January

I did a contract gig from January to March for AdHack. Some of you might remember.

I also started doing more contract work for Alex Lee PR, Wesley Behan, RE/MAX Crest Realty, & Tell Ten Friends.

February

There was this event that took place in Vancouver that was pretty huge. You might have heard about it.

Oh yeah, and my Mom carried the Olympic Torch in Powell River on February 4th, right before it made its way back to Vancouver for the Opening Ceremonies. KIND OF A BIG DEAL.

March

Always the best month. My birthday! I celebrated at Sanafir with some of my best girlfriends. Photo courtesy of Erin Buttler.

I took photos of Jerra’s baby belly for her, a month before she gave birth. I love this photo of her.

April

Twestival Vancouver, held at the CBC Studio. Photo by Jonathan Hanley.

April 26th, my best friend Jerra’s baby girl, Halle, was born.

May

The Vancouver Sun Run fell on Mother’s Day. As usual, I ran it with my Mom, my friend Danica, and her mom Leslie. We were even featured in the paper, and I wrote a post about it.

Chelsea came to visit BC, all the way from Minnesota!

June

Launch Party Vancouver 9 put on by Bootup. Photo of my brother Jordan and I, by Jeremy Lim.

Conviction Kitchen Season 2 started filming in Vancouver.

The last get-together with Liz and Di, before they took off for summer holidays, and before they both moved away from Vancouver. *tear*

July

Fun times with fun peeps.

Our annual family getaway to our cabin, Kokanee Cedar, on Powell Lake.

We were also in Powell River for Sea Fair weekend.

And on the 27th of July, my niece Ava Lorraine Hyunseon Behan was born. Love at first sight.

July was a good month.

August

Conviction Kitchen Season 2 wrap-up party for the last day of filming in Vancouver.

Then back to Powell River for Ava’s christening and for her to meet all of her Behan + Adams family.

On August 27th, my good friend Liz had a little boy named Micah. He was born a little bit early, and there were a few complications, which required him to be flown from the Powell River Hospital to Children’s Hospital in Vancouver. But that boy had a big heart and will to live, baby, and he is now as strong as ever, keeping his parents mighty busy. <3

September

Amanda’s birthday, Stacey P’s birthday/housewarming party, my Dad’s birthday, my cousin Cooper’s birthday, etc. Lots of people are born in September.

October

I got my new-to-me Nikon D90! Hence, the increase in photos in my Flickr stream. Gobble, gobble.

There was gorgeous weather in October, if you remember.

Oh yeah, I got a new job!

November

Riot Fashion Show at Guilt & Co. to play around with the new camera.

December

First trip to Mt. Baker and first ride of the season with Buttler! So snowy and delicious. And it was like a mini vacation because I had to take my passport. Yippee! Photo courtesy of Erin Buttler.

Some kick-arse holiday parties.

Christmas with the fam in PR.

Jaxon’s very first time on skates. He loved it. And it was Ava’s first Christmas.

Happy New Year!

What was your “Best of 2010″? Or rather, what are you looking forward to in 2011?

On Monday morning bright and early, I joined Alex to accompany Greg Mueller on his Breakfast Television interview.

I took a few behind the scenes shots with my camera, and Alex took some video on her little point-and-shoot. I blogged about it on Greg Mueller’s site, but I thought I would share some of it here. This is the video I put together with our footage.

On Tuesday afternoon, I also accompanied Alex on a photoshoot with Greg. Cole and Jakob from Nordica Photography were doing the shoot, and the lovely Patricia Isaac, of Shine for Men Image Consulting, did the styling.

Once again, I took a bunch of behind the scenes photos, and Alex took some video and I put together a blog post for Greg’s site. It was a really fun and successful day, with our big crew wandering around the alleys of Gastown, and I hope that the photos and video captured that.

If all the work weeks could be like this one, I would be one happy girl!

Greg has the opportunity to be one of the only Canadians to play in the 2010 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions. To make it into the tournament, you have to have won a WSOP bracelet (Greg won 2 in 2009), and you have to be voted in by your fans. Only 20 players can get voted in. It’s really easy to do – sign up (here) with your e-mail address, find Greg Mueller’s name, and VOTE!

