It's Time: The Big Decision, Class of 2017...

Happy Tuesday everyone!!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful start to the week!! I cannot believe that this will be my last Productive Tuesday as a Junior here at SMC!! I'm not being very productive at the moment, looking at Royal Wedding photos (yes, I'm a Will and Kate fangirl hahaha!!) instead of doing the edits on one of my final papers. I am though going to extremely miss my usual routine- my time in the library seeing my BFFs, Sarah and Josh, and saying a big hello to Mr. Payne, SMC's awesome library director, in the morning, going to the gym to work out my stress, my weekly tour, and of course my weekly blog hangout with my wonderful readers!! It's now one week until I have my last final and say goodbye to SMC for the summer and it's really surreal.

Why, you may ask?

Well, I guess you can say I still sometimes feel like I'm a Senior in high school. That I'm back in White Plains, NY in my GCA uniform and complaining to all of my GCA girls on how it's the end of April and I'm still trying to figure out where to call my second home.

I couldn't get a good picture of me in my uniform, but here's one with me and my best friend, Jen, on the day I sent in my deposit to SMC!!

The college process is always tough, no matter what stage you're in. It's time consuming and it's tiring and a whole lot of writing. Those moments when you find out you've received some of those big beautiful acceptance letters are some of the best in the world, but then it comes to deciding and narrowing down your choices and that's just a whole lot of stress.

Going on all the tours. Doing all the Open Houses. Eating the food. Talking to students and professors, trying to retain every single thing about the school and forming pros and cons list with everything you can possibly remember about it? Yep, you're not alone.

It was a really difficult time for me. Did I want to go to college? Absolutely!! Did I want to find a second home? Of course!! The thing was though, after narrowing it down, doing all of the things I was supposed to, I was still... undecided. Torn, even. I just wanted to decide, knowing that whatever school I would pick would be the right fit and that I would spend the best four years of my life there- growing, being accepted and supported, and just feel like I was a part of something amazing that would help me to be amazing in the future.

It was coming down to the final days before May 1st and I still had no clue. I was actually talking to my new friend, Kassidy, about this last weekend during the Accepted Students Open House. I'm the first person not to sugar coat picking a college since I myself had a tough time deciding. I remember using up way too many tissues crying, screaming, curling up with my Twilight book, and eating maybe one or two or you know what, YOLO five pints of Ben and Jerry's (sign that I was meant to be in VT? What can I say, that Strawberry Cheesecake always gets me ;) because I was so unbelievably stressed. This on top of getting through my senior year academics and activities just made me into a big ol' mess.

Mama Byrne pic with my acceptance letter :)

Finally, on April 26th, I decided on SMC/ Brought my sweatshirt, sent in the deposit, and was officially a member of the Class of 2014.

Looking back on it three years later, I am so grateful I went through this. Did it stink? HA big time, but it was really just so worth it. If I hadn't had done all that research, visited all my top schools, and made sure to talk to my family about logistics (financial aid, opportunities each school could provide me with, etc.) I may be at a totally different school today.

My Class of 2017 readers, whether you have decided on joining the SMC family or another school, I want to congratulate you. You have come this far and you should be so unbelievably proud of yourselves. It's taken a lot of hard work and dedication, but you've gotten this far and you will be sure to get even farther. While I wish I could be there to give you each one of you a hug and tell you that you're not alone in your excitement, stress, nervousness, or whatever you're feeling right now, I can tell you that it will be okay. That whatever you decide is the best decision for you and no one else. As long as you've gone through each of your top schools and know that you get that "feeling" at a certain school, then that is what matters. Choose the school that will help bring out every single thing that makes you amazing and you will forever be grateful for it.

Please know that I support and adore each and every one of you. My wonderful readers, I truly would not be me if I didn't have you to read about my silliness, my mistakes, my favorite moments, and overall my time at SMC. I share this with you and because of that, always know if there is anyway that I can help, whether it be a tweet on Twitter, an email. or a question on ask.fm, I am always willing to help you in any way I can.

Best of luck, Class of 2017 readers. Wherever you choose, I hope you love it as much as I love SMC.

