Day Fifty-two

One. More. Day.

Everything I own is packed up and ready to be moved home when Mom and Dad get here tomorrow. I have a crazy day tomorrow, but it all ends with hopefully Chinese Takeout with my family. I have so missed those casual nights with my family this summer and I am not wasting anytime in making them up. Also, of all the good food in Iowa City, I have yet to find a truly delicious Chinese restaurant. Even for delivery and takeout I think that it's something Iowa City is lacking. I am looking forward to sleeping easier this weekend knowing that I don't have classes the following day. No more 8 am classes. Well.. until next semester of course (which is in 3 weeks..)

I did it ladies and gentlemen. If there was any doubt that this summer would come crashing down on top of me, it was in my mind. Being completely honest, I didn't think I would enjoy this summer at all. We rode the roller coaster together and there were definitely plenty of dropped stomachs and screaming for mercy, but all in all, it was okay. It was never so bad that I climbed on a Megabus to go home (although I thought about it.) Living alone is weird and I hope that I don't have to do it again for a very long time, but it was a good.

Home is going to feel so good tomorrow!

Day Fifty-one

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am going to miss this place. I've lived here long enough to know where the floor creeks are and what the strange noises outside are and it will be weird not living here anymore. Yesterday afternoon, I spent a lot of time packing up my stuff and I always get nostalgic when I do that. Most of my belongings are sitting in a giant pile in the main room and I am so excited for the next two weeks at home and the next year at my sorority house with my roommate, Rachel, but this place served me well. I will miss it.

Yesterday was spent, aside from the packing, going to class and studying. Sounds downright amazing right? I thought so. I have in front of me my last 12-hour day for the summer. Up at seven and my last scheduled event is done at seven. I'm already tired! Hopefully I'll be awake to blog about today!

Day Fifty

I am going to keep this short. Summer colds=no fun. Summer school=no fun.

My summer cold is winning. I'm trying very hard to just barrel through the congestion and just move on with my day, but the cold is slowly taking over. The human body is truly amazing and I am entirely thankful for that. However, why does it pick the most inopportune times to come down with a cold?

Summer school. It is branded into children's heads at a very early age that summer is meant for relaxing. Well, summer school is not relaxing. I am so glad I made the decisions I did in regards to this summer, but wow, I'm so burnt out. The next two weeks at home are going to be spent on the couch watching the Olympics. I can predict my mom telling me to get of my butt and go do something productive, but I have a lot of couch time to catch up on. I need to fill my quota for TV time for the whole summer in only two weeks, so here it goes.

I also made another observation about children. All throughout elementary school and middle school, the last week of school is a blast. It usually consists of picnic day, yearbook day, field day, clean the classroom day, and my personal favorite, movie day. Somewhat in high school, but mostly in college, the last week of school is hell. As children, we are programmed to relax when the semester winds down, but that is the exact opposite of what we should be doing! Finals and exams and packing and tying up other loose ends cannot be done efficiently when it is stamped in our head that field day is tomorrow and no homework will be assigned for the last two weeks. Come on elementary teachers! Help a sister out!

Day Forty-nine

Summer colds should be illegal or impossible or fixable. My sinuses are stuffed, my ears or clogged, and my throat hurts. Yes, it is more likely to get sick when stressed or run-down, which I am, but I feel like my body always opts for the worst time to get sick. Couldn't this have waited until next week? Anyways, my day today has consisted of class, Kleenex, and cough drops. I did, however, discover a delicious drink at Teaspoons today! It's called a steamer and it is basically steamed milk with flavoring in it. I chose the mint flavoring and although it was 90 degrees outside while I was drinking, it was so delicious and it felt so soothing on my throat!

The packing has begun and as I always do, I'm getting a little bit nostalgic. I am at the time in my life where permanent residence is slim to none. I have been and will continue to move a lot in the next decade or so and it's a new feeling. I am very used to living in the same bedroom for almost 20 years or my life and it's different now. I will never see this apartment again after this week and it just feels so strange because it was home for two whole months.

