kappas, I got my foot in the door at work thanks to a Kappa connection, and I realized how many leadership and networking opportunities Kappa offers.  I have the same passion for Kappa as my high school yearbook teacher had.  McRoberts is the one who suggested I attend college...and be a Kappa at Iowa.  I got one of the details right.

Anyway, today Kappa launched their online version of The Key.  When I was a senior in college, I did my capstone magazine project on a redesign of The Key.  One thing I suggested improving was allowing online access of the publication.  Maybe my suggestion worked?

Summer Wedding

It's been almost two weeks since Blake and Danielle's wedding, so I'm a little behind on this post.  The wedding ceremony was in Boone, and then the reception was on the Iowa State University campus in Ames.  Looking back on it, we realized that of the thirteen girls from my sorority pledge class, this is the only wedding we had in Ames.  It was great to be back in Ames, as always.  I love that place.  Maybe because it was the first place I ever moved where I felt like I belonged and I could really make a name for myself.  I wasn't Dina's little sister, Mick or Darcy's daughter, or the yearbook editor.  I was me.  And it was great.  I digress...

The wedding ceremony was lovely and in Dani's home church.  The weather after the ceremony was a bit stormy and rainy, so we stayed for a bit afterward to wait out the rain.  It reminded me a lot of my wedding...without the whole staying in the basement to avoid tornadoes for two hours detail...  Again, I digress...

I love Baby T!

They're going to be BFFs, I'm sure of it!

One of my favorite families!

Josh took this.  He thinks it's the funniest picture ever.

The reception was at the Scheman Building, just north of the Iowa State football field (where many good times have been had).  Catching up with the Kappas is always a delight!  Rachael flew in from Florida; Jesslyn drove in from Indianapolis; Michaun, Karissa, and Amy came in from Chicago; Heather drove up from St. Louis; Annie and Cassie drove down from Minneapolis; Brittany drove in from Omaha...and the rest of us still live in the Des Moines area.  

Catching up with Jessica (and Baby J), Michaun, and Rachael

First Dance

Love you girls!

Iowa State's KKG '03

No wedding is complete without a round of "Oh, Pat"

The happy couple!

Jessica, Cassie, Heather and Annie brought their adorable babies.  We got to see Rachael's little bun in the oven.  And, meeting Amy's new boyfriend was also a highlight of the night.  It's always great to see my friends from college.  I wish we could all go back to 120 Lynn Avenue and live it up once more.  But, alas, we cannot.  However, that won't stop us from having a great time and rocking out to our pledge class song's version of Def Leppard's Pour Some Sugar On Me.  Here's a clip if you need a reminder.  Just imagine a dozen or so girls classy ladies rocking out to a raunchy version of this song.  It's a classic.

Kappa Convention 2012: A Review Part 2

I can't believe it's been two three weeks since Kappa Convention.  Time sure does fly!  I had better document what happened sooner rather than later, or I'll surely forget.

Jessica and I flew out of Des Moines at 6:30 AM, and arrived in Jacksonville, Florida at 11:30 AM.  A tour bus picked us up along with all the other ladies who arrived around the same time, and drove us to the Hyatt.  We spent the next four days together with about 1,000 other Kappas from around the United States, Canada, and abroad (I met one lady from England).  It was pretty amazing to see so many strong women who are true leaders.  Almost all of the Fraternity leaders were also business leaders representing companies from Waffle House, Dick's Sporting Goods, Major League Baseball, and more.  Being surrounded by them made me feel proud to be part of group of strong leaders.  It makes me want to do more.

Speaking of which, Kappa finally updated their web site and motto:  Aspire to be.  I guess they started looking into revamping the web site in 2005.  It only took until 2012 to get it completed.  However, it looks amazing.  I guess some things are worth waiting for. 

I attended lots of insightful sessions at Convention where I learned a lot about our ritual, Fraternity rules on academics and standards (mostly behavior), and how to be a better adviser.  I learned a lot.  I met a few interesting folks.  I mingled with familiar faces.  I grew.  It was great.  I want to have Kappa Convention all the time!  Can't wait to go to Texas in 2014!

Fraternity leaders participated in a flash mob.

Jessica and I found our chapter's flag.

This is very exciting, folks.

We're part of Zeta Province.

The advisers and members of chapter council from Iowa State.

Megan and Erin, my friends from Kappa Leadership Academy.

Jessica and I grabbed a glass of wine before our last dinner.

Before the Candlelight Banquet, we grabbed a photo with Katy.

Kappa Convention 2012: A Review (Part 1)

From Wednesday to Sunday last week, I was at Kappa Convention in Jacksonville, Florida, with about 1,000 other Kappas.  It was amazing.  I loved the feeling of unity and a being a part of a large, smart, powerful organization.  I caught up with some friends I met at Leadership Academy four years ago, met new friends, and bonded with old friends.  Overall, I had a spectacular experience.  I'll post my nice photos from my camera later (when I'm not at the hospital), but here are some I took on my phone.

Smarty Pants

This past semester was my first semester advising at Kappa.  I've been president of the Des Moines Alumnae Association, but after doing that for two years, I was ready for a change.  I was happy to help when I heard the Iowa State chapter needed a couple of advisers.  In college, I was the social chair and then corresponding secretary for Kappa.  Additionally, I was the VP of Risk Management for CPC (Collegiate Panhellenic Council) for Iowa State.  I learned more than I could have imagined when I was in these leadership roles.  I'm so glad I had the opportunity to learn and experience all I did, so when I had the opportunity to help out on the collegiate level, I couldn't wait to dive in and help.

The two advising positions available were social chair and scholarship.  Since I love school, I chose scholarship.  The girl I've been advising is amazing.  She's a sophomore, and taking on the VP-AE (vice president of academic excellence) role, is quite an undertaking.  However, Annie was up for the challenge, and eager to make her mark.  We taught each other quite a lot this semester, and one thing I'm happy to report is an increase in grades.  The overall chapter GPA increased by 0.12 to 3.21.  They're now ranked fifth overall for all the Iowa State sororities.  I'm so proud of Annie.  Her dedication to the improvement of the chapter is impressive and I look forward to working with her for fall semester.

Spring 2012 Semester Grades

Dani's Bridal Shower

Saturday was Dani's bridal shower.  In typical Kappa fashion, most of our pledge class attended.  Heather came from St. Louis, and Amy, Karissa and Michaun came from Chicago.  We also had the appearance of two sweet babies - Baby J and Baby T.  The bridal shower was at the Penoach Winery in Adel.  After that, we had pole dancing lessons at Kees Camp.  Then, we went to dinner at Aparre and out to Waukee for drinks.  I actually stayed out until the bars closed at 2.  It's a record.  Mark that one down, folks.  It won't happen again for a while.

Danie, the future bride-to-be

I made a great auntie!  Love you, Baby T!

Karissa, Katie, Amy, Lindsay and Michaun

Heather and Baby T

Jessica and Baby J

Baby T and Baby J playing together

Swapping spit!

Kappas!

The best karaoke song ever - Fresh Prince of Bel Aire