There's a first for everything

I had some medical tests done today that I have been very nervous about. Basically my woman parts are not being friendly to me lately.  I'll leave it at that as to not to disclose "too much information."  The first was an ultrasound.  I was in the waiting room when a little voice called out my name.  I got up and walked over to this girl who looked like she was still in high school as she nervously told me her name was Molly and a college intern.  Today was her first day of her internship.  She was just going to be asking me a few questions before the experienced tech was available to come to the room and do the ultrasound.  Molly seemed very intimidated and stumbled over the simplest questions.  "What's the date of your last period?  Oh, I should probably start with, what's your name and birth date?  Sorry!"  I laughed and told her it was just fine.  I have forgotten how hard it is to just talk to someone when you're doing a new job and you don't want to mess up.  I am sure she will be great once she gets more confident, but today she was a bit of a mess.  It made me laugh though which put me more at ease.  The tech came in and performed the ultrasound and then asked if it would be okay if the intern took a few pictures too.  Sure, why not?  Who doesn't love to be someone's guinea pig?  She did okay though and what she did do right the experienced tech politely corrected her on it.

After the ultrasound was over, then it was time to go upstairs to the "Breast Center" where I would have my first ever mammogram.  A few days ago I Googled mammogram machines and mammogram pictures to get an idea of what it would be like and what to look for.  The best way I can think of to describe what a mammogram feels like is if you were to place one boob at a time under a garage door and let it close on you.  I know, no one would actually do that, but it's that kind of weight that it feels like as your breast is in a vice.  Very strange and uncomfortable, but not like so painful you want to yell or something.  Just feels like it's being squished.... because, well, it is. The tech took several "pictures" of both breasts and I could see on the computer screen each time what the picture looked like.  I probably shouldn't have Googled the images before because I could have sworn that I saw cancer in each picture.  I was beginning to get a bit concerned.  It was over fairly quickly though and much to my surprise the tech told me that the radiologist would have a look at it and let me know in a few minutes if he saw anything.  I wasn't expecting to get results so quickly and then I began wondering if I should have brought my husband or someone along with me in case I got bad news.  I sat in the waiting room waiting for someone to get me for the results.  I was able to watch quite a bit of HGTV in that time and had forgotten how much I like watching people flip houses.  The tech came back in the room after a bit to tell me the radiologist said everything looked great and to just follow up with my primary physician. The experience wasn't so bad at all and I'm happy that it was all worries for no reason.  Now I just need my ultrasound results that will come sometime in the next three days. 

On a related yet unrelated note.... a friend of mine from high school posted on Facebook today that she was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer.  She is going to be undergoing chemo this week and surgery and radiation will follow.  Her words of advice to her friends were, listen to your body, get it checked out, get a mammogram.  Kind of a weird coincidence she posted it on the very day I was getting my first one.  All I can tell anyone who hasn't had one before is that it's not all that bad.  Especially if you've been through child birth, you've definitely been through worse than a mammogram.  Don't be scared of it.  Get checked out.

Been staying up way too late recently and I'm thinking it's because I have some medical tests coming up that I'm pretty nervous about.  Not so much nervous for the tests themselves, although it's not like that's fun,  but nervous for the results.  It's like I don't want them to find anything wrong, but I want answers.  And if they do find something wrong, is it going to be really bad?  What if they don't find something but really there's something there and the tests just didn't pick it up?  I'm trying not to worry because I know it doesn't do any good - won't change the result of anything.  Just can't help it though.  It's definitely weighing heavily on my mind. 

Perks of painting

Painting doesn't have many perks.  It's tedious, leaves you sore, takes up too much time, and just plain not fun.  However, today I was realizing the best part of painting is listening to music and really being able to hear the lyrics and dissecting them. 

I have heard the song "Tonight" by Fun. a million times.  I can even sing along to the majority of the song, but it wasn't until today, while painting, that I noticed the lyric: "My lover she’s waiting for me just across the bar. My seat’s been taken by some sunglasses asking 'bout a scar, and I know I gave it to you months ago"  I knew all the lyrics surrounding that one except for the part that is in bold.  Funny how you can just miss the middle part of a sentence and never really notice. Made me wonder if he's talking about a physical scar or maybe more of mental scar.  Probably doesn't matter.  And then I watched the video for the first time.  It has 348+ million views and yet I was not one of them until today.  What a strange video!!



Then the song Fix my Eyes by For King & Country came on.  I've been hearing the song quite a bit on Siriusxm, but haven't really LISTENED.  Here's an excerpt:

All of the mistakes
All of the heartbreak
Here's what I'd do differently, I'd

Love like I'm not scared
Give when it's not fair
Live life for another
Take time for a brother
Fight for the weak ones
Speak out for freedom
Find faith in the battle
Stand tall but above it all
Fix my eyes on You
On You

What a great message to say to your kids or anyone.  Especially the line "Give when it's not fair."  Imagine if we all did that what a better world this would be.  Sometimes it's a hard thing to do, but that's probably when it's most important.



