Wednesday Night Update

I thought it was about time to say, hey - I'm back in school and I'm back in the swing of things. Right now, I'm sitting in what my friends and I now call the "living room" getting some homework done (we call it the living room because it's a room that actually makes us feel like we live in a house. and we like it. a lot). 

Coming back to school was hard. As soon as I got here, I just wanted to turn around and drive back home. It has nothing to do with UT, I just love home so much. Family, why do you have to be so good to me? You make me miss home far too often. Unpacking and going to class felt weird after having a month and a half of nothing to do and sleeping in my own bed. But, I've been back for about a week and a half and I'm starting to feel normal again.

Today was beautiful. Like, for real. I laid out - IN A SWIMSUIT! Who would've thought that in January I would be laying out by the pool in a swimsuit. I was sweating, listening to good country music, and dreaming of summer. It was glorious. Later, I hammocked out back and drank a strawberry slush. It sure was fun to pretend it was summer, even if it was only for a little while (my homework quickly brought me back to reality).

Happy hump day, everyone!

A Campfire

The night before I left to come back to Austin for my second semester, my family and I decided to have a campfire. We sat in the backyard, roasted s'mores, told ghost stories and laughed a lot. My family is the absolute best.

Song: "Brothers" - Penny & Sparrow

things I've learned

As my second semester of college approaches (6 days), I can't help but reflect on the craziness that was my first semester away from home. I thought I'd share just a few things I learned after becoming a real college student.

1. You're eating times will change. I am currently a fan of the "early bird special" and eating dinner at 5:00. Then of course, I'm starving for another dinner by 9:00, but have no kitchen to cook anything in. So, some nights I'll eat an entire bag of cheddar and sour cream chips. Yup, that's college for ya.

2. I know it's such a cliché, but coffee really becomes your best friend. I wake up and have a cup, sip a little bit more for lunch, then naturally have two more cups at night. Coffee is just another necessity for studying - just like you need a pen and a desk, I need my coffee.

3. Because I miss my own dogs so much, I get really really really excited when I see a dog. Any dog, anywhere, you can bet I'm screaming with joy on the inside when I see one.

4. Making friends in college is both easy and hard. Easy in the sense that no one knows each other so you're all looking to make new friends, but hard in the way that you miss your old friends back home and the easiness of being yourselves with them.

5. High school is so much easier than college. I really didn't think classes would be that much more difficult, but they really are. The work load and the amount of studying that has to be done far outweighs what I had to do in high school. But, the classes are more enjoyable. I find myself actually using or thinking about what I learned in my classes.

6. Homesickness is such a thing. Maybe not missing my actual house as much, but missing my people. My mom, my dad, my grandparents, my sister, my dogs, my Johnny boy. And missing the food. You'd think Austin would rise far above the restaurants in Coppell, but nothing can beat Anamia's or Local Diner. Just nothing.

There's so much more to college than what I just wrote, but these are just a few of the little things I learned. Bring on the second semester - I'm sure this list will get much, much longer.
1 semester down, 7 more to go!

it was the best time of the year

It's been a little too long since I last blogged, but with the end finals and enjoying my break at home, I haven't wanted to do much besides eat, sleep (lots of sleep), and spend time with the people I love. And to be honest, every time I would look at my blog, I would see John's post for me and it made me so happy I didn't want to change it. But any who, I had a wonderful Christmas - I wore my onesie, saw beautiful lights, and baked a lot of cookies. My family and boyfriend spoiled me! It is officially the most depressing time of the year... the tree has to come down and the lights get turned off. I wish the Christmas spirit lasted year round! But, this year I want to work on being consistently happy and appreciating every little thing in my life. I'll be spending John's last week of break with him (but I get to go up to Yale in February... best Christmas present!) and trying to enjoy my last few weeks of break. Goodbye 2014... happy 2015!