Polar Vortex and Resolutions

Holy polar vortex! I hope y'all came out of this crazy week without any frostbite. As cold as it was down here in Georgia I know it was even more crazy up north. When temps reach down into the single digits down here people freak out (ok this might include me as well) and apparently even cancel school due to extreme cold. Umm I very clearly remember many days of school when there was actual snow on the ground! Thankfully Mike and I's apartment survived the freeze and Lou and Spence were bundled up in their heavy blankets and equipped with heated water buckets, a perk of having lived up north! The barn at Wesleyan, however, has experienced our share of freezing temp consequences including 6 water line breaks and a frozen solid riding arena. The weather is starting to look a bit brighter though and we should be back up in the 60's by the weekend!!

As promised I will share some of our New Year's resolutions with y'all...after you stare at the adorable panda above though. Too much cuteness!!!

-Usually I make resolutions based on my job but honestly I'm pretty darn happy with my job right now, so my career based resolution is to stop and smell the roses and just be grateful. I mean how exciting is it that I am following my dream and experiencing my first year as head coach?! So I will work on soaking all of that in.

-I will also work on not letting stress take over my life. Last semester showed me that my body can no longer run on crappy food, no sleep and insane amounts of stress. In fact my body was very upset with me for most of the fall...sorry about that! So stress management will be at the top of the priority list along with actually eating adult foods aka not ramen noodles every night. I will also take some time out just for myself; I actually already started on this by forcing myself to go to yoga at 6:30am this week...turns out I love it!

-I will also remember to be more in the moment and unplug. This past Sunday Mike and I ventured out to the Atlanta Zoo and other than snapping pictures I was completely unplugged and it made me realize I need to do that more often. So Sunday Fundays will be unplugged...except for the camera use of the phone:)

When I asked Mike what his resolution is for the year he answered "Get married." So that will be the final resolution, get married!!

           

Be sure to check back soon as we are venturing to Savannah this weekend for wedding fun!! I love hearing from y'all so be sure to leave a comment if there is an update you just have to have...sometimes I need help getting update ideas flowing.

Love y'all!!

2013 wrap up

2013 Wrap Up

Can y'all believe another year has gone by already?! That means that Mike and I have officially made it through our first full year in Georgia and goodness gracious are there some highlights from the year.

2013 was certainly a year of on and off wedding planning. I started the year off with a couple of trips to Savannah,Ga and completely fell in love with it. After lots of options and stresses on wedding location, Mike and I came to our final decision of Savannah,Ga and I couldn't be more excited!

Katie has been such an awesome help with everything wedding-wise!!

Spring brought about end of the year award ceremonies, graduation and prep for summer camp. Thankfully summer was very nice to us this year and we didn't have to endure the crazy Georgia heat, although I'm sure we won't be that lucky again. Summer also brought visits with long lost friends and students, southern wedding festivities in Tennessee, a Jersey shore getaway and new job titles for myself and Mike! Phew a lot happened this summer!

2013 Athletic Banquet

I survived 6 weeks of summer camp...at least they were adorable campers

Ashley came to visit!!

Gray McCurdy became Mrs. Kephart!!

 

 

And Rich and Mandy tied the knot!

 

At the start of the summer/end of spring Mike started working for Butler Honda and began his adventure in sales. Then at the start of July I officially became head coach of the equestrian teams at Wesleyan College. I'd say it was a pretty big summer for us!

I kicked off the fall semester with a boot camp for returning students and was lucky enough to have a visitor from Whitings Neck join us for the day! It was so great to see a previous student doing so well in her riding. The show season kicked off in September and the insanity of the fall semester began!  

 A small part of our boot camp. I can't believe how much the team has grown since the start of the school year! 

 

Somewhere in the midst of show season, car sales and life in general Mike and I picked up wedding planning again and I even got to make a trip to Boston to spend time with my parents and some wedding dress shopping. Even though I didn't find the one while in Boston, I did recently buy a dress here in the South!!

To end the show season I hosted a schooling show at Wesleyan and was lucky enough to have Erin fly in for a southern getaway and to help me keep my sanity!