I was able to listen to so many other great songs today that I shouldn't be upset painting took over four hours.  I never get to listen to music straight for that amount of time.  It really is good for the soul.  I need to trap myself in a room with Amazon Prime music more often. 

A room feels small until you paint it!

My kids don't have very big rooms.  Their rooms are adjoined by a "Jack and Jill" bathroom and therefore they don't have all that much wall space.  In my daughter's room one wall has the door entrance on it, another wall has the closet, the third wall has two very large windows, and the fourth wall has the door to the bathroom.  So I was under the misconception that painting it wouldn't be all that bad.... and maybe for experienced painters it's not.  However, turns out all of those doors and windows that take up wall space are a pain in the rear to paint around!  After 4+ hours, I am calling it quits for today.  I think it still needs another coat of paint and then the edging by the ceiling still needs to be done.  I have a phobia of ladders so either waiting for my husband to do it or my rent-a-husband friends to help me out.

Here are the before shots.  My daughter asked why we needed a "before" picture and I told her because one day we will forget her room was ever yellow or that she had carpet.

The deer watched us through the window prepare the room for painting. 

Then it was time to start painting!  There's no going back now!  The color she picked out is called "Flower Girl" by Behr.  How apropos!

This picture makes it look like we're all done....

But alas... short girl problems...

Meanwhile, Kitty appreciates the open window and I threaten his life if he lets his tail touch the paint.  Must have worked because he was a good boy.

New laminate flooring comes Monday and then I'll have official before and after pictures with everything completed!!  Feels good to work on a project on the house even if my bones and muscles are aching something fierce right now.  The sense of accomplishment is a good feeling.

YUP - Got me thinking...

I am a member of the Facebook Group YUP Muskegon.  It's a very informal group of "Young Professionals" or "Young Urban Professionals" (but I'm not a fan of the term urban in the context of our group - subject for another day) that meets up once a month after business hours for drinks.  Someone recently tagged me and two other ladies in the post asking us whether we were admins of the group or if we knew who was.  I was flattered that they thought I was even a possibility as an admin considering I had never attended one of the YUP meet ups and wasn't all that active in the online group.

So I responded that I was not in fact an admin of the page nor did I know who was.  I also stated that lately I haven't felt very young or "professional" as of late.  Truth is, when I look at the pictures from these meetups, it's mostly 20-somethings whom I've never heard of, never met, and are more successful than I am.  I am in my mid-thirties and the job title of "mom" has now taken over almost exclusively.  I'm once again feeling in this strange pickle as I felt when I started this blog in 2010. 

In the last five years, I have had many ups and downs.  I started my own company with some friends called, Net Owl Media, I also started a non-profit.  I've done a whole slew of volunteering and gotten more active in my church.  But slowly work has declined.  Net Owl Media is no more.  The non-profit is still hanging on and I hope to see great things come from it, but it's been slow.  I went from having my kids in daycare twice a week so I could get work done to not having them in daycare at all anymore.  I see my professional life slipping away and I'm not sure how I feel about it. 

On one hand, what a blessing it is to not HAVE to work!  To have the option of being a stay at home mom is wonderful.  I love being available for all the kids' activities, school functions, picking them up from school, etc.  I never have to ask for time off of work to do any of those things or try to find someone to cover my shift.  Being with my kids whenever I want to truly is a gift.

However, when I'm cruising around town in my minivan, my mind begins to wander about what happened to the other side of me.  The side that LIKES to work.  Likes to feel good at my job, respected, even an expert at times.  I'm not sure any parent feels like an expert at parenting.  It's such a crap shoot.  You just do the best you can do and hope that your kid grows up to be a good, respectable human being.  There's no "high fives" at the end of the day for really nailing that mom role.  There's no promotion or raise to strive for.

It's not that I'm feeling overwhelmed by my kids at the moment or that I need a break from being mom (although I wouldn't turn one down).  It's just that I'm struggling to find a place that will satisfy both parts to me.  I find myself back to where I started five years ago.... not sure where to go or what to do.  Not sure I even want to formulate a plan or figure it out any time soon.... but you probably won't see me at a "young professional" meet up in the near future either.

Choose Yourself: Get out of a verbally abusive relationship

Earlier this week I posted a secret on my Facebook page.  Something that my very close family and friends knew, but that my greater social network was definitely unaware of.  I admitted that 12-13 years ago I was in a mentally abusive marriage.  This announcement surprised a number of people because most did not know I was even married before my current husband and therefore obviously didn't know the details of the marriage.

