Pray for Prayer

Hello friends and family. If any of you saw the updates on Facebook you can see that Jordan and I did indeed sign a lease for our new apartment. We have faith that God is going to provide our needs even when we don't see how yet. Please continue to pray as Jordan looks for a new job and I look for work as well. God has been faithful in providing tons of free lance opportunities for us this summer and we are so thankful! Shower #1 was amazing! Thanks to all who showered us with love and generosity. We got so many wonderful gifts! I can't wait to start moving into the apartment in a couple of weeks and setting all my new things up.

Prayer seems to be the topic these past months and even more in these past few days. When I think about what prayer is I think it's something I don't actually do often enough. How many of us say, "I'll pray for you" and then actually do? Kudos to the ones who have prayer as a spiritual gift, but for me, it's something I need to work on. Too many times I take God for granted and just hope he reads my mind when it comes to my wants and needs. Not to say that I don't EVER pray, I do, and when I actually get quiet and lay my requests before God I LOVE it and feel so close to Him when I'm done. So, my prayer request this time is for me to remember to pray. :) And not just pray...pray hard! Shout out to Erika Dawson! Right now she is posting "Pray Truth", a great and powerful way to pray. I love reading them and praying through them and I encourage you check it out at her blog Time With Our Kids. Happy Praying!

Wedding Update and Prayer Request!!!

It's been a little less than a month since my last blog post, and a lot has happened since then. My job searching has been put on hold since wedding details have been calling my name. But I've still been able to work on free lance design projects and its been nice to have a little $ coming in. I have my dress fitting this Saturday! I've been doing my best laying off all the sweets since February but I'll have to admit, I couldn't resist 1 red velvet cupcake with cream cheese frosting last night. (Thanks Grandma) My first shower is in a couple of weeks! Soooo excited to celebrate with everyone and for my friends and family to meet Jordan.

The biggest thing that has happened, though, and the main reason I'm writing is to ask for MAJOR prayer from you for the next 2 days. Jordan and I went apartment hunting last weekend. We saw 4 places and absolutely loved one of the ones we saw! But, we didn't expect to be having to make a decision so soon. We had planned on shopping around for a while and moving in August, but the options really aren't there. After going back and forth with our agent and trying to buy some time from the renter it comes down to this: We have to agree to Jordan moving in July 15 at half the rent and they want an answer from us on Thursday, yes THIS Thursday.

Not much prayer time for us, but tight deadlines don't bother God, I've learned. So, friends and family, I'm asking that you pray with us over these next 2 days. Pray that God makes it clear to Jordan and I wether or not to go forward with this, LOUD AND CLEAR. Also pray for financial means, full time employment (for both of us). That would be a real confirmation.

Thank you so much! I'll let you know what God tells us on Thursday!

What's next on the list?

Finals...CHECK, Industry Night...CHECK, Graduate....CHECK, Find a Job...IN PROGRESS. Today I had my first job interview! For those who have been praying, first, I want to say thank you soooo much, and second, update you. :)

As some of you know I started free lance designing a couple of years ago and through that I was hired by Convergence Technologies Inc. to do some ad design for them. Last week I emailed them to let them know that I graduated and am looking for full time work. They then let me know of a full time Marketing position that they were looking to fill and wanted to know if I'd be interested. Um...Full Time...$$$$....YES IM INTERESTED, no matter what the job.

Obviously, my degree is not in marketing, it's in graphic design but I wanted to hear them out. So basically the job would have me set up trade shows for CTI to be involved in. Finding funds for the trade shows, setting them up, sending them off, and then finding more would all be part of my responsibilities. Some designing would be involved like more ads, updating the website with photos, designing the trade show booth, and designing the materials for the trade show...but mainly its a marketing job. I am also their first hire, so I would be working by myself, and figuring this out as I go. A little intimidating.

