Registration for Fall Semester and starting to pack up my room can only mean one thing: IT’S ALMOST SUMMER!! It’s so beyond exciting to think that my first year as a college student is almost over and that there’s only three more to go! This past year has been so full of changes and growth that I can really only be excited for those to come.
But nonetheless…I’m gonna miss all of my friends here. It’s so weird to think that I won’t see everyone for 3 months. I mean, I live with these people. I don’t know what I’m going to do with all the time and space that’ll be on my hands. I guess Skype just might be my new best friend. :)
The end of the school year is rapidly approaching, so life is beyond busy right now! I’m currently deciding what to bring home on the plane with me, what to ship home, and what I need to store. Goodness. Then there’s registering for new classes (and my class schedule next year looks like it’s going to be SO much fun!) as well as finishing up projects and hanging out with friends. Oh, and working on my tan. You know we can’t get those in Alaska. ;) So registration is done and there’s only 3 1/2 weeks left…time to crack open the books again. Dead week will be here sooner than I’d like.
My name is Lexie, and I have a problem.
I think it’s probably pretty obvious (at least, if you’ve ever met me) that I have a shopping addiction. So many stores, so many different articles of clothing, and so many throw pillows are out there, all calling my name! It’s seriously getting to a point where I need to go through everything and decide on what to donate….but I digress.
The point is, you sillies couldn’t possibly think that only one job would keep this addiction alive..right? As much fun as blogging for NNU Admissions is, I had to take one of the opportunities for on-campus jobs offered here.
So here I am, about to graduate from my freshman year as a seasoned Phonathon caller! I spend every Tuesday and Thursday night calling alumni and friends of the school, with friends of my own, and with provided gummy bears! The best part? I’m getting paid for this!
I just think it’s really cool how NNU offers on-campus jobs that are fun and and student-friendly as a way to earn some extra cash. I certainly have enjoyed not just the academics here, but also the great job experience I’ve been getting!
Tests, Tests, Tests.
Good grief. I’m in the last 3 1/2 weeks of my freshman year of college, but it feels like this year might never end. One of my friends on Facebook just recently posted: “I just finished a 10 page paper. If this is anything like what college is going to be like, I’m not stoked.”
Ha! He is certainly in for a surprise when he gets to his college years! I wish I had just one 10-page paper due for school. Instead, it seems as if I have a running checklist of things I need to do for all of my classes, but never enough time in the day to finish everything. And then, as if that isn’t bad enough, I am constantly adding things to my list—as opposed to taking things away!
I have tests, I have papers, I have assignments, I have labs, I have field experience hours, I have meetings, and I have portfolios to finish…all before finals. One awesome thing about NNU is that—free of charge—counselors, health educators, study groups, and peer mentors are all offered to its students! Any student can go in and make an appointment to meet with any of these people to use as resources to help make a plan and get through all the stress the end of the semester brings! Yet as thankful as I am for all that NNU offers, it’s definitely going to take a great, big God to get me through these next 24 days!
So one of the coolest things about Northwest Nazarene University is probably the Academic program. No joke, I absolutely love being an Elementary Education major!
In most schools, you start your field experience, observation, and student teaching around your Junior year of college. One of the reasons why Northwest Nazarene has such a high placement rate (especially within the Education Department) is because you get the chance to start your interaction with the public school system and its students your very first year!
I personally have loved being able to go into the classroom this semester! I was originally wary about being placed in a middle school, but these kids are great! They’re all enthusiastic, energetic, and totally open to having me help them with their work!
I believe that part of the reason why being in the classroom right now is to get us comfortable with being in front of kids and teaching them. At first, I was very uncomfortable and just kind of watched the teacher interact with the students, but I finally got comfortable enough to walk around, interact with and develop relationships with the kids. This past week, I’ve actually gotten to proctor a test and now I’m checking off their work and helping them with every assignment I’m there for! This is definitely one of the best reasons for coming to NNU: you grow spiritually and gain new friendships that will last a lifetime, but the school also totally prepares you academically!
Something that everyone says is that college is full of new experiences…and they’re totally right when they say that. One of the things I did for the very first time recently was go to my very first track meet!
One of my friends and I went to support my friend Caitlin in one of her competitions and it was so much fun! I’d never watched Track and Field before, so I honestly didn’t know what to expect. But I had so much fun watching my friends compete in all of the different events! And especially watching Caitlin PR by one foot shot put!!
Here’s a shout-out to my parents for the amazing spring break!