My type A personality supports the fact that I actually really enjoy packing. I think I'm the only person in the world that likes packing, but it's a bit soothing to me. Usually, I'm packing for something exciting or a break or vacation, so packing just increases the excitement. Unpacking, however, is dreadful. I hate it. Because I'm moving around so often, I don't stay anywhere long and settling in doesn't really exist. I haven't decided how much I'm going to unpack when I get home this weekend because I'm turning right back around in two weeks for fall semester! :)

Day Forty-seven and Forty-eight

Alright ladies and gentlemen, we have closed in on less than a week until I'm home and done with summer classes for good!! I go home on Friday and at this point, I wish it was today! I had an amazing weekend with amazing friends to close out the summer! My sorority sister, Haley, drove into Iowa City on Friday night and we hung out in my apartment with red velvet cupcakes and wine and a funny movie! It was the exact night that I was hoping for and it was so great to catch up with her! We were up early on Saturday and we treated ourselves to a delicious Hamburg Inn breakfast! We both headed back up to Cedar Rapids and my friend Sarah picked me up later on and we went to her house. Laying on the couch and watching stupid TV shows and funny movies completed the perfect afternoon. I have never loved cable television so much in my life.

Sarah's good friend from high school, Brea, came over and it was so nice to meet some of Sarah's friends from home. We enjoyed a late, but extremely delicious, dinner and a bonfire before we resided to the basement for a good ole late night sleepover. So fun! I, however, am coming down with a cold. Perfect timing, right? 3 exams and packing and of course my body choses the last week to get sick!

Sunday consisted of sleeping in and pancakes and homework and the Bachelorette, of course! I felt that I must watch the finale live and Sarah and I went to Emily and Haley's apartment for burgers and bachelorette! It was fun to watch with friends this time! And of course... Jef got the final rose! He was so adorable the entire show! I did feel a little bad for Arie, but I feel like he will survive. Jemily were so cute and at the After the Final Rose show, they couldn't keep their hands off of each other! So, so cute!

Day Forty-five and Forty-six

The past two days have been an absolute blur. My mom came Wednesday night and we ran some errands and enjoyed a lovely dinner at Monica's in Coralville. My nerves for the PCAT were growing once we got home, but we just hung out until it was time for bed. Speaking of the PCAT, it's a mind game. Candidates are not allowed anything on their bodies, they're required to wear sound-blocking headphones and they place you in a tiny little cubicle with video and audio recording. Not fun. I hope I never have to go to prison because this was a bit uncomfortable. I didn't do stellar on the exam, but there were a lot of factors playing into that score. I will be taking it again in exactly two months and I am determined to earn a better score.

Yesterday was quite an emotional day because.... I bought this moped.

Cute, right? I thought so. It was probably the largest purchase I've ever made myself and it really did feel like the right decision. I got an incredible deal and a free helmet! Moped U was so helpful and they gave me a little riding lesson to be sure that I don't look like a fool. No one wants that! And quite frankly, whoever said shopping therapy was a bust, had it all wrong! A few purchases will turn any down mood back around! I have proof! 

Day Forty-four

Mom comes today! :) Okay, Mom coming means that I have to take the PCAT tomorrow and that is scaring me. Every thought I'm thinking right now is whether I studied enough or how well will I do or what if I don't do well? I can't find the pause button. But! That's why Mom is coming, right? Moms are always good at calming their children down. We're going to go out for a nice dinner and relax and I'm going to have a panic attack and I'm going to study a little bit. Just a usual night in the world of Meagan!

I did watch the Bachelorette Men Tell All yesterday afternoon and I found myself clicking through so I didn't have to watch certain parts. There were some men on this season that made me incredibly uncomfortable and I simply didn't want to hear what they had to say. Kalon and Ryan were two people that didn't deserve to even come because they were so awful to Emily and I can only imagine how they are in their everyday lives. Rudeness is one thing, but saying things that are absolutely awful and thinking they're acceptable is another. And no, Ryan, you will not be the next Bachelor.

As for the final show, I hope it doesn't come crashing down in Emily's face. She should pick someone and move on. I feel like she does a lot of things because she doesn't want people in the public and in her private life to treat her differently or judge her, but she's ultimately hurting herself. We shall see on Sunday who she picks or rather, who she doesn't pick and according to Chris Harrison, "you don't want to miss the most dramatic live TV event of the summer!" da da daaaaaaaa.

Day Forty-three

Forty-three of anything is a lot. $43. 43 people. 43 pencils. 43 days is no exception. I have been on my own for 43 days and it seems strange to imagine living with so many people when I'm so used to being on my own. I honestly think my voice is loving living alone because so fewer words are said. I can go hours in silence and be completely fine. Yes, I do occasionally talk to myself or Skype, but in reality, I don't say a lot. When I move into my sorority house, it is going to be a big change because I am sure I will talk exponentially more. I am thoroughly a people person, so sometimes the silence bothers me, but  I've gotten used to it in these 43 days. I honestly cannot fathom the fact that this summer is quickly wrapping up. I had a conversation about moving out of my apartment today. What? No way. The cliche statements like, "you're stronger than you think you are," "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger," and "you can survive anything if you put your mind to it," have proven to be true in my case. I don't think I will be coming out of this summer with the most stellar grades, but I survived. I learned a lot about myself and the type of person that I am and hope to become in the future and I can only thank this experience. It was far from perfect, messy even, but it was an experience nonetheless.

