Rummage Sale 2011

Last weekend was JLSJ's biennial Rummage Sale aka "The Greatest Garage Sale on Earth".  It was a huge success!  The night before the sale, JLSJ has a preview party and this year Sandy (thank you!) was my guest.  The party theme was Rock n Roll and you could dress from any era from that.  We chose to dress 80's because 1.  it is so fun 2.  it is so fun to look ridiculous.  Sandy was sweating it a little when we drove up to the party out at the fairgrounds and she saw several groups of people walking in without a costume on.  I assured her there would be more crazies like us...just wait.  I was correct and Sandy was relieved.  We had fun shopping...much different than the party from two years ago.  Back then we were looking for fun random stuff.  This time we spent most of our time in the toys and kids departments.  Although, in addition to getting some toys for Hank I did get a Magic Bullet with all the parts and the manual for only $8.  I know, I am a little late on the Magic Bullet train but I only paid $8 and the rest of you paid much more.  You should come to Rummage Sale next time.

I had to be back at the Sale bright and early at 7 am on Saturday morning.  I worked the toy department and it was so much fun.  The above shot is of part of the toy department before the doors were opened to the Sale.

A minute after the doors were opened, here are all the people starting to fill the exhibition hall at the fairgrounds.  This is only 1/3 of the building.  It took over 10 minutes for the lines of people to all make their way inside once the doors were opened.

The toy department getting mobbed instantly.  Our department is a very popular one.  People come for toys for their preschools, children, grandchildren, and even to resale.

This event is so much fun and rewarding to be part of.  I loved seeing the little kids get excited over the toys and it is all at such good prices!  All of the money we raise goes to support our Community Program:  Helping children enter elementary school ready to learn and thrive. 

(Sorry about the Sale photos being such crummy pics.  I only had my cell phone with me and it was hard to get good shots amidst all the chaos!)

-a

Eye Candy

The JLSJ Fashion Show took place at the beginning of March. It was an event 15 months in the making and I am happy to have had the experience of planning the League's largest fundraiser. Having said that, I am super happy it is over! We raised over $110K! I am proud of the show we put on and the funds we raised will go back to support the community program of JLSJ: Helping young children enter elementary school ready to learn and thrive!

Now on to the show...

As one of the co-chairs of the event, I knew I was going to be crazy busy event week and weekend. Brett was modeling in the show so we needed some help for Hank - call in the grandmas! Both of our moms came in to town for the weekend and although they didn't get to see too much of Brett and I, they didn't care - they had Hank. It was so cute to watch them playing with him in our room at the Fairmont or out on walks in downtown SJ - they kept him busy and happy.

Hanging with Hank while on a break at the Fairmont.

Onstage to introduce the Friday Luncheon show

Brett modeling

Backstage at the Saturday Luncheon

I have to thank my dear husband Brett for putting up with my involvement in this for so long. It took a lot of time away from us and he was a trooper! He even modeled in the show because I asked him to. He was fabulous!

With our friends before the Saturday Gala Dinner. (These were just the friends at our table...soooo many other friends came to support as well.)

Our wonderful friends were there for the Saturday Gala and it was a blast to watch the show with them! Thank you for coming!!!

Models are League Members and their husbands/kids. We also had Firefighters from the Palo Alto Fire Department. Just for the ladies :)

Now, I promise to stop talking about Fashion Show.

-a

Baby showers

This is the first of many posts to come which will recap what's been going on!

Last fall I was spoiled with three baby showers - who has three baby showers??? At each party I felt so loved, so special, and so honored to be surrounded by my friends and family to celebrate our sweet baby boy.

The first week of October, Brett and I went to Texas to visit family in Dallas and Austin. While we were there, my sisters Courtney and Lisa along with my dear friend Rachel hosted a shower for me. It was a wonderful day. Normally showers last a couple of hours but this one went from brunch to mid afternoon as everyone reminisced, laughed and loved! Not to mention Brett and Rachel's husband Erik were off at a local pub enjoying themselves so none of us were in a real hurry to wrap things up. When they did return...they were quite entertaining for us ladies.

Lisa, Rachel, me (7 months pregnant), and Courtney

Brett and Erik - so helpful or just trouble??

In late October, my fabulous friends Julie and Sarah hosted a shower for me with many of my Junior League friends. It was such a lovely afternoon to be surrounded by many of the women I have gotten to know over the years while in California. They are all so special and I was truly honored that they would want to celebrate in this joyful event in my life! One of the sweet things they did for me was create a booklet filled with parenting advice from all of the ladies. Here are a few pieces of advice that were given to me:

Never never shake your baby (ha ha that one was a joke)

Record the sound of your baby's cry. It is a sweet sound that you'll want to remember. (This is so true. Hank's cry as a newborn, although I didn't like hearing it at the time, was such a sweet innocent sound compared to the howls he can let out now!)