 This year has been such a lesson in learning to really cherish each and every one of our friends and loved ones. Life can be so fleeting and we should enjoy each and every day. Be sure to tell your loved ones that you love them as often as possible! I know that if it weren't for my amazing friends, family and Mike I certainly wouldn't be anywhere close to where I am today and my sanity would have been lost years ago! I love all of you more than you know! With that being said I can't wait to celebrate a new year with all of you and, of course, can't wait to celebrate Mike and I's union in marriage with all of our close friends and family!! 

Remember how I said that Katie has been amazing as wedding help, well she was kind enough to spend the day with Mike and I in Savannah this fall for our engagement pictures and she is currently housing my wedding dress...love her!!

To end out the year I was lucky enough to get a couple of days away from work and headed up to DC for some time with the family. Then I headed back to Georgia for a nice quiet Christmas with Mike and the puppies and then rang in the New Year with a late night visit to check on the ponies and the love of my life :)

  Wishing you all a very happy new year! Be sure to check back soon for our resolutions and wedding updates! Things are seriously rolling now...we have a dress, a guestbook and the search for an official venue in Savannah begins with a visit very soon!! 

Love y'all!!

If you are looking for another read be sure to head on over to my cousin Hilary's blog! She is currently visiting Germany and has a knack for making history fun!

http://historywithhilary.blogspot.com

 

 

The things that bring us together

As I sit here at the airport waiting on a delayed flight and truly missing the manners of the South, I keep thinking about all of the small things that bring so many people together. It is amazing how when you really sit and chat with people there are so many things we all have in common. Just this past week I was reminded of how common ground can bring together people from opposite sides of the world. 

As some of you may know, we have a very large international population at Wesleyan College and this year I am lucky enough to have a student from Japan on my riding team. I began speaking with Mayu over the summer about the team and she agreed to give it a try, now we are half way through the year and she has decided to stay for a second semester! Last week Mayu's mother came to visit and was kind enough to make authentic Japanese food for the girls on the team and myself, it was delicious!! As we were chatting we talked about how great it is that our love of horses brought all of us together. And honestly it really is so great! There are so many people who never take the time to find thoses common ground moments, but goodness when you do you meet some pretty neat people!

    Horse people are notorious for finding each other in random situations and striking up a conversation but Hokies are the same way. Apparently so are Auburn alum and fans as I discovered while taking my Opi to get his haircut this weekend. A simple conversation about Auburn football brightened his day so much. I know that anytime someone stops Mike and I to talk about Virginia Tech I always get excited. So as you go about your travels this holiday season maybe strike up a conversation with the person next to you on the plane or train, you never know who you may meet. And heck if they are a Hokie you are pretty much guaranteed a good travel buddy!

Merry Christmas and safe travels y'all!         Love ya!

The Spirit of the Season

The holiday season is upon us and it is the perfect time to think about what this season truly means. Its not about what we get but rather what we give. It is so important to not lose sight of what Christmas is truly about, the birth of Jesus! God gave us the perfect example of love! Now we just have to work to love each other and care for each other.

To start off the Christmas season the athletics department at Wesleyan partnered up with Jay's Hope to wrap presents for over 200 children! Jay's Hope is an organization here in Macon that works with families affected by childhood cancers, Jay's Hope organizes events for the children as well as the entire family. The Jay's Hope Christmas Party is the organization's largest event of the year and we at Wesleyan were more than happy to help out! All of the athletes, coaches and our athletic director were on hand to wrap the hundreds of gifts and prep the holiday decorations. You can read about it in our official press release here!

On Sunday afternoon Mike and I headed back to Christ Chapel to work the Jay's Hope Christmas Party where we got to greet families and sign them into the event. I think the thing that struck me the most about the entire night were all of the smiles and thank yous. These families are battling unimaginable things in their lives yet they could not have been more pleasant, polite and adorable. While signing in one family, their son perked up and told me that his sister was having her port taken out the next day, the excitement on his face was so wonderful! And his sister was cute as a button and lit right up as soon as I replied with my excitement. Those are the moments when you remember that this season really is about giving (especially your time) and hope. Lots and lots of hope! Please say an extra prayer for all of those wonderful families as they continue to fight through childhood cancers with smiles, tears and lots of hope.

