My Freshman Experience

I know I haven't written in awhile, this semester has just swallowed me up!  I decided with less than two weeks left of the semester, to do a recap of my first year in college, so here we go!
      Around this time last year I was finalizing my decision to attend Westminster College in Salt Lake City.  This was a big decision, especially since I always just assumed USU was my first and only choice.  However, when I came across Westminster I really was intrigued to try something new!  It meant the world to me when my dad agreed to send me here.  Although I am transferring to USU in Fall, this first year of college was the best experience, and I definitely don't regret coming to Westminster at all.
        This experience allowed me to really find who I was, and I am not afraid to admit any of the mistakes I have made here, because I have learned more about myself in this year, than I ever have.  When I first got to Westminster I wanted to try new things that weren't "normal" behavior for me.  I attend my first "parties," which now actually really scare me!  I saw life from a college partier perspective, and the lifestyle of those who don't do anything but smoke and drink.  It didn't take me long to realize that is definitely not who I am, nor do I want to even have that mentality.  I guess it's true what they sway about no matter how much you try to stray from your normal friends, you always find your way back.  Maybe it is just because it takes me a little extra studying or work than most people, but I don't see how some of these college kids can pass their classes with all of that partying!  Anyways,  I am grateful to have gotten the opportunity to experience what a party was like.
       Attending Westminster my first year has given me something that I am more than thankful for, and that is some amazing friends.  The group of girls I have grown closest to are the best group I have ever met.  It is pretty strange to think how different we all are from one another, and yet we get along so well together, and always have amazing adventures and girls days out.  I have never come across a group of six girls that can all get along so well together.  I feel like there is always that odd one out, but not with us.  I love each and every one of those girls!  We have planned some amazing events, and all of my favorite memories from this school year revolve around our group of girls.  I already have next year planned out for when I come down to SLC to visit them, and when they come up to Logan.  It will be so special to have our "girls days" next year, and I know we will all stay in touch.(:
      This is a shout out to Sadie McNamee! Sadie saw me at my lowest point this year, and out of everyone I know she has been the most faithful friend to me.  I find it pretty amazing when a friend can stick by your side even when they know you messed up.  Sadie never treated me any differently, and was the kindest friend to me.  I know I can trust her with anything, and she never judges me, and she knows I would do the same for her.  I for sure will visit her in Chicago sometime. <3
       To all of my other amazing friends here, especially Anna, Nick, and Edgar thank you so much for an amazing year.  Just because I didn't list you here, I hope you know how much you all mean to me.  Especially that night when Jesuina and Anna wiped my tears after a bad experience with the dance team, I will never forget that kindness, as well as the lessons you ladies taught me.
      Although there were more negative experiences here than positive, I am taking away all of the positive memories and experiences home with me.  In a way, a lot of the negative experiences have taught me so many lessons, so they could be deemed as quite positive!  I would also like to make one last thing clear.  Westminster College is a fine institution.  This college is the perfect place for some people and they really belong here.  For me, I belong at USU.  For what I want to do, it is the better option.  USU just has better undergraduate training, more research opportunities, better school spirit and sports, better study abroad programs, the chance for me to double major, and more opportunities with regards to getting involved in the community, campus, and jobs all for 20,000 less a year.  But like I said, for some people Westminster is the perfect school, just not for me.  Although my path may be completely different than yours, I am in no rush to finish my degree as fast as possible.  I will end up where I want to be, even if I take a longer path to get there. Good luck to everyone, and I am so excited to see where everyone ends up as well as what things you all will achieve!

       xoxo, Cate

My Golden Birthday Story.(:

      This year was indeed, my "Golden Birthday."  I was quite sad to be away from my family for my birthday, but it turned out to be one of the most memorable birthday's ever!  My roommate and friends all led me to believe we were going to The Cheescake Factory for dinner and dessert, after my evening class was dismissed.  We took two cars, the first making sure we made our "reservation."  After class, my roommate and I went to the U to pick up Satin.  We received a call from Abby, telling us she forgot her wallet at home, and asked if we could please retrieve it.  So we drove over to her home, and as we got inside and gave her mom big hugs,  the other girls in our group jumped out from behind the wall and yelled "surprise!!!" I was completely shocked, and was not expecting that at all!

     They had a beautiful table set, and really cute decorations! They even got me a crown to wear. :P  They made my favorite home cooked meal, spaghetti and meatballs, and a beautiful salad.(:  Not to mention the beautiful Pink cake that took them 6 hours to make!!! I was so flattered, and felt so unbelievably special.  We took so many pictures, that I will cherish forever!

                  My cake was a pink bunny butt. ;P So cute!