What prompted me to put it on Facebook was an article I came across that was posted on Upworthy titled:  She Could Hear Every Word He Said Through The Open Window, So She Started Typing . It is a letter written by a woman, Angie Aker, who could hear her neighbor's husband (boyfriend?) being verbally abusive.  Please read the letter in its entirety, but here is an excerpt:

He yells at you. We hear it. He calls you demeaning names. We hear it. I don’t know what else happens when the doors and windows close and we are no longer your witnesses — but make no mistake about it, you are not the things he calls you. Everyone on this block knows that. He has not stripped you of your credibility with us. You may feel stripped ... of your personal power, of your personal dignity, of the things that used to make you feel special before he made you feel like everything you do is wrong or bad. The only person who has the authority to give those things away is you. The only person who can restore those things, a bit at a time, is you.

There was something about that phrasing that made me think of my own experience.  I felt as if Angie was speaking to the 12-years-ago-me.  At the end of the letter, Angie reveals that years ago that was the position she was in, and she was able to get out.  This is what made me decide to come out about my experience on my Facebook page.  If I can just help one person by telling my story, by letting people know that I've been through it too, and that life can be so much better than what it is now, then that would be amazing to me.  So here is my Facebook post:

I attached the Upworthy article and pressed "post".  Immediately, I felt a wave of nausea come over me. What are people going to think?  What will my husband think about me talking about the past with my ex?  How would people react to me having been married before?  Are people going to think I'm just trying to get attention and/or sympathy?

However, within a few minutes comments of support started flowing in.  Many comments from others who have also been through the same kind of relationship, but are now past it and living happy lives with someone who treats them well.  Along with public comments also came private messages and texts offering support, empathy, and congratulations on how far I've come in my life since then.  They were all amazing to read, every single one of them.  It was nice to know so many friends had taken the time to read what I had written and then to reach out besides.  My favorite comment, however, came from my dad:

"We knew only a very small part of what you went through but that was bad enough. We are so proud that you had the courage and strength to put an end to it. I remember the relief we felt the night we picked you up and how glad we were that you knew you always had a safe place to go."

The support has been overwhelming, and with that comes the courage to go from posting it on Facebook to my network of friends to posting it out in cyberspace for anyone to read.  With that comes that nausea feeling in the pit of my stomach again, but I'm putting it out there in hopes of it helping somebody someday.

I am saying once again, nobody deserves to be treated like that.  Not all relationships are that way.  There also doesn't have to be physical abuse for it to be an abusive relationship.  You are not the things he (or she) tells you that you are.  Please contact me if you ever feel you need support getting out of an abusive relationship.  As Angie said in her letter, "You can keep waiting for this man to CHOOSE you once you’ve proven yourself 'good enough.' Or you can tell him to go to hell and you can choose yourself."

amanda(dot)shunta(at)gmail(dot)com

Yes, I invited celebrities to my wedding

My husband and I got married back in 2006.  During the wedding invitation addressing process we had just six invitations left after all of our friends and family had been invited.  Instead of just letting those invitations go to waste, or keep in a keepsake box that we'll never look at again, we decided to send them out into the universe to some of our favorite celebrities that we felt MIGHT possibly respond.  We knew none would actually show up to the wedding in our hometown of Muskegon, MI, but we thought even if just one returned the RSVP card with the decline checked that, in and of itself would be cool. 

So earlier this week we met one of our favorite rockers Matt Nathanson during a "Meet and Greet" after his concert at Frederick Meijer Gardens in Grand Rapids.  What do you say to someone famous during these awkward Meet and Greets?  This isn't the first time we've met Matt (probably our third or fourth) and we've encountered other celebrities/singers in the past as well.  You have two seconds to say something, someone snaps a picture, and then they move on to the next person.  So I decide to clumsily blurt out "we invited you to our wedding in 2006."  To which, Matt responded the only way any celeb could to this awkward declaration "oh and you're still married, congratulations on your long nuptials!" Husband and I both giggled, said thanks, photo snapped, and he moved on to the next person.


It got me thinking though about the people who we invited then and who I may have wanted to invite if our wedding was today instead.  So here are the chosen six of who we invited:

1.  Matt Nathanson - my husband was a huge fan of his music for years and would send me his songs during his courtship with me.  Granted, they were very dark, depressing songs, but I loved them as much as he did.

2006 looking Matt Nathanson

2. The Cast of How I Met Your Mother - The show had only had one season at the time and we were hooked.  The funniest show to come out for our generation, we felt there was so much to it that we could relate to.

How I Met Your Mother

3. Jeff Daniels - Hails from Michigan, and love his work.  Thought he might not have anything going on and could pop on over for a wedding.  Worth a shot, right?

Jeff Daniels

4. Jeff Bridges - The Dude abides.  Seriously.... he's the dude... no explanation needed.

Jeff Bridges

5. Andy Richter - I have a massive crush on Conan O'Brien and since I figured he was too huge to respond, I would invite his trusty sidekick who I believe was born in Grand Rapids, MI.  Truth be told, I really do like Andy though and think he's just as bit as funny as Conan.

Andy Richter

6.  ??????????????  And we both can't remember who the sixth celebrity was that we invited!!  If it comes to me I will edit this entry and add the person.