I told some friends this weekend that I would recommend living alone at least once in a lifetime and they all stared at me like I was crazy. If I wasn't a huge fan, then why was I suggesting it to other people? Well, it may not be my thing, but it was totally worth the fight and the struggle. I feel so grateful to have been thrown into this situation because I truly understand myself so much better and feel that I am better prepared for what is ahead of me. Why wouldn't I recommend that to someone else?

Day Forty through Forty-two

Once again, an amazing weekend has come and gone. Abbie and Chelsie and Kristin arrived around 1 o'clock on Friday and we joined some friends at Olive Garden for lunch! I am fairly certain we were that annoyingly loud table in the corner, but you hate to be actually annoyed because they're having an amazing time. Lunch was full of laughs and stories and it felt so good to be back together with some amazing friends. The four of us came back to apartment and naturally painted nails and chatted the rest of the afternoon away. It was as if we hadn't spend several months apart, but rather a few hours. We decided to go downtown Friday night and in the world of Abbie and Chelsie, getting ready for that is an extensive process. Also, my apartment only has one very small mirror in the bathroom. This presented an issue when four girls needed to do hair and makeup, but somehow, we managed.

After a crazy night downtown, we came back and crashed. To be honest, it looked like a tornado hit my apartment when I woke up on Saturday. All of us were moving rather slow on Saturday, but we finally got out of bed for some cereal and toast. Chelsie wasn't feeling very good, so she stayed home, but Kristin, Abbie and I went out the mall for some much needed shopping. I would say that Good Deals was the theme of the day! Wedges for $40 and shorts for $11. I'm usually the person that completely misses the sales, but not this weekend! 

Saturday night was a quite night, but exactly what I was hoping for. I made dinner for the four of us and it felt great to eat some healthy food! My Big Fat Greek Wedding was put in the DVD player and ice cream was served. It felt like we were back in our dorm rooms on a Tuesday night just watching a movie like normal. It was perfect. 

Today is my day to play a little bit of catch up. Laundry and dishes and homework are all on the list and my motivation is no where to be found. It's gone. All I want to do is lay in bed and watch some crappy TV. Hopefully that will happen eventually!

Day Thirty-nine

That feeling you get when something you never expected to actually come, is already here, it's weird. I've been planning and planning for things all summer,  and I'm realizing that it's almost over. The PCAT, for example, over a year ago at my summer orientation, I knew that I was going to be taking the PCAT this summer. Yeah, it's next week. What? No way! I really do attempt to enjoy and take in all of the pleasures around me everyday, but I cannot believe that I only have 2 weeks left of my summer classes. 2 WEEKS! I remember saying goodbye to my mom and that aching stomach that accompanied and I serious cannot believe that it's almost over. Yes, I am entirely burnt out, as my last post suggested, and I'm not sure if I could survive more than 2 more weeks, but sometimes you can do things and survive events that you never thought possible. I am getting very inspirational today, but somedays should be inspirational.

My younger brother was cleared by his orthopedic surgeon yesterday to go back to gymnastics full time. It's been about 10 months of a battle between my brother and his shoulders. He had surgery on his left shoulder and then about 2 weeks after recovery was over, he did the same thing to the right shoulder. Some people would call this bad luck. No, it was exactly what my brother needed. He needed to feel the push. He needed to learn that some things are worth working for. Most people cannot say that they have been out of competitive gymnastics for almost a year and still have extensive plans to compete at the college level. He does. Yeah, my younger brother is going to be a college athlete. Who woulda thunk? Not me. His drive and motivation has been intensified since his injuries have set in. Now that he's back, I have no doubt that his work ethic will be that of Batman. He has no choice but to work hard, and I have faith in him. Love you, buddy.

