Penn Relays 2014

And just like that we're heading back home from Philly! Although I was reluctant to go, we had a great time attending Penn Relays. For those who don't know, Penn Relays is a large track meet where teams from all over the world come to compete. High school, college, and professionals. Even the professionals over 75. That was cutest race I've ever seen! I hope to be able to run a race at 75. Of course the Jamaicans were out in full force in the stands. It was a sea of green, yellow, and black standing proud. It felt great to be amongst my fellow people. Of course the rivalry between Jamaica and USA were apparent as each race took place. Every time USA and Jamaica took the track, the commentator would have to warn people to sit down so everyone could see. But he really didn't have to say that because we got anyway because of our excitement and anticipation. Babes was amazed at the amount of Jamaicans in the stadium. I was like we are proud people. Texas even showed out too. The women's 4x400 relay medley mashed up the race! There wasn't a weak link in that relay. It was beautiful! Seeing all those women athletes confirmed that I really want a trackstar booty and flat abs. I need to find myself in a gym soon. Tryna to get wedding dress fine. Lolololol. 

And I'm sad to say this is my last post of my 40 day blog challenge. :( I'll be posting the challenge recap soon. I'm glad that I actually stuck with the challenge. Learned quite a bit and can't wait to share. 

♥ A.Erika ♥

Lindo Clan to Philly

We're taking our talents to Philly. Nah not really. We're as in my family plus the babes are embarking on a 10 hour road trip to Philly. Should be interesting to say the least. Not sure how it's all gonna pan out but we're heading up to see some good running and eat some Philly cheesesteaks. Lol. Y'all pray us. Follow me on Twitter and Instagram (@msashlee_erika) for updates. 

♥ A.Erika ♥

Waiting with Expectation

The last two mornings I've been listening to Auntie Joyce talk about how faith works. She said you must pray with expectation that God will deliver on His promise. I was like yes you better speak ma'am. Fast forward to this evening, I went to see Rev. Jackie Thompson at my parents church. Now if you've ever heard her speak, you know it's a treat. So guess what she talked about? Expectation. I was like okay God this is confirmation to Auntie Joyce. The Rev. Dr. said expectations bring forth 3 things: 1) an atmosphere so God can move, 2) the ability to fuel activity, and 3) the power to change the perception of reality. By this point, I was just like I understand God, I understand. THEN she says you don't get what you pray for—you get what you expect. And I had to think how many I pray but don't really believe God will come through because I've been disappointed. Tonight was a reminder that no matter how long it takes never stop dreaming and believing God what God says. After all, it took Sarah 20 years after God's promise to bear a child. 

♥ A.Erika ♥

Sacrifices

After visiting wedding venues this past weekend, I realized how important sacrificing is to get to your goals. My family is not rolling in dough nor am I living my American dream...yet. So paying for this wedding is coming with much sacrifice and careful planning. I know I'm going to miss certain events and moments but I know that it will all pay off in the end. I was watching a Sarah Jakes webisode and she said: Everybody wants to eat but few are willing to hunt. That resonated with me. How many times do we just want to eat but don't want to work to eat. There are moments where I love working to eat and other times, I barely want to eat. I am trying to make the moments of working to eat more consistent. 

♥ A.Erika ♥

life happens

Hey y'all! My life is just busy. When I find the time to write, I fall asleep. It's a vicious cycle. And I'm mad because two blogposts posted for the same day. Ugh little stuff like that piss me off. Anyways this weekend I thought I would get to relax since we had Good Friday off. Yeaaaaaa nah. Wedding venue visits, brunches, outing with mentee, church and dinner with the fam. All of that left little time for anything. I did catch Scandal though. The season ended very openly. Like in the next season could go different directions. You never know with Shonda Rhimes. Believe it or not, my blogging challenge is coming to an end. I know, I know sad right?! I know you all have been enjoying the posts. Lolololol. The goal is to have a post done everyday until then. Buttttttttt if I dont, y'all know....life happens.