We also brought the Christmas spirit home while decorating our tree, complete with our initialed ornaments that we got last year:)

Now it is time to wrap up the semester with my last final to give tomorrow and grades due next week! The ponies will be enjoying a true break over winter break as our arena is being completely torn apart and redone. I will attempt to enjoy the break from the arena but I'm sure I'll be twiddling my thumbs and aching to hop back on as soon as the arena is ready...I may get stubborn and ride horses out in the pastures! A trip up to DC to see my family before Christmas will be a great way for me to let myself take a break, however. I am so looking forward to flying up to DC on December 19th and then I'll be back in Georgia for a warm (hopefully) Christmas with Mike, the pups and the ponies.

Hope y'all are prepping for Christmas with lots of joy and baking!! My baking marathon is set to kick off this weekend!! Love y'all :)

Stuffing and Sushi

Can y'all believe its already December?! This past week certainly felt like winter was on its way in down here in Georgia but thankfully the weather is turning around (fingers crossed) to warmer weather for the upcoming week.

The puppies and I took some time out of the day to do a quick photo shoot in the fall colors before they all disappear. Can you tell that Badger is used to having his photo taken? He's such a trooper about all of that, Chloe on the other hand clearly has not lived with me long enough to understand posing, haha.

Of course, this past week was the week of Thanksgiving!! Mike and I were lucky enough to host Mr. and Mrs. Denniston for Thanksgiving dinner but we started the day with the ponies at Wesleyan, of course. I believe that Spence is thankful for his warm blanket during our unseasonably cold week.

Badger may have been a teeny bit thankful for his scarf on the chilly Thanksgiving morning...maybe slightly unthankful but he's adorable either way.

After the ponies were taken care of, the rest of the day was devoted to prepping Thanksgiving dinner. Our menu involved: 

Turkey (made by Mike and it turned out amazing!)

Stuffing 

Cranberries (I used the recipe on the back of the cranberry bag and added orange zest, yummmm)

Sweet Potato Casserole 

Mashed potatoes and gravy

Biscuits

Corn

And for dessert I made these adorable mini pumpkin pies :) 

Black Friday consisted of sleeping in and then dealing with a water main break that left us without water for most of the morning but that just meant that Mr. and Mrs. Denniston and I had to head out to the stores. No, we were not part of the crazy early morning crowd! Instead we meandered around Bass Pro Shop and the new Macon mall. I finally started my Christmas shopping, well the parts that won't be from Mary Kay, and finished up shopping for holiday banquet this coming week. (Be sure to check back later this week to see how my holiday banquet table turns out on Thursday) Plus we got to end the day with sushi! So this past week I was able to enjoy my two favorite foods...stuffing and sushi :)

Saturday was a gloriously lazy day of sleeping, ponies and football. And it sure was an awesome football day...yay Hokies!! And holy cow what an amazing finish for Auburn!! Clearly I'm embracing the South with my Mason Jar, adorable new Sperrys (thanks Mr and Mrs. D!!) and SEC football on tv. 

Mike and I are so thankful that we were able to spend Thanksgiving with his parents and already miss having them down here in Georgia! We are looking forward to setting up our Christmas tree and gingerbread house decorating with Nicole and Donnie soon though! So if you're looking for people to visit in slightly warmer weather...get down here to Georgia!! We love having guests!!

Looking for gifts that you couldn't find on Black Friday? Head over to my site for lots of great gift ideas, plus shot me a message that you read the blog and I'll throw in a special gift with your Mary Kay order! 

My Mary Kay site!

Love y'all!

Rookie Semester Wrap

I cannot believe that the holidays are here! This fall semester has flown by but I could not be more grateful for everything that has happened. The whirlwind of my first year as head coach has kept me quite busy and then add to that the attempt to plan a wedding and, well yea then you'll understand my lack of blogging....sorry! I figured I would give y'all a bit of a rookie semester wrap up before we head into Thanksgiving.