Now that we have been married for coming up on eight years, I think about how this list would change, or be added to, if we were to do it today.

I would add Mark Rufalo as a celebrity that I respect for his advocacy for the environment and climate change awareness.  Seth Glier who we have seen seven times in concert in the last couple years.  We have a deep respect for not only his songwriting ability, but also his character.  Emma Stone because she's someone that young girls should look up to - smart, funny, and talented - and I just thoroughly enjoy her.  And lastly Pharrell Williams because he just seems like an all round nice and humble man, on top of being crazy talented.

I know the people listed on here are not necessarily the conventional celebrities that if someone could have show up at a wedding they would be the one, but for whatever reason they have touched our hearts.  Who is a celebrity you would want to hang out with for a day? 

Our House Concert with Seth Glier

On Tuesday, November 12th, 2013, my husband, Dustin, and I hosted our very first "House Concert."  It turned out to not only be one of the highlights of 2013 for me, but probably in the top 10 (maybe even top 5) experiences of my life.  So let's back up a bit and I will tell the story of how this came to be and then describe how awesome it was.

In the beginning of this year, January 20th to be exact, I came upon a blog post by Brian Vander Ark, lead singer of The Verve Pipe, that described how to host a perfect house concert and emailed it to Dustin. Brian laid it all out perfectly and really piqued our interest in doing a house concert.  All we needed to do now was figure out who to book.

We looked into booking Ari Hest, Jess Klein, Walk Off the Earth, and Matt Giraud.  These are artists that we love, most had seen live before, and thought our living room would accommodate their sound well.  Because of touring logistics, it not fitting within our budget, or just not hearing back from their booking agent, we had to pass on these folks... at least for now.

Then on March 6th, I saw that Seth Glier posted on his facebook page that he was doing an IndieGoGo crowdfunding campaign.  He was in a really bad car accident that totaled his Prius and damaged equipment that was inside.  Depending on what a person donated, there was a "perk" given for the donation.  It was a no-brainer to us that we would love to help Seth out and in exchange we received a house concert in our living room for us and 30 of our friends.

Seth Glier is a Grammy nominated singer/songwriter who we had seen twice before in Spring Lake, MI at a venue called Seven Steps Up... first in January of 2012 and again in January of 2013.   I have a hard time putting it into words what the experience of seeing him live is like.  Not only does his music touch our souls, but without ever even speaking with him, you know the kind of man he is through his storytelling and his songs.

I think Dustin and I thought about it for maybe a week... whether or not we would donate this money to Seth to not only help him out with buying a new Prius (it IS a Prius after all... same car Dustin and my mom and many of our friends drive) but also to have the honor of having him in our home and letting our friends experience his music too.

So we pulled the trigger and sent the in the donation online.  On May 3, I received an email from Seth thanking us for our donation, letting me know he was able to purchase a new Prius, and he was back touring the country again.  He gave me the option of two dates that he would be in West Michigan and we decided on November 12th.  Wow, planning in May a concert that was to happen in November felt like an eternity away.  But we were excited, to say the least!

Seth and I were in contact a few more times via email and I even received a phone call from him the Sunday before the concert.  Our invites went out through Facebook a month ahead of time and we were just working on finalizing all of the RSVP's to get an exact count for how many people were coming.  As it so happened, we had just under 30 people that were able to attend.

Dustin and I worked diligently throughout the days leading up to the concert to prepare our house.  We had a bunch of clutter and toys that needed to be picked up and then the usual scrubbing toilets, washing floors, that you like to have done before a bunch of guests arrive. 

Seth was absolutely punctual and arrived at 4pm just as he said he would.  He immediately began to set up his equipment meanwhile singing tunes as he went from the house to his car and back again.  It seriously felt like a dream.  Seth Glier was in my house singing casually as he set up his equipment.  Once the keyboard and sound system were set up he began to practice on there singing bits of a number of his songs.  I seriously could not stop smiling as I was finishing up the rest of the chores I needed to do.  Again, I'm at a loss for words on how awesome this was to be getting my own private concert.

After he got everything set up he was able to relax for a bit before the guests began to arrive.  Dustin had made some really tasty chili and the three of us sat around the kitchen eating and enjoying light conversation.  Light conversation meaning religion, politics, tea party, and abortion.  You know... the typical things one would talk to with a Grammy nominated artist chilling in your kitchen.  It was fantastic.  We got to know a little more about him and he got to know more about us.  Our views on many things aligned and there were things that both Dustin and I said to him that he had the response of "I never thought of it that way before" to.  That was incredible.  Even though Seth is nearly ten years younger than we are, he has an old soul and maturity that is rare in men even twice his age.  It was a pleasure having this one-on-one time with him.  Musical artist aside, he is one cool dude.

The guests began to file in and started to mingle.  They had a moment to grab some drinks, some snack and Dustin's chili and then it was time to get started.  I gave a short introduction about where we had seen Seth before and how excited we were to have him in our home.  I didn't end up saying everything I had intended to say, but that's what happens when you're just bubbling over with joy.

