So long 2010, hello 2011!

Wow. It's 2011.

Woke up and saw this everyday for a week and a half

It is day two and overall I feel like this year will be great. My family and I (as well as my good friend Katy) just got back, from a Florida vacation, on New Years Eve. It was a really great time and just what all of us needed to end 2010. When we got back we dropped all of our luggage off at the house and then proceeded to drop Katy off at her house. You see, she had been planning on surprising her family because we weren't supposed to be getting back until the 3rd, but due to weather conditions we thought it best to leave a little early in order to miss the nasty weather no one wants to drive through. We pulled into the Bodine's driveway and Katy rushed out of the car to knock on the door. All of a sudden I see her mom push up the blind to see who was in the driveway, and there I was standing right in front of her, waving pathetically because at that moment I knew I had just given away the surprise. As soon as she saw me I could tell she started screaming because she knew that if I was there then that meant her daughter had to have been home, as well. It was really nice getting to see them hug. I knew how much Katy's parents missed her and it was great getting to see the expressions on their faces when they saw that their daughter had finally (after what seemed like months to them, I'm sure) come home. For them it was a wonderful way to bring in the New Year.

Once my parents and I got home, we did some laundry and unpacked and then once all of that was done we were finally able to relax and realize that we were just hours away from celebrating yet another new year. My dad and I decided to bring in the new year by watching Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. It was a very wise decision on our part, even though the book is MUCH better than the movie....and I will just leave it at that. I spent day 1 just relaxing; knitting and watching Gilmore Girls. It was pretty great. And today, the 2nd day of 2011, I got to see a lot of my friends who I haven't seen in awhile and that was just wonderful, to say the least. That's one of the things I look back on and think to myself, if I didn't have the friends that I have been blessed with then I don't know how I could have gotten through this past year. And if that still doesn't get my point across then here: God has blessed me with the best friends a girl could ask for.

All in all, I have high hopes for this new year and with the friends and family God has given me, I believe that God will make 2011 a wonderful year.

Here are some of the highlights of my 2010:

Celebrating my 21st birthday!

Ashley and Andrew's wedding!

Drinking butterbeer in HP World!

My first Hanson concert with these lovely ladies!

Spending time with this girl! She makes my heart smile.

Spending time with these fools :)

Grant and Cami's wedding!

Kevin and Sara's wedding!

Jaron and Erin's wedding!

Highlights of Jumpstart 2010

Oh, Rochester College

I just spent the past 5 days at Rochester College. I miss being there so much. I miss all the things every student complains about on a regular basis. The fletch, the lack of air conditioning, and the freezing cold showers you have to take when there's no hot water. But what I miss most of all is the people, the community that surrounds you. Nothing compares to the love you feel when you step on that campus. I always feel at home there, even now when I go to visit.

This fall will be the start of my second year at Baker. It's a good school, it really is, but I don't like it. Of course I only have myself to blame for the reason I had to transfer, but it's just not a community I can get involved in. People ask me if I've made friends there, which I have, but it just doesn't compare to the kinds of friends I've made at RC. I never even thought about how hard it would be to go from a community like Rochester's to a community like Baker's. For me, they're total opposites.

I don't think people understand where I'm coming from when they hear me talk about how much I don't like being at Baker because I would much rather be at Rochester. They ask me if I like it there and I say no. You don't know how much you can miss a school until you aren't going there anymore. Don't get me wrong, there are classes that I've loved at Baker, teachers that have taught me well and friends that I have made, but I miss feeling like I'm at home without actually being home.

The main reason I went down to visit was because I was asked to take pictures for Jumpstart 2010. The freshman class this year is awesome and I'm so glad I was able to be apart of it. But the whole weekend I kept having flashbacks of my freshman Jumpstart, which was 3 years ago. Holy cow. My Jumpstart was incredible. I made the most amazing group of friends. We had such a blast together! I will never forgot those great times.

With all that said, I miss being at Rochester, but I can't wait for the next time I'll be able to visit. I never get tired of hearing people yelling "you don't even go here!". I'm just so happy for what the college is doing for all their students. There are so many of them this year and I know that it's going to be a wonderful year for each of them.

Weddings galore!

Well ladies and gents, summer is coming to an end. Sad, but true. Although I still have at least a month and a half left to go before school starts back up for me, it still feels like summer is long gone because all of my friends have left me. It's sad, but I just have to keep telling myself not to dwell on the fact that they're gone and that I will soon be starting school again, but instead to think of all the wonderful things that took place this summer. And of course my mind immediately jumps to the four weddings I went to. Not only did I get to attend these weddings and watch the two become one, but I had a very close connection with each of them! How awesome is that? I love weddings so very much, but watching your close friends getting married just makes the whole thing so much better. Each wedding was perfect and complimented the bride and groom very well. I am so happy for each couple and wish them a life of happiness together.

Here's a picture of each of the happy couples on their wedding day. I took each picture except for Grant and Cami's.

Kevin and Sara Stewart ~ May 15, 2010

Andrew and Ashley Tenneriello ~ June 11, 2010

Grant and Cami McClure ~ July 23, 2010

Jaron and Erin Bentley ~ August 6, 2010

This is what I love.