Until next time, I send you my very best wishes,
Alex :)

PS Congratulations to those who have made your decision to become a part of the SMC family!! Remember if you haven't to become a member of the Class of 2017 Facebook Page!!

#AcceptedtoSMCVT: Class of 2017 Open House...

Happy Tuesday everyone!!

I'm actually writing this to you in the past on Monday night (OMG what!?! First blogger, now time traveler??? Hahahahaha just kidding :) after spending some much needed best friend time with my best friend, Kate. I've been missing Kate a lot lately, as we both are so busy with activities and academics (she was actually just nominated to go to the Kennedy American Theatre Festival for stage managing "Dead Man Walking"- YOU GO SL!!) so it was really nice to just hang out for a bit.

Anyway, I had the BEST WEEKEND EVER!! Well, actually, I had the BEST SATURDAY EVER!! Why, you may ask?

CAUSE I GOT TO MEET SO MANY OF MY CLASS OF 2017 READERS AT THE OPEN HOUSE AKA #ACCEPTED2SMCVT

Wow, hahahaha, I'm way too excited, but I can't help it!! Spring Open Houses are probably some of my favorite events of the year, mainly because I get to meet so many students who may soon be a part of my SMC family!! I started my day at around 7:30am, beginning with my usual tradition of applying my purple and gold eye shadow to show my school spirit. I headed over later with my BFF and paparazzi of the day, Miss Lauren Mazzoleni to Ross, where I decided to live tweet my day. I took pictures of all my friends and all the places I went throughout my day.

So, of course, you guys get to see it too!!

Step 1: Purple and Gold eyeshadow

Freshman year roommates and best friends- Bri and I!!

Hiiii Lisa!! 

My best friend, Emily, has been like a little sister to me even before coming to SMC, so I took a picture of her giving her first tour!!

My amazing friend, Hillary, giving her first tour!!

My best friend, Marci and I!! Marci has been through everything and back with me and I couldn't ask for a better friend :)

Mike, me, and Lauren Mazz waiting to give a tour!!

My amazing friend, Mike Brown aka Miguel Cafe :)

Oh look, it's Kate!! 

Lauren Loy and I repping MOVE and VITA at the Open House

The MOVE/ VITA team!! Heidi, Ashley, Kristen, and Lauren Loy!!

Rynne with our new friend, Jessica!!

My new friend, Kassidy!! We discovered that we are literally the same person and I was so excited to find out she reads my blog!! Adore her!!

So, even if she won''t admit it, I'm the reason Lauren Mazzoleni came to SMC... well at least one of the top 10 hahaha!! She is now one of my best friends in the world :)

The best part of the day- NAP TIME!!

Even though it was a bit exhausting, it was all so worth it because I got to meet so many of you!!(Special shout outs to Kassidy, Sophie, Jessica, and Anna!!) What I love about being a student ambassador is that I get the chance to talk to you all and have a part in helping in choosing a second home.

These next week is unfortunately now crunch time for my Class of 2017 readers. Whether you decide on SMC or not, what I always recommend is getting that "feeling" (I sometimes feel like I should trademark that saying since I say it in so many blogs hahaha!!) That feeling of knowing that you will not only receive so many opportunities and a great education, but grow as a student, friend, and leader and most imporantly, feel as though you are accepted, respected, and support. That feeling that you know that this is where you belong :)

I wish you all so much luck and please never hesitate to get in touch with me via Ask.fm, Twitter, or email- I'm always happy to help in any way I can to help make things a bit easier and send hugs via social media!!

Until next time, I send you my very best wishes,
Alex :)

PS If you haven't already, please join the SMC Class of 2017 Facebook page to meet future friends and classmates!!

Meet #Mamabyrne! A Parent and Student Perspective for Class of 2017!

Happy Tuesday everyone!!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful week!! All of us at SMC are just getting readjusted after spring break and getting back to all of our class and activities. Spring break was absolutely phenomenal!! I didn't go anyplace special except my bed, my living room, and my kitchen at home, but it was just amazing to have some time to relax, refocus, and of course spend time with my wonderful family :)

So, the written portion of today's blog is going to be really short, since I'm actually going to rely on my latest vlog a lot in today's post!!

