Update: February

Sunday, February 23.

Hello again! February isn't quite over yet, but it's definitely coming to a close. And wow, this month certainly has sped by! It literally feels like yesterday that I was writing my January update post ... and now I'm getting ready for my spring break. But that's probably just because I've been keeping busy!

Let me rephrase. I've been keeping very busy. Like busier than I've ever been before in college busy. (So if I haven't been responding to emails/posting on Facebook, you'll see why.)

Things are starting to pick up with my extra-curriculars and suddenly, the reality of beginning so many new activities has set in! Honor Council is a big time commitment: even without cases, there are still weekly business meetings and office hours. And now that I'm co-chairing the Council's Faculty Liaison Committee, I have a few more responsibilities to take care of in the meantime. My internship at the Undergraduate Admissions Office is starting to pick up pace as well: in addition to getting ready for Day for Admitted Students in April, we interns have been helping around the office in preparation for committee, when the official admissions employees will select W&M's Class of 2018, and I've never spent so much time color-coding and alphabetizing! On the slightly cooler side, you can now see my official Admission Ambassador profile on the William & Mary website! Check out the ambassador biographies here and my first blog post ("Why W&M?") here.

There I am with the other Spring Programming interns! Fun fun fun.

As busy as things are outside of the classroom, there's even more today within my classes. Although I have hardly any tests this semester, all of my courses are really paper-heavy and require a lot of time spent on class readings and papers. I've already turned in two papers and have three more to submit within the next week! I'm not going to lie, it's been pretty overwhelming. The papers that I'm writing feel more advanced than the things I've done in the past and although everything I've submitted has turned out pretty well so far, they've been a struggle. However, I'm trying really hard this semester to work ahead and ask for help in advance with my assignments -- no more last-minute paper-writing for me! (Sigh...)

And as if I weren't busy enough, yesterday was Campus Golf! As I had to explain to more than one confused tourist, Campus Golf is Kappa Delta's annual philanthropy event -- a huge day-long extravaganza that raises thousands of dollars for charities like Prevent Child Abuse American and Avalon, a local women's shelter. It's also one of THE biggest events on campus and attracts hundreds of teams every year. (Don't remember how it works? You can read more about last year's event on my old blog here.)

Molly and Sarah's team did "Clue" -- so clever!

Although I had a blast at last year's Campus Golf, this year was even better. We had absolutely gorgeous weather -- not a cloud in sight! And I caddied for some really fun and super creative teams. It was a long, exhausting day and losing a full day of essay-writing time didn't really help alleviate any of my homework stress, BUT having fun while helping such a great cause definitely made it worth my while!

And of course, I can't talk about February without mentioning its most important holiday! No, not Presidents' Day. (The "Alma Mater of a Nation" doesn't even give us the day off school. Nonsense.) I'm talking about Valentine's Day!

I had an absolutely wonderful one this year, filled with reminders of all the people in my life who love me! I didn't have a "valentine" this year, but I did eat lots of chocolate, decorate my room with hearts, and -- of course -- wear pink! And I received so many lovely little things in the mail to help celebrate...

Cake pops from Mommy and Daddy, some candy and goodies from Madeleine, and lots of little cards and notes delivered to my mailbox! So if you sent me a care package or an e-card or just a text message ... thank you. You helped make my week just a little bit brighter!

Long story short? Survived February. Looking forward to March.