Also, if you want to follow along on Greg’s journey to the 2010 WSOP, you can join his Facebook fan page, and visit his website, where all the current news, photos, and videos will be posted for his fans to see.

Here is a the little video we put together to promote Greg in the WSOP Tournament of Champions. AND, If you e-mail fan photos and F, B, & T photos to contactFBT@gmail.com, you will see them featured in an updated version of the video below. The more photos we receive, the better the video gets, so send them in. We’ll even credit you in the video!

The Olys

When the case studies were almost finished, James suggested doing an Olympic ad contest over the course of the Olympics and asked me if I was interested in running it. Of course, I agreed. I thought it was a fantastic idea. So that is how the Oly Awards came to be.

The Flickr Group of Ads

The first thing we did was start a Flickr group to collect some of the advertising surrounding the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. There was a ton of advertising around town, far before the Olympics even started. We organized a photowalk to get some of the initial photos in the pool. Our goal on the day of the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics was to have 50+ members and 500+ photos. We wanted to make sure there were enough people interested in the Olympics ads project, and would be willing to submit their photos. Well, we rocked it. The Flickr group now has over 80+ members and 800+ photos.

The Brands

I started writing a blog post or two a day during the Olympics on the major brands that were Official Sponsors of Vancouver 2010. We got some feedback from some of those brands too, which was great!

The Photo Contest

The next step was creating a photo contest at OlympicAdAwards.com. We set up a Strutta-powered contest for people to submit their best photos of Olympic Advertising. Our goal was to get 100 entries by the submission deadline. We got 115 entries and knocked it out of the park again.

The Judging

We enlisted some great judges to help us out with choosing the Best Brand and the Best Photo. They were:

• Stephen Bailey, Marketing Director at Fluevog Shoes
• Mark Busse, Partner / Design Director at Industrial Brand
• Jim Southcott, Chief Strategic Officer at TBWA\Vancouver

We gave them a detailed scorecard to fill out on each of the brands. They are all Vancouverites, but they also had our Flickr group of Olympic ads for a resource in their judging. By the way, a HUGE thank you to the Judges who took the time out of their day to do this for us. They gave great feedback in the comments on some of the brands as well.

The Prizes

The 2 Prizes we sourced out to give to the winners, were original artwork by local Vancouverite Rachael Ashe. She alters books and turns them into the most unique and stunning pieces of art. The Best Brand was to receive “Swimming in a Sea of Words,” and Best Photo was to receive “The Butterfly Effect.”

The Winners

In the end, it was a tight race, but Coca-Cola with their Open Happiness campaign beat out the Hudson’s Bay Company by three points! Congratulations Coca-Cola, you did a fine job.

For Best Photo, there were 10 finalists chosen by public voting, from the 115 entries. In the end, Kim Werker‘s photo of the Hudson’s Bay Company won the popular vote. Congratulations Kim!

View AdHack’s announcement on the blog, or view the official press release.

Well, that’s that. My Olympic project has come and gone. It was a blast, and so interesting to see what developed over the 17 days of the Olympics. Not only in regards to local, national, and worldwide advertising, but in being a Canadian, and a proud Vancouverite, and witnessing the best party Vancouver has ever thrown. I am so lucky to have taken this role and to have been a part of the Olympics while they were here in Vancouver in 2010. I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat.

And now… a new adventure? I think so!

I have had this version of O Canada by Classified running through my head for the past month – I blame my brother Wes, because he posted the link to it on twitter. I downloaded it too, so I hear it on my iPod every once in awhile while I am commuting to and from work on the bus. Nothing gets me pumped up more than hearing O Canada. I’ve always liked it; it gives you a feeling of pride, or even a bit of a chill when you hear it, especially before a hockey game.

I have another version of O Canada in my iTunes by Big Sugar, an instrumental version. This got me thinking, “I wonder how many versions of O Canada I can find.. just on YouTube?” Well, there are a ton, but these are the ones I narrowed down to being the coolest, and most share-worthy.