♥ A.Erika ♥

A Person with Integrity

I was listening to Auntie Joyce yesterday. Y'all know I love Auntie Joyce, right?! In the podcast, she was discussing being a person of integrity. Before I listened, I thought I was a person of integrity so this will be a great refresher. But I was wrong. She stepped on my toes and it hurt but I wanted to share what I learned. She defined a person with integrity is a person who does what they say even in the small things. For example, if you say you are going to call someone in a hour or next week, you make sure you do that. Another example is that you show up for work on time. Now I struggle with the latter. I mean I kinda have an excuse because I live in Jerusalem, not literally, but that doesn't excuse me. So I'm going to try to make more of an effort to be on time. I made it to work in good timing but I also forgot my watch and engagement ring. Sigh. You win some, you lose some.

She also talked about over-committing. Over-committing doesn't leave room for a grace period. Learning how to say no is powerful. Last year I made decision to slow down and it was one of the best decisions I've made. It allows me to enjoy the little moments plus it allows me freedom to do something on short notice. Which I could hardly do last year because EVERYDAY I had something to do. It was tiresome and overwhelming. Plus I was double booking myself and that's never good. My integrity was going down the drain. So that podcast was everything I needed to jump start my lifetime change being a woman of her word. Being a man of his word is one of my babes' strongest qualities and one of many things I admire about him. The walk HAS TO match the talk and I'm working on the walk.

♥ A.Erika ♥

So Last Night at the Shuler Awards....

So last night I had the task of live tweeting the Shulers Hensley Awards, which the Georgia High School version of the Tonys. It was a wonderful evening to see high school students display their talents of stage. I have to say Georgia has a state of talented children. I was excited to see who was going to win the awards especially since a predominantly black school was nominated for 14 of the 17 awards. Basically coming in as an underdog. They ended up winning 13 out of the 14 awards. Lolololol. After the 4th award they won consecutively I knew it was going to be an interesting night. To say the least. Of course it was all displayed on Twitter. People were saying the awards were political joke; they were at the [Insert Winning School name here] banquet awards [not the Shulers] and my personal favorite, I'm transferring to [Insert Winning School name here]. Lol. Nothing against the other schools but they were THAT good. We had a chance to see them performing a number from their winning production [because they won best overall musical]. And I wanted to see more like the little kid from the AT&T commercial. I was just proud that our kids could excel as the underdogs. 

♥ A.Erika ♥

First Decade

One of my good friends' mom and her colleague started a group called First Decade. The group is for young professionals in the first decade of their career learning how to navigate their professional and personal goals. It's a great little family we've formed and we look forward to seeing people one a month. I love the informal style of the meetings. It allows each attendee to feel comfortable to express their challenges and victories in their jobs. It's sort of like a support group for recent graduates. I enjoy the times we have together! After every meeting, I leave with a reminder that my career is my own and I must take charge of it and direct it where I want it to go. Tonight was our April meeting and we talked about grad school. The discussion was informative and I left considering grad school. We'll see if that consideration turns into reality. Lol. If you know anyone in Atlanta that could benefit from a group like this, hit me up! They won't regret attending!

Logo and Flyer Designed By Yours Truly ;)

