Work Trip to Los Angeles

Earlier in December I had the opportunity to go to Los Angeles for a work meeting. It was my first time in the Los Angeles/Hollywood area and of course, my bucket list came to mind. Back in 2009 when I started the bucket list I put "see the Hollywood sign" and "take a picture with Britney Spears's star on the Walk of Fame. Of course, when you're traveling for your job, your first priority is work! Luckily, my first morning in Los Angeles I woke up at 5:30am local time (since my body clock was still on East Coast time) so I figured it was a great opportunity to go see the Hollywood sign! I took an Uber car up to the Griffith Observatory and I was treated to an absolutely beautiful sunrise and a clear view of the Hollywood sign and looking down on downtown Los Angeles. Highly recommend it as a great spot to see the Hollywood sign - my Uber driver also had fun, he was new to Los Angeles and had never been up there!

I am very fortunate that I really love my job and I had a great visit at the UNICEF USA Los Angeles office and a great partner meeting. In the evenings, I got to see a little bit more of the area and I have to say I really love Los Angeles! I did get to see the Britney Spears star so I marked not one, but two things off my bucket list! I also got to visit Abbot Kinney which is a really cool area in Santa Monica. Work will likely take me back to Los Angeles several times in 2015, and I'm looking forward to the visits!

 Up next: Christmas and New Year's Eve!

Farewell, March of Dimes

Wednesday was my last day at the March of Dimes. I can't believe how quickly two years flew by. When I started at March of Dimes Nate and I weren't even engaged yet, Siena was just a few months old, and I'd just finished visiting my sister in the Dominican Republic (she's now been out of the Peace Corps for 6 months!). Time really does fly, and I'm so thankful for everything I learned at the March of Dimes, all my amazing coworkers, and the friends I've made. Some of the things I'm most proud of include creating the organization's first Instagram handles and building the followings (@marchofdimes is poised to hit 5,000 by the end of 2014!). I'm also very proud of working on World Prematurity Day and covering live on social media as major buildings and sights across the globe went purple at nightfall for prematurity awareness (including the Empire State Building and Niagara Falls!). I also helped advocate for a WPD tee shirt, this year we sold more than twice what we sold last year. While leaving is always bittersweet, I'm excited that I can watch a lot of our initiatives continue on social media. I'm grateful for the opportunity and excited for the next challenge that awaits. Below is my favorite picture from my time at March of Dimes, it's me and my coworkers on World Prematurity Day last year wearing our "Hugs Heal" shirts:

Next week I start at US Fund for UNICEF. I can't wait for the next chapter to begin!

New Job Announcement!

After two great years working at the March of Dimes as the national Manager of Marketing and Social Media, I have decided to leave in November for an incredible new opportunity. I am really proud of the work I’ve done with March of Dimes. I’ve had great supervisors and I worked on exciting campaigns, including World Prematurity Day and March for Babies. I also had great coworkers and friendships develop during my two years at March of Dimes. It will be hard to say goodbye, but I’m so excited for the next challenge!

I am the new Assistant Director of Corporate Partnerships at U.S. Fund for UNICEF! UNICEF is the UN agency that focuses on the well-being of children in every country around the world, with a special focus on reaching those in the greatest need. The U.S. Fund, also called "UNICEF USA" is the amazing U.S. organization that helps raise funds for UNICEF’s mission while also engaging the U.S. in advocacy and education around UNICEF's mission. At U.S. Fund for UNICEF I’ll be responsible for managing key corporate partnerships as well as growing and expanding them. It will be fun, innovative, and creative work. I cannot wait to start and meet my new team! I feel confident that it is a perfect fit and a place where I will be happy in the years to come!

It is a blessing on top of an incredible year. I am happily married, I celebrated the weddings of many friends, we traveled to new countries, and now this incredible opportunity - the work I went to grad school to do that I'm truly passionate and excited about. I could not feel happier, or more lucky, and I can't wait to hit the ground running and work hard for UNICEF's mission.

Work Trip to Arizona!

For the second time this year, I got to visit beautiful sunny Phoenix Arizona. I think I lucked out visiting in April and September - I missed the scorching summer heat! This time it was for work - I worked two March of Dimes conferences, our Volunteer Leadership Conference and ShareUnion. The highlight for me was getting to meet Anne Geddes - she is a wonderful ambassador for the March of Dimes mission and I grew up loving her famous photographs of babies. I also got to enjoy a break at the resort between conferences - that was much needed! That's all for catching up on my adventures for now - stay tuned!