First things first, here is the one by Classified. I bet it’s going to be stuck in your head, too.

The instrumental version by Big Sugar (the only one with good sound quality I could find):

O Canada – a rock version by the DuBay Band

Sung ‘a cappella’ by a group of boys called the Hojas:

Sarah McLachlan at a Montreal Expo’s game in 1996:

Deborah Cox at the NBA All-Star game in 2008:

Canadian Idol Eva Avila at the Grey Cup in 2006:

We need at least one French/English version, so the obvious choice is Celine Dion (she screws it up at the end!), but there’s no real video, just a bunch of pictures. Boo. It’s all I could find.

And just for fun – Stompin Tom Connors’ Hockey Song, because I’m in that kind of mood:

There you have it folks. Some pretty awesome versions of our National Anthem! Get ready to sing it, and sing it proud in the next couple of weeks, because I’m guessing you might hear it a few times.

Photo credit: Cashman Pro Photography

Just recently, I was fortunate enough to be a bridesmaid in the most amazing wedding I have ever experienced. My best friend, Jerra Pexton, married the love of her life, Dale Lupul, on Sunday, June 7, 2009, in a beautiful ceremony held at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Many of the guests were there for a few days arriving on June 5th or 6th, and departing on June 8th or 9th, so they had a chance to experience Las Vegas and all of its glitz and glamour.

Las Vegas experienced a small cold front while we were there – but a cold front in June in Las Vegas still means 25 degrees celsius! The only day where we really felt the heat was Sunday, on the day of the wedding (of course).

The tears were flowing as soon as us girls saw Jerra in her wedding dress. She looked so gorgeous! Then, to see her father walk her down the aisle… he was unbelievably proud of her, and didn’t hesitate to tell anyone who would listen! She walked up an aisle covered in pink rose petals to the sound of a violin, surrounded by palm trees, and her and Dale said their vows in front of a waterfall. Not exactly how you pictured a Vegas wedding, is it?

After the ceremony, the newly wed couple and the wedding party posed for pictures, and then took a limo trip to take photos in front of the Las Vegas sign. The reception afterward was a poolside cocktail party at Treasure Island. It was a very nontraditional wedding, filled with so many amazing moments, great new friends, and a reaffirmation in my belief that true love actually exists.

Photo credit: Cashman Pro Photography

Jerra and Dale, I truly wish you a “happily ever after” together, with a marriage full of love, and many offspring!! Thank you so much for letting me share your beautiful wedding day with you!

xo

**UPDATE: One thing I forgot to mention in this post – do you see that gorgeous dress? It was made by her VERY talented mother, Cathy Spreeuw. Also, a full set of photos are available to view here.**

Here is the video I made for Jerra and Dale, that includes the speeches from the Maid of Honour and Best Man at the reception. Please note: It is very long, but I made it for them, not for you. Enjoy!

My good friend Liz is getting married on July 11, 2009, in our hometown of Powell River, BC. Her sister Deanna, and her mother Nancy (whom I’ve known forever), had been planning her bachelorette weekend for months, and I felt honoured just to be involved. They wanted to take her on a trip somewhere, because when Deanna got married, Liz and her Mom whisked her off to Las Vegas for the weekend, and also didn’t tell her where she was going! Well, we followed the same theme here.

On Wednesday night, after a run with Liz, and a rained out beach volleyball game (and also an impromptu beer with our volleyball team that I couldn’t get out of!), I ran home to shower and change to get ready for Liz’ mom to come pick me up. She arrived from Powell River at around 8:00pm, before I even got out of the shower! I quickly grabbed my suitcase and we were on the road out to White Rock to surprise Liz. We had filled in her fiance, Chris, only a few days prior – because we didn’t think he could keep that big of a secret for so long! We called Chris when we arrived, and he let us into their apartment. Nancy walked in first, then me with a camera in my hand shooting video, and then there was Chris bringing up the rear. Liz had no idea what hit her. “What are YOU doing here?” she asked her Mom. “And what are you doing here all showered up?” she says to me. (I had only left her at the pub less than an hour ago.) Nancy just said casually, “I need someone to drive me to Seattle.”

