YouTube takes Marriage Proposals

One of my friends sent me this video the other day and I reacted way more than expected.  Maybe I was just having an emotional night as I sometimes have, but once you watch this video, I'm sure you will have a similar effect.

This woman thought they were just taking a family Christmas photo, but her boyfriend had a better idea!

I must admit, my eyes filled with tears after watching this adorable video.  Thanks to Social Media, this video was shared all over YouTube and went viral.  Without it, we probably never would have seen this adorable marriage proposal!

Marriage proposals are so special, whether they are simple or romantic, or elaborate and extravagant! They each have special significance for the couple and even those watching it happen.  Plus, they never seize to bring tears to my eyes.  This video reminds me of a marriage proposal that I was actually involved in: A flashmob for our friends, Alex and Joey!

Watch it here! (I'm the dancer in the pink shorts ;))

This marriage proposal was very emotional and exciting to be in because the couple is close to my family and the dance was choreographed by one of my favorite dance teachers, Lenora Nemetz.  I had a blast and I will never forget this flashmob experience.  Watching Joey join into the flashmob and seeing the look on Alex's face during the dance are images that will never leave my mind.  Plus, it stays pretty fresh considering I watch this video on YouTube every once in a while to relive the memory!

Alex and Joey are now happily married as of this summer.  Their video got 636,972 videos on YouTube and even made it on the Pittsburgh News! Isn't it amazing how vastly these videos travel all over the internet?  I am so glad I was asked to be apart of this flashmob and share this incredible moment with the couples' friends and family. :)

ONU Holiday Spectacular

Last year I worked backstage of The ONU Holiday Spectacular as a child wrangler, taking care of the children of the show: making sure they got on and off stage on time and didn't make too much trouble backstage... which was nearly impossible.  This year I was not casted in the show and did not wish to be a child wrangler again, so I got to see the show first-hand, as an audience member!

As the Ada Icon puts it, this show, consisting of 40 students and 16 children, "start(s) off the holiday season with festive carols, lavish sets, ballerinas, the ever-popular toy soldiers, the man in red himself, Santa Claus, and a few surprises at this year’s Holiday Spectacular. The holiday mystery centers on the misadventures of Trixel, a trouble-making elf who steals Santa’s magic compass prior to Christmas Eve. This sends Mrs. Claus and Pixel the elf on a journey to find the invaluable tool so that Santa can deliver his gifts. There is plenty of song, dance and humor along the way" (Steiner).

The show was extremely entertaining to watch and I enjoyed every second of it!  It was also nice to see all of my friends in the theatre department performing on stage.  I am very proud to be apart of this talented Theatre department here at Ohio Northern University.  They reminded me of the magic and happiness that performing brings to others.  Combine this with the Christmas spirit and it creates an overabundance of joy!

Seeing The Holiday Spectacular is a tradition for families around the Ada/Lima community every year, and I can definitely see why.  The show is filled with the Christmas energy magic and spirit, which everyone appreciates during the most wonderful time of the year!  If you did not get a chance to see it this year, I would definitely go next year!  Maybe then I will be up on that stage singing and dancing in the Holiday Spectacular. ;)

Measure What Matters Book Review

As you have probably noticed, I have been blogging once a week this semester about our assigned readings for Social Media Principals class.  This week, I have finally finished all all of the required reading for the class and could not be more thrilled!  All though I didn't mind some of the readings, most of them were hard to get through and consumed much of my time.  As the semester is dwindling down, I realized how much I learned from the four books we read for this class.  However, now that I am finished, it is nice to not have to worry about reading continuously until my eyes fall out of my head!

The last book that we finished, Measure What Matters, discusses the importance of relationships with the key audience of a company: building, managing and of course, measuring.  Measurement takes the totals of a company, analyzes what these totals mean, and use them to improve the practice.

This book teaches us to measure for multiple benefits:

• Data driven decision making saves time and money
• Helps allocate budget and staff
• Gain a better understanding of the competition
• Strategic planning
• Measurement gets everyone to agree on desired outcome
• Measurement reveals strengths and weaknesses
• Measurement gives you reason to say no

Throughout the book, we learned about the importance of measurement in order to create or maintain a successful organization.  Although there was some valuable information in this book, I believe much of it was very repetitive and annoying to read.  However, I believe it was a good required reading for our Social Media Principals class because it was very relatable in terms of Public Relations.  If you are interested in the Public Relations field, I would most likely recommend this book.  I must warn you, though, the tedious and repetitive text is a struggle to get through.

Giving Thanks to Grandmothers

This Thanksgiving, I was able to give thanks in the best way I knew how: by celebrating my grandmother's life.

My grandmother, Ruthann Vrahas (or "Nana," as her grandchildren call her), passed away in the beginning of September.  Because my grandmother donated her body to science studies (like the saint that she was), she did not receiver a proper burial.  As a family, we decided Nana still needed a proper ceremony to celebrate her life.  Because many of her grandchildren are in college, it was decided to have a memorial service for Nana when everyone was easily available: Thanksgiving weekend.

Even though the service was terribly sad, I am grateful that I got to spend my holiday this way.  The service made me realize what a wonderful woman my grandmother was and how she brought all of us together as a family.  I was even given the privilege to sing one of her favorite songs, "Feed the Birds" from Mary Poppins, one of Nana's favorite movies that we always watched together when I was little.

The service was very meaningful to me.  We sang some of her favorite songs and My Uncle and Aunt, children of Nana, presented eulogies that triggered tears, laughter, and incredible memories of a woman that made such a great impact on my life.  We were holding in our goodbyes for a few months now, so I am glad we got the official chance to wish Nana peace.

Nana was always the reason the whole family got together: siblings, cousins, parents, aunts and uncles; Nana always had that power of bringing everyone closer.  She is the reason we have all of these memories of all the times we shared.  (And I must say, we have some pretty great ones.)  Like Nana always does, she brought the whole family together once again this Thanksgiving.  Although Nana was not physically there, she was still there in spirit to bring back all of the wonderful memories we shared as a family and to watch over us as we make many more memories together.

Rest easy, Nana. I love you.