I'm a big fan of Bed Bath & Beyond

When I first moved to Madison my aunt and uncle sent me a shockingly large gift card to Bed Bath & Beyond. In the envelope they included lots and lots coupons, and I was thrilled. With a brand new apartment, I had already taken several trips to the store, and I knew I had many more in my future.

Within two weeks of receiving the gift card I went shopping. Even though I had an absurd amount on my gift card I only bought the few things that I needed. I spent about $20, used a coupon, and left.

A few weeks later a few things had made their way onto my list, so I went to Bed Bath & Beyond. After I gave the cashier my coupons I searched my wallet for my gift card. I couldn't find it! I went through my wallet again. There was a line behind me, so I gave the woman my credit card, took my bag, and headed home, all the while my mind racing. Where in the world could the gift card be?!

I went back to my apartment and ripped it apart from top to bottom. I looked in every single drawer, pocket, purse, folder and place the gift card could have possibly managed to make it. I found the receipt from my first purchase on the gift card within minutes, just where it should have been, so I began to worry. If I found the receipt so easily and I couldn't find the card itself, where could it be?! For the next two days I repeated the tearing apart process until I was completely sure there was no way that my gift card could be within the walls of my place.

On Saturday I went to Bed Bath & Beyond, receipt in hand, tail between legs, to ask about the card. The customer service woman called the manager who came down and asked what the problem was. I told him that I had only used it once, showed him the receipt with the balance, told him I had planned to use it earlier in the week and couldn't find it anywhere. I asked if there was anything he could do to help, such as cancel the gift card. He asked to take my receipt and call corporate about the card. I was grateful for the help, so I gladly turned over the receipt. Bill made a copy for himself and was back in moments with the original for me. He warned me that it may take a little while, but I assured him that I never have an issue with wandering through the store.

Ten minutes went by.

Ten more minutes went by.

A full twenty-five minutes after Bill had left with the copy of my receipt he returned with a piece of paper and a look on his face that didn't look very promising. He told me that they had tracked the gift card and it had a balance of seventy-seven cents.

My jaw dropped. I felt like I was going to be sick.

"Oh my gosh. Really? Less than a dollar? I must have dropped it when I was leaving that very first day I used it. I can't believe I did that! Wow. Okay. Well, thank you for your help and your time."

"While I was speaking with gift card services they said the action on the screen seems a bit suspicious. Almost all of the purchases were candy and small impulse buys from around the checkout counters. And the balance was taken down to seventy-seven cents within six days after the receipt you gave to me. We think it all seems a bit suspicious. May I have your telephone number? We would like to investigate this a little more."

I gave Bill my telephone number and left, upset with myself for being so clumsy and dropping my card.

Less than an hour later my telephone rang.

"Hi, Meaghan? This is Bill from the East Side Bed Bath & Beyond. After looking into the gift card and the transactions that were made, it is clear that you didn't use the card. We have decided to reissue the remaining balance that you had on your gift card. There will be a card waiting for you in the safe at the store with your name on the envelope. When you come in just let them know there is something waiting for you, all of the managers have been informed."

"Are you serious?! Thank you so much! Oh my gosh! I cannot thank you enough. This is amazing. I really appreciate this. Thank you."

I don't know if I dropped the card or the cashier never gave the card back to me, but whatever happened, Bed Bath & Beyond went above and beyond.

Over the last few months I have continued to chip away at my gift card, carefully putting it back in my wallet every single time I use it. And every time I use it I am so grateful for nice people and nice companies. Thank you, Bill. And thank you, Bed Bath & Beyond, I am happy to shop your stores anytime.

Merry Christmas!

My One Year Anniversary

Can you believe it? It has been a full year since I moved back to the USA. I don't know if it feels like I just moved back yesterday, or if it feels as though I have been back in the States for years.

In one year my sister was accepted to Alvin Ailey (her audition was on 12/12), moved to New York City, got her learner's permit, transferred to Joffrey Ballet School and moved into a dorm room (without parental supervision) in Greenwich Village.

In one year my brother graduated from college, got an awesome job, moved to Wyoming and somehow became a grown-up.

My other brother, in one year, worked his tail off, spent his 13th summer at camp as a counselor and started going back to school.

My father moved to Abu Dhabi.

My mother has cleaned out the basement and the attic, replaced the roof, visited her three children in new homes and I'm sure I'm missing things...

Wilbur lost 7 pounds.

Tupper started eating a new brand of dog food.