World Prematurity Day!

The big work project I've been focused on this fall was the buildup to World Prematurity Day on November 17th. This day raises awareness about the global problem of prematurity. One in every nine babies is born too soon, and of these 15 million babies, 1 million die every year.

As part of the day, buildings, fountains, bridges and more sites across the world go "purple" for prematurity - the signature color of the March of Dimes. I worked Sunday from about 7am until 12:30am that night covering building lightings, celebrity tweets, and and more on our social media platforms - Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Here are a few of my favorite lightings from World Prematurity Day 2013:

Empire State Building, New York City

Peace Bridge - Connects US to Canada

Cinderella's Castle - Walt Disney World, Florida

Singapore Flyer, Singapore

Niagara Falls, Canada

The End of an Era

WFP Headquarters in Rome, December 2007

Tomorrow is my last day of work at the World Food Programme.

It feels like the end of an era (and yes, I know how cheesy that sounds). My adventures with WFP started in 2007 when I moved to Rome Italy to spend 6 months interning in the Fundraising for Donors, Private (FDP) division. I learned so much about myself in those 6 months - about what I wanted in a career, how to live in a foreign country alone, and for the first time I realized how much I truly love to travel. It was such an important time and I'll never forget it.

I also loved the work I was doing - specifically, supporting the first World Hunger Relief campaign with one of WFP's partners YUM! Brands. I realized I was passionate about nonprofit communications campaigns - the opportunity to reach people who otherwise would never hear about an issue and educate them and give them the opportunity to get involved and help. I also learned a lot about the due diligence research process and other WFP private partners.

I moved back to Gainesville in 2008 before heading to graduate school at Duke University. Inspired by my work at WFP, I focused my coursework in merging public policy and consulting skills with an emphasis on public-private partnerships. The summer of 2009 I did an internship in Tanzania where I worked on a range of issues, including nutrition assessment for people battling AIDS. One weekend I went to Dar es Salaam for the WFP/TNT event "Walk the World." Even though I wasn't working for WFP at the time I felt connected - I even had my WFP FEED bag with me during the walk!

Walk the World in Dar es Salaam, June 2009

My second year at Duke I worked on my Master's Project for WFP - a strategy to engage the agribusiness industry. I even came to Rome in April 2010 to present the final project. A few months later I started working in the Public-Private Partnerships division (CPP) in New York City, where I have worked the last two and a half years. I've been incredibly proud of the work of our division, particularly the Hunger Games partnership which I helped initiate:

I also returned to the management of the YUM partnership, where I supported the World Hunger Relief campaign as the global coordinator. I learned so much and I was lucky to get the opportunity to travel twice: once to Rome for a month of training, and once to London for The Hunger Games European Premiere (which is still without a doubt one of the coolest experiences I've ever had).

WFP Colleagues in Rome, April 2011

Hunger Games Premiere in London, March 2012 

Any major life change fills you with a mix of emotions - excitement, anxiety, nostalgia. It can be bittersweet. I'm so incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have worked with WFP in so many capacities for so many years. Life events continued to bring me to Rome a total of 5 times (in addition to living there for 6 months) which has instilled in me a fierce love of Italy. I remain passionate about solving hunger and believe WFP is the solution.

At the same time, I'm also so excited for my new adventure at March of Dimes - to work on an amazing cause and be challenged in new ways. It is always hard to say goodbye so instead I'll say see you around the bend, WFP. Who knows what the future will hold! Until then, rest assured every October I will visit a Taco Bell and donate $1 to WFP for World Hunger Relief - and I'll be tuning in to the next installments of The Hunger Games films and I can't wait to see what will happen with that partnership.

Arrivederci (for now!)

New job announcement!

After two and a half amazing years working at the United Nations World Food Programme (where I also worked an additional 9 months on my master's project while in grad school at Duke and also spent 6 months interning at headquarters in Rome in 2007) I am moving on at the end of the year to a new job and new challenge at the national March of Dimes!

In January I will join the team as Manager of Marketing & Social Media, where I will help build the online presence of the organization on social media outlets including Facebook and Twitter. I am so excited about this new challenge, really excited about joining the March of Dimes which is a fantastic organization with a great mission to save babies, promote education to expectant mothers and invest in research and technology to save babies who are born prematurely.

2013 is going to be a great year with new opportunities and new adventures - I can't wait!

September in a Nutshell

Some pictures summing up September: Rooftop Happy Hour, Yankees Game, & UNGA

Stay tuned for posts on birthday-ness excitement.