Over the past three years (what!?!) of blogging, I've loved having both prospective students and parents email me and send me questions about college life here at SMC. The thing is though, is that while I try my best to put myself into the shoes of my parent readers while answering questions they may have, I realize that I cannot fully grasp the whole perspective because I haven't been through the process as a parent.

However... someone in today's vlog has ;)

Today, my wonderful readers, you'll get to meet my mom, Yvette, also known for any of you who follow me on twitter as #mamabyrne!! I've been wanting to do an interview with my parents for a while, because

 1) I love them and I think they're pretty cool 

and 

2) They've been through it all with me!! The college visits, tours, common apps, receiving letters, open houses... 

Yep. You name it, they've been through it. 

So, in this first of two vlogs (hopefully my wonderful dad will be in the next one when I'm home!!), you'll be able to receive both a parent and a student perspective of some typical questions that we asked as a prospective student and parent of each college we went to, some tips, and of course, what we personally love about SMC!!

Enjoy :)


I hope this was helpful for everyone!! It was a blast for my mom and I to film and I cannot wait to do hopefully more vlogs in the future with people who have helped me throughout my college process and in college now!!

For my wonderful readers, if you haven't heard already, Formspring will be ending soon. Don't worry though, because I will definitely be doing a new FAQ tab on the blog with some of the most asked questions that you can refer to and of course, still never hesitate to ask me questions via email or a tweet on Twitter!!

Until next time, I send you all my very best wishes,
Alex :)

PS of course no good video does not have bloopers!! 

Adventures to Church Street and Birthdays in Cheray...

Happy Tuesday everyone!!

I hope everyone is having an amazing start to their week. I am so excited because next week is SMC's spring break and it will be my first time home in two months!! While I love my second home, I've definitely been missing my family a lot and am excited for a bit of a break from the hustle and bustle of classes and activities.

Eleanor and I!!

This past week, I adventured quite a bit into Burlington and more specifically, Church Street. This semester, I've definitely been finding myself more often taking the 10 minute bus ride into Burlington, whether it be with a group of friends for the day or just for me time walking around or sitting by Lake Champlain. My best friends,Kate and Eleanor, wanted to go into Burlington on Thursday and I was of course on board!! We ended up going to Henry's Diner for lunch, which for a foodie like me, was just a dream come true and another restaurant to add to the list of all my favorites in the areas surrounding SMC. We then went to Dirt Chic, a thrift shop where Kate was able to find some jeans for the MOVE extended service trip she is going on to Kentucky (and I got an Ann Taylor Loft sweater for $8- SCORE!!) It was so great to just relax with the girls and enjoy some time away from campus.

The birthday girl and I!!

On Saturday, I was so excited to help plan a birthday party for my amazing friend,Emily!! Emily and I knew each other way before she had even stepped on campus  through connecting on Twitter and her SMC blog this past summer (and then of course when she got to SMC I may have tackled her in the Chapel after yelling, "EMILY CLEGG, HUG ME!!!" but of course that's a story for another time hahahahaha :) She has quickly become one of my best friends in the world and has been like a little sister to me. So of course, I wanted to help make her 19th birthday special anyway I could!! Around 5pm, Emily and I headed over to Kate's townhouse to cook and bake some delicious food (mac and cheese, some veggies and dip, chips, red velvet cookies and brownie cake, yum!!)  for the party, which was going to be a movie night and dinner with about 12 of our good friends (shout outs to Jake, Anthony, Ben, Taylor, Jeremy, Hannah, Lauren Loy, Laura Dam, Lauren Murphy, Kristen, and Kate!!) Well, while I didn't do much cooking, but I wore an apron, so I totally helped out!! We ended up throwing her birthday party in Cheray 111, one of our two lecture halls on campus.

Can you say... PARTY IN THE ACADEMIC BUILDINGS PART II!?!?! OH YEAH!!