   I have never had a group of that many girls get along with everyone else in the group so well.  It really amazes me, and I real feel special that I have made such amazing friends here.  We seriously are the greatest group!  I will miss you girls so dearly, and secretly hope all of you transfer with me so I don't have to miss you so much!(; Thankfully we will only be an hour and a half away from each other though! <3 

              xoxo, Cate                                                                         

Sports and Me

Something I've noticed throughout my life is that females either get really into sports, or have no idea what is going on.  Of course there's the happy medium, where one can enjoy a sports game, for the pleasure of watching it with family and/or friends.  For example my lovely mother.  She really doesn't understand the rules in any sports, but on Sundays when the T.V. is promptly set for football all day, my mom enjoys watching parts of the game with the family.  And when she comes to Westminster's basketball games to see me dance, she actually cheers louder than the majority of students. :P I guess thats where I get it from!  But being away from home, and not being able to watch football with my family I've begun to notice the different levels of sports enthusiasts even more.  Especially since Westminster is not a sports school, it's been very odd to me that people don't make a lot of noise at the games.  Yes I was the only one yelling during a few free throws during the men's game, but I just feel like the best sports enthusiast in the school!

I always get the questions of, "How do you know so much about sports, Caitlin?" or, "Why do you get so into sports? What's the point?"

Here is my answer.  Since I was born I have been into sports.  I guess you could say I was born into a family that appreciates sports, and gets very into it.  I've learned the different rules of different sports simply by watching a lot of games both live and on T.V., asking a lot of questions, and now I'm very knowledgable when it comes to sports.(:  It's a family bonding experience, and it's really fun to route together as a family.  My brother and I always chest bump when the Green Bay Packers score a touch down, and then proceed to chest bumping our fat head of Aaron Rodgers. (:  Its just very normal for me to yell, chant, and scream both at lives games, and at home watching on the T.V.  I don't really see the point in attending a sports game if you're not going to yell, and get into the game.  In fact it really helps the athletes to hear the noise and support.  I love all sports, but particularly LOVE football, and basketball.  Baseball is great too, but I prefer to watch that live.

Even my kitties watch sports with us.(:

I'm definitely not your average girl.  I tend to be more into sports than a lot of guys that I know.  Sometimes I wonder if some girls think it makes a girl look masculine, or not as feminine to get really pumped up about sports.  Although I can be girly at time, when it comes down to sports, I'm right there with all of the guys, cheering just as loud as they are, and fully understanding what's going on.  Of course I understand that sports just simply don't interest some people.  And this blog post totally isn't about trying to  convince others to get more into sports.  To each their own.(:

A lot of people see sports as a waste of time and energy.  I see it as a fun opportunity to bring people together, to be over enthusiastic, and to have a wonderful time watching, or participating in a sports event.  I love getting into a game, because it makes it so much more fun to watch.  I can't imagine  watching a sports game without being loud, verbal, and getting super pumped up!  Yes I am very dramatic when it comes to my teams, and I get very invested, and so into the game I start getting anxiety and sweating when I think my teams in trouble.  But I find so much joy in sports, and watching it with friends and family that I don't mind if others could care less about sports. (:

And the world knows I have the biggest crush on Aaron Rodgers. Mhmmm! (;  

I think it's safe to say my future husband sure better be into sports. . I can't truly express my love for sports through words, but a lot of my friends that have watched Packers games with me, or seen me at live sports games, I'm yelling at the top of my lungs!! 

I'm going to do a segment next on my college bowl game trips, as well as my experiences at Wrigley Field watching the Cubs!

xoxo, Cate

Things I Won't Miss About These Icky Dorms.

Don't get me wrong, living in the freshman dorms has been a good experience, and I'm glad I chose this over the apartment style.  Because I think it's important to  experience how to live like this and it has made me appreciate what I have at home even more!  However, my brother has some of the nicest college dorms I have ever seen, and they are cheaper than these!! That doesn't seem fair. . . Although this dorm set up is not ideal, I have been lucky enough to get an awesome roommate, and all of the girls on the floor are wonderful!  But here are some things about these dorms that I will not miss. . . 

 1.) Such small closets. . . Sometimes my doors won't close because my clothes are protruding from the closet. . . 

2.) Gross public bathroom style: Yes, we do share the bathroom with all of the girls on the floor, and it can be really gross at times. . 

3.) The sinks in the bathroom. . They are always wet, and the tile just is gross and cold, and not homely.

4.) These gross showers, that are always infested with other girls hairs both on the walls, and the floor of the shower.  Also sometimes the ceiling drips on you, and it totally ruins your whole shower. . .

