Looking Back: 2013 Holidays

While chillin' in my PJs, feeling sorry for everyone who was out Black Friday shopping, I came to a pretty weird realization: I have not spent a holiday at home since New Year's. That means every holiday of 2013 (excluding this upcoming Christmas... but give me a break, it's 6 days from 2014!) has been in an entirely new situation doing entirely new things.

Thanks to iPhoto and my penchant for pics, I can look up what I did for every major holiday. Ready for a blast from the past?

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

This isn't my best example... MLK Day was actually on 1/21 (you can see from the screenshot on the left that I made this collage on 1/23). BUT it pretty much sums up my point. MLK Day was freeeeeeezing and I was feeling a little jealous of my hometown's weather (the picture on the right). Since Coe had the day off, I cozied up with my blanket and did some homework for a while. Later that night, I braved the cold and went to a showing of a documentary that highlighted issues of race within United States society, even 50 years after MLK. Talk about mind-blowing! It made me that much more passionate about securing equal rights for all, not just in words but in actions.

Valentine's Day

This lovely note left on my door was the courtesy of my friend Leeann. She's a total sweetheart, and she obviously knows me well. Every day at the end of Honors Composition class, I would struggle for a solid 30 seconds to put on, button, and buckle my coat. Let's just say motor skills aren't my forte. My truest loves at college are the friends who know my weaknesses and think I am the bomb dot com anyway. What a great Valentine's Day.

St. Patrick's Day

L to R: Sara, Kristen, Sam, me, Alexis, and Kobe

I was eating a bowl of Lucky Charms in honor of the occasion when a bunch of friends came into the Writing Center and said, "We HAVE to go get Shamrock Shakes!" I also had a choir performance in an hour. So because of course the best decision is to take your chances getting to the performance on time AND destroy any chance of singing well with lactose-throat-coat, I said, "Ok, cool." I made it to the show on time (c'mon, I'm not THAT irresponsible) and had a darn good St. Patty's Day to show for it. The best part by far was Sara yelling out the car window, "HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!!" to every pedestrian she saw.

Easter 

This Easter actually wasn't very fun at all. A really awesome person and a good friend died 2 days before Easter this year. My friend Sam and I were at Leeann's house for the weekend, excited for home-cooked meals and some time off campus. I got a heartbreaking phone call on Saturday morning telling me about Joel's death. Saturday was filled with more tears than I thought I had. Sunday, we dyed a few eggs and even went on Leeann's family's annual Easter egg hunt to try to distract ourselves. It hurt so much, but I was beyond appreciative for the support and care of my friends and classmates. Rest in peace, Joel... I am so glad I had the chance to know you.

Arbor Day

James and I leaving for Sinfonia formal!

A Ha(y)(i)l(l)e(e)(ey) sandwich: Haylee on the left and Hailley on the right!

If you ask me, Arbor Day is pretty awesome... so I'm going to include it. We were about a week away from finals and things were getting crazy. I submitted a paper 10 minutes before leaving for the Greek fraternity Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia's Formal with my friend James. The night was so much fun! We went bowling and laser tagging in our fancy get-ups, then we went to dinner at a nice Italian restaurant. The boys serenaded us with a beautiful song at the end of dinner. James was an absolute gentleman all night. I also got to see my Mama Duck Hailley for the first time since the previous semester, since she was in New York City for the spring. Good bowling, good food, good music, good friends... just what I needed to make it through the following week of finals.

Memorial Day

 

On Memorial Day, I wasn't even in the country. I was in Paris! You can read more about that adventure here. May 27 was our second-to-last full day in the City of Lights. Leeann and I visited Notre Dame and serendipitously made it just in time for mass. It was among the most beautiful things I have ever witnessed. We also walked around the Latin Quarter (our favorite part of the city) and ate delicious Parisian ice cream bars that I spilled all over myself.