♥ A.Erika ♥

Surprises

I love surprising people but I don't like being surprised. I mean I usually like what I get after the surprise but I like to know EVERYTHING. I try not to miss a peep. So when my fiancé talked to my friends about proposing, the first thing ALL of my friends said was you know she's nosy right. I'm not talking about the surprise proposal this post. Lol. My fiancé decided to surprise me with tickets to see the Hawks vs Heat game Saturday night. I hadn't been to NBA game in a while but it was nice to do something out of our norm. I actually thought we were going to the museum. I guessed and he led me to believe I was correct. So I'm talking all this junk to my family about how I guessed the surprise but when we pulled up to Phillips Arena, I was shocked. He got me! I really think he gets great pleasure in giving me surprises. I was rooting for the Heat and he was secretly rooting for the Hawks. He doesn't like Lebron, he's a Kobe fan. We argue endlessly on why Kobe's career is done. He's such a loyal fan, it's cute! HA! The seats were really good and we were sitting amongst other Heat fans so I was in good company until the Heat lost. They weren't playing with any zeal which is understandable since they have already secured a playoff spot. The Hawks on the other hand, had much more to prove. They had to win this game in order to go to the playoffs. I have to say the Hawks played extremely well. But I see it as the Heat did the Hawks a favor. I talk so much junk. Lol. Pizza at Nancy's was the perfect night cap. It was delicious! Good day indeed!

♥ A.Erika ♥

Networking with Creative Girls Atlanta

Hey y'all! It's been a couple of days right? Work has been turned up a notch. We're about 5 days away from Georgia High School Musical Theatre Awards and I am in charge of social for the event. I've been in planning and brainstorming session to make sure we are fully engaging this online community. Handling that and being the point person has left me pooped. In the midst, I was able to get away and attend a networking event organized by Creative Girls Atlanta. Their mission is "to present social, hands-on workshops catering to the lifestyles and businesses of creative Atlanta ladies." I found out about the group through one of the founders, Kia Perry. I came across her Instagram page and loved the content so I started following her. I saw her posting information about her group and said to myself, I am creative woman in Atlanta. I should go. I went and she recognized me instantly. It was great! I got to meet other women and speak with them on how they are launching their creative ventures. It was great to be in good company with other women who trying to figure it out. It being their life. I made some great connects and I even got to speak with Kia about helping with the future planning of Creative Girls Atlanta. I've been looking for a creative outlet I could give my time to and when I heard about this group, I felt like it was a good fit. So stay tuned for more info about the group!

♥ A.Erika ♥

If You Told Me A Year Ago...

If you told me a year ago that I would be engaged, I would have laughed. Then probably looked at you like you were crazy. I would've told you that I'm not ready for all that. This time last year, I was fully immersed in my campaign and preparing for my 25th birthday celebration. I didn't expect to fall in love. I didn't expect to meet a guy that would change my perspective on what truly means to love. I had this plan. Y'all know me. I'm always doing something and finding something to do. Google and I have a STRONG relationship! Lol. But they say, when you plan, God laughs. I know He was laughing hysterically with me. I am a witness that God's plan SUPERCEDES any plan you may have for yourself. I mean when I sit back and think of where I am, I'm overwhelmed with emotion to how blessed I am. I found this quote and it's so true.

“If you don't leave room for the unexpected to express itself in your life, you close yourself off from the possibility of miracles.”

I believe God wants to do miracles in our lives but we/ our plans get in the way. He appreciates your hard work but sometimes we need to allow God to do His thing. I'm working on doing my part and letting God do His. I've applied this "leaving room" principle to my schedule and it has allowed me some great experiences. It also gives me the flexibility to do something I want vs something I'm obligated to. And that flexibility is priceless.

♥ A.Erika ♥

Design Chronicles 001

Before I start with today's post, I would like you all to notice that new URL for the blog is blog.ashleelindo.com. In attempts to start keeping my brand consistent, I decided to point this blog to that URL. I had to look up some tutorials on how to do and last night it went live! I was so happy because although I'm far from a developer but I felt like I could code a whole website. Well maybe that was an ambitious statement but y'all get it. Small victories I tell ya. Now on to the post....

I've realized that it's been awhile since I've shared any of my latest designs. As I'm transitioning into more freelance opportunities, I'm starting to put myself out there more to a) get more clients and b) learn to be more comfortable in sharing. Auntie Erykah was telling the truth when she said, I'm an artist and I'm sensitive about my sh**. Most designers are sensitive but we learn to grow thick skin because people can undervalue the skill. You can work umpteen hours on a project, only to find the client wants to go in a different direction. Yet the client's satisfaction with the final project outweighs all of that. Here I am taking a risk *wink wink* and sharing more of me. I present Design Chronicles...