London & The Hunger Games Premiere!

What an amazing trip to London we just had!!! It honestly flew by, we were go-go-go from the moment we landed at Heathrow airport until we left 6 days later! Our first day we stayed with my sister's best friend Laura, who was so sweet to let us stay at her place for a night. We dropped our things at her place then headed out to sightsee! We walked the Westminster Bridge then toured the Houses of Parliament. It's a great tour and I highly recommend it - they are only on Saturdays though, so it's good to plan in advance! After our tour we headed to the Blackfriars area to check out a pub called "Ye Old Cheshire Cheese" - such a funny name and a very fun pub! For dinner we ventured to Soho and had delicious thai food at Busaba Eathai, this is a place I will definitely return to one day - reasonably priced and so good!


Sunday we started off checking into our hotel for the remainder of our stay - a great budget hotel recommended to me by one of my best friends Rachel - called London House Hotel. Then we set off to ride the London Eye - the giant ferris-wheel like structure across the river from The Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. When I first rode this in 2005 I got so nervous and had to sit for most of the ride (my mom and sister remember - I'm not great with heights!) but I had a much better experience this time! The views of London are amazing, it's a must-see when you visit! Up next we walked back across the river and into the city center, where we saw Trafalgar Square, the Admiralty Arch, Covent Garden, Piccadilly Circus, and Great Russell Street - where I stayed when I was in London for two months with FSU study abroad! We even had lunch at this lunch cafe I really loved back then!

After lunch we went just across the street to the British Museum, my favorite museum in London! It has so many amazing things, including figureheads from Easter Island, carvings from the Parthenon in Greece, the world's oldest chess set, Egyptian mummies, and the famous Rosetta Stone. And finally, we went to London's Kings Cross train station and took pictures on Platform 9 3/4, which is set up for all the Harry Potter fans who visit. It's definitely worth it if you're a Harry Potter fan like we are! It has a cart halfway through the wall so you can really feel like you're on your way to Hogwarts!And for dinner we went to Pizza Express (another old favorite of mine! They do great thin crust pizzas) and I even had my favorite dessert - Chocolate Glory! We ended the day having drinks with my friend Darley and her boyfriend Ludo. All in all, a great second day in London!


Monday the weather in London was absolutely gorgeous - 60 degrees, sunny and cool, not a cloud in the sky. We spent the entire day in Hyde Park (the Central Park of London). We walked through the gardens where there were already flowers in bloom and ate lunch along the Serpentine stream that runs through the park. It was the perfect day! That night we had a pre-theater dinner at The Ivy, one of London's oldest and most well-known restaurants, and then we saw Les Miserables - my all time favorite musical! It was amazing, and even though this was my 4th time seeing it, I never tire of it. The music which on its own is incredible, combined with a compelling story make for the most powerful theater experience (in my opinion!)

Tuesday I went to work, while Nate toured Windsor Castle. We met for a sunset dinner on the top of the Oxo tower. The Oxo Tower is across the river from London's Financial District and has amazing views (and food!) Our dinner was delicious - I had fried pumpkin gnocchi, and a delicious sunset cocktail. After dinner we walked the South Bank and saw London at night which is magical (as corny as that sounds!). We walked past the London Eye and had a perfect view of the Houses of Parliament. Great end to the night!

Wednesday I went to work in the morning while Nate toured the Tower of London. After that it was time for The Hunger Games Premiere! I attended the Premiere representing WFP and our partnership with the movie. The Premiere was at London's O2 Arena in North Greenwich. We got all dressed up and then took the subway there (we got a few strange looks, lol). We got there and had time for a glass of wine before the movie started. I checked walking a red carpet off my bucket list! Of course the fans weren't screaming for us, they were waiting for their favorite stars, but we didn't mind! We saw all the stars up close - the main cast of Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Elizabeth Banks, and Toby Jones all introduced the movie. Also in attendance was Liam Hemsworth's brother Chris, who was in last summer's blockbuster movie "Thor." Separate from the red carpet experience, the movie was amazing. I highly recommend everyone see it!We really enjoyed the entire experience!

Finally before we knew it, it was our last day in London. We went to Buckingham Palace for the Changing of the Guards ceremony, which Nate really enjoyed - there is a marching band that comes out so of course he did! ;) Then we walked St. James Park until we got down to Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament. We took some final pictures and grabbed lunch at a deli and took it to the park and ate outside before returning to our hotel to head to the airport. It was a once in a lifetime trip and experience and I'm so glad we got to enjoy it together!