Day Thirty-eight

Alrighty, I've decided that 8 exams, the PCAT, 2 lab reports, and 3 labs a week is a lot. Up until, I've pretended to be used to the hectic schedule, but c'mon. This is crazy. The feeling that will overcome me when the sun sets on July 27th will be complete and utter joy. Summer school is not normal. Studying and doing homework when the weather is gorgeous and most people aren't studying is a bit tortuous. I only have 4 more exams, including tonight's, 4 more labs, the PCAT and THEN I'M DONE. I'm burnt out. I am ready to enjoy the short summer that I have when I move back home and then join my friends back in Iowa City. I never knew how much I loved 18 week semesters until I was in an 8 week semester. Syllabus week, I love it. An exam a month instead of 2, love it. An entire week to complete a pre-lab activity, my favorite. Maybe that's what I was supposed to get out of this summer. I was supposed to learn to appreciate the regular academic semester by surviving an 8 week semester. If it wasn't what I was supposed to learn, I learned it anyway.

Abbie and Chelsie and Krisitn will be in Iowa City is just over 24 hours and I am so excited! I wish they could be standing outside MacBride Hall when my exam was over tonight, but tomorrow will definitely do!

Here are some pictures of Abbie and Chelsie and me again!

Day Thirty-Seven

Evenings are so much better when dinner is delicious! Tonight I put a chicken breast in a plastic bag with some garlic and teriyaki sauce and I microwaved some frozen corn. Absolutely delicious. I might have indulged in a glass of wine, so dinner was perfect. I wish I didn't have to go back to my homework and studying, but not everything is perfect right?

Today was a great day. I gave a tour this afternoon that was just normal. Now that I've been giving tours pretty regularly now, they are all starting to run together! Today's tour, was pretty run-of-the-mill though. As usual, I came home and unwound while watching the Bachelorette. Because I'm always 24 hours off, I always somehow find out who goes home. I'd rather watch is live, but oh well. To be completely honest, Sean wasn't right. I of all people should be rooting for him until the end, but I could tell that Emily just wasn't as attracted to him as she was to Arie and Jef. Speaking of Jef, I surely hope it's him in the end. I truly feel that Jef and Emily have what it takes to make it through the tough stuff, whereas, Arie and Emily need to be together to create memories. During the six months between the show and airing, Arie and Emily cannot always be together. Their best time together is when they're kissing, not talking and getting to know each other. Jef and Emily have the friendship that can last through those hard months when phone conversations are more common than face to face interactions. Next week is the Men Tell All Special and I very curious to see how Ryan, Sean, and Kalon are in front of Emily. Those three men have been the biggest throughout the season, so we shall see how they react to Emily and how Emily reacts to them.

I tried to keep my Bachelorette raving to a minimum (you're welcome Dad). Tomorrow is a long day of class and lab (that requires pants :() and most likely a long night of studying for my Chemisty Exam on Thursday. The fact that Abbie and Chelsie and Krisitn are coming on Friday is what is keeping me going!!

Day Thirty-six

After being home this weekend in a crazy, loud, active house, it felt great to have some quiet. I know, I've said that I am not a fan of living alone, but it's a nice balance to a house that had extra people and dogs inside this weekend. Some quiet was definitely nice this afternoon. I watched some old Grey's Anatomy re-runs to unwind from my day of classes. For dinner, I concocted a delicious quesadilla. I had some bell peppers in the fridge that I decided to chop up and throw in. It was absolutely delicious. I love making truly delicious meals with only a few ingredients and my quesadilla only took about 5 minutes on my George Foreman grill. Perfection.

A lot of grades came in this afternoon, and I'm doing just fine. I like to freak out and then calm down a lot when the grades are posted. My mental health would probably benefit from fewer panics and freak outs, but I can't help it. I have 3 weeks to raise my grades a smidgin and then I'll be happy with the turnout of this summer. 

Personal Hygiene is obviously a necessity, but I'm dreading taking a shower because the shower at home was so nice. My shower in Iowa City is laking some serious water pressure and I didn't realize it until I stood in the shower at home. I will overcome this dread, of course, but it's taking some extra effort this evening. Oh well. It is truly the little things in life that cause the most pleasure. 

Day Thirty-Two through Thirty-Five

This weekend has been a whirlwind! No time for blogging when you're having so much fun!

Thursday late morning began with my mom and brother, Connor coming to Iowa City. This was the first I had seen any family since I moved to Iowa City and I was so excited to finally get to see them! We started off the weekend right with pizza and nachos as Airliner. Connor came with my mom because he was visiting the school and meeting with the gymnastics coach. Oh yeah, and to see me! Connor and my mom went over to the Field House for the gymnastics practice while I gave a tour in the splintering heat. Connor has several friends on the gymnastics team at Iowa and he decided to spend the night with them catching up and hanging out. This gave my mom and I some quality time to hang out and chat, and of course, to have some well deserved gluten. We went into town for dinner and indulged in some delicious pasta. To overcome our food comas, showers, and My Fair Lady followed. We embarrassingly crashed around 10 o'clock. Oops.