Seth started off by singing "Gotta Get Away."  I got a short video of it before my camera ran out of space.  I took a second video later with my cellphone of "Our Song"  which also cut off near the end, and for the rest of the concert I was just so in awe that I never thought again about taking any more videos.  He sang for about 40 minutes and then took a break and then sang for another 30-40 minutes.  His talent on the keyboards and his vocals are just out of this world.  He sang at least two songs acapella and the pitch was just dead on.  He put so much soul and passion into what he is singing.  His lyrics tell stories that are as descriptive as novels.  You really can picture it in your mind exactly what he's singing about and what either he felt during the experience or what the person felt that he was writing about.  He has a knack for words and songwriting.

Our guests seem to like him as much as we do.  At least four of our guests bought tickets right then to see him in January at Seven Steps Up and several others bought CDs and other merchandise.  Seth is also an ambassador for an adopt a child fund that supports children all over the world to make sure they are given the necessities.  One house guest adopted a child because she said that Seth really touched her soul.

Having Seth in our home was awesome enough, but being able to share this experience with our friends and family and have them love him as much as we do was really the best gift of all.  Seth is going to continue to great things in this world and we were lucky to have him right here in our living room.  I will never forget this and it really felt like a fairytale.  We have been blessed with such an incredible life and I feel like the luckiest woman alive.  I know that we were the ones who donated money, but he was the true gift in this experience.

ISR Swim Lesson video goes viral!

It is so exciting to me that our video of Oliver in his ISR swim lesson has gone viral on YouTube.  To me, this must mean that there is an active interest in ISR swim lessons and I think that is just wonderful!  At the time I am writing this we are just 25,000 views away from reaching 4 million views!! Can you believe that?!  If you haven't see the video yet, please watch below.  Then click on over to my blog post about our Our Amazing ISR Experience.  Thank you!

The most elaborate marriage proposal I've ever seen

The internet is full of marriage proposals.... from the simplest recorded with a camera on a phone to flash mobs orchestrated in shopping malls.  No matter how simple or elaborate, they are enjoyable to watch.  They fill your heart with love, laughter, hope, and romance.  But this one takes the cake.  The time, money, and resources this must have taken is just unbelievable.  I'm thankful for creative people in this world that make things like this and share with the rest of the world.  I love this couple and I don't even know anything about them.  Enjoy!

April Cash Mob Announced to Raise Funds for New Downtown Muskegon Arcade and Bar

An April Cash Mob will be held to benefit two local entrepreneurs’ arcade project.

Muskegon is no stranger to the “Cash Mob” concept. West Michigan Jobs Group (WMJG) has organized several Cash Mobs in the Muskegon area over the last year. A cash mob is a gathering similar to a flash mob, typically organized through the use of social media, where a group of people meet at a locally owned business and each spend at least $20 in cash.  The idea is to keep as much money in the local economy as possible and increase exposure to the business.

"This time we wanted to support a business that isn't even operational yet.  West Michigan Jobs Group's goal is to support local, independent and sustainable businesses to nourish Muskegon's economy and create more jobs,” said Amanda Shunta, vice president of West Michigan Jobs Group. “One way of doing this is by helping new businesses get off the ground."

WHAT: Cash Mob to support proposed arcade/live music venue, Nick & Tim’s

WHEN & WHERE: April 25, 6-8 p.m. at Cherokee Restaurant—1971 Sherman Blvd, Muskegon

WHY: Entrepreneurs Nick Leisenring and Tim Updyke have purchased the building at 136 W. Webster Ave in downtown Muskegon, with a vision for a distinguished arcade and drink house offering a unique combination of retro gaming and modern technology in a casual environment.  In addition to the arcade, live entertainment ranging from local and regional bands to comedians will also be a focus of this endeavor. Leisenring and Updyke started an online crowd sourcing campaign on the site indiegogo.com and have been seeking donations through social media to help offset the cost of the massive renovations needed for the building.  The cash mob will further help them to reach their goal of $250,000. 

“We knew it was a high goal when we set it, but we have seen amazing things happen from crowd sourcing sites and thought it was worth doing," said Updyke. 

The cash mob will take place in the banquet room in the Cherokee restaurant where there will be board games available for all ages to enjoy.  Donors to the Nick & Tim’s project will receive a "perk” based on the level of their contribution. 

In addition to the fundraiser, participants are encouraged to purchase food and drinks to support locally owned Cherokee as well.  If you are unable to attend the cash mob but would still like to donate, visit http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/nick-tim-s-project/x/673866   Questions relating to the project can contact Tim Updyke email tim@modern-entertainment.com.   Any questions about the cash mob please contact Amanda Shunta at amanda.shunta@gmail.com. 

Make Pere Marquette Accessible for All!

