LIFE: Celebrating 90 Years of Living
There are not many things that live to be 90 years old. I’ve heard of cities celebrating 90 years, or award ceremonies, but rarely do you get to know someone personally that is 90 years old. I’m blessed to say that I’ve had my Grandma Mac around for 90 years (and my other Grandma for 80!). The older I get the more I realize what a special and rare occasion it is to have had so much of your life spent with Grandmas/Grandparents. There are a lot people that have never known the safety of a Grandparents hug, the warmth of their laughter, or the taste of their cooking. 
It’s moments like these that hold some of my fondest childhood memories.
Last Sunday my mom, my Grandma B (my mom’s mom), and I took off on a road trip to KC to celebrate my Grandma Mac’s 90th Birthday. It was truly a momentous occasion with handmade brunch (my favorite!) and family that I have not seen since I was a kid. It was one of those afternoons where time stood still and it felt refreshing to stop the busyness of the hour and celebrate the gift of 90 years.
My mom wrote the following speech about my Grandma Mac and I thought she did terrific job describing all the in and outs of this wonderful lady and sharing a few new things that I didn’t even know!
“We are gathered here today to celebrate and honor the life of Jenny Alvena Cook McClellan. To live a full, healthy, independent, productive life on this earth for 90 years is truly a gift from God. The amount of history and change she has witnessed during this time is mind-boggling to me. From the clothing styles, big bands, wars, the great depression, civil rights, technology, let alone her generation witnessing full circle the events of women gaining equality and rights that young women today are born into.
For most us gathered here Alvena has been a presence in your life since birth. By the time I met Alvena I was the ripe old age of seventeen and totally smitten with her son David. Little did I know that she would become my mother-in-law, my second mother, and a dear friend for almost forth years.
Alvena has a great sense of humor, loves to laugh, and has always enjoyed life. She loves games and sports and I have had the pleasure of enjoying golfing and bowling leagues (which she plays on the Wii) with her. She is very competitive which anyone who has played pinnacle with her can attest too. She is stubborn and strong-willed and will arm wrestle you over who is going to pick up the tab… in fact she and her sister Ellen (who she is Skyping in the photo above) are tied in holding the fastest record for chasing a moving car down the street and throwing (successfully) money through the car window.
Alvena was raised in a time where children had manners, you helped your neighbors, and courting occurred in steps. During our trips to Ft. Scott (Alvena’s hometown) to visit Grandma Cook or the Mullanes, until Dave and I were married, I shared a bed with her in Grandma’s attic otherwise known as the “freezer”. I always assumed to prevent from any late night ‘rendezvous’.
Alvena is warm, welcoming, always tries to see the best in everyone, the blessings in situations, and I have never heard her say a harsh hurtful word about anyone. As a mother-in-law she never gave unwanted unasked for advice or opinions and I”m sure there were times her tongue was sore from biting it.
Alvena loves her family deeply and outside of my own mother, she has been the greatest gift and presence in my life and has helped shaped and define who I am as a woman. By example, she has shown me what grace and faith look like. She has held my hand and heart in the my darkest hours on this earth when both Megan (Guillain-Barre) and David (Cancer) were so ill. She has been dealt with deep sorrow and several losses in her lifetime, but by example she showed me how to accept loss with faith and grace and to persevere trusting that God is all knowing.
One of the greatest blessings I gained through my marriage with David, that I inherited you… I often tell people that David was my gift that keeps on giving because you and your daughters have continued to be present and a part of my life even after I remarried. I am a richer woman for having known you and your children.
There is a poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson called Success where he identifies several items which he contributes to having lead a successful life. At the end he states;
‘To know that one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.’
My life has breathed easier because of you Alvena. Thank you for being an angel in my life.”
- Paula (Meg’s mom)
Happy 90th Birthday Grandma Mac! I feel honored to have had such a wonderful example of love as a child and grace as a woman. I love you and if you ask me you’re looking pretty dang sexy for 90! 
From the Farm 
Related Posts
People that Inspire Us: Susan with Freshly Picked
Freshly Picked from Team Thirteen on Vimeo.
“What you need to do is get clear about the life that you want. Then you need to re-focus your priorities until you can see that life and then you just run like hell at it! You just go for it!”- Susan Petersen with Freshly Picked
We couldn’t agree more!
From the Farm 
GCD: Selling a Lifestyle or a Product?
We are excited to announce that we are officially working on a Look Book featuring our Green Couch Design Kitchen Line and Concrete Jewelry! The conceptual process is just getting started but we are already asking ourselves tons of questions as we figure out what are the key messages that we want to say about our products, our brand as a “lifestyle”, and/or both? If a picture is worth a 1,000 words then we had better make sure we have a clear vision about who we are and the type of visual messages we are sending our customers.
As we’ve been researching ideas for our Look Book we’ve noticed two different approaches toward selling a product:
1: Lifestyle Based Marketing: Imagery that forces customers to desire a product because of the way they feel when they are wearing that object or have that product a part of their life. When you aim your marketing toward a lifestyle approach you want potential customers to first fall in love with who you are and as a result purchase your products. With this type of imagery you are not just selling a piece of jewelry, you are selling a feeling based on the type of lifestyle your customers long to have.
Example: In this commercial you see the target audience is young adults and young families that are adventurous and want to “go” and “do”. They are not ok with sitting by and letting life pass by, instead they want to live life to the fullest. Ford focused it’s marketing efforts on the “feeling” their target market wants to have towards life (the problem) and how the Ford Explorer can help their customers accomplish that (the solution).
2: Product Based Marketing: Imagery that sells you a product by focusing on it’s features and services. Typically, this is for a product that is very specialized and more focused on the individual. Marketing efforts are narrowed into making one type of product and making it better than anyone else in your market. Customers purchase this type of product because it’s the best in the industry and it offers them something that your competition does not.
LIFE: The “BIG” Picture
For those of you who don’t know after much debate we decided to send Cale back into the work force. There have been a couple of reasons for this but mainly a great opportunity came up for him to work at an architecture firm that he really wanted to work with and thus giving him the opportunity to complete his architectural license.
We are still adjusting to this “new” lifestyle of 9-5 with evenings spent working together on Green Couch Design along with weekends. More than ever it’s been really hard to separate work and life and it’s really tested our commitment to Green Couch Design. I’m not gonna lie there are days where it feels like the easiest thing to do would be to throw in the towel and both work a 9-5. The idea of “free-time” sounds SOOO good right now but it’s in these moments that we are reminded of the process. We are reminded of the”what” that made us start down this path of self-employment in the first place. As magical and as freeing as it appears (and can be) where the rubber meets the road is messy (Have you seen my office lately? That is why!), confusing (At times) and a lot work! Everyday you have to face your own insecurities and inadequacies and meet them head on! You have to look fear in the face and say; “I don’t care what you think!” You have to remember and then remind yourself again of The “BIG” Picture!
For us The “BIG” Picture is raising our kids together. It’s a dream where both of us work at home with the kids playing under our feet. It’s one where we don’t have to choose success over family. And for now it’s a process of constantly learning and tweaking all aspects of our business and who we are as individuals. There are days where it’s exhausting but we have to remember The “BIG” Picture and enjoy the hell out of the process!
Is anyone else in this place of transition? Are you constantly reminding yourself of The “BIG” Picture? What helps you stay committed and focused to your long-term dreams?
From the Farm
Married for 50 Years: Love Ever After Photography Project
This year for Valentines Day we decided instead of talking about ourselves we would share some love advice from the real “experts”. We’ve been following Lauren Fleishman’s Kickstarter Project called Love Ever After and we are completely smitten! Sharing stories of couples who have been married for 50+ years Lauren is capturing these couples through photographs and collecting fun quotes about how they met and their “secret” to finding and maintaining love.
Get ready to fall in love with some really adorable old people…
“Sometimes we think we love when we don’t love. A lot of people say they are in love but really we were young and we really didn’t know what love was all about. But afterward we found out what love was! Love is sharing with one another. Don’t care what you have you share what you have. And be willing to give. Another thing I tell people now is that you have to be able to bend a little bit. Yes, love is a powerful thing. If you know what it means.” – Theauther and Annie Love
“We’ve been married for 66 years. We met in high school when I was 16 years old and my wife was 15 years old. And we’ve gone through life together. The love we feel now is a different type of love. It is a mature love. In the beginning, of course, there was a sexual attraction but right now sex has very little to do with it.”- Moe and Tessie Rubenstein
“What is the secret to love? A secret is a secret and I don’t reveal my secrets!” - Ykov Shapirshteyn and Mariya Gostsinnaya
DIY: “I Love You Because…” Flip Book
Sometimes in your marriage you have to think back and remember what it was like when you we’re dating. What were the things that you just did to say “I love you” and how can you apply those things to your relationship now? They may not come as natural as they once did but after a little soul searching you’ll remember the simple things you once did to make that special someone feel all warm and gooey inside.
I remember a time when I was really good at at this. I would send Cale cards and make cute “I love you” books. Yes, I know… cheesy but hey it’s what I loved to do! In my opinion there is nothing better than a handmade Valentine’s Day gift. I think it has something to do with my childhood memories of cutting hearts out of construction paper, decorating an old shoe box with glitter, and adding as much red, white, and pink as possible! Handmade gifts, although simple, take time and thought and that fellas can go a lot farther than a box of chocolates!
This year let that special someone know all the weird, cute and funny things you love about them by making a handmade gift.
To help you get you started think of the things about that person that made you fall in love with them… and then onto the weird, quirky and even serious things that you cherish about them today.
STUFF: YEAH!rentals Stop Motion Promo Video
YEAH!rentals from Son of Shark Pig on Vimeo.
This video makes us happy and although it’s very simple we’re pretty sure it took a lot more work than it shows! Today, push that idea… FURTHER!
From the Farm
video from Son of Shark Pig for YEAH!rentals
GCD: DOTS [Album Design]
We had a blast working with The Wonder Revolution on their branding so when they asked us to help put the final touches on their FIRST album cover design we we’re more than thrilled. We felt so honored to be a part of this collaboration of artists from around the country and can’t wait to work with them again!
“Dots is the first release from the creative collective, The Wonder Revolution. The album began in 2006 as an instrumental project by Wonder Revolution guitarist David Lord (of Solagget, Elemental Trio, Francis Moss) and drummer Nathan Wilder (of Paper Airplanes, Ad Astra Arkestra, Appleseed Cast). Over the next six years, the project was adopted by The Wonder Revolution collective and evolved into an epic long-form composition featuring a line up of twelve contributing musicians.” –Album Notes
Listen to the music here.
From the Farm
* To review more work like this and others visit our graphic design portfolio at Green Couch Design.
** Cover Art by the lovely Lindsay Bowling.
LIFE: Fresh Air
Last Sunday we had a “work day” and with both of us pounding away on our computers we decided to “open the house up”! At first I was a little whinny to the idea of it being chilly but Cale said the fresh air would be nice. And he was right.
GCD: Valentines Day Limited Edition Concrete Heart Necklace
At Green Couch Design we have a sweet spot for love and ALL the sappy and gooey moments that come along with it. We’ve been working the last two years with concrete and just so happen to come across this fun little design just in time for Valentines Day. Enjoy!
High class design in overalls. It's the simple life of a farm through the eyes of a couple of crazy designers. We call ourselves Green Couch Design and we are Bringing Design Home.
