Meet Alaina Roberts.  A Houston’s employee since January 2015, and 2016’s fourth quarter Employee of the Quarter.

Quiet, compassionate, and fun are the words Alaina might use to describe herself.  I would add charming, engaging, kind, friendly, and likeable to her list.  When Alaina is seen around the office, whether in passing or stopping to talk with others, you can count on two things:  one, she is smiling, and two, she will take time to acknowledge you, to simply say hello or to offer assistance if needed.  She loves her coworkers, and in fact, they are one of the reasons she enjoys her job so much.

Alaina works in our Purchasing Department as a buyer.  Specifically, her job is to purchase merchandise for us to sell to our customers.  She works with the vendors she is assigned to, from the time the Purchase Order is placed, through the time it is received in our warehouse, and even after, to ensure everything was received correctly.  And she loves it all!  She especially likes to play around with numbers, forecasting how much product we will need from our vendors based on the amount of product our customers are buying.  Alaina believes that her patience when working through issues and her acute attention to detail makes her good at what she does.  Her manager, Amanda Hackathorn, takes it a step further and says that she appreciates Alaina’s “team-oriented attitude” when it comes to work, and the fact that she is kind to everyone and is willing to help out wherever needed, including in other departments if they are short staffed.

When Alaina isn’t working at Houston’s she enjoys reading, hiking, and just spending good quality time outside with her husband and her dogs.  She loves the beach and visits the coast whenever she can.  In her down time, or when it is too rainy to go outside, Alaina loves to read.  Any genre will do, but she wants to read “Unbroken” and maybe eventually watch the movie too.  She has recently dived in to reading the Bible for the second time.  When she was younger she read the books out of order, bouncing around based on how she was feeling on any given day; now, though, she is reading it in order from the Old Testament to the New Testament, in hopes of learning how the story really fits together.

Congratulations on being chosen the Employee of the Quarter, Alaina!  Houston’s appreciates all that you do!!

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I like to ask our Employees of the Quarter what makes them excel at the work they do for Houston’s.  So often I find that there is an inner drive that motivates them to do well, a pride in doing things right.  Teresa is no different.  She is good at her job because she takes it personally.  It matters to her that the paper trail is correct, and she often goes to great lengths to play detective, to sort out problems and tackle them from start to finish.  In her words, she takes “pride [in her work] because what we do is important.”  She truly enjoys making sure that our vendors are paid the correct amount, in a timely manner.  Jasmine completely agrees.  She states that Teresa’s “enthusiasm to learn/take on new tasks, attention to detail, and willingness to help others has built a great foundation within the AP department.”

Before Teresa was hired at Houston’s she was a stay-at-home mom, and transitioning back in to work was a challenge for her.  With a newborn at home, a new full time job, and learning the ins and outs of the Accounts Payable position, she certainly felt the stress.  However, she tackled all the pressure with grace, and a desire to do well, and she has proven to be beyond capable of juggling her many hats.

Although Teresa loves her job in the accounting department at Houston’s, she would love to have more time to spend time with her three children and her fiance, chasing adventures and trying new things in new places.  She also is an avid reader, a swimmer, and a Jamaican Dancehall enthusiast.  If a genie would grant her just one wish it would be to have a small house by the beach where she could walk daily to the local market for fresh food.  It would be awesome if that same genie could throw in a couple of chickens and a goat!

Thank you for all you do, Teresa.  Houston’s appreciates you and all your hard work.

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If you need something done, you can count on Jenny!

Jenny was hired in June 2013 in the Returns Department, but moved to Admin shortly after and she feels like she has found her niche.  She loves her job because it allows her to chat with everyone as she floats around the office doing different jobs—helping out in the file room and reception, making sure the Admin department runs smoothly, setting up new items or deleting obsolete items, and her latest feats in the office, recycling toner cartridges and working with a shred company to recycle office papers.  Chatting amongst co-workers is one of the many things that make Jenny happy at her job—and she truly does enjoy the people she works with.  Additionally, though, she enjoys the productive feeling she takes away from her job as the Admin Lead.  She doesn’t mind paperwork, and in fact, she derives great satisfaction from looking at a pile of work, tackling it, and seeing it through until the job is complete.  When I asked Jenny’s manager what makes her such a great employee I was told that Jenny is “very enthusiastic,” a team player, works well with other departments, and has a “willingness to wrap her arms around a project and run with it.”  With these attributes and more it is easy to see why Jenny is an incredible asset to Houston’s.