My lovely Novice riders...also two of my seniors and our team captains

As y'all know, I started off the year with a boot camp for my returning riders and we headed into the new year with 5 returning team members and 6 new riders! My walk/trot riders have been working hard and consistently improving with each show. The weekend at Lander both Delaney and Ashaunti moved up in the ribbons on the second day jumping from 4th and 5th to 3rd and 4th. My walk/trot/canter numbers have successfully dwindled as Aaron pointed up into Novice to join Beth!

The girls helping Shae and Ashaunti prep for the walk/trot division at College of Charleston.

The hunt seat team started the year at Georgia Southern and we end the semester at College of Charleston with everyone putting in some great rides! Aaron debuted in Novice with a solid ride over fences in a huge class and Mayu earned the most improved award from me for a 3rd place in a gigantic advanced walk/trot/canter class!! She has also decided to stay at Wesleyan for the remainder of the year so I'm excited for some big things to be happening for her in the ring next semester!

Horses and spanish moss...doesn't get more southernly perfect than that!

The western team traveled up to Clemson this semester and will be making many more appearances next semester...possibly with another new face to the western world! Both of my western riders are brand new to the western world, as am I! So it will continue to be an adventure for sure but we're getting all blinged out and ready to dominate!

While traveling with the team takes up a large portion of my time, I'm lucky enough to get to squeeze in some friend time on the road as well! So while in Charleston, Katie met up with the team and I for a little VI reunion. She also got to re-live my wonderful directionally challenged ways while I tried to find the Mellow Mushroom where we met...while driving a bus!

Erin and I re-living our VI days in the ring:)

This past weekend I rounded out the fall show season with a schooling show that we hosted at Wesleyan. After lots of planning, cleaning, stressing and schooling of ponies the show went off without a hitch...except maybe a tad bit too much energy from one of our old schoolies. All of my team members had great rides and my community students (who I teach after the college day is over) came home with a reserve champion in the junior beginner division and a 4th place in the crossrail hunter undersaddle class. Everyone went home happy and the show made a profit!! Can't ask for much more than that...except that I did get more, I got a visit from my dear friend Erin! Thank goodness for her help this past weekend! Getting to ride together felt almost like being back at VI again, loved it :) I think the girls are starting to realize that you make some pretty amazing friendships in college and you should really cherish those years. I know I couldn't ask for better friendships than those that I kept from my years at VI.

I hope y'all are staying warm and getting ready for a wonderfully thankful Thanksgiving! When you start your Christmas shopping keep me in mind and check out my new website to let me help you make your shopping easier!!

marykay.com/jesmeagher

Love y'all!

Car Lot Lessons

     If the title wasn't a dead giveaway, you're all in for another post from the car salesman half of the couple. I've been wrestling with the idea of posting about car buying tips for some time now and I believe I've learned enough tricks to help you all do some damage on your next car buying trip (assuming you're not buying from me that is). I'm about 6 months in to the car business now and despite seeing something new almost every day, most customers generally fall in to a few different categories and we train to overcome those situations. I'll give you some anecdotes and some tips from my short time in the business so far and you can choose to do with them what you will.

     The type of customer that worried me the most at the start was the guy that came in wanting the "bottom line price" and tended to be very combatant and know-it-all. I often heard phrases like "I've been buying cars for 40 years and I've never paid sticker, I always get a deal". To that I'd simply respond, "Well sir, what do you consider a deal? Is it a certain percentage off the sticker price? Is it a certain dollar amount you save? Is it a monthly payment you're aiming for that I need to meet?" Most of the time said customer doesn't have a response to any of those questions and sometimes he becomes a little more bullish, notice I said he, it's almost always a man acting this way, usually trying to show out in front of his wife or significant other. At this time I usually follow it up with a "Sir, I've probably sold more cars in the last month than you've bought in your lifetime, I do this every day, I see this every day, let me work for you and help you find the car you really want, then we'll worry about getting you the deal you want." With those few short lines I've either disarmed my customer or got to the bottom of what he's really on my car lot for. It's not often I get aggressive, but when I have a customer like that I have to; I'm not an order taker I'm a salesman. With that, lets move in to a few car buying tips.