We ended up eating so much delicious food, watching Shakespeare in Love on Netflix, and of course singing happy birthday to Emily and giving her a special birthday candle to remember the day. I literally could not stop laughing the whole night with all the inside jokes we came up with!! It couldn't have been more fun and I was so happy that I could spend Emily's special day with her!!

I know I say this in practically all of my blogs, but the amount of amazing opportunities here at SMC are endless and the friends that you make are priceless. It's these little things that make the college experience at SMC so amazing and I'm always so unbelievably thankful that I ended up in Colchester, VT.

If you have any questions at all, please never hesitate to shoot me an email, send my a question on Formspring, or tweet me on Twitter- I absolutely adore hearing from my wonderful readers and answering any questions you may have!!

Until next time, I send you my very best wishes,
Alex :)

Paella, Surprise Parties, and a Nerdy Kid Song? Amazing SMCVT Saturday...

Happy Tuesday everyone!!

I'm so happy to be back on track with everyone!! Yesterday, I had the chance to meet many of my Class of 2017 readers while on a panel for this week's Academic Preview day and I was so happy to meet you all (and can't wait to see you in the fall hopefully!!) These next two weeks are definitely going to be tough for me, with midterms, papers, and lots of getting things together, but thanfully, I have just the most amazing SMC family a girl could ask for and because of this, had such an amazing weekend!!

My bff, Liz!!

Now, if you go back to my Productive Tuesday blog, you'll see that one of my goals this semester is to spend more time with many of my friends that I don't get to see as often, and one of which was Liz Murray. Now, if you would've asked me how Liz and I became friends, I wouldn't be able to tell you, but I can say that I don't know what I would do without her. She is probably one of my all time favorite people, not only because she is a fellow SMC blogger, but also an amazing friend who is constantly there for me and brightening my day. So, I was super excited when she and my friend, Amanda, invited me over to their townhouse to make a delicious homemade meal Saturday evening!! Amanda, who recently came back from study abroad in Spain, wanted to try making paella and I was more than excited to help out!! Together, Amanda, Liz, and I, with the company of our friends, Adrianna (who is also my SMC twinnie :) and Celia, made a delicious meal that I think the Spaniards would totally be impressed with (welllll... at least I'd hope so :)

What's so terrific about SMC is that we are such a big family here. While there are no kitchens in the dorms, because we form great relationships with upperclassmen, we always have access to a kitchen, whether it be in the townhouses, apartments, or the the communal suite kitchen on each floor of the suite buildings.

Later, Liz and I ended up going to Cumby's for some milk to go with the brownies we were going to make. So, of course, I had to vlog it!!



After such a delicious dinner and hilarious time with the girls, my amazing friends, Lauren Murphy and Tan Wai picked me up for our friend, Rynne's, surprise birthday party. It was Star Wars themed, so we all wore masks of Star Wars characters (I'm pretty sure I was R2D2, but wonderful readers, totally correct me if I'm wrong) and Rynne was so surprised!! We watched Episode IV and of course I fell asleep on my friend, Jeremy's comfy futon. I know, I know, I shouldn't have fallen asleep watching Star Wars. It's a fabulous movie!! I was just so exhausted from my phenomenal day that I dozed off.

When I finally woke up and said good night to everyone (shout out to Lauren Loy, Jeremy, Hannah, Mariah, Erica, Colleen, Geoff, Charles, Kristen, Katie Copp, and the birthday girl, Rynne!!) of course, Lauren Murphy and Tan Wai would persuade me to come back to Tan Wai's room to listen to their new song. Tan Wai, Lauren, Geoff, and Jeremy are big lovers of music and adore having jam sessions (for anyone interested in music, believe me, jam sessions are HUGE at SMC and you can most certainly get involved :) I was really excited to hear it!! While I can't give a lot away (you never know, they may become famous and it could become their number 1 hit single ;) it is about a nerdy boy who by the end of the song becomes the most popular guy in school and I think I died of laughter listening to it, it was just that good.

