Top Ten Tips in Surviving your First Month of College

Hey everyone! Now that the first month in college is coming to a close, I have taken part in a ton of cool experiences. However, adjusting to living away from home is hard, and there are definitely some things I wish I had known before I started school. Check out the video below for my top ten tips in surviving your first month at an American university!

What was your hardest part in adjusting to a new school? Let me know in the comments!

xoxo

Classes and Community, Traditions and Tasks

Hey everyone! This week is my second week of classes at Stanford University. Although the caliber is higher and concepts can be challenging, I love how intellectually stimulating the classes are. Being surrounded by so many smart people makes discussion interesting! We also have a huge campus, so I have to ride my bike everywhere to get to classes. Check out the video below to see some other cool parts of the Stanford Campus!

My freshman dorm has also put on many fun events for us to get into the college spirit. We have ice cream social nights, Insanity work out sessions, themed parties, and birthday showers where the birthday student gets thrown in the shower on midnight on their birthday! The biggest tradition for the freshman dorms is the scavenger hunt in San Francisco. The dorm is divided into teams with a list of tasks to complete that take place all over the city! We had to ride three forms of public transportation, buy unpronounceable food, find a obscure dragon statue, and even try on clothing worth over 1,000 US dollars. Bonus points if a boy tries on an expensive dress! This was a super event to help me bond with different people in my dorm and explore the city of San Francisco that borders Stanford!

Strike a pose!

America themed party!

Scavenger hunt madness-boy in a dress! Bonus!

Day in San Fransisco

Thrown in the shower on my birthday!

What traditions do you have in your school? Let me know in the comments!

xoxo

Dorms, Roommates, and Football, Oh My!

Hey everyone! This week was my first week at Stanford University! So much goes into moving into college and living in a dorm room. Check out the video below to find out all about my experience.

Some of the most exciting aspects of my week were move in and the first football game! On the first day, I met all of my roommates (I have four because I am in a quad-style room) and I got to set up my dorm room with all my cool stuff! I got to put all the storage stuff I bought to good use because I had a lot of stuff to put in my little room. Below is a picture of me and my roommates in front of our dorm!

Moving in!

Roommate love

Next was the first football game. American football is extremely popular, especially at the college level. Stanford has a good football team, so the games are extremely exciting. There is even an amazing Stanford marching band that plays at all the games and pumps up the crowd. It makes the experience even better! Check out some pictures below from me and my friends at the game!

This week has been very busy, but incredibly fun. I am extremely excited for the brand new adventure I am about to embark on! What kind of person would you want to room with? Let me know in the comments!

xoxo

Packing and Preparing: College Dorm Room Essentials

The months leading up to the beginning of college are filled with many emotions. Excitement for the start of a new chapter in your life, anxious to get up to campus when you are waiting at home, and stressful when you are...packing! Yes, packing up everything you use on a regular basis into a boxes and transporting it to a new location in the country can be very stressful. I am in the middle of the college packing process right now, and it can be a bit overwhelming at times! I have been shopping around to find all the additional things I am going to need for living away from home! This includes bedding, storage, laundry supplies, cleaning supplies, lamps, etc! My dorm room is my home away from home so I need all the home essentials!

Hooks and electrical cords...oh my!

All the university dorm essentials!

Picking out storage for my dorm room

Going to need a lamp for my desk!

Thats one successful shopping trip--getting dorm ready!

Some of my dorm room essentials

I am super excited to live in a dorm room, but where I am going to put all my clothes and decor is another issue. If you think packing for a vacation is hard, imagine packing for college! But, to be a smart packer, you gotta bring the essentials. Sure, while you might want to bring your entire shoe collection, there will be no space for it in that tiny dorm wardrobe. Instead, look to other resources like under the bed storage to help store all your supplies, clothes, or anything else you need! Check out the video below to see the essential items I am bringing to my college dorm!