5.) Our third floor kitchen. . . Everything in there is dirty, and a lot of people leave their dishes in there for prolonged periods of time without washing them. . It got so bad once that we were threatened to get our kitchen taken away from us.  Also, the microwave is absolutely disgusting, and the stove is quite dirty.  Let's just say I really don't use the kitchen a lot, and when I do I try to make it very short.

6.) These laundry machines. . . I don't know what it is about these laundry machines but they definitely don't work well.  Home done laundry smells so much better. (: And also the dryer is ruining my socks! They come out and they have lint all over them! It's very frustrating.  

7.) Last but not least, these gross stairs. A few times this year irresponsible drunk kids have thrown up on them, and left it there for someone else to clean up.  It's really wonderful having to walk up three flights of stairs holding your breath. . . NOT.  Also we track a lot of dirt and snow in, so these stairs are very dirty!  Oh college kids. . .

Despite these gross things, living in these dorms has indeed been a good experience.  I do have some scary experiences, but they do make great stories!! 

xoxo, Cate

Time management- Mastering It Can Be Harder Than You'd Think

In high school, it was in a sense easier to manage my time.  Because the high school class schedules are so set in stone, I basically spent my whole day in one place (with the exception of Senior year, and part of Junior year).  I was always either taking classes at USU, or InTech.  As for extra curricular activities, that was a whole different story.  After school was either spent tutoring students as part of NHS (National Honor Society), and sometimes rehearsing with the band I formed my Junior year.  Not to mention Mondays and Wednesdays I had dance class, followed by hours of homework every night.  I also got a math tutor, and went to every SI session for my USU classes Senior year.  There definitely was a lot of driving back and forth, but luckily my home is only five minutes from the USU campus, and InTech!(:  And to top it off I also was patrol assistant for the Girl Scout troop I had been in for 10 years.  I definitely mastered the time balancing schedule in high school pretty well.

In fact. . Dance and my band really helped break apart my studies from the day, and helped keep me sane.  I sure do miss my old dance team, as well as playing music in a band. Yes, I was drummer, and loved it! :D

College is a different story. . . I have much more free time, yet not enough hours in the day to get everything done! How can this be? Getting used to classes spread out during the day has been a big change, but I quite like it. It gives me more time to prepare for each class beforehand, and I like this layout so much better than high school! However, having a spread out schedule at first was a little difficult.  I found myself with too much time on my hands, and often would turn to Netflix as a source of making time go by faster.  Now I barely have time to watch an episode a week! I've learned to use the extra hours in my day carefully to study, and to go into work for a few hours.  That way I am productive, and not wasting any minute of the day! Even though I only have ten minutes in between a class and dance practice, it is good to be kept busy.  That is the essential key to college- time management.  Without this skill it can be very difficult to focus and to get studying and homework done! For me it actually has helped writing out on paper my weekly schedule.  Blocking out times for classes, studying, dance, and work.  It may sound silly, but having a schedule to look at in front of me really does help my day go much smoother.  Especially being a pre-nursing major, we really have a tough course load!! Right now I am taking Psychology, Sociology, Stats, Organic Chemistry, and a CPR class.  I actually really am enjoying all of my classes! Well. . my stats teacher could pick up the pace more, but thats okay! And although I thought I would be afraid of Chemistry, I actually really have been enjoying it! Last semester the labs were a little tedious because I completed all of those experiments in high school, and after working on my own in a research lab, doing experiments like that don't really interest me as much anymore!

Well, despite us college kids having crazy schedules, and almost no time for ourselves, it is important to find some time out of your week to get out of the dorms, take a break from studying, and to do something enjoyable!  If I had the option my getting away time would be spent with my kitties! hehe!(:

xoxo, Cate

To Blog, or Not to Blog- That is no Longer the Question

So recently I have decided to start a blog.  I guess I just have a lot to say, and a lot is always on my mind.  I love reading my friends blogs, and thought it was a pretty creative way of sharing my thoughts, and day-to-day adventures.(: I am excited to share more of my stories, and to start my daily doses of blogging! (:

 It's been frigidly cold here, but I feel like I shouldn't be complaining.  I am very blessed to have a warm room to return to every night, with a heater and blankets.  I feel kind of spoiled when I complain about the cold really, because I think about those who don't have homes, or anywhere warm to be.  So although we are all freezing walking to class everyday, at least we return to a warm place.

Just three weeks ago I was in Sunny Jacksonville Florida, for my fifth annual Northwestern bowl game!  It was great getting to see the whole bowl gang again, and I can't help but think about what it'll be like when I reunite with my old college alumni friends.  They are a very inspirational group of people, and it's so fun to go to bowl games with them!  I've been looking at this picture I took in JAX a lot lately, just thinking about how spring will be here before we know it.  Time really does fly!  And I sure am ready for the warm beautiful weather, and the pretty flowers!!(:

xoxo, Cate