Overall, I had one of the best Saturday nights ever!! These kinds of nights are not unusual at SMC though. Living on a residential campus, we are constantly offered opportunities to make the most of our college experience, whether it be going to Burlington, cooking with friends, throwing surprise birthday parties, attending the socials offered by the RA's in the dorms, or even going on random adventures to Cumby's or Dunkin Donuts. I seriously could not have asked for a better night with some amazing friends :)

Remember, Class of 2017 readers, to join the Facebook group if you haven't already to meet fellow students (and future friends!!) and have all your questions answered by the terrific SMC bloggers. Also, never hesitate to shoot me an email, send me a Formspring question, or a tweet on Twitter- I'm always happy to help!!

Until next time, I wish you my very best wishes,
Alex :)

PS here are some pictures from my fabulous night!!

Paella!!

Amanda cooking!!

Liz, chopping up some peppers for the paella!!

Yum!!

Of course, the perfect way to make brownies is by doing the Cupid Shuffle!! Adrianna and Liz :)

Lauren Murphy and I in our Star Wars masks!!

Narrowing the College Search Down...

Happy Tuesday everyone!!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful start to their day. As usual on a Tuesday morning, I am in my favorite library cubicle getting some work and studying done for the next couple of days. This morning, Marci and I went to go pick up our Macklemore tickets for this year's Spring Concert and we  could not be more excited!!

I've also wanted to let you guys know that I'll be going back to my original every Tuesday blogging!! I was talking to my friend, Rynne, the other day about how when she was an incoming first year, every Tuesday she would make sure to check my blog because that always seemed to be the day I updated. I personally loved doing that schedule, so my wonderful readers, keep checking back every Tuesday for new blogs yay!!

Yesterday, my friend, Eric, who is Academic Preview day/ Phone-a-thon coordinator of Founders Society (and also made it possible with my friend, Cait, to bring Macklemore to SMC) asked me to be on a Prospective Student panel. I was really excited about it, because it was actually the Academic Preview Day which solidified my decision to come to SMC. It was great hearing not only from the Class of 2017, but from current students on the panel with me (shout out to Anna, Shelby, Brian, and Alex!!) and all of our different points of view sharing the common thread of loving SMC.

While applications for regular decision have been sent in and Early Action letters have been sent out, for all of my Class of 2017 readers, you're all entering the next part of the college process. You know where you've been accepted to and now, it comes to narrowing things down. It's definitely tough and I'd probably say it's even more stressful then filling out the Common App.

It's not just, "Oh let me visit this college, see how I like it." It's, "Let me make sure I like this school, cause I may be calling it my second home soon."

So, today, I'm here to help!! We're going to do a check list of all the things that you should probably do to make that decision just a bit easier.

Alex's Tips for Narrowing the College Search Down

1. BRING A NOTEBOOK AND MAKE A CHECKLIST: Okay, I know, it sounds cheesy and hey, you're not technically in school for the day, why should you take notes? I'm here to tell you that it is so worth it. As I've said before in many of my blogs, once you've seen a bunch of schools, they tend to blur into, "What did that school have a again?" As you are now looking at schools you are accepted to, you need to be aware that hey, this is the time to be really taking note of what you like and don't like. Before leaving for any school, make sure to sit down and make a check list of what you want and don't want in a school. Bring the checklist with you to every school you go to and make sure to fill it out every time. Also, take notes of what makes each school different- is it the various cool classes in your prospective major? The $30 full season Smuggs pass (had to throw that in for SMC :)? The awesome burger and fries? Don't feel like a nerd or something if you bring a notebook and pen because it shows that you're taking this decision seriously, which in my opinion, is pretty awesome!!

2. TAKE PHOTOS: Going back to the first tip, I'd totally recommend that if you have a camera phone or a camera in general, bring it with you on  your trip. Take a picture or make a vlog coming and going to each school. If you're taking a tour, ask the tour guide if you could take some pictures of the different places you stop off at. That way, when you get home, you can form a college search journal of the different places you went and your opinions going, during, and after your day at the school. When I was deciding what schools to go to, I would always look back on my photos and videos to see what I was feeling at the time so that I could have some perspective into the feeling I got from each school.

