just me, Sara B.: November 2010

The most wonderful thing happened yesterday! I told everyone that the only thing I wanted for my birthday next Saturday is for my cousin's family to get chosen for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. & guess what?!?! THEY FOUND OUT THAT THEIR HOUSE WAS PICKED YESTERDAY!!!!!

Their story is an incredible one & I have never known a family more deserving of this kind of blessing! I will give you a little idea of Jim & Carmen's story. Here is the write-up from Extreme Makeover's website:

While there are dozens of good reasons that the Simpsons were chosen, none compare to the amazing story of their 2-year-old son, Zoë. Zoë was born prematurely with a usually deadly condition as well as detached retinas that guaranteed blindness. His doctors told Jim and Carmen he might live 24 hours and if he did survive he would never be able to breathe on his own, see or walk.
But Zoë – which means “abundant life” – beat the prognoses again and again as his eyes healed and his lungs began to work on their own. Surpassing every medical expectation and explanation, Zoë is a thriving 2-year-old. Although he is somewhat developmentally delayed, he continues to grow and develop against all odds.
Zoë is a living medical miracle, and his family’s reaction to his recovery is making miracles happen throughout the Savannah community. The Simpsons are so grateful for Zoë’s recovery that they have dedicated themselves to pay the blessing forward as far and wide and often as possible. They look for ways to serve their community and even keep a family wish list of things they want to do for others in need.
The Simpsons, who moved to Savannah so Zoë would be closer to his doctors, need a home that more fully accommodates their son’s medical needs. Despite the living conditions they have been enduring, the Simpsons have maintained hope and a positive attitude toward life’s challenges.

The Simpson family also includes Isaac, 8, and 4-year-old Katelyn. While their house is rebuilt inside and out, the whole family will vacation in the Bahamas with Disney Cruise Line. Meanwhile, Pennington and designers Paul DiMeo, Tracy Hutson, Ed Sanders, Savannah builder JT Turner Construction and community volunteers will rebuild their home.

As you can see, my family is made up of some very special people! Zoe is doing so well- he can't talk or walk on his own yet, but we are just so happy that he has made it this far! I am very upset that I can't be in Savannah for the build, but my mom & Aunt Julia are headed there tomorrow & promise to take lots of pictures! The Extreme Makeover website is updating every few hours to show progress on the house, so I encourage you to check it out!

The pictures on the website are copywritten, but I promise to update with pictures soon!

love.sb

it has definitely been a while since my last post... i guess i just lost track of time. woopsie! to catch you up, i spent the summer slaving away at Best Buy in order to save money for my internships in New York City. i am currently in the Big Apple & loving every minute!

my internships could not be more different from one another, but i am learning so much & gaining a lot of exposure within the fashion industry! on Mondays & Tuesdays, i work as a public relations intern at Elie Tahari- let me tell you, those people are hard core! i never realized what a huge company Elie Tahari has become. they have lines for womens wear, mens wear, jewelry, handbags, & they just released a line of shoes (they are beautiful! but not in stores yet... sorry, ladies! you'll have to wait until Spring 2011)! essentially, my days at Elie Tahari consist of photoshopping mockups of press clippings, running samples back & forth to the Conde Nast building (Conde Nast is the company that owns Vogue), organizing binders & magazines, & combing through blogs to find mentions of the label for our press book. the VP of PR, Scott Currie, could not be a sweeter man! & Leah Jacobson, the PR Director, is my immediate supervisor- she really encourages me to learn as much as i can & i appreciate her guidance. but through the chain of command, i usually report to Hillary Beulah, the PR Coordinator. i am convinced that Hillary has the most stressful job on the planet & she handles it with so much poise! even with everyone yelling at her & pulling her in different directions, she manages to keep her wits about her each day. & she always has a smile on her face! i usually leave Elie Tahari very exhausted, but definitely much better at my job. oh & yes, i have gotten to meet Elie Tahari himself! i had a minor panic attack shortly after! he's a BIG deal.

on Wednesdays, Thursdays, & Fridays, i work at Patterson J. Kincaid as a sales intern. i could not love this internship more than i do!!! i love the other interns there, i love the clothes we sell, i love the people i work for, & i love that everyone has such a laid back attitude. i could definitely see myself working in sales at a smaller company like Patterson. the company, L'Koral, owns Elizabeth & James, Patterson J. Kincaid (obviously), Steve Madden, & develops juniors lines for Target & JCPenney. my days at Patterson are spent doing a lot of different stuff each day- i send out samples to major department stores like Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdales, & Saks; i correspond with buyers from various boutiques around the world via email; i upload pictures of our merchandise onto our website & put the necessary captions underneath; i organize the sample closet (not an easy task); i order supplies when we need them; i merchandise Patterson's area of the sales floor at Bloomingdales, Intermix, & Wink; i edit photo linesheets; & i organize the showroom whenever Jill has an appointment! oh yeah, Jill Schneider is my supervisor- she's the best. she is the Head of Sales for Patterson J. Kincaid. other people i interact with a lot are Lindsey, the Production Coordinator, & Jillian... i am still not completely sure what Jillian's title is, but i will figure it out & get back to you! this saturday, Patterson J. Kincaid, Elizabeth & James, & LaROK are having a sample sale, so i've been spending most of my time this week helping prepare for that.

obviously, i am working a LOT! but my roommates, Ali & Jess, & i have still managed to get out for a little fun! we've gone out for drinks, shopped in SoHo, watched the Alabama games at the Ainsworth, & eaten a lot! also, i have gotten to visit some old friends in New Jersey for Halloween- everyone did their GTL! this weekend, the roomies & i plan to walk the Brooklyn Bridge & i am SO excited! that is one thing in NYC that i have never done. well, i must depart, but it would not be a sara blog post without a snapshot or 2! so i'll leave you on an entertaining note & share the few pictures i've accumulated so far: