Most of us think of Labor Day weekend as summer coming to an end: kids are heading back to school and it's usually the last vacation families will take for a while. As sad as it is, it's the truth! Summer is coming to an end, and it's back to routines and business for so many of us.

In my research of the true meaning of Labor Day, I came across some fun facts I wanted to share with you.

And the winner is...

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BAUDVILLE!

OK, OK, just kidding – but I tell you what, we are coming out with some fantastic trophies and awards.

One of my favorite parts of my job is being "behind the scenes" for much of the product development cycle—from the first idea, to the drawings, to the samples, all the way to the final production! Though I have absolutely nothing to do with developing new products, except a few "that's awesome" or "nice works" here and there, I have a front-row seat to our designers and creative team at work, every day. (Perks to working in the creative suite!)

So many of us have cell phones, iPads, tablets, desktop computers, laptops: every electronic device you can think of. We are constantly on them all day long! It's the power of technology that has taken over not only work life, but our home life too. There are numerous studies out there about how much time we are spending on our electronic devices nowadays, but I want to touch on something that is getting lost: the hand-written note, and the power the hand-written note can have on someone.
 

In Michigan, we are blessed with super-great summers (usually), where you can find families soaking up the sun on the beaches all over the state. I love spending my summer weekends on the lake! If you ever get a chance to visit Michigan, I recommend doing so in the summer time—it's gorgeous!

About 50 miles west of Baudville is a town called Grand Haven or, during the summer months, "Coast Guard City, USA." Every year, Grand Haven hosts the Coast Guard Festival , which is a ten-day event to honor members of the US Coast Guard. Over 340,000 attend the festivities that include parades, a carnival, ship tours, fireworks, and more!

After working at Baudville for over a year and a half now, recognition has become second nature to me. It's everywhere I look, from our catalog, to our own company events. Now I will be the first to admit, I didn't see the value in recognition until I started working here. I have had other jobs where recognition wasn't a big deal – but that's what I was used to so I didn't really think about it.