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, growing up it was full of Vettel-family traditions - a big breakfast, mom cooking all day (lol, poor mom, we appreciate her!) while Jenni and I started Christmas decorations, and a big Thanksgiving dinner. After dinner we would watch The Santa Clause, one of our family's favorite Christmas movies (it's the sarcasm). However the last 7-8 years, my family hasn't spent Thanksgiving together. It started with my sister on a band trip my junior year of college (her junior year of high school). The next year, my dad was in Hawaii for work. The year after that, I was in Italy. The year after that, my mom and I went to NYC with Jenni (dad had to work in Florida). In 2009 I went home, but my dad was in NY for work and celebrated with Jenni (I celebrated with my mom, grandmother, and my mom's best friend Gamin). Last year, Nate and I celebrated in Brooklyn and Jenni came for dessert. This year Jenni was home with mom and dad - but Nate and I stayed in New York. So we've created our own traditions - some great ones at that.

After Nate and I got home from the parade we made a "Jenni recipe" - cranberry brie bites (crescent dough in mini muffin pans stuffed with brie and cranberry jelly. Yes, they are amazing. See the picture above!). We also enjoyed seasonal lattes - I had pumpkin spice and Nate had peppermint mocha - thanks to his mom for the sweet Starbucks gift cards! We started cooking up a storm after that. Last year we had TOO many leftovers, so this year we stuck to one turkey, two casseroles, and baked sweet potatoes and pumpkin bread. The casseroles took the most work - one is another "Jenni recipe" - baked macaroni casserole which is out-of-this-world good (ingredients: pasta, cheese, butter, cream, bread crumbs. It's practically fat-free... NOT!).



Nate and I were BOTH helpful in the kitchen (yes me too, to all you who might be skeptical). I'm actually less helpful day-to-day, but for big cooking events, like parties and holidays, I happen to be a lot more useful! Not sure why this is... lol.





We had an amazing dinner, and it just reminds me to be thankful for the abundance of food on the table, how it's not something I have to worry or stress about having - just about preparing it right. It's crazy, but 1 in 7 billion people went to bed hungry when I went to bed stuffed with turkey, green beans, and macaroni. And there's nothing wrong with enjoying the holidays... it just reminds me to be thankful and not to stress the details - the food was amazing, but more than that, it is such a blessing not to have to worry about where my next meal will come from.



I'm also thankful for my job, which reminds me every day to be thankful for the things that I have. I'm so lucky - at my age 5 out of my 6 grandparents are still alive, my parents are in excellent health, I have a great relationship with my little sister, I have the best friends anyone could ask for, and I have the sweetest love, my boyfriend Nate who I share all these adventures with - and we get to travel around the world, which is an amazing opportunity. I'm really lucky in life and lucky in love, I feel thankful today and try to remind myself to feel thankful EVERY day - that's what Thanksgiving should really remind us to do.

First Week in Rome!

Ciao! Hi everyone from Italy! What an amazing first week and weekend I had in the city! I left New York Sunday evening, had dinner on the plane and watched a movie – The Tourist, finally, which was actually very entertaining, I think the critics were all wrong (aren’t they always?). Got a few hours of sleep and landed in Rome. Everything went like clockwork – got my bags, got a taxi, got to my apartment and got checked in, changed, and went to work for the afternoon! Phew! After work I went to a store and got internet credit, then walked back across the river, grabbed a mushroom pizza at my FAVORITE pizzeria in Trastevere, and went back to the apartment. I didn’t even sit – ate standing up in my kitchen, the whole pizza and a Peroni beer! Showered and bed early, what a day!


My cute apartment

Second day I was better rested but a little tired… so maybe had a few too many cappuccinos during the day! Haha! Everyone at work was so friendly. I worked hard, and long hours, but it’s absolutely fantastic. After work I went grocery shopping and cooked myself dinner at home. The great thing about living here before is that I am so used to Rome and where to shop and eat! The rest of the week went well except Wednesday night – for some reason I was so wired and keyed up I slept only 2 hours! So Thursday I was exhausted. But by Friday I was doing well again, saw some friends after work, great end to the week!


World Food Programme Headquarters

Saturday I met up with my good friend Cat from the intern days! We met for lunch in her area of town – Prati, which is north of the Vatican area. Lunch was yummy then we window shopped and hit up her favorite Gelateria (and my NEW favorite) where they had Pistaccio gelato balls coated in actual pistachio crumbles! Sweet ice cream and salty pistaccios, delicious! It is definitely my new favorite thing, I’ve never had anything like it! We then walked to Piazza del Popolo right by Villa Borghese. Flowers were blooming EVERYWHERE! It was sunny, 70 degrees with a cool breeze. Really, you couldn’t have ordered better weather!