When Jenny isn’t at work, she loves to watch her son compete in his track and cross-country events, and exercising makes her feel good; she has a stationary bike and a treadmill, and she likes to walk out of doors as well.  She has played the piano for 32 years, and though mostly she plays at home, she does fill in at her church from time to time.  Jenny is currently saving her pennies to buy a digital keyboard!

I asked Jenny if she has a motto she would like to share, and her response really sums up the person I perceive her to be:  “Be positive and be happy.”  She said that she feels like our minds have “ruts,” and that sometimes we have to force ourselves to create positive thoughts.  Practicing the art of being positive, she said, could in turn make people happier in general.  Well said, Jenny!  And thank you, too, for leading by example!

Congratulations on a job well done!

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You can party Mardi Gras-style without traveling to New Orleans, though.  Get yourself a few strands of colorful beads and a mask, and make yourself a cocktail or two to celebrate the season.  Have you ever attended the festivities in New Orleans?  Or have you made your own party somewhere else?  Try out one of these French Quarter-inspired libations, and let us know how you like to celebrate…

Hurricane

2 ounces light rum

2 ounces dark rum

2 ounces passion fruit syrup

1 ounce orange juice

1 ounce lime juice

1 ounce dark rum

½ ounce simple syrup

½ ounce grenadine

Combine all ingredients in a shaker, strain into a large Hurricane glass filled with ice.  Garnish with an orange wheel and a cherry.

French 75

1 ½ ounces gin

¾ ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ ounce simple syrup

¼ cup chilled dry sparkling wine or Champagne

Combine gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake for 20 seconds.  Strain into a Champagne flute, then top with chilled sparkling wine.  Garnish with a lemon twist.

Blue Bayou Cocktail

1 ½ ounces vodka

½ ounce blue curacao

½ cup fresh pineapple

2 ounces grapefruit juice

For a frozen treat, blend ingredients in a blender with 1 cup crushed ice until smooth.  Pour into a cocktail glass.  Or combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice, shake for 20 seconds, then pour into a cocktail glass.  Garnish with a pineapple wedge.

The post Feeling Festive? The Season of Mardi Gras is Upon Us! appeared first on Houston's Blog.

Courtney Stroup, Graphic Designer

C is for Capable. For Cheerful. For Creative. C is for Captivating, Competent, Cultured, Convivial. C is for Charming. And Cooperative. C is for Courtney!!

Courtney Stroup is Houston’s 3rd Quarter 2014 Employee of the Quarter, and for good reason. Since being hired as a Graphic Designer she has been responsible for many tasks in the Marketing Department. Catalog production, creating flyers and sliders for the website, filling customer marketing requests, designing and producing mini-catalogs, and processing images are just a scattering of Courtney’s responsibilities. And she does them exceptionally well, with a phenomenal attitude. Courtney is a self-proclaimed lover of pretty things, well-versed in graphic design, with an acute eye for detail. She is very visual and is able to look at the whole picture when coming up with designs. Combine these qualities with a deep-seated interest in design and it’s easy to see that she can’t help but excel at her work, and why she is a great value to Houston’s.

Courtney’s hobbies are as diverse as the material she designs. In her spare time she likes to travel, and has been to Spain but would also like to go to Australia and to somewhere tropical with warm beaches, sand, and water. Courtney loves to watch movies, and has seen all of the Wes Anderson films, as he is one of her favorite producers. She and her husband sometimes throw elaborate dinner parties for family (did I mention Courtney loves to eat?), and they have even featured Thai food as one of the meals they created. She also loves wine tasting and is a Starbucks coffee aficionado. Working out and doing yoga are a part of Courtney’s daily routine. And Courtney LOVES Michael Jackson!
If you haven’t met Courtney, or haven’t had any length of conversation with her, you certainly should make a point to do so—you won’t be sorry you did. Her personality is engaging, her laugh is infectious, and she is, quite simply, a fun person to be around!

Thanks for all you bring to Houston’s every day, Courtney. Your hard work is respected and appreciated!!

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