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Wednesday, July 15, 2015

What Came Home With Me From Convention



I don't know about you but I love seeing the favors that people get at a convention / conference. I like seeing all the things and evaluating them. People LOVE to get free stuff. Love, love, love it and we'll take things we won't ever use just because it's free. Then we'll hang onto it for a while because we feel bad throwing it away because what if we need it one day??? Kev and I have been purging things that we don't want to take to the new house. Basically, if we don't love it, it isn't coming with us.

THANKFULLY, that doesn't apply to any of the things I brought home from Convention. :)

Let's take a look at what I brought home. 

Every Convention attendee has to have a some sort of name badge. How else will you know who's who? I added this one to my collection. 


This year you had the option to purchase the Convention T-shirt, I think it was $20. I pre-ordered mine when I registered for the event. Between Conventions, Shamrock Projects and other assorted events, I'm re-amassing a giant collection of Kappa Delta t-shirts, I had a crap-ton from college and they slowly wore out or were ruined. Between KD shirts and race tees, I could clothe a small school. 


If you think I just bought one shirt, you're sadly mistaken, I have a seemingly limitless love of long sleeved shirts and added a new one to my collection. I love the color and this is the back of the shirt. I also scored a new car decal and some super cute notepads.



Every conference has its own bag. A good bag is crucial when attending these events. Everyone needs a place to put their programs, snacks, water bottles, a coffee thermos, powder, chapstick, skittles. Wait, that's my bag. But you get the picture. 


This year's bag was really large and it was made of a waterproof material. It's great for the summer and I could see myself taking it to the beach or the pool. I did think it was a bit large to carry thought the halls and I resorted to carrying my purse or a little tote bag I happened to pack. I was also bummed because the bags the NLT people got didn't have the convention patch. I guess they'd received complaints that the volunteers preferred plain bags since they'd gotten so many in the past. Eh, I would have liked a patch but it's still a nice bag. 

At the first meal this graphic print was our favor. I think it would make a great addition to my cr2f prints that are in my office. Now to find a matching white frame. 


This year I joined the KD chorus. I joined it 2 years ago also, it's always a lot of fun and you get to find out where NCTA and the next Convention will be before anyone else does. Really though, it's a lot of fun to get up there and sing in front of everyone. 

You generally get an extra something as a chorus prop and this year it was a KD visor. I'm super stoked about this. I had been contemplating getting a visor for running for a while but hadn't found one I liked. This one is perfect! I get to show off my KD pride and keep the sun out of my eyes. It's a win win Yo.

When we got to our CAS meetings, our CAS director gave us a present of a Disney gift card, which was super nice and unexpected. I mentioned before that I'm not all that big of a Disney fan. Except for one thing, Beauty and the Beast. Hands down, my all time favorite Disney movie. It was my favorite fairy tale as a kid and I remember being so excited when it was released in the theater. I might have seen it many, many times in the theater and can recite it word for word. 

If I'm getting anything Disney, it's going to be Beauty and the Beast. 



This mug was perfect. And it holds plenty of coffee. :)


Only convention related because I bought it in Orlando. Beaker is awesome. He currently lives in my office and when a member of my team comes in to tell me something "shocking" I hold up Beaker.

This might be one of the best favors ever. It's a portable power charger and works really, really well. My phone is in a constant state of death and I never seem to have a way to charge it. Throw this in my bag, boom, instant power source.


At one of the lunches we received this makeup / pencil bag. I can't decide what I want to use it for yet but it's a great bag.

You can also see the gold rose pendant. At NCTA last year we received a similar gold pendant, but it was a nautilus shell. The collegiates loved them and wore them all the time. This year we got another one of our symbols, a rose. I've worn my nautilus pendant several times and I'm sure I'll get plenty of use out of this one as well.


I love this bracelet. We received it as a favor at the Foundation lunch. Pearls are another one of our symbols and this bracelet is so versatile, They did a great job picking out jewelry that spoke to all ages and that you'd actually wear.


At our first NLT dinner, these books were on our chairs. They've been around for a while but I've never bought one. I'd contemplated several times but never pulled the trigger, now I don't have to!


I already showed this picture but one of the best things I brought home was my National Leadership Team dagger. It's really special and signifies a lot. I'm just really thrilled to be able to serve at the National level.


I looked over my treasures trying to decide what my favorite thing was. I love all of the things we received and I know I'll get a lot of use out of them all, which for convention swag is a huge deal.

One of the things I received that was so very special to me was this.


One of the Xi Chapter Alums gave me this postcard with a super sweet note congratulating me on my NLT appointment and a taste of home. For those of you who don't know, Sarris is the best chocolate on the planet. Hands down, no question, don't argue. If you're in Pittsburgh, get some Sarris chocolate covered pretzels. Life changing.

I'd never met her before but she knew about me. I was so, so touched to receive it and it reminded me that no matter how many years I've been away, how many years I've been with Eta Upsilon or how many chapters I work with, Xi is still "my" chapter and Xi alum will always have a special connection. Thank you for reminding me where I came from and why I continue to serve.

We definitely received some great things. I had to pull some things out of my checked luggage to stay within the weight limits but it was worth stuffing in my carry on!

Linking up!

Pumps and Push-Ups
#Hashtaghumpday @ Life with Lolo































7 comments:

  1. Those are awesome gifts to get at a conference. I do always feel bad throwing the stuff away even if I'm not going to use it, but eventually the purging bug gets to me and it all must go!

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    1. I just dumped a bunch of stuff I got at the Komen race. I feel bad for taking it and tossing it but I just don't need it.

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  2. Come on now - we all know I'm really Belle... I NEED that mug myself :)

    I also love that bag. I've got a women's convention coming up & need a good bag to tote everything around all weekend.

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  3. Wow that is a lot of awesome freebies! Love that bag and the rose necklace and makeup bag are so cute!

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  4. You got so much great stuff! That pendant is so so pretty! I was in a sorority in college too so I totally get all the letter stuff. :)

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