As for me, I have lived in NYC, Saratoga Springs, and Madison. I worked in an amazing bakery and as a cabbie for models in Manhattan. I dabbled in online dating and snagged myself a fantastic boyfriend. Yes, friends I have boyfriend. I have a wonderful job that I am enjoying more and more every single day. I ran two half-marathons, raised a lot of money for Crohn's and Colitis Foundation, turned 25 and got bangs.

As I mentioned earlier, on one hand I think oh my gosh, has it already been one year? But on the other hand I can't help but think, all of this stuff... it's only been one year?

Happy 12/12/12!

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Happy Aaron Rodgers Day!

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Happy Hump Day!

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Happy Anniversary!

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Whatever you are celebrating, happy day to you!

 

Me? I'm celebrating wonderful memories from abroad, great opportunities in the US, and fantastic friends all over the world.

The quilt is on the move

The quilt is en route to Augusta, GA!

Ellie made it, I sewed on the label, many kindly donated to enter the raffle, and the USPS man stuffed it into a box most would consider too small. It was a labor of love. Well, there was definitely love on Ellie's and my part, but the USPS man was more helpful and rough than loving.

 

 

Thank you again to everyone that donated to CCFA over the past few months, I can't even begin to explain how much it means to me. Soon, I will be posting a full race recap and an exciting donation announcement!

 

Y'all come back now, ya hear?

 

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The Big Race Weekend

After months of training and fundraising, race week finally arrived.

Friday morning I took Wilbur for a long walk and then dropped him off at Waggin' Tails, his happy place. The name is quite fitting because every time we drive there Wilbur gets so excited he almost falls over from wagging his tail so hard. He has to sit down while the rest of his body wiggles uncontrollably until we arrive at daycare.

I immediately drove to Milwaukee to catch my flight to Las Vegas. Naturally, the new iPhone map application got me lost while I was trying to find the long term economy parking, but I figured it out without any help from Siri.

I spent Friday afternoon going to the marathon expo, getting as many freebies as possible, and exploring the strip. Heather, Ann and my mom wouldn't be flying in until Saturday, so I had plenty of time to myself. A few people from my team went out for burgers on Friday night, so I tagged along. My burger was delicious, but when I paid the bill, I was pretty sure that my burger wasn't $37 delicious...

The inside of The Venetian

Saturday morning I slept in and took a long shower while watching the C-USA championship football game. Yes, you read that correctly, I watched the football game from the shower. The large suite that I shared with my mom had two very fluffy and comfy queen beds, a humongous sectional couch in the living area, three televisions and a fax machine. I was tempted to send a fax, but couldn't think of what I would send or who I would send it to.

During halftime I wandered down the strip until I found three dollar beers and the Tulsa football game. I watched Tulsa win the conference championship in overtime while receiving texts from my friends at the game and staring at the characters on the strip during the commercial breaks. Gosh, there are some crazies in Las Vegas.

One of the characters wandering the strip... notice the Lightening McQueen tattoo? I told my dad he should get one...

My mom arrived to the Venetian around 3 and we went out for drinks to wait for Heather and Ann. Our first stop was less than impressive and quite smelly, so we took our seemingly virgin drinks and walked toward the Bellagio. She and I made it just in time to watch the water show. When I received the text from Heather letting me know that they were jumping in a cab to the hotel, my mom and I headed back to meet them in the lobby. Their flight was delayed, so we only had a matter of minutes to change for the pasta party.

At the pasta party we learned that the 1,104 runners raised nearly $4 million for Crohn's and Colitis Foundation! $4 million! That's amazing. We also saw Sean Lowe, next season's bachelor. He was the celebrity for the event, and I was pretty darn excited about it. Heather even snapped a photo with him at the start!

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Sean speaking at the pasta party 

After the party everyone was pretty tired from traveling, so we called it an early night.

Sunday morning my mom and I grabbed breakfast before heading to the pool. It was a delight. We were on the fourth floor between the towers of the hotel, and it felt like we were nowhere near Las Vegas, which was fantastic. We were away from the filth of the street, the crazies of the town and the crazy traffic. Unfortunately, it was also incredibly windy. Heather and Ann met us poolside, but the four of us only lasted about thirty minutes before we were too chilly.

We went back to our room to get ready for the race. With our sparkly skirts and socks, we were ready to run.

The wind advisory as we were getting ready for the race... gusts of 45mph? Yes, we ran through that.

Race recap to come....

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Uncle Jimmy Garvey who won the quilt!

Thank you to everyone who purchased tickets!

My weekend in Las Vegas was wonderful and a great success. More stories to come before the end of the week...

Thank you again for donating to CCFA. My Wisconsin team raised over $130,000 and the team challenge event raised nearly $4 million! Thank you!