As school begins

Last week I finally and officially completed my Masters of Science in Education in Business Technology!  Who would have thought that I finally made it?  I called Kellie (who use to have a baby in her belly) on my way home from work the day I was supposed to graduate.  She tells me "Congrats" and how happy she is for me... then says, "If you would have told me after our first semester of college that you were going to get your masters, I wouldn't have believe it."  We both laughed because we know it's true.  Boy do we have some stories from our college experience.

My first semester of my freshman year of college was pretty awful.  I moved away from everything that I ever knew.  I was an hour from Cory and living with someone that I had just met.  I slept a lot, ate even more, and rarely attended class.  By the second semester I was feeling at home in Conway.  I lived with fantastic girls in my dorm from all different backgrounds and different walks of life but somehow we always came together over some Mountain Dew and Taco Bell!  I shared 3 showers with over 20 girls, I carried everything I had in a plastic carrier, and you never saw me without flipflops on!  We would sneak Boone's Farm into the dorm and hide it behind sodas in our refrigerator.  [Such rebels]  I have no idea how I ever made it through that year without failing classes. 

Sophomore year Kellie and I lived in apartments on campus, with a chick we had never met.  Interesting to say the least.  We got a fish that year, nearly killed it but somehow Mr. Fishy survived.  Sophomore year seemed to fly by.  Kellie and I weren't in Conway most weekends... so we were only together throughout the week.  We worked out and tried to learn how to cook....Which means, we ate a lot of toast with jelly and noodles with butter and salt.  [If Kellie had a bad day right now and I made her either two of those items she would be ecstatic!]  Our roommate was rarely home, she never cleaned and never bought toiletpaper.  That's all I remember about her.

Junior and Senior year - we moved out of on campus housing.  We were 'grownups' so we thought!  I got Hank the summer before we moved into The Ridge.  We lived in a gated community -- do you know what that was like for two girls who had never even had a garage or a garage opener to have a gate opener?!!  We were in heaven!!  Kellie got Cricket before our senior year and life got loud.  Two dogs (who enjoyed barking), one small apartment -- there were plenty of messes, even more cleaning up, but we sure had a lot of fun!!!

Boy do I miss those days - Kellie and I running around on Saturday's shopping.  Eating McAlisters as often as we could afford.  Watching Greys Anatomy on Thursday nights and drinking wine from a box!  Take it all in KIDS!  College was an amazing experience and I'm so thankful that I have those four years of memories to always cherish.

Do it like a Big Bear?  I mean, Howl Yes!

Hank and Baby Cricket, he wasn't a fan of her at first!

My bestest friend (before she had a baby in her belly)