My friend Stephen Draft-Peppin and I are working on getting a grant from the Community Foundation for Muskegon through their "Love Your Community" contest.  From the contest description: "Inspired by Peter Kageyama’s message encouraging citizens to declare their love for their community, we will award grants to six projects that demonstrate and share the love! Examples of these “love notes” include last year’s winning projects such as Movies on the Beach, a Play It Forward benefit concert for the Snurfer Sculpture, Portraits of White Lake photography class & exhibit, and more. All of these ideas were created by the people, for the people, using $500 to get them going."

Our project is about making Pere Marquette (in Muskegon, MI) more accessible for those in wheelchairs, strollers, or limited mobility.  We would like a ramp/dock going from the base of the pier into the breakwater area where the water is calmer and beach is smaller.  This would allow a person in a wheelchair to get right up close to the water.  Right now there is a walkway going from the restrooms out to the beach, but it stops short of meeting the water.  So someone in a wheelchair would still have to manage going through the sand somehow.  Another piece to this is that the pier itself is next to impossible for someone in a wheelchair or stroller to get down due to the uneven ground.  This really needs to be smoothed out.  We can't possibly do this all with only $500, but we're hoping this will draw more attention to the problem and the powers that be will do something about it.  It's worth a shot!

So to vote for our project please click on this link and then click "like" beneath the picture.  https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151176291418605&set=a.10151176290668605.469748.100319078604&type=3&theater

Thank you so much for your support!! 

Additional photos from our project:

West Michigan Jobs Group gives a damn!

Here is a letter that my cohort, Elizabeth Council, wrote to the Chronicle about our non-profit organization, West Michigan Jobs Group.  Read Letter. We wanted everyone to know that our group does give a damn and what steps we have been taking to make Muskegon a better place to live.  Also, we want to motivate others to do the same thing we have done.  It was completely grassroots, we didn't really know what we were doing when we got started, and it all just came together and took off.  Anyone can do it!

Letter: Pulling together, Muskegon: West Michigan Jobs Group gives a damn

Two Years as a Stay At Home Mom... or Whatever It Is I am Doing

It has almost been two years exactly since I was downsized from SuperMedia.  In those years, I have enjoyed precious time with my kids, started my own company, and most recently become somewhat of a community activist.  Overall, I would say I am happier than ever.

What I have not mastered yet is the art of cooking or the desire/motivation to clean on a regular basis.  I cooked from scratch about a week ago and was incredibly proud of myself and then realized how sad it was that it made me proud to cook from scratch probably only one time in the last 2 years.  But I guess it's better than not at all!  Turns out that cleaning is so much harder when you don't work full time!  Who would have thought?  The house is a disaster almost immediately after cleaning.  When I was working, no one was in the house to mess it up.  I never took into consideration how much messier a house gets when it's occupied all the time.

So what am I?  Am I a stay at home mom?  Am I a mom who works from home part-time?  I feel the need to have a job title.  Some moms try be cutesy and say they are a "Domestic Diva" or the family's "CEO/COO", but I don't feel that either of those jobs define me either.  Domestic Diva to me sounds like June Cleaver with Prada shoes... which I am anything but.  Being a "CEO" (Chief Executive Officer) would imply that I am the top dog in charge of the total management of an organization (family).  A "COO" (Chief Operating Officer) implies that why I would be in charge of the operations of the family, but I would still be second in command to the CEO (which I would assume would be my husband in this scenario).  While sometimes this may be the case that I may be more aware of the operations, to-do lists, schedules, events of the household, I am neither "top dog" or "second in command."  My husband and I have an equal partnership.  We make all major, and even many minor, decisions together.  And even though I am with the kids for more time during the day, the quality of time he spends with the kids is just as great. 

Even without an official title or becoming more domesticated, I have accomplished some things that I am proud of.  Six months after I was let go I gave birth to my handsome son, Oliver.  He has brought so much light in our lives.  He truly is the opposite from his sister, Hope, and that keeps us on our toes.  Oliver is so happy, easy going, curious, and energetic.  I am happy that I have been able to spend the time with him to really enjoy his personality and watch him grow each step of the way.  Hope recently turned 4 years old, started preschool, and comes up with new questions everyday to stump me with.  She spoke the other day of Vacation Bible School and I asked her what she was hoping to learn about this year in VBS.  Her response: "Electricity."  She told me she wants to know how daddy's computer can run.  Not sure she'll learn that in VBS, but it impressed me she had even thought about the concept of electricity or even knew the word.

My business with Net Owl Media has been steadily growing.  We are getting more and more business through referrals and family and friends.  I am hoping it continues to grow this year and hopefully double the business we did in 2011.

Through the non-profit organization West Michigan Jobs Group that I am Vice President of, I was able to organize two, going on three, Cash Mobs in the Muskegon County area.  The cash mobs have been helping local businesses through both sales and publicity and has gained recognition through the Muskegon Chronicle, Mlive, and even had an article featured on msnNOW: 'Cash Mobs' flood local businesses with shoppers Makes me happy that it has really taken off the way that it has.  The community has really embraced it and it truly has been helping locally owned shops.