“Yeah right,” she scoffed. We were serious. Nancy came down in her car and was going to make Liz drive. We told her to pull out her suitcase and passport, and start packing. We tell her that shorts, tank tops and bikinis should suffice. “Hmmm… it’s not that warm in Seattle!” Liz shouts, rather excitedly.

“Well, we might be catching a plane from Seattle tomorrow morning,” I tell her. She’s suspicious, but she’s happier than can be, because we told her to pack her bathing suit. There were some lame excuses about working the next day, but nope, Nancy had that covered weeks ago. It was a “bulletproof plan,” as Chris called it.

Before we knew it, we were in the car and cruising past the U.S. border. Even the border official obliged to our little game. He asked where we were going, and we said Seattle…. “Seattle is just the beginning”, Nancy told him. He didn’t seem to mind. He jokingly asked if we had any toys or strange things in the suitcases. Nope, and we were on our way!

After a very close flight connection and sprinting through the Phoenix airport, we endured our flights and arrived in Fort Lauderdale, Florida late in the evening. We are greeted by two screaming girls in a minivan – Liz’ sister Deanna who lives in Winnipeg, and her friend Christie who she played hockey with in College, and now lives in Sacramento, California. We arrived at the house, and Seanna, another friend and former teammate from College, arrived shortly after. She had already been in Lauderdale for a few days. She also used to live with Liz back when she was doing her teaching practicum in Fort Lauderdale, and back when I was working on boats and crashing at their place on the weekends I was in town. The next day, we picked up Jenny from the airport, another Powell Riverite, who was arriving from Toronto, and our crew was finally complete.

The weather wasn’t the best on Friday, there were rain showers on and off all day, so we spent most of it shopping. Later, it cleared up beautifully, and we cooked an amazing dinner at our pimpin’ house that we rented right on the intercoastal. If you’ve never been to South Florida before, they have these intercoastal waterways that weave throughout most of the area almost like streets. Residents who live on the waterway can dock their boat in their backyard. It’s a pretty sweet set-up. You can also catch water taxis on them that take you downtown and to other popular areas.

Saturday was the best day ever. We drove 2 hours south of Fort Lauderdale to Islamorada, in the Florida Keys, and we rented a boat. We were a little worried, as it started raining on our way down there, but the sun gods pulled through for a gorgeous sunny day in the Keys. We anchored our boat, along with about 50 others, on a sand bar in the middle of the ocean, where the water was only about waist deep. We drank beers, played frisbee, made some new friends, and had a football game in the water. It was pure awesomeness. The only minor setback – sunburns for everyone – but still the greatest day ever.

That night we dressed Liz up (nobody knows us, right?), went out for dinner, and then out on the town on Las Olas Boulevard in downtown Lauderdale. Vancouver really needs to follow Fort Lauderdale’s lead and just have all the bars open, with no cover, and no line up. Only at the really big clubs down there do you have to wait in line and pay cover. And even then, the club is at least worth the cover charge. There will be about 4 different rooms, with 4 different DJ’s playing all different kinds of music. We stuck to the main strip though, and just bar hopped, which was much more fun.

Sunday Funday was just a lazy day, lounging at the house in the morning, and sitting on the beach in the afternoon. A quick downpour late in the afternoon cleared the beach, so we ended up hitting a beach bar, and then headed back to the house for another delicious home-cooked meal.

Monday, sadly, it was time to leave. It was an unbelievable trip, and I want to thank all the girls that made it such a blast, especially you sneaky Betteridge girls. And Liz, thank you for being the awesome person that you are. We wouldn’t have been there if it weren’t for you. ‘Til next time, ladies! Well, July 11th in Powell River, for the wedding at least. xoxo

To finish things off, I’ll leave you with a little video I cooked up in honour of the weekend.

Well, without further adieu, here is “Who is Janis Behan? Part I”:

“Who is Janis Behan? Part II”: featuring Jerra Pexton, Emily Ingram, Carly Martin, Diana Caldarone, and Elizabeth Betteridge is below. I cannot thank you girls enough!