So this might be a liiiiittle bit delayed…but I actually just got back from spring break a week ago! The Professors here at Northwest Nazarene University are all so amazing—they each cleared me for an extra week of spring break so I could spend some extra time with my family in Florida!
Not that I’m suggesting this. As fun as it was, I’m stressing out completely over how much I missed in just that one week.
But as a little bit of background: my family owns a little bit of property with Disney, so we usually spend about 3-4 weeks in either Disneyland or Disneyworld every year. So my mom, dad, and baby sister all went down to Florida about a week before me, and then I got to meet them for an absolutely amazing time!
We stayed in the Kidani at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, so the view outside my bedroom window was filled with giraffes, zebras, and the occasional ostrich. We went to Harry Potter Land in Universal Studios, and spent tons of time in Disney’s parks.
So thank you, thank you to my family, my professors and everyone that allowed me to do this! <3
This is my best friend, and she’s beautiful.
And she also came to visit me this Easter Break! You could almost hear a sigh of relief when Thursday afternoon rolled around, and classes were let out for a glorious four-day weekend. From Friday to Monday, we were free…free of classes, tests, and studying. Mostly. This is college, after all!
So instead of going home for Easter weekend, I stayed on campus. I’ve got to say: staying on campus for my first-ever holiday was pretty different. Usually I wake up every Easter morning to open Easter baskets with my little sister and look for the dyed eggs, followed with the Sunrise Service at the Glacier. But not this year.
I was pretty upset about not going home for the weekend at first, I’ll admit. But it was made so, so much better when I got a call from my best friend! Heather’s parents flew her to visit me for our long weekend! We had so much fun, from going to get frozen yogurt to almost getting new piercings, from watching scary movies and baking cookies, and just hanging out! My Easter was officially made between being able to see my bestest bro from home and then the care packages my family sent our way! So my first holiday without my family wasn’t a total bust after all. :)
Winter in Idaho is finally over.
I never really thought about the weather when I decided to come to Idaho for school. I mean, I live in Alaska. You can basically count on the cold and rain every day of your life. So it was pretty funny for me to come to Idaho and deal with the ever-changing weather here.
Possibly you won’t understand this post. But my point is…whenever there’s sun in Juneau—whenever we might get that lucky—you treasure the day, because you just know it’s going to be all cold and wet the next day. So coming here to Nampa, I was so excited to wake up to the sun every day! However, one of the most-said phrases here seems to be, “if you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes.”
And how true that is. The transition from wintertime to springtime has been so weird! One day it was in the high 60’s, and the next? The next day it snowed. And back to the heat again. I still can’t wrap my brain around having sun every day, let alone this constant back and forth!
But alas, spring is finally here! The tulips are popping out of the ground, the sun is shining, and one can here the birds singing outside in the morning. It’s times like these when I am so thankful that I am at Northwest Nazarene University—even if the weather can be pretty unique at times.
Black Tie!
This event happens annually at Northwest Nazarene University, and it’s sort of like the college version of prom…except for we didn’t dance at all (because we are Nazarene).
My date, James, asked me by having one of my close friends give me a box containing some pictures, a black tie, and a question. Of course, I had to say yes in a creative way as well! My friends and I sent him on a scavenger hunt all around campus, only to lead him back to the dorms where I was waiting!
So on Friday night, we all dressed up and headed to Boise for dinner in the Linen Building. Afterwards we walked around downtown and took pictures in the Capitol Building, followed by Taco Bell and a midnight movie—all still in our prom-worth clothing.
This here is a picture of my friend Caitlin and I on one of the fountains in downtown Boise. Unfortunately, beyond a professional photo that we haven’t gotten a copy of yet, we totally forgot to get a picture of just my date and I! But I’m really, really glad that he asked me and I had so much fun!
If you guys couldn’t already tell, I’m super close with my family. I grew up half a block away from my grandparents’ home, so I spent a ton of time over there. I even have my own bedroom in their house! Leaving my family and friends in Alaska to come here to Northwest Nazarene University was probably one of the hardest things I have ever done.
I’m super excited for spring break, because I get to go to Florida with my mom and dad, but that means I don’t get to go home. So I was on the phone with my nana, and she asked me what I was doing the following weekend!
Long story short, my nana and grampy both came down to Idaho to see me for a few days! I am so thankful that they were able to do this, because I’ve been pretty homesick lately. I had a ton of fun with both of them, and it’s just what I needed to get me through until May!
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