This past Friday through Sunday was Siblings Weekend here at Fontbonne. It was an opportunity for my little sister, Kaitlyn, to visit me on campus for the first time since last year. A lot has changed since last year for both of us. She got older and more mature, and our attitude towards each other has turned into a more positive one because she is older and we can talk about real life things.
The weekend started out great with pizza and bingo in the DSAC. Last year at Sibs Weekend we didn’t win at Bingo, so we were determined to win this year. We each had two boards and unfortunately they were not the “hot” boards for the night. We lost but had fun because we were in each other’s company. My friend, Danny, actually won and let Kaitlyn get a prize. We both received kites to fly when we would be together again. It was really nice of Danny to let us have his prizes. Then after Bingo, the Lego movie started, and it was hilarious. Because I was so tired, I fell asleep towards the end. Kaitlyn really enjoyed it too, and actually finished it all. Then later that night there was a build-your-own ice cream bar. We enjoyed the company of my other friends, and then went up to the Griffin’s Nest. We did what we call “Family Game Night,” which is playing cards for hours on end. We played until 2:30 AM, and then finally called it quits.
Unfortunately, Sunday came along. We had a quick breakfast, and she took off for home. It was sad to see her leave after we just had a great weekend together, but we both had to get back to reality — school. On the plus side though, today is Kaitlyn’s birthday, the 23rd of October. As a surprise, I am going home this weekend. It will be the first time I will have gone home since moving in August 9th. I can’t wait to have another fun weekend with my family!
Tagged as:
FAB,
family,
Sibz Weekend
Freshman year is like a blank sheet of paper, you wield a pen waiting to make your mark on it. The question that burns into you is, “Who do I want to be?” That’s just the issue, you never know. You don’t know who you are, until you finally meet others. Until you finally surround yourself with people that you believe to be awesome.
I walked onto campus a little earlier than most freshman, being that I’m an athlete. The people I met on campus first were my team and that was an experience. In any sport, you start off picturing the whole season, what it will be like. The first day I met my team, we had a “heated discussion” over the pronunciation of Reese’s. Right off the bat, I knew these people were fun. I knew that I didn’t have to worry about being an odd individual because, sorry guys, everybody on my team has one thing that makes them “weird” and I think that’s the beautiful thing about people. I’ve heard that the people at Fontbonne were welcoming, but I didn’t, nor could I ever, imagine I would hit it off with people so quickly. I walked out of practice that day feeling a little less anxious, I knew I had a guaranteed support system. Athletics are funny like that, they turn out to be your family away from home.
My first impressions of Fontbonne University weren’t the buildings, they were the people. The people here are so welcoming and accepting towards what makes you, you. They don’t try to fix you, they enhance you. They make you into the person you were meant to be, not who they want you to be. The freedom to be yourself can really do wonders for someone and the first people you meet can make you feel like you chose the right place.
Tagged as:
Athletics,
family,
first impressions,
first year,
Freshman
Each week during the summer, half of my days are spent babysitting. I guess I shouldn’t really say babysitting anymore since the girls aren’t babies. We can just call me a nanny. That sounds more sophisticated anyway. Emma is 13 and Kara is 10. I have been with them the past few summers, and knew the family well before I started watching them. The girls go to school and play softball with my cousins, so I met them through that.
Although Emma and Kara fight a lot like typical sisters, the three of us have fun together no matter the adventure. Some of the things we do are trips to the zoo, Six Flags (we have season tickets), the pool, and parks with playgrounds. If we just want to get out of the house for a little bit, we’ll grab lunch out or walk up the street to the snow cone stand. Another routine is going to the movies. Wehrenberg theatres have a good summer special. Every Wednesday and Thursday they play a movie for just $1. The movies are typically only about a year old, so they are fairly recent. I enjoy kid movies just as much as they do, so this works out well. Some days are more relaxed and we just chill around the house. But even that is fun, considering we jam to all the One Direction albums while we make One Direction collages. Or we play board games, which is most often the One Direction board game that we made out of an old Candy Land. Do you sense a theme here?
Being with the girls definitely adds a level of excitement to my summers. There is never a dull (or quiet) moment with them. I can’t completely blame it on them though. I get pretty loud myself when we are having too much fun together. We are so close that I practically consider them the little sisters I never had. It’s nice to get paid for something that I hardly consider work.
Tagged as:
family,
nanny,
sisters,
Summer,
summer job
If you are into music and pop culture, you probably think of Justin Timberlake when you hear the initials J.T. However, before the modern J.T. was James Taylor. He was the original, considering he first rose to fame in the 1970s. He continues to be an outstanding singer, songwriter, and guitarist, and I feel lucky to have the opportunity to see him perform live.
The people that I went to the concert with were my mom, her best friend, and her husband. This is the same group that I went to the Paul McCartney concert with a couple years ago. They tend to be my buddies for the oldies concerts. I like a wide variety of modern music, but part of me has an old soul when it comes to my music taste. James Taylor has a very classic and soothing sound. It made for such a pleasant night. Also, it was actually nice weather, despite the fact that it was in the middle of summer in St. Louis. The show was at Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, which is an outdoor theatre. We had lawn seats, which is something I had never experienced before. I just love seeing live shows, and this was another one I had looked forward to for a long time. And there are more coming up soon! Next are Miley Cyrus (which was postponed from April) and then One Direction (for the second time!). Like I said before, I listen to a variety of music styles, obviously. Bring on the summer shows!
Tagged as:
Concerts,
family,
fun,
music,
Summer