Independence Day

L to R: Pebbles, Hummingbird, Skye, Toes, and me (by camp names, of course!)

On the 4th of July, I was a mutton in a Girl Scouts camp rodeo! Let's just say I'm baaaashful when it comes to how fast I can run with an 8-year old on my back. ;) 4th of July has always been among my favorite holidays... I love celebrating my United States culture and remembering the freedoms I have. Plus I can never resist a good hamburger! This year was especially cool since I got to share the holiday with some of my international friends. Pebbles is from Nepal and Skye is from Scotland. I loved watching them get to experience all the joys of face-painting US flags on their faces and singing loudly to country music. U-S-A!

My birthday!! 

Jake and I chillin' at a park in Denver

Celebrating 20 at the D-Bar

I got to spend my 20th birthday (whoa!) with my friend Jake. I drove to Denver and we strolled around a park for a while and then around the mall. I ordered a very large Earl Grey Tea latte and Jake and I got to catch up on life. It's hard to stay connected with friends back home when you spend most of your time in Iowa, but it's totally worth it. We went to the D-Bar for dinner and my raspberry-something-or-another desert was heavenly. Driving back to camp included some car trouble, but Jake was super nice and helped me figure it out. Awesome initiation to my 20s!

Labor Day

 Sam and I being ourselves

Every year as a Coe College Writing Center consultant, we have a Labor Day Staff Retreat. Last year we went to a cute little campsite and sang about writing center theory and pedagogy around the campfire (kind of). This year, we had our retreat at Coe. My travel-bug was a little sad, but ultimately it ended up being a great chance to gear up for the school year. It was my first time seeing a bunch of writing center friends since the previous school year. I also got to meet all the new first-years and see what wonderful attributes they would bring to our community. It was encouraging to see how my conferencing skills had improved since the year before when I was that new first year. I felt more confident and more ready than ever to bring Writing Center conferences to a new level of awesome.

Halloween 

Sara and I enjoying pumpkin bagels with pumpkin cream cheese in the Chicago airport

Jumping for joy on a beach in Tampa, Florida

This Halloween, I dressed up as one of those super lucky people who gets to visit the beach right when the temperatures in Iowa start to drop. The Coe Writing Center (which seems to be a common trend in this post) attended a peer tutoring conference in Tampa, Florida. You can read even more about that on my Coe Writing Center blog post. Basically though, it rocked. I can almost still feel the sand between my toes...

Veteran's Day

I received this nice little treat from one of my residents circa 11/11, so I will count it. I love being a Resident Assistant! I have a group of wonderful women on my floor who I know are going to accomplish so much in their time at Coe and beyond... Plus they are super sweet and give me bubble wrap. I appreciate the opportunity to give back to the Coe community a little, even if it's just by virtue of securing a radio for our bathroom and making sure our building stays safe.
Also on this day, I got to wish my sister Amanda a happy birthday and her son, Eli, a happy birthday too. Can't believe he is already 2!

And that brings us to now....

Thanksgiving

FaceTime with my parents... gotta love technology.

Watching America's Funniest Home Videos with Leeann

 I'll admit, I was NOT thrilled about spending Thanksgiving in Iowa. It's hard to watch everyone you know go home while you think about the consequences of choosing an out-of-state school when plane tickets are ridiculously expensive. But nevertheless, I had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Leeann and her family were nice enough to have me over for the day. We made almond-bark-peppermint-sprinkled pretzels, which were adorable and delectable. (The pretzels were shaped like Christmas trees!) I hung out with her family all day, helping chop broccoli for the casserole and watching TV like a pro. Later that night, we went to her aunt's house for the family dinner. There were a whole lot of people there, and every single one of them was so welcoming. I ate about my weight in turkey and pie... and I'm still working off the food coma.

And that's my year in holidays. It's been different -- at times sad, at times happy, at times somewhere in between. Ultimately, it's been a year to treasure. Thanks to everyone who helped me celebrate.