I designed this flyer for Pledge To Be Bella, a women's empowerment group, here in Atlanta. I think I captured the essence of the event. What do y'all think? Also, if you know someone who needs a graphic designer, send them my contact info.

♥ A.Erika ♥

becoming a risk taker.

I'm learning to be a risk taker. Especially when taking chances on myself. I guess I'm nervous to make a mistake or be wrong or look foolish. I'm learning not to be afraid of being wrong and not trying. Something as simple doing the nae nae at a stop light made me clam up and for the life of me, I couldn't do it. I looked at that and said to myself girllllllll you got some work to do. Lol. I'm going to put 'take a risk' on my to-do list every week. I already asked babes to force me to take more risks. I would say I'm 1-1 for now. But I'm working on more wins for risk taking. Every day I get a reminder: Without God I am NOTHING. With God, I can do ALL things because He strengthens me. Maybe I need to bombard my cube with that message too.

♥ A.Erika ♥

Roadtrip Reflections: GA to OH

It feels good to be back home from Ohio. Ohio is an interesting place, not sure I could live there but it was wonderful trip. This trip seemed very special to me. Not sure why though. Maybe because it was our first trip together as an engaged couple. Maybe because I got take in the scenery of driving through states I've never been with the love of my life. Maybe because we laughed like never before. I don't know what it was but this trip was special to me. It also confirmed this: There is no other person I would rather spend 16 hour road trip than him. 

♥ A.Erika ♥

4.4.14

We're (babes and I) currently in Ohio for one of favorite couples' wedding. We took the 8hr drive Thursday into yesterday morning. We've been busy prepping and enjoying Shawn and Kat's day! It was truly amazing to see her so happy. Definitely a joy to share in their day! 

April is proving to be a crazily busy month. Every weekend is booked with something to do. It's kinda insane. We have our first venue visit in 2 weeks. I'm so excited about it!! 

♥ A.Erika ♥

Shine A Light On Autism!

Today is World Autism Awareness Day! As many of you know autism is a cause that is very dear to my heart because my older brother, Michael, was diagnosed at 3 years old. At that time, autism was a new "disability" and the ways to "treat" were very few. Thank God we lived in New York at the time where the government subsided therapy treatments for him. Now because of its prevalence (One in every 88 68 children are diagnosed), treatments are more widespread. What we are finding now is it seems that Michael was a part of the first generation of autism diagnosis and therefore there hasn't been enough consideration for treatment for adults with autism. It's kinda like oh shoot we've been focusing on research for diagnosing children but what about when the kids grow up. Therapy programs for adults can be quite expensive and if the families can cannot afford it, the adults are forced stay at home. Which was our testimony until we found funding and got Michael involved with a program. My family can rest assure that he is in a safe place during the day and doesnt become a recluse, which is a common trait for most adults with autism. For that, we are so blessed!

Last year I dedicated my birthday to fundraising for autism. Thanks again to all that supported the project. I am taking this year off to recoup in light of my engagement and attempting not to put too much on my plate. But know I will be back with something stronger for 2015 World Autism Awareness Day! Here's my selfie for a cause...Shine A Light On Autism! If you want to purchase a shirt like mine, visit here.

♥ A.Erika ♥

Out Of Many, We Are One

I was scrolling my timeline today and came across this video:



I have to admit when I first saw this, I was like God broke the mold when he made this women because aint no way 32 kids are coming out of my womb. Then my foolish fiancé says we're having 33! *side eye* I mean I do want 4 children but let's just get married first. Anyways, the woman is simply inspiring with her story of saving children off the streets of my motherland, Jamaica. The video needed 50,000 views by April 10. It has over 143,000 views and it's only April 1! The power of social! I'm sure Ms. AnnMarie will put those computers to good use. Awesome story!

♥ A.Erika ♥