The interview went well, but because I wasn't sure what I'd be doing this summer I've made commitments and wouldn't be able to start right away. Plus there is this event in September where I'm supposed to get all dressed up or something and walk down an aisle and say things like "I do" to this guy. I need to get a move-on on those plan too. So this is what the guy interviewing me (who actually is a friend of mine) said; He told me that he would like to keep sending me free lance things to do over the summer, even some of their trade show stuff, and if the position is still open in September, I could have it.

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this job. First, It's not a creative design opportunity. Which means nothing to add to my professional portfolio so that if a design position presents itself to me in the future my portfolio will look exactly like it does now, college level.

On the plus side, it's work experience, it's close to home, it's full time income, and who doesn't want that?

I'm torn. So please continue to pray as I continue my job search, and pray that God makes things clear on whether or not I'm supposed to accept this job now, later or at all? And if any of you have some advice on what you think I should do let me know.

Graduate OUT!

From God

My encouragement this morning:

Psalm 33: 13 The LORD looks down from heaven; he sees all the children of man;
14 from where he sits enthroned he looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth,
15 he who fashions the hearts of them all and observes all their deeds.
16 The king is not saved by his great army; a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.
17 The war horse is a false hope for salvation, and by its great might it cannot rescue.
18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love,
19 that he may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine.
20 Our soul waits for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.
21 For our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name.
22 Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in you.

Now what?!

Um....is it really true? Is this even possible?! R U KIDDING ME!?!?!

I HAVE NOTHING TO DESIGN!!!!!!!!

For school that is.

On May 3, 2011 at 7:55 p.m., Karin Henley finished the last design for Columbia College Chicago EVER!

This piece will be in the form of a postcard that will be handed out to all the lovely people who come to my booth on Industry Night. :) In fact, if anyone would like one for themselves I'd be happy to mail one to you...for goodness sake I'll have one hundred of them. So email me or leave a comment below.

I still have a week and a half of school left, a total of 6 classes. And I have absolutely nothing to do for them, except wait for all this stuff to ship. I got an email saying that my portfolio should be arriving tomorrow! :) So I guess I'll be spending a lot of time in front of my window waiting for my FedEx guy in shinning armor!

17 days, 14 hours, 5 minutes, and counting....

17 days, 14 hours, 5 minutes, and counting until I walk across that stage with a piece of paper that says I'm officially a Columbia graduate! Wow! I can't believe how crazy everything is right now, which is why I haven't been able to post a blog for a while. But today is a significant day. I'm done with my portfolio! That's right, I just sent it off to the printers....now I just hope that the express shipping I paid for gets it here before Monday when I have to present it to my professors. Wishful thinking I know...but I was waiting for this little guy to be finished.
He was my last addition to my portfolio. This was a project is for my Type as Illustration class. The assignment was to make a masthead for one of the exhibits at the Brookfield Zoo. I pickedPinniped Point...Pinniped means "fin-footed", hence the sea lion. I named him Sandy. :) The rest of the assignment was to take the masthead and incorporate it into an announcement of some sort of an event taking place at the exhibit.Ta Da! My poster!I had lots of fun with this...but it took FOREVER! So this is what I've been working on lately.

Back to life, Wedding plans have been put on hold because of the busyness of school. But it's OK, that's why I did all the major wedding planning at the beginning of the semester...I had a feelings things wold be crazy when April and May rolled around. Which they have! I've been juggling my projects for school, my portfolio, applying for jobs, and preparing for this "Industry Night" I have on my last day of school where a bunch of professionals are invited to come check out the graduating seniors. SCARY!!! Then there's a babysitting job there, a graphic design job here just for some cash-flow, and wedding details try and sneak in every once in a while. So a little busy.... but hopefully things will simmer down in a couple of weeks.

So, as I just said, I've starting applying for full time jobs. It's been nerve racking...I'm sure anyone who's had to go through this can relate to how much job searches sucks! I'll think I'll save my rant about that for the next blog post. Thanks for checkin in with me! I'll be posting again soon. And if anyone is curious about whats in my portfolio you can check outwww.karinhenley.com. :)