As winter blooms

Winter, has so many connotations attached to it. I think of blistery, long, hot cocoa, fires, christmas trees, valentine cards, snowmen, presents. What a season right!? So many holidays & things to be thankful for. Life in the Chicago area is great, but coming home to Minnesota is fabulous. Although there is no snow, there is plenty of chill. People are friendly as ever & home still smells like home. The nearby cafe invites me to the warm & sinful espresso. 

Coming home was bitter-sweet. Although, my mom & family are beautiful & haven't changed, my friends have seemed to all be a bit different. We each went different ways expecting each other to never change... that didn't happen. Life at a Private, very conservative Christian college is much different then a State school. Drinking & partying are part of a person's schedule  in a state school, while at my school, it is unheard of. I am not mad or disappointed in my friends, it is just.... different. I love them, I want to spend time with them, but since I do not drink, I am almost "looked down upon." Which is soo opposite of what I thought it would be like. However, I leave for the windy city soon, & I must spend my time wisely.

I share many laughs with my family. Sitting by the fire in the mornings & having meaningful conversation with my mom is beautiful & where I want to be. Cuddling with my six year old sister while watching a movie is where I want to be. Going through my grandmas photo boxes is where I want to be. In the end, when I return to college, those places with my family is what I will truly miss. The times where my heart was happy because of silly things we laugh about or when we cry together, this is where I will want to be.

Artsy fartsy

Now that I have been at college for a while I have began to realize new things about myself. One of these new discoveries is that I can be quite artsy fartsy. When I am stressed out and it seems that the entire world wants to push me down I look for small meticulous things to do. As of late I have been obsessed with making paper flowers. I did my research and found some pretty legit designs. While I am making these flowers, my mind is calm, I really do not think about anything. I am simply creating. I love it. It is addicting. Especially when I am stressed, I love not thinking and doing something constructive, literally. After I have created more flowers than there are outside, I feel much more at peace with myself. The stresses in my life may not have gone away but I certainly feel refreshed and ready to take on these daily challenges. 

Study. Study. Study.

Studying, yes this might sound redundant but I cannot help it. I had two really big tests in two different classes and I was a mess. My very first did not go very well, therefore I made a vow to study my buns off for the next one or two, or three. I spent many hours in a corner of the library going over study guides and reading textbooks. Now, from time to time I was very sick of doing homework so I happily checked my Facebook, e-mail, and of course YouTube. These sinful distractions really helped me to not get the desired amount of homework and studying done. Nonetheless, I took the tests and hopefully did well. 
-Here is a great video to watch if you are procrastinating or just need a good laugh.

In other news, college life is still great. I love it! The opportunity to receive an education and meet so many people is an amazing one. I love the people, professors, and everything in between. The food is getting old, and microwavable food is really getting to me but luckily I have family and friends who really care for me and send me care packages with cookies and other delightful food/goodies! I love them. I miss my family terribly...but I will hopefully see them at thanksgiving which is only 59 days away! WHOOP!! As I count down the days until I see my family, I only hope that I can be a blessing to those around me and cherish the time that I have been given.

2:00 AM

College is full of opportunities. Just being able to stay in a place where you did not know one person before stepping foot into the building is such a humbling experience. Going to a place where you hardly know anyone shows that the world, surprisingly, does not revolve around you. I already have strong relationships with girls on my floor.

Last night, one of my friends and I really needed to talk. There was tension and hard feelings that needed to be put out on the table. The time was about 12:00 when we had sat down to talk, 2.5 hours later I finally went to bed. For some reason, I didn't even think about going to bed while we were talking. The relationship we had to mend was way more important than any class I would have the next morning. I think that aspect of college is amazing, since there is no curfew, no moms or dads harping on you to get to bed, there is the freedom to be able to make your own decisions. Decisions on what you consider to be important. The true "you" comes out when decisions and events are executed. I love college. I love exploring who I am, and what quirks I have. I am learning details about myself that I've never known before. College, the place where revelations become an everyday thing..

Ramen..ramen..ramen.. ramen. What more could you love than processed noodles and chicken flavoring? It is one of the cheapest meals a person could invest in that comes in bulk. PLUS- 0 grams of trans fat! Now that is a bargain. I would suggest ramen to any poor college student looking for a quick and easy meal. Note, I did not say delicious, Ramen is not by any means tasty yet it gets the job done. If you are not a ramen fan, then I would say Velveeta- easy mac, this is delicious and cheap.

Enough with this food jargon lets move on to real life matters. Today I was warming the bench for my college's softball team. I also helped out with stats so I didn't feel completely useless. As I was sitting on the bench and cheering on my team I couldn't help but notice the seagulls in the sky flying all around. I made up my mind, seagulls are one of God's most annoying creatures. They are loud, they poop on you and are always in the way. Birds in general can be annoying at times, but I really don't know when a seagull is NOT annoying. I am sorry if you are in love with seagulls, this might really offend you, but not sorry enough to delete this post.

Flannel, Fridays & Fall

The weekend is officially here which means a couple of things for me;

1. Boys are welcomed onto our floor for "open hours."

2. No lectures or running to classes for two days

3. I can sleep in past 7 o'clock.

4. I can call my family and talk for more than five minutes.

5. I can clean my room and do laundry!

This list may seem silly to some people but for me this is one amazing list full of relaxing .

I just came back from an intramural soccer game. The boys playing were hilarious to say the least. Each had a competitive edge and were trying to jab the opposing players. I really don't know if they knew they looked ridiculous but they did.

It is officially fall! I love the weather outside. I walk outside and a nice cool breeze welcomes me, the leaves crunching beneath my feet and no one looks at you strange for wearing a flannel, what could be better? Today is a friday, in the middle of fall and I will be wearing flannel..life is great.

The Swing of Things

Writing essays, homework, studying, and play of course! As college has officially begun, papers have been due, assignments have been distributed and lectures have officially become boring. I have been drinking coffee like beans are getting out of style and late nights doing various papers and assignments are the norm. My suite mates all sitting in a circle venting, listening to music and occasionally dancing is so tempting when the homework gets old. Many times I give into the temptation and neglect my hours of school work due, but I think that is okay. Surprisingly, I have been doing pretty well with getting all my assignments finished and turned in on time.

College is such a strange place, once I think about it. It is not like high school at all, the professors are way more laid back, yet it is not "cut throat" like the real world either. It is the transition into the real world. Nonetheless I can handle the transition stage. As I get into the swing of things I can't help but think how fast this is all going and if it is ever going to actually slow down? It seems like it was just yesterday that my big brother was dropping me off at college. Where has time gone? Well where ever it went, my only hope is that I can take advantage of the day given.