Life Isn't Always Peachy

Well, hi.

To say I fell off the blogging bandwagon would be an understatement. It's been almost a year since my last post. I've missed you guys. And I've missed sharing my adventures with you.

But this past year has been one crazy, busy, not-always-great adventure. There have been some major ups and downs.

I finished my first year of teaching. It was rough. Don't get me wrong - I loved most of it, but I was put into a few situations that caused emotional stress almost every day. I was exhausted by the end of the year. But the students make it all worth it. Nothing compares to giving a great concert with my high schoolers or a hug from a still-thinks-you-are-awesome sixth grader.

Next year is looking up, and I'm excited about my new teaching positions.

Along with my full time job, I was also teaching eleven private violin and viola students, helping with an after school orchestra, and playing with four different orchestras. Needless to say, I haven't had much time to focus on my blog or Etsy shop.

A major up happened in December: Daniel and I got engaged!!!

(AHHHHHH!!!)

Story coming soon!

(I still stare at my ring. No shame.)

We're getting married one year from today!

So, life isn't always peachy - sometimes it's downright not fun - but sometimes it's fabulous!

And speaking of peaches, I've got a peach pie recipe for you!

Check back later!

:)

Happy Birthday, My Dear Blog!

Well, it's been one year since I started Emerging Em!

I can't believe it's been that long. My main inspiration for blogging came from my dear friend Mandy of Mandipidy fame, who was my first follower. Her blog, then called Mandy's Yellow Corner, was so cute that I wanted to create my own blog for sharing the things I love to make. She helped me through the (somewhat overwhelming) beginning stages of creating a blog, and I am forever thankful for that.

Here's my first post about my first forays into blogging and my first project.

About a week later, I opened my Etsy shop, and my rosette hairpins have become my most popular item!

I am so thankful for the sweet blog friends that I have made over this past year. You all have been so supportive and encouraging! My little blog has grown from one follower to over 80 followers, and I hope it continues to grow. My blog has now become a place to share not only my crafts but my adventures in life as well!

Thanks for reading along as I found my incredible boyfriend (or rather he found me)...

... and ran a half marathon...

...and graduated with my Master of Music degree.

To celebrate you, my wonderful readers, I would like to giveaway a $30 shop credit to Emerging Em!

To enter:

Please visit my shop and leave a comment telling me your favorite item.

Extra entries:

1. Follow my blog.

2. Become a fan of Emerging Em on Facebook.

3. Follow me on Twitter.

4. Blog, tweet, or facebook about this giveaway.

Please leave a separate comment for each entry. Be sure to leave your email address so that I can contact you!

This giveaway will run through Friday, July 22nd, and I'll announce the winner the following day!

20 Questions: Take 1

I've gained quite a few followers in the past week or so, and I thought it would be fun to share some things about me. Now that you know I'm a violinist.

I found these questions in a magazine about Greenville, and I thought they were fun.

***

What one thing really makes your day?

I always smile when I get a sweet text from Daniel.

Is your desk messy or neat?

It's messy at the moment, but usually I'm very neat.

What was your first job?

I'm looking for it.

What is your pet peeve?

Besides people invading my personal space, it annoys me when people don't know how to drive. That's pretty much the entire population of Greenville.

What is your favorite thing about Greenville?

I love that it's close to the mountains and only a short drive to the beach. I also love that it has the cultural appeal of a big city yet still retains a lovely small-town charm.

What was your first car?

A mauve 1995 Toyota Camry.

What is your favorite comfort food?

Macaroni and cheese. And chocolate, of course.

What is your idea of a dream vacation?

Well, if we're talking about a location I've never been to, I would love to relax by the blue waters of Santorini, Greece. But London will always hold a special place in my heart.

What store would you choose to max out your credit card?

J. Crew. Or Banana Republic.

What is your favorite thing to cook?

Chicken and snow pea pasta.

What was your favorite subject in school?

Music, of course. And English.

What advice would you give a student just starting out?

Do what you love!

Do you prefer the mountains or the beach?

Mountains!

Have you ever met a famous person? Who?

I've met lots of famous classical musicians including Arnold Steinhardt and Lynn Harrell.

If you could invite five people, living or dead, to dinner, who would you invite?

Jane Austen, Itzhak Perlman, Elizabeth I, Johannes Brahms, and Abraham Lincoln

What is the best gift you have ever received?

An education!

What makes you laugh?

My friends.

What chore do you really hate to do?

Wash the dishes.

What do you like to do on your day off?

Curl up in a comfy chair and read. Watch movies. Craft.

I can't live without my...what?
Computer. Sad, I know.

If you want to find out my favorite things about summer time head on over to Maegan's blog, Chesterrific, where I'm being featured today!