Breastfeeding is hard at first. (I'd like to modify this one...it's not hard...it's super hard.)

Cherish the moments with your baby. (I remember reading this one at the time and thinking "oh ok sure cherish your baby" but now I know what this means. He's four month old and I already miss his him as a teeny tiny baby. He's growing up too fast for me. I want to hold him in my arms forever!)

My wonderful friends from Junior League

Lastly, in mid November, the wonderful Sandy and Ann held a shower for me in Palo Alto. It was the perfect affair because it was breakfast! These two really know me and even asked the restaurant to have pancakes on the menu for our party. It was such a treat! I was so happy that many of my friends were able to attend and celebrate! And...on the way to the shower Sandy and Leon surprised Brett and I by letting us know they were going to be parents too! I about lost it in the car I was so happy for them!!!

Pancake shower!

Ann, me (3 weeks from delivery!) and Sandy

I love my friends so much for showering me with their love! Thank you!!

-a

Building Awareness

This picture is from over a month ago when Brett and his Stanford buddies went on a trip to Pismo Beach, CA to celebrate the end of Nick's bachelorhood. I meant to post this a long time ago!

Obviously I've built some great brand awareness for the Junior League among our friends because Peter spotted this "junior league" sign and he and Brett posed while Travis sent this to me from his iPhone.

The funny thing besides their pose and Peter's hat, is that when I received the picture I thought "Wow - there is a Junior League fundraising program in Pismo Beach!" Brett had to explain to me that they were standing in front of a bowling alley and it was talking about a bowling league!

-a

Let's get ready to rummage!

Photos courtesy of Sandy!

On Saturday, JLSJ held our biennial Rummage Sale a.k.a. "The Greatest Garage Sale on Earth" at the Santa Clara Fairgrounds. (The sale is biennial because in the alternate year we have our Fashion Show - which I've already filled you in on!!)

This sale is big. Super big. It's held in a 45,000 square foot building and takes about 5 days and 100's of League members and other volunteers to put it together. To celebrate our hard work, and to catch our breath before the public (3000+ people) comes through the doors on Saturday, our members throw a big party on Friday night. Brett and I had the honor of bringing our friends Sandy & Leon and Ann & Peter with us to the party. The theme was "The Great Gatsby" and we had a good time perusing all the quality rummage and getting some good deals on great stuff - all the while dressed in 20's attire!

On Saturday, Brett and I were back at the Fairgrounds at 7:30am to get ready for the sale. I worked in the Garden department and almost had it completely sold out by noon. Who says only one of the Paulsons can sell??? Brett was assigned to work security. He did a good job! Unfortunately, I do not have photos of Brett in his security guard attire - a big yellow jacket that said "Junior League Security". So funny.

I am so happy to have great friends who help support this great organization that I am a part of-whether it is through buying rummage or making donations. (To my friends who donated rummage - thank you so much - I saw people buying your items during the sale!) The money raised through our fundraisers goes to support JLSJ and our community program: helping young children enter elementary school ready to learn and thrive.

-a

Save the date

We've finally secured the date and location for the JLSJ 2010 Fashion Show - March 5th & 6th at The Fairmont San Jose. Yay! So glad that is done.

Family and friends - mark your calendars please. I promise you will not be disappointed as I am pretty sure a certain person named Brett is going to be a model. That alone will be worth attending.

-a

February already?

I can't believe it's already February. The past month has flown by so fast. I've spent a lot of time on Junior League - but at least it's been fun. I am one of the co-chairs for JLSJ's 2010 Fashion Show (FS) and we've been working on selecting our venue and getting our dates finalized. The event is a year away but it's similar to planning a wedding and about 1,100 people attend it. Once these first big decisions are out of the way, I'll be very relieved.

In January, it seemed like Brett and I had one party/birthday/dinner/happy hour/meeting after another. Oh yeah, and I've been working at my real job too. It was a ton of fun - but I am hoping February is a little less busy. After all, I am naturally inclined to be a hermit and I really haven't been able to do enough of that lately. I haven't even had time to post to my blog!

By the way, Phil saw his shadow today and that means 6 more weeks of winter. Well, someone should tell Palo Alto that because it's 70 degrees outside now. This is my kind of winter.

-a