Sunday was relaxing. In the morning it was cloudy and cool, perfect for a run along the Tiber River. In the afternoon I did a few chores, talked to family, friends, and my sweetheart, then headed to dinner with a colleague who’s been super awesome and helpful since I started at WFP! I also made some plans for the coming weeks. Nate arrives Saturday and I am counting down the hours till he is here! We are planning a fun weekend jam packed with sightseeing and getting him accustomed to Rome. Sunday we plan to rent a car and take in Tivoli followed by a sunset dinner on a couch on the beach in Fregene. Yeah life can’t get much better than this!



And I just love working in Rome again, I love the atmosphere at WFP and getting the chance to work with colleagues who I’ve maybe spoken to on the phone or via email, but in person is just fantastic. And I’m being trained on a range of things which I will take on full time when I return to New York at the end of the month.



And to top it all off, our lease is signed and we officially move to the Upper West Side in May! Life is so good and I am so blessed! Continuing to take it in and work hard and be happy every minute!

Upcoming Adventures Announcement!

image credit: INCE Europe

Hello! Short update on some upcoming "Atypical Adventures". The first is that I will be going to Rome, Italy for three weeks on duty travel for work. As some of you know, my boss announced he was moving to UNICEF and leaving WFP back in January. His last day is end of March, upon which I will head to Rome to work with my division during the transition. There will soon be a new team in New York and I'm incredibly excited to work with them. I'm also thrilled to be returning to Rome, where I interned back in 2007 for 6 months. Home sweet Rome! Nate will be visiting - he'll be playing while I'm working, but we'll get to spend time together on the weekend which will be great, and he has never been to Italy so it's a new adventure for him!

In May we will be moving apartments and celebrating my little sister's graduation from college! I can't believe she's 22 and grown up! We will also be spending Memorial Day weekend in Denver, Colorado visiting Nate's sister Angie, her husband Ryan, and his nephew Tanner who turned 1 year old in January! In June we will head to Tallahassee for the wedding of one of sorority sisters and close friend Mallory. In July we are going to Niagara Falls and Toronto with my family... and in August we will go to Ireland! Whew! It is amazing to get to travel like we do but it's not without its stresses!

Italy. Colorado. Tallahassee. Niagara Falls. Toronto. Ireland.

Bring it on! Can't wait!

Decade in Review

So... apparently... the decade ended this year! I feel as though last year was all about the end of the decade, but it was not! So in light of the end of the decade, and my love of summarizing with pictures, here is a short summary of the decade!

2001 – Sophomore in high school, became a Drum Major, Sonlight ended, became a Junior, September 11th, my grandfather died.



2002 – Junior in high school, became Student Body Vice President and a Senior, worked my first summer job at RTI.






2003 – Graduated from high school, moved away from home, started college at FSU in Tallahassee.




2004 – Became a Lady Spirithunter, returned to Gainesville for the summer, joined Pi Beta Phi sorority, founded the Breakfast Club.




2005 – Finished sophomore year of college, spent 2 months studying abroad in London, England. Witnessed the bombings. Traveled to Paris, Rome, and Brussels. Started Junior Year at FSU.




2006 – Finished junior year at FSU. Spent final college summer in Tallahassee. Started Senior Year, and turned 21!




2007 – Most eventful year of the decade, has to be broken into first and second half. First half - finished senior year! Awarded Panhellenic Woman of the Year and Senior Hall of Fame. Graduated from FSU Summa Cum Laude.





Second half - moved to Italy to start internship for the UN World Food Programme. Traveled all over Italy and to Spain, France, Switzerland, Germany, Czech Republic and the Netherlands.






2008 – Lived in Gainesville. Celebrated Janeen & Rachel’s weddings. Family went on a cruise! Got into grad school, moved to North Carolina. Started master’s at Duke University.





2009 – Finished first year at Duke. Spent summer in Tanzania. Returned to Duke for final year of grad school.



2010 – The second most eventful year in the decade! First half - Nate and I started dating. Spent two weeks consulting in India. Graduated from Duke with Master’s in Public Policy.



Second half - Nate and I moved to NYC. I started working at UN World Food Programme. More friends got married! Spent first Christmas outside of Gainesville.