The only downer to Friday was that I had class. Not the ideal way to start a Friday morning, but it was over soon enough. Connor had his scheduled visit with the University of Iowa on Friday morning. I ended up being his tour guide, which I have to admit was awkward for me in the beginning, but it was actually okay. They got to see my work and I, to their surprise, presented some information that they didn't know. Friday, unfortunately, was scorching hot. Giving tours in that heat isn't fun for anyone, including the bug that landed in my hair while I was standing in front of my tour group talking. We stopped for a quick lunch following the tour at Buffalo Wild Wings for some refreshment, air conditioning, water, and the infamous Pro/Con lists on Connor's part. College decisions can be so difficult, but I think everyone knows where I'm hoping he goes! ;)

Through my year at Iowa and Andrew going to Nebraska, my family has definitely become very familiar with I80. Friday afternoon was no exception. The drive home wasn't too bad, but I was just very excited for some Jimano's Pizza, friends and some quality shower pressure. My cousin Lindsay and her husband Brian came over Friday night to prepare for Saturday's Porkapolooza, so our house was full of friends and family, which is how it's supposed to be in my mind!

The third annual Porkapolooza began very early on Saturday morning when Brian set up the smoker and delicately placed 3 pork shoulders and baked beans inside to cook all day. After a very inappropriate trip to the grocery store, cooking and the occasional drink began around noon. My other cousin Jake and his wife Jen joined the fun shortly after when Mother Nature decided to give us the most perfect weather for our day in the backyard. After the heat of last week, low 80's felt like heaven. It was the perfect day! Family and food and fun. What else could I have asked for this weekend?

The only thing that made the day better was the pulled pork that came from the smoker. To. Die. For. Everyone soon entered a food coma and the gathering got much quieter. It's just so hard to stop eating when it's absolutely delicious! In addition to the perfect food, there were five dogs at my house. Yes, five. All of them were adorable and indulged in the sneak attack on the food here and there.

I am now back in Iowa City, thanks to my parents who are loving I80East this afternoon. I have a very busy three weeks ahead of me, but I think I'm ready. I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel of this summer and it saddens me and makes me so excited for what comes next. Right now, I would give anything to have a week off of tests and homework and lab reports, but it's all worth it. Completely worth it.

Day Thirty-one

Happy Fourth of July!!
Fourth of July is such a wonderful holiday! Corn on the cob and fireworks and BBQ's. Who wouldn't love a holiday like that? Haley and I head to Bettendorf yesterday afternoon to meet up with some friends for dinner and the fireworks. I was so glad to get out of Iowa City for a little while and so glad that I was able to see some amazing friends. My friend and future roommate, Rachel, had us over at her house where Haley and I met a few of her high school friends and went out to dinner. Fireworks were perfect and mosquito-free (the best part about the fireworks in my mind). I also feel that work and or summer school should not be allowed the day after the fourth. It felt like such a Saturday to me and getting up for class this morning was dreadful. Sleep was calling my name but I had to ignore it! Mom and Connor arrived today and it is so great seeing them!

Here are a few pictures from the 4th of July!!

Day Thirty

Thirty! Thirty days!! Wooooo!

Alright, here's the Bachelorette dish. I'm just going to jump right in it.

Jef... so sweet! Fell in love with him and Emily this episode. I can absolutely see Emily and Ricky slipping right into his life and their lifestyles completely meshing. I wish she could have met his parents but lots of siblings will have to do! I think Jef really showed Emily that there is much more to him than his skateboard and skinny jeans. His family has a ranch and he can shoot a gun. He really is just a great mix of city and country. The letter that he read her at the end of the date made me cry. It was so sweet and completely genuine. I hope Emily saw how amazing he was!

Sean's hometown date was interesting. I cannot seem to figure out why I didn't love him as much this episode. He was so sweet and his dogs were adorable!! Love them! His family was very welcoming and I enjoyed the small practical jokes that they played on Emily. Telling a women that you still live at home when you're 28 can be a giant red flag and I think Emily realized that. She was definitely playing the part in front of him and his family when he told her that he did. Unfortunately for Sean's family, they didn't really understand the concept of a punch line. Jokes are way funnier when the punchline is dramatic, not a casual slip that Sean doesn't live at home or that they aren't actually eating armadillo for dinner. Come on! Give the joke some justice! I'm interested to see how next week goes for Sean. I'm pulling for Sean because I really do like him! Go Sean!!