1. DO YOUR HOMEWORK- Seems like a no brainer, but know what you're looking for before you go to the dealership. You have so many resources as a consumer now, Kelley blue book, Edmunds, consumer reports, get a rough working knowledge of the vehicle you want before you encounter a salesman. If  you haven't actually seen the vehicles you're interested in yet, go check them out on a Sunday, car dealerships are almost always closed on Sunday and it's a good way for you to see if you like the styling of a vehicle before going any further. You can also usually find what kind of rebates or incentives dealers are getting from the manufacturer online at any given time of the year which you can use when it comes time to negotiate price.
2. DON'T GET SWEPT UP IN THE URGENCY- Flow is everything to a car deal, if a salesman can set the pace and bring you along, you'll be signing paperwork before you know it. The salesman is going to lead and almost expect you to follow. When you're told the same "deal" won't be available tomorrow or at any point after you leave, it may actually be the truth, but chances are you can still get that same price at another time. Don't let yourself get pressured, unless it's the end of a special promotion or perhaps the last day of the month, you can probably find that "deal" somewhere else and at another time. Which brings me to my next point..
3. THE END OF THE MONTH IS GOOD, BUT...- As I mentioned above, the end of the month is a great time to buy a car, but to max out what you might save, show up on the lot 2 or 3 days before the end of the month and shop. Don't buy, just shop, take some information, and leave. As a dealership we're always trying to sell cars and at the end of the month there are certain numbers we need to hit as an individual salesman as well as a dealership and many a time the customer can find a better deal that last day when we're feeling the urgency. If we have a customer that we think was truly interested we will do whatever we can to get you to buy before the end of the month so we can reach our goals.
4. WAIT UNTIL YOU GET TO THE DESK- I'm referring to keeping all of your information close until you get to the desk to negotiate the deal. There's really no point in talking payment on the lot because the salesman doesn't get to determine that and if you did your homework you know what cars are going to fit into your budget already. It's always better to have printed out quotes from online or other dealerships of what you're willing to pay for the new/used car, if they don't see it in print they probably won't try to match it. Invoice prices are listed online as well as fair purchase prices and are readily accessible. Realize that no matter what, the dealer is going to make some money, if he wasn't making money or taking away a deal from his competition he wouldn't sell you the car.
5. EVERYTHING IS NEGOTIABLE, EVERYTHING- There's a certain process to working a deal that can max out what you'll save as a customer. Avoid working the monthly payment figure until the end at all costs, don't even mention it on the lot. Work the overall price down by using all of the research you did before your visit to the dealership. Bring up and produce a copy of the invoice price as well as any special incentives from the manufacturer you were able to find. You should be a few thousand lower than MSRP at that point, which is when you bring up your trade. Most salesmen will ask you right away if you were planning on trading, just deflect and say you're undecided but you'd like to hold on to it. If you've done your homework you've also looked up what your car is worth as a trade-in, be honest with yourself and evaluate it without any sentimental feelings involved. You just raked the dealership over the coals on the price of the new car, so he's going to try to make it up on the trade by offering you way less than what it's worth. He'll probably tell you it needs brakes, tires, or a combination of things that will cost him a lot of money before he can resell it. Chances are your car isn't in excellent condition, but you can probably present some numbers off of Kelley Blue Book on the value of your trade and settle on one of the established values there. If you've gotten everything you wanted so far, congratulations, but you're not done yet, you still have the interest rate to discuss. Don't agree to anything until you know what interest rate you're getting. Rates are currently at an all time low with some dealerships offering below 1%. Once again, if you did  your homework, you know what rates are out there for certain manufacturers and you should know where your credit score is. Roughly anything above a 700 credit score can score you the best rate available, don't let the dealership tack on 1 or 2% to the prime rate, they're usually allowed to by the bank. At this point you made your salesman work, you've probably talked to the sales manager, he's probably not too happy, but you got the best deal you could and that's what you were after. 

     With all of that being said, the car buying process is as easy as you want to make it. The  happiest customers I've had are the ones that spent the most and inadvertently allowed Jess and I to go out for a nice dinner or take a fun day trip. They didn't do their homework.