3. TALK TO CURRENT STUDENTS: This is HUGE!! The reason why I'm here, your tour guides are here, the people who call you to congratulate you on your acceptance, etc. are here is because we want to help you make this process that much easier. We've all been through the same exact thing you're going through right now and if there's anyway we can help, we're willing to do it. The best way you're going to get a feel for the school is if you talk to students who are currently there. What's great about Accepted Open Houses or Academic Preview Days is that you get the chance to talk to a lot of students. I totally sound like a hypocrite saying this, since typically, I'm the shy girl, but really, do not feel shy about going up and talking to someone. It's a great way to form a contact with a student from the school who can answer any of the big or little questions you may have. 

4. CONSIDER FINANCIAL AID AND TALK TO THEM: Now, I'm not an expert on financial aid, but I can tell you 100% that I personally would not be at SMC if it weren't for the scholarships I was granted and the financial aid department working with my family for me to be here. SMC students are lucky enough that our Financial Aid department gives 90% of students financial aid through their four years at SMC. We all realize that college, especially a private college like SMC, is pretty expensive now a days. While I would absolutely never say sacrifice your experience at your dream college because of financial aid, I would say to definitely take it into consideration and talk to your family about it as well. Look into the options of getting work study, a job on or off campus, or outside scholarships you could possibly apply for as well. Also, don't hesitate to call financial aid!! They're willing to answer any of your questions and can help make the process easier for you as well. 

5. LOOK AT THE OPPORTUNITIES EACH SCHOOL CAN GIVE YOU: While we all are excited about going off to college, we have to consider the real reason why go to college- to receive an amazing education which will take us places in the future. Interested in becoming an Anthropologist? (Aka like my best friend, Megan :) look into the classes you can take that will get you there. Want to be on the Varsity hockey team? Make an appointment to talk to the coaches and spend a day with the hockey team to see how you fit in and your chances making the team. Want to devote your life to community service? Check out the different opportunities each school has and what alumni did after graduating in order to continue their love of helping others. Want to get an internship? Make sure you research if the school has a career/ job office with counselors who can help you with that. Go back to that checklist and make sure you research what you can do and where you can go with each school that you're looking into so that when you get on campus, you know what you have ahead of you. 

6. RESEARCH RESEARCH RESEARCH... BUT GET THAT "FEELING": Yes, you just knew I had to put in the "feeling" (One day, I should totally just trademark it hahahaha!!) Once you've done all this research, taken all the notes, looked at your photos and vlogs a million times, it comes down to that feeling. Where did you get that sense of, "Wow, I belong here. This is where I feel I can call home these next four years." You can picture yourself taking the same ways to class, to the cafeteria, to your dorm, as these current students do. You see yourself wearing your college sweatshirt and sweatpants on Saturday morning and staying up late in the library for that big exam. That, my wonderful readers, is when you know it's the place for you :)

Now that I've given you all those tips, start modifying them to make them fit you. Hopefully, I have made this slightly easier for you all and no matter what, I wish you all the best of luck!! Remember, if you have any questions at all, feel free to email me, send me a Formspring question, or tweet me on Twitter- I'm always happy to help!!

Also, WEDNESDAY there is a PARENT  KNIGHT CHAT, where your parents can talk to our amazing bloggers and have all your questions answered!! It's from 7:30-9, so hope many of you check it out!! To my Class of 2017 readers, if you haven't become a member of the Class of 2017 FB page, DO IT!! It's a great way to meet future classmates!!

Until next time, I send you my very best wishes,

Alex :)

My New Tuesday Tradition...

Happy Tuesday everyone!!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful day!! Right now, I'm in the library working on an assignment for my American Protestantism class and thought I would let you guys get a glimpse into my typical Tuesday!!

This semester, I have all my classes Monday, Wednesday, Friday and a lab on Thursday. This means that I have Tuesdays off, which is pretty wonderful. I can sleep late, stay in pj's all day, watch a bunch of TV shows...

Hahahaha in a perfect world that would be true, but it's a little different for me :)

One of my goals this year has been to use my time wisely and more productively. Now, it's not like I didn't use my time wisely before, but I realized that I wanted to utilize what SMC had to offer me a bit more. I'm also the type of person who has to be doing something, so I scheduled my Tuesdays into being the most productive "Me" day.