With the fall of the Muskegon Summer Celebration, a new music festival has emerged and I was asked to be on the board of that acting in an advisory position to the management company that will be overseeing the festival.  This has been very exciting to me to see a festival come to fruition nearly from the beginning and building on the strengths of what "Summer Cel" had to offer and improving on some opportunities that the festival had going.

I wouldn't have been able to accomplish all of this if I hadn't been a "stay at home mom."  My friend, Hannah, told me when I first got the news that I had been downsized: "You won't be working, but I know you will always be working." Okay, I may have paraphrased, but that's the gist of what she said.  She couldn't have been more right.

Thanks to the Timeline on Facebook I was able to go look back again at what my status was on March 18, 2010, the day I lost my job:

"I was looking forward to this day because it was the day I was going to hear our new baby's heartbeat for the first time and get to announce to the FB world that I'm pregnant! So I heard the heartbeat, everything's good, and then I get to work and I got let go. Three of us lost our jobs due to "reduction in force." So my great day turned crappy pretty fast. So surprise everyone! I'm pregnant and now unemployed!"

That status brought 48 comments, the last being from my best friend, Andrea:

"I can't wait to meet baby #2 and good luck with your new life :) There is no limit to what you can do. You have always been an inspiration to me. I can't wait to see what wondrous new things will come of all this! Let me know if you need anything. Love you girl!"

Reading that and the other positive comments brought tears to my eyes now when looking back because I realize that these people knew I would do great things in the next couple years that I didn't even know I would do.  I am thankful for the time that I now have to devote to my family, friends, and community to make all of our lives better.  So my "downsize" turned into a huge "upgrade" in the quality of my life.  I couldn't have done any of these things without my enormous support system.  You all make it better.

Muskegon Cash Mob appears on msnNOW

This morning I was going through my usual routine of getting in the shower, dressing, brushing teeth, makeup, hair... all the while checking my smartphone every few minutes because the green light (indicating I have either new email or text messages) kept blinking.  Most of the new emails I was receiving was notifications from Facebook indicating that new people have "liked" our Muskegon County Cash Mobs page.  We had been averaging one new like or two a day since the last cash mob a few weeks ago, so to have about 5 just in about an hour span was odd.  Then I got a notification that someone had posted a link on the cash mob's wall.  The link went to this msnNOW article:  'Cash Mobs' flood local businesses with shoppers.  The article gives a link straight to the Muskegon County Cash Mobs page!  How cool is that?!  Through that article, our facebook page began to grow immediately and also received a number of comments on our wall as well.  It is the  most activity the page has seen.

I am not sure why msnNOW chose the Muskegon cash mob to focus on as we are not the originators of this concept, but it was great that they did! The other odd thing is that the woman who posted the link to the page deleted it almost as fast as she had posted it.  So it was sort of a phantom posting just to let me know that this article was out there, perhaps?  The whole thing is a bit strange to me, but I am definitely not complaining.  The cash mobs concept is gaining great moment.  cashmobs.wordpress.com indicates that there have been mobs reported in more than 100 cities now! 

Please feel free to contact me or go to one of the sites above if you would like more information on how to throw a cash mob event in your area!  And as always, your comments are welcome below as well.  Thank you!

Why Cash Mobs?

Muskegon's next Cash Mob is scheduled for Friday, February 3rd, 5:30pm at the Century Club Center downtown.  I was asked by Andrew Samtoy, the creator of the "Cash Mob" concept, to write a blog post about Cash Mobs for his site.  I decided to write one on Why Cash Mobs?  What is it about Cash Mobs that makes it a good idea?  This is the post I gave to him to put on the Cash Mobs site...

Why Cash Mobs?

by Amanda Shunta
Vice President – West Michigan Jobs Group, LLC
Muskegon, MI

When I heard the story on NPR about the Cleveland Cash Mob, the wheels in my head immediately began turning.  I thought, “this would be great for Muskegon and it wouldn’t be too hard to pull off!”  Through my non-profit organization, West Michigan Jobs Group, we have seen how powerful social media can be.  We were successfully able to lure a 100-MW wind farm to the Waste Water Treatment facility in Muskegon through gaining support, educating, and organizing through the use of social media.  I figured a Cash Mob would be a piece of cake compared to the amount of work that took!

There are several reasons I was drawn to the Cash Mob idea.  After dealing with the polarizing topic of wind energy in the area, it was nice to find something non-political that would benefit the city.  It’s not a Republican or Democrat thing, it’s not a religious debate, it’s purely a cause that anyone in the community can support.  It’s unifying.

The city of Muskegon has one of the highest unemployment rates in Michigan.  More people are moving out than moving in to the city, and along with that the morale of the citizens has plummeted.  Participating in a Cash Mob makes people feel good – and it should!  It’s helping out a local store not just by each person spending $20, but also the publicity that comes with a cash mob benefits the store for weeks afterwards.  It is something that the stores themselves are not organizing; it is the community doing it, and so it gives the mob a “pay it forward” or a “random act of kindness” altruistic feel that makes people feel good.  That is something Muskegon, MI desperately needed.  Also, it’s keeping money in the local community which benefits our schools, roads, charities, and so much more.  Something else to feel good about!

