I can’t believe that the summer flew by so quickly. I remember looking forward to four months of freedom to spend with loved ones, and now its back to school. I am excited, though, to see all the friends I made over my first year at Leo.
I had a blast this summer. My boyfriend Josh, who lives in California, flew out for a while. We went to a Fall Out Boy Concert (so much fun!!!)
the beach, amusement parks, and even over to Daytona. I love being able to spend so much time with him over the summer, but it seems to fly by so quickly. We caught up on the new movies, and even got some tickets free for not getting the quality of service that should be given at movie thearters--can't go wrong with FREE.
The best part of the summer was when my parents, josh, and I went to Daytona Beach. We stayed at Gamble Rogers Memorial Park (which is the only camp in FL on the beach). It was so nice, at night, to hear the waves crash on the beach. During the days, we rode the waves and at night we passed out from being so tired from playing in the water. Reminder- apply a lot of sunblock...bright red sunburns are NOT fun.

Other than going out with Josh, my parents and I visited my Mimi in Tampa quite a bit. We also enjoyed visits from relatives from the Panhandle.
I am looking forward to going back to Saint Leo, but I don't want to be so busy- which I know I will be! But, thats the college experience, right?

I am so excited for next week—I can already taste the turkey! I love this time of year! The weather is perfect, holidays come right after the other, and above all- we get a month off in between semesters! The only thing that brings me down about Thanksgiving break is professors tend to give projects that require being worked on during the break =(. But, at least I won’t feel rushed to get something done—I can work in my PJs and take breaks when I please! I am also happy because we are going out for Thanksgiving dinner, so that means NO DISHES!

The two last weeks of school bring, at the same time, happy and crazed feelings. I know that the two weeks will go by so quick, but then I look at what I have to do for those two weeks and I feel like screaming. If we can make it through the two weeks, we deserve a month off!

In a month, I will be out in California visiting with Josh, his family, and friends from my hometown. I am happy I will see some familiar faces. I miss living out in California, but I am glad I am here because I have already met lifelong friends at Saint Leo. I will be flying back to Tampa on the 25th, and I will be heading back to the airport a day after that to fly to San Juan to catch a cruise with family. I am so excited for it, but I am not looking forward to the massive jet lag I will encounter.

I hope that everyone has a SAFE and WONDERFUL Thanksgiving break.

---Colleen

Thanksgiving was wonderful! I was so happy to finally have a break from school and work and spend time with my family. My family and I went down to Tampa to spend time with my Mimi in Tampa, my aunt also came down from northern Florida. The day before Thanksgiving, my cousin also came down to celebrate. It is nice to have a lot of family together, but when only 2 bathrooms are available, things can get a bit crazy. We decided to go to Golden Corral for turkey dinner, and it was amazing because that means no dishes!! After eating so much turkey, I eventually passed out a few hours after eating in front of the football game on tv. The day after Thanksgiving... oh man... Black Friday. There were people lined up infront of Best Buy Thursday morning...no way. My mom, Mimi, and I woke up at 5:30am because I saw some last minute Christmas gifts in the Target ad I needed. When we get to the store, the line is past the garden center almost out to the street. I don't care because all I want is $4 dvds. So, we wait in front of the doors because we don't feel like walking to the back of the line just to walk back up in 5 minutes. It is not like we were going to cut over dvds... we didn't feel like getting beaten for line skipping. While we are standing there, people in line keep telling us the line is back there and constant dirty looks... oh well we knew we werent in the wrong :) The doors open at 6am and the line rushes in and everyone runs to the electronics department, while I head for the dvds by the dressing rooms. When I get to the dvds (maybe 5 minutes from opening), a manager comes out and tells an associate well that is all the tv's if anyone is asking. That is insane... but at the price they were going for, I wasn't surprised. After that escapade, we went to McDonalds and a few other stores. I had a blast over break, and I can't wait until Christmas break comes along... I am too used to lounging about in my PJs! Why can't flannel polka dotted pants be socially acceptable!?

I can't believe the semester is less than a week from being over! Between (some) work, school, extra curriculars, family, and social life, I am stretched to my limit right now. I will be so thankful for the month break we have coming up, though I will be busy through it too. I am so grateful for the support system I have to keep me up. I fear without them, I woud lose it!

As finals go, I have 2 test finals and 3 projects to do. In between celebrating my mimi's birthday, I'll have to squeeze in studying and working.

Over the break, I am going out to visit my boyfriend Josh in California. I can't wait to see him! I miss being able to hang out with him!! I will also be able to visit with some of my friends from high school.