What would your dorm room essentials be? What can you not live without in your room? Let me know in the comments!

xoxo

California Competitions

Hey everyone! This week I spent with my family traveling to different areas in California and attended some exciting events before I leave for college. First, my family headed south to Del Mar in San Diego for the horse races! This is an ongoing event throughout the end of the summer. Most people travel to the Del Mar horse track to socialize with family and friends and see which horses win the races! It's fun cheering on your favorite horse to win, especially when it's friendly competition against a sibling. It's always fun to pick the winner! And you can't forget your big floppy hat! A must have for any summer horse race event. Check out my photos with my brothers and my cousin at the horse races below!

And they're off! Which horse is going to win?

My brothers, my cousin, and my hat!

 A few days later, my family traveled north to Anaheim to watch the baseball team the Angeles play. However, this wasn't any ordinary game for us, we had dugout suite tickets! This meant our seats were right next to the field next to the players' dugout. It was amazing! We could see all the behind-the-scenes action and had an up close look at the players on the field. It was a great way to feel connected to the game and experience it like a player would! And to top it all off the Angeles won - what a great day! Check out some pictures below!

My brothers, their friend, and a player right behind us!

Our seats

Right next to the action!

What events do you like to go to with your family? How far do you travel for them? Let me know in the comments below!

xoxo

It's the Final Countdown

Hey everyone! I have been enjoying my last few weeks of summer before I head up to Stanford University. Since school is just around the corner, it is important to get in any last minute summer adventures. Because all of my friends are traveling all over the country for college, we wanted to do some fun activities specific to California before everyone left. I've spent the last couple days of my summer doing some pretty exciting things!
One day, my friend and I drove to Los Angeles to hike to the top of the Hollywood Hills. This is a very popular hike in southern California because trail leads you to the Hollywood sign! Although it was a long way up, the view was amazing! Check out the pictures below to see our hike experience! It was so fun to spend time with my friend before she leaves for college, and hiking to the Hollywood sign is something we can only do in LA! It was a great end of summer adventure.

The beginning of the hike--see the sign in the background?

The Hollywood sign behind me

The view from the top!

There is the sign--success!

My other friends and I are obsessed with music, especially Taylor Swift. We thought the perfect end of summer experience would be to go see her live in concert! We even got to take a limo to the arena. It was an amazing concert and I loved being able to share my love for Taylor Swift tunes with my friends! We danced and belted the songs all night long. My voice was even gone in the morning! It was so fun to see one of my favorite artists live and if one of your favorite musical artists plays a concert near you I really recommend attending!

With the limo on the way to the concert

In the arena--there is the stage behind us!

However, summer isn't all just fun and games. Most people, like me, have a summer job to save up spending money for college. While work can be boring, I lucked out because I teach tennis at a summer camp for little kids. I guess my summer has more fun and games than I thought! I stretch with them, teach them how to hit a killer forehand, and even go in the pool with them to cool off since playing tennis all day and hot summer weather doesn't mix well. Finding a fun summer job that caters to your skills is the best way to earn money and fill in the long summer hours before school begins.

My fellow camp counselor and awesome campers

Starting off the day with some stretching

Don't want any injuries!

If you and your friends are leaving for college soon, or even just going back to school, having some last minute adventures is a great way end the summer right. Try to seek activities native to your hometown because it will make the experiences even more special. Have fun and let me know in the comments how you spent the end of your summer!

xoxo

Summer Break Bliss-Graduation Trips

Hey everyone! Students celebrate the long-awaited graduation from high school in many ways. Many students go on a graduation trip with their family or friends! This could be a vacation to a foreign country or a weekend trip to a local lake. There are so many ways to have fun and relax during summer break and on a graduation vacation.
For my graduation vacation, I went to Punta Cana with my family! Punta Cana is in the Dominican Republic, and we stayed in a resort right on the beach! It was the perfect graduation vacation for me, I got to relax on the beach and swim in the ocean! There were fun water activities to do like water skiing, sailing, and windsurfing! Luckily the water was warm in case you face-planted off the boat! I even got to play tennis there-a vacation must for me. Overall, I had a great trip to celebrate my graduation from high school and starting of college! Now that I am back in California, I will be enjoying the last few weeks of summer before college begins!

About to get on the boat

Poolside drinks

Beachside dining

Where do you like to go on vacation? Where is your dream vacation? Let me know in the comments!

xoxo