Another reason to organize a Cash Mob is to give people a specific date and time commitment to shop at a particular place.  The store that we organized our first Cash Mob at, Continuity, has been around for 3 (ish?) years, and you hear people say “Oh I’ve been meaning to check that place out.”  Well, this holds people to it, and when someone has a specific date, time, and purpose, they’re more likely to follow through.  For others, it was an opportunity to check out a part of town they didn’t know existed.  The president of my organization, Eric Justian, wasn’t even aware of Continuity or the surrounding shops.  He blogged about how not only did he have a great experience at Continuity but also found a treasure in the neighboring Asian Market that he had been unaware of until the Cash Mob.

Lastly, the reason to Cash Mob is because it is fun!  I didn’t spend a penny while organizing and marketing the cash mob.  It was all done through social media (mostly Facebook, Twitter, and a little LinkedIn) and word of mouth.  I got to meet people whom I had never met before, I grew my networking base through the new connections I had made, and just being in a store filled with positive energy was a rush!  I plan to keep organizing Cash Mobs until we either run out of stores in the area or run out of interest from participants.  I hope it is a long time before either happens!

Hope Floats Again

My daughter, Hope, went swimming with my in-laws today at a community center in a nearby town.  She was worried at first because she said she had forgotten how to swim.  From what my in-laws tell me, she was afraid to get in the water at first, but once she did she had a great time.  This got me thinking about her ISR (Infant Swim Resource) swim lessons that she took during the summer.  It has been 6 months now and it's time she has a refresher which hopefully she will start soon.  In the meantime though I decided to take a look at her YouTube videos again that I had posted in July.

I was astounded to see that the one with her in her winter clothes has had 3,050 views on YouTube!  The other videos span in views anywhere from 30-300 each, but none as many as this particular video with over 3,000 hits!  I know in the YouTube world this isn't all that many hits, but in my world I feel like Hope's video is a box office hit!  lol  So here it is again just because it's fun to revisit.  I'll post the one of my son, Oliver, too just to be fair.  :)  Looking forward to more videos as they take their refresher courses.  Again for more information on  ISR please visit www.infantswim.com or if you are in the West Michigan area you can go to www.ISRGrandRapids.com.  Click this link for more details on our personal experience in the ISR program.

 

Where's a good Women's Empowerment Magazine when you need one?

So this evening I did a search on Women's Magazines.  One thing that showed up was this list on Wikipedia of all women's magazines that are geared towards a woman audience.  The reason behind the search was I was trying to think of what magazines would have stories about career women, women empowerment, etc.  Just felt like being inspired by other women, or something.  Honestly, not even really sure of what my original intent was.

I scanned the list looking for names I was familiar with: Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Family Circle, Good Housekeeping, Martha Stewart Living, Redbook, Self, Shape, to name a few.  I went to several of the websites for these magazines looking for articles on careers, businesswomen, entrepreneurs... anything inspiring.  I was astounded at how little I could find. 

The majority of magazines geared towards women are ones featuring celebrities, style/fashion, relationships, or how to be a good mom/homemaker.  So I began to wonder... are women really primarily only interested in these topics or is it that is just what publishers THINK we want to read about?  Why is it that the only advice we can get from magazines is on relationships, parenting, or how to style our hair?  We seriously have a magazine, and a popular one at that, called "Good Housekeeping."  Is it one of those things that you have seen your whole life so you just don't think about its meaning anymore?  GOOD HOUSEKEEPING.  Maybe I am more offended by the name than I should be, but haven't women come far enough along that it would warrant changing the name of the magazine? 

I don't consider myself an ultra feminist, but I do consider myself a career woman that enjoys a good read on other career woman.  I want to hear stories on how they made it to the top of a corporation, started their own successful business, how they handle a career and a family, and other positive stories of women who make a difference.

Aside from pigeon holding women as only wanting to read about how to keep your children happy and how to please your man in the bedroom, so much of the focus is placed on negative content.  I know this may sound strange coming from a reality TV addict and a "Real Housewives" junkie, but women spend way too much time and energy cutting each other down.  You can't look through a style section of a magazine without a "what were they thinking" / "worst dressed"  type of feature.  Or the celebrity sections focusing on who's gaining weight, trainwrecked celebs, or who is fighting/suing who.  I would like a magazine for young women that does not have to focus on negativity.  A magazine that can still cover the topics they currently already do: celebrities, style, relationships, parenting but also FEATURE stories on career women, inspiring women, etc, and not just have it sprinkled in or a blurb here and there.  But at the same time keeping the ENTIRE magazine positive.  Think anyone would read it?  Any magazine recommendations out there?