We have had a super warm winter so far! When I came back to Illinois from school I was expecting it to be freezing because Illinois is usually super cold at this time of year but it has been in the 50s and even the 60s a lot this week! So when my mom and I took our annual Christmas trip to Chicago, the weather wasn't bad at all! We always go up to Chicago and go shopping, look at the Christmas lights and then eat dinner at the Walnut Room! The Walnut Room is a restaurant at the top of the Macy's in downtown Chicago and it is the most festive place to eat because they always decorate really well! If you want to eat there you have to go put your name in early in the day on a list for a table and they will give you a pager and tell you what time to come back to eat! Another fun thing to do in Chicago at Christmas time is go to the Christkindlmarket where they have tons of artisans from different countries! I had crepes and some of the best apple cider I've ever had!

Writing a letter to Santa!

This semester has been so incredibly busy for me so obviously I haven't kept up with my blog as much as I would have liked to but I'm hoping to really get back on track in the next few weeks and continue next semester! I had a really crazy class schedule this semester but I survived and I managed to have a social life too! Here is a little recap of the second half of my semester, which was the busiest I've been but also the most fun I've had since I've been at college! 

My parents came to visit a few times because they had Ole Miss season tickets!

I finally became a Big (with the best two littles!!)

We celebrated Halloween with good friends!

Faith is always the Serena to my Blair.

Anchor Ball, DG's once every four year major formal.

Chi Psi Tacky Holiday Date Party!

I got to help with the initiation of my littles!

I tried waffle house for the first time! So good!!!!!

Chi Psi Semi-Formal

Grovin' with my girls!

I got to lead some of my DG sisters in singing Christmas Carols at a nursing home!

Had a fabulous roomie Christmas!

Hey y'all! I have been so busy these last few weeks first with RUSH then catching up on school work, going home for a visit, and coming back here to catch up on more school work! I've had a lot going on with school and DG but I'm going to try to make blogging more of a priority in the next few weeks.

This past week was super fun because I got to go to a concert and see a musical! I had a ton of school work this week but for once I made making memories (by going to the concert/musical) a priority over my schoolwork. I'm definitely one of those people who tends to put school above everything else  but I firmly believe that sometimes we just need to do what we want. I'm not saying to go out every night and never do your homework, but once in a while its okay, good even, to prioritize something else instead.

On Tuesday night I went to the Orpheum in Memphis to see Cinderella (the musical). It was phenomenal!! If you've been reading my blog for a while, you know I love theatre, and this was an incredible show. The music was great but what really stuck out to me was the dancing and the costumes. The costumes were brilliant and the onstage costume changes were magical (seriously I still don't know how they pulled them off). The costumes enhanced the already amazing dancing and I left the show in awe.

Skit Round! The most fun round for us, and the one with some of the best conversations!

Hey y'all! Sorority Recruitment at Ole Miss starts this Sunday and I am so excited! For everyone who is about to begin the formal recruitment process, I was in your shoes just one year ago! I just wanted to share some of the things that helped me get through the week!

Going into RUSH week last year, I was a nervous wreck. The recruitment process where I grew up, is not super intense, and everyone told me how crazy RUSH is at a big southern school like Ole Miss. I had also heard a lot of crazy rumors including that being from the North, I would be cut from a bunch of houses right at the beginning. First of all, being cut just because you are not from the south is not a thing! I had an excellent RUSH week, and I was only dropped by like 2 houses throughout the course of the entire week. While it helps to know people who are already in sororities when you go through RUSH, I only knew two girls in sororities here at Ole Miss, and I can attest to the fact that knowing people isn't everything! So no matter, who you are, where you came from, or who you know, don't stress over it!

I can be shy sometimes, so I was worried as I walked into my first house, the very first day of RUSH. The thing that completely calmed my fears and made a huge difference for me was when the first girl I talked to said that she was just as nervous as I was! I hadn't thought about the fact that the people on the other side of the RUSH process were probably experiencing it for the first time from that side! After that I wasn't nervous and I just focused on having conversations with the girls and being myself! I ended up really enjoying RUSH because I love to talk and meet new people and thats literally what you do for a week straight!

Tips for Surviving the Week:

• If you have recruitment during the actual school year, get as much of your homework done ahead of time as you can. Rush is exhausting and it takes up a ton of time and I promise you, homework is the last thing you will want to do once you're done. You will probably want to head back to your dorm and sleep after each round. 
• Take care of yourself. There will be a lot of girls and everyone is in really close contact, it is so easy to get sick especially if you haven't been getting a lot of sleep. 
• You will be talking a lot. Like, A LOT, a lot. Drink lots of water and be prepared to lose your voice. I always drank warm water with honey and lemon last year which is great for your throat. 
• Be yourself. Don't say things you think a particular sorority would want to hear. People can tell if you're being fake and honestly its better to stand out. 
• Have an open mind. You never know what sorority you will end up loving. Just because you're a legacy or because all your friends are going a certain sorority, does not mean you have to! Trust me when I say you will know where you belong, and you will end up at the right house for you, it all has a way of working out in the end. 
• Have fun! It really is a lot of fun just remember to enjoy it! Its not worth stressing over! 

On Tuesday, we had our first Delta Gamma date party of the year! Technically for the sophomores it was our first DG date party ever because our winter one got snowed out twice last year! It was so much fun and I wanted to share what I wore, especially for newbies who are curious about what to wear to a date function! If you really don't know anything about Greek life, usually a sorority or a fraternity will rent out a bar and hire a band or DJ, a few times a year, and the members can come and bring dates! Sometimes they have fun dress up themes and sometimes you just dress nice (not as nice as a formal/semi-formal, but a cute dress or romper and wedges!)

Our dates all throwing the Deeg!

My date and I!

Hey y'all! I've been super busy with school work lately so I haven't been posting as regularly as I would like but I wanted to share some pictures from Saturday's Ole Miss football game! We played UT Martin and won 76-3, so it was not a super interesting game. We ended up leaving just before half time because it was really hot and we were already winning by a lot. When I say it was hot, I mean it was HOT. I can't remember the last time I sweated so much! It was a really cool game though because it was before labor day, so everyone wore white!