Arie. Wa waaaa. I was so disappointed with Arie. I don't know if it was because his parents were so rude to talk in Dutch in front Emily ABOUT Emily. Clearly she cannot understand them and I thought that was so incredibly disrespectful! Arie's family was otherwise very welcoming, but in my opinion not a huge fan of the Bachelor(ette) process. I think the other men have caught up to the relationship that Arie and Emily have so they don't sparkle so much anymore. We shall see!

I'm so excited for next weeks episode! These are my top three guys and I cannot wait for a show without immature emotions and men that shouldn't be on the show! Good luck Emily!

Day Twenty-nine

Whew. It was hot today! I was lucky enough to spend most of my day in air-conditioned buildings, but to anyone who wasn't given that opportunity, my heart aches. The University of Iowa is undergoing immense amounts of construction this summer and to those construction workers, the heat must be unbearable. There's such thing as an ice day or a snow day, what about a hot day? Come on, when it is over 95 degrees outside, everyone is miserable. The only person I know that "claims" to like these high temperatures is my brother, but he complains about it when he's in it, so I don't think anyone really enjoys this weather. I think a nice day inside air conditioning while the world pauses would be marvelous. A day to relax or catch up or read 3 books. Either way, it would be marvelous!

I am dying to watch the Bachelorette tomorrow!! I was so hoping that I was going to be able to watch it tonight at the rec maybe, but I was too swamped with homework. I will be the crazy girl tomorrow afternoon who is sprinting up the hill to my apartment and racing in for a popsicle, some nail polish and my computer! I promised myself that I would stay off twitter tonight because twitter is Bachelorette heaven. At least my feed is. My friend Amanda is a continuous episode tweeter and Ashely Hebert and her fiancé J.P. tweet back and forth about their opinions, so in order to keep my mind a blank slate, I try to stay away. Notice the try. It's nearly impossible and so so tempting. All is know is that someone lives at home with his parents and he's 28. eek! That's a bit of a turn off. Sorry Emily, we all have to go through more bad than good in order to discover the amazing! I'm sure I will rant or rave about the episode on tomorrow's blog!

Day Twenty-eight

Yesterday was about as lazy it could have been. Laundry, homework, dishes, Grey's Anatomy re-runs. I had a very relaxing day and I'm so glad! I had the opportunity to Skype with Abbie and Chelsie and it felt like we were back in their room gossiping about our day! I continue to realize how much I miss them in my everyday life! I cannot wait to be living in the same house as them in less than 40 days!!

This is a pretty relaxing and exciting week. I do not have Chemistry Case Study or Lab this week and my Chemistry professor emailed us saying that class was starting earlier than usual because there is no class Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday! Woot! Biology, however, is still kicking. I have class everyday, but the fourth, I have an exam tomorrow morning at 7:00 am and then a lab quiz and a lab all on Tuesday! Whew. The day off on Wednesday will be a nice break!

Day Twenty-seven

Here it is! The halfway mark! Four weeks done and four weeks to go! I still have 5 more exams, 1 more lab report, the PCAT, and lot of tours to give, but I'm glad I can say that I officially made it halfway! Halfway certainly does not mean done, but it feels better than the start!

Yesterday turned into quite an awesome day! I woke up (without a hangover from Friday I might add) and turned on the Pandora and started my day. I picked up my apartment, cleaned, did the dishes, worked on my homework and eventually went to the CRWC for a great workout. (My abs are sore today! Best feeling ever after a workout!) Upon returning from working out, I found someone to go to Jazz Fest with me. Iowa City partakes in the Summer of the Arts every year. The weekend I moved to Iowa City was the Iowa Arts Festival and this weekend was the Jazz Festival! It had basically taken over the Pentacrest and the surrounding blocks with several stages, food booths and wonderful music. I got a little dolled up and walked into town to meet my friend Emma! I am a little bit obsessed with kettle corn when it comes to outdoor fairs and festivals because it's just so darn good when it's freshly popped, so I made sure to get my serving of kettle corn before I headed home! I ended the night with some Grey's Anatomy and decided to refrain from setting an alarm this morning. I rolled over to look at the clock and it read 11:01 am. Apparently, I needed some extra hours of sleep so I wasn't even mad at myself. I have another full day of studying today, so I better get started!

I cannot wait to see my family in person on Thursday! Connor and my mom are coming for Connor's college visit and to take me home for the weekend! :)))))