Me in my cubbie in the library, studying for Greek!! Above is my "To Do" list!!

My day starts off around 9:15, walking to the library. My amazing friend, Sarah, works at the library at that time, so I love to visit her to start off my day right. From there, I go downstairs to the quiet floor of the library (For any of my future SMC readers, this is something you should definitely know- best place to study for midterms, finals, etc!!) and lock myself up in one of the personal cubicles (or "Cubbies" as my best friend, Marci, likes to call them :) and for the next two hours, I work on any homework or studying that needs to be done for the next two days.

At around 11:30, I head over to the gym. Now, for those of my wonderful readers who know me, I'm not exactly the gym buff. To tell you the honest truth, I was actually scared about going to the gym for so long because I didn't think I would fit in or make a bum out of myself because I didn't know how to use the machines and was too afraid to ask, so everyone would think I was silly. After my past semester, which was extremely stressful, I realized that I needed an outlet to get that stress out and clear my mind a bit for a better and more positive outlook on my day. So, I made the plunge and went to the gym.

Lol me trying to take an awkward pic at the gym :)

All those worries? They don't even make sense to me anymore!! No one is staring at you thinking, "OMG gym newbie!!" and usually there are some type of instructions on how to use the different machines. While I did... I don't know, I guess get mixed up a bit my first time at the gym with my friend, Lauren Mazz, I eventually got the handle of everything and realized that if I didn't get something, I could always ask!!

After the gym, I head back for a quick shower and head off to my weekly tour at 2pm (I hope to see many of you on it!!) As I say probably so much, having the chance to show prospective students and their families what I love about my second home is probably one of the best feelings in the world, so I am always excited to show off SMC!!

Divergent reading!!

When the day is done and I've finished my work at a pretty reasonable hour, I decide to treat myself. Now, total book nerd alert here, but as a college and even high school student, I haven't been able to read much for fun during the school year, but pack as much reading as I could during little breaks here and there. Another part of my stress reveling semester is to reward myself for a productive day. Since I'm really involved on campus in many different activities, I get so caught up in my academics and clubs that I never really ever make time for just me. While I could not have asked for any better opportunities than what I have received at SMC, sometimes when you're focused on so many other things, you need to stop for a second and focus on how you are. I realized last semester I was not doing that and just letting my stress bottle up to a high point.


So, remember that thing I said about utilizing what SMC has to offer? Why not the library!? I mean I'm there doing work all the time, but there are soooooo many books (we even have a Children's room with all your favorite stories from when you were a kid- how cool is that!?) magazines, and even DVD's which you can take out or find a great place in the library to read and watch them!! At around 9, I'll head to the Children's room to pick up my latest read, Divergent, and head up to the "Birdcage" (the study section on the top floor which is really cool) so I can get a couple of pages in.

Merrill and I go to Al's last Tuesday for dinner!!

My last goal that I've wanted to accomplish this semester is spending more time with my friends. Since I am a hustle and bustle girl, I will sometimes go a day or two without seeing some of my best friends, which can get me really down. It's been my goal to set up times with friends, even if it is just a run to Dunkin Donuts or lunch/ dinner in Alliot or out in the Burlington area, making sure that I see them and find out how they're doing. I really have found some of the most amazing friends here at SMC and I want to appreciate how lucky I am that they are in my lives!! I'm slowly, but surely working on it (aka Liz Murray, if you're reading this, hangout asap!!) and cannot wait for some hilarious conversations, heart to hearts, and just enjoying the time of being with my friends :)

Overall, I've gotten into a sort of pattern which I have been really loving. One of the most important things for any student is to find balance. Find that balance that suits you with academics and activities, but most importantly, remember to balance yourself in the mix too.

Please remember that if you have any questions at all, never hesitate to send me a question on Formspring, a tweet on Twitter, or shoot me an email- I always love hearing from my wonderful readers!!

Also, Class of 2017-ers, remember that if you haven't already, go join the Class of 2017 FB group!! It has been so nice reading about and talking to so many of you and I cannot wait until you are all on campus!!

Until next time, I send you my best wishes,
Alex :)