What I Do When I'm Not Blogging

If you're new around here, you probably don't know that I'm a violinist.

I just finished my Masters Degree in violin, and I'm now looking for jobs as a strings teacher in the public schools...with no luck yet.

Anyhow, before graduation I had to give an hour long solo recital. Just me. 60 minutes. I enjoyed it, but I was also really glad when it was over!

I was, however, in love with my recital dress!

(It was my younger sister's last prom dress, and I stole it from her...)

The best part of a recital (besides playing beautiful music, of course)? Enjoying the reception!

Afterwards, Daniel, my friend Stephanie, my sister Elizabeth, and I went to Stellar, a wine bar in downtown Greenville, and enjoyed drinks and dark chocolate fondue!

:)

Handmade With Purpose

Remember this post about Handmade With Purpose?

I want to thank everyone who participated!

It was awesome to see the funds raised for the various charities of the blogs and shops participating! Over 20 handmade shops and blogs joined together to give back!

50% of Emerging Em's proceeds for the month of April went to the American Diabetes Association and the movement to Stop Diabetes®.

Thanks to your support, I raised $110!

I made the donation in honor of Daniel, my boyfriend, who has had diabetes since he was three.

 

If you want to keep up with other happenings from Handmade With Purpose, you can follow the blog here. Their newest posts deal with approaching a charitable organization and establishing credibility. I did not know that Etsy requires a shop owner to gain permission from an organization to raise money in their name. So I emailed the American Diabetes Association for permission to use their Stop Diabetes logo and to mention their name in association with my blog and shop. I'm happy to report that I received permission!

I'm also happy to report that I am going to make Handmade With Purpose a permanent cause! Each month, 15% of the proceeds from Emerging Em will be donated to the American Diabetes Association!

That means that whenever you buy a pair of these...

...or one of these...

...you'll be supporting a worthy cause!

Thank you again for all of your support!



Fort Sumter

The day after his cousin's wedding, Daniel and I headed out for a day in Charleston. We boarded a ferry to take us out to Fort Sumter.

Now if you don't know what Fort Sumter is or didn't have South Carolina history in the eighth grade like I did, it's the place where the first shots of the Civil War were fired. It's not exactly a particularly proud moment in South Carolina's history but fascinating nonetheless.

The views of the Cooper River Bridge were gorgeous.

We visited the fort's museum and saw old cannonballs, weapons, and a 33-star flag.

The bunker in the middle of the fort, which now houses the museum, was built during World War II. Did you know that German submarines actually came in as far as the Carolina coast?

Of course, we explored and ate in downtown Charleston with its iconic rainbow colored buildings, which are my favorite part of the city!

Wedding on the Ashley River

After my trip to Kansas City, I flew back to South Carolina to meet Daniel and attend his cousin's wedding in Charleston.

If you've never been to Charleston, go now. The architecture is so pretty, and the city has so much culture and history!

The wedding was at a mansion on the Ashley River, and the ceremony took place on the front lawn.

After the ceremony, we all moved inside for the cocktail hour and reception.

Daniel has so many awesome cousins! It was kind of overwhelming to meet almost the entire family all at once, but everyone was really nice.

(By the way, I love my red ruffle shoes!)

This is my new favorite picture!

The views of the sunset over the river were absolutely gorgeous!

The newlyweds left by the light of sparklers. Clearly I was excited about this...

It was a beautiful wedding, and I enjoyed attending it with Daniel!

Ocean Isle Beach

The week after graduation, Daniel and I headed with his aunt and uncle to their beach house in Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. It was an absolutely glorious week of swimming, reading, eating, and being completely lazy.

The view from the beach house was amazing.

Daniel's aunt and uncle brought along their two dogs, Chap and Toto.

We ate extremely well at the beach. Daniel often likes to play with his food and was creepin' me out a bit one morning with his talking grapefruit.

One night we had burgers, grilled corn, hand-battered shrimp, and homemade blueberry pie for dinner! During the week, we also made coffee cake, strawberry shortcakes, pasta, poppyseed chicken, and a chocolate pie.

We went putt-putting, and we both got several hole in ones.

I was also introduced to crabbing. I was skeptical. I told Daniel that he was getting punched if I got pinched by a crab. Alas, we caught nothing. But I did stand in the water with a chunk of meat hanging from my string.

After crabbing, we went over to Sunset Beach to visit my great aunt, where we had a yummy low country boil. I was also basically hazed during this visit. I was forced to dump a live crab into boiling water. And the poor bugger fought back.

This was the view for dinner.

It was a fantastic week! I got to unwind from the stress of the semester, and of course I loved spending a whole week with Daniel!

News: Daniel is moving to Columbia, South Carolina in July! That's only an hour and a half away! Yay!