ONE HOT MESS

Well folks, we have hit the end of the semester and my life is a series of laughing out loud. 

College is a weekly cycle of "I just need to get through this week and everything will be chill next week" and then it's next week and everything is not chill. I might have seen that quote on VSCO, but it is the MOST RELATABLE thing I have seen during this semester. 

This semester has been the semester from you know what and I am so ready to be done and home with my family. Now, I'm not trying to be all negative ... there have been a lot of great moments and I know I will remember this semester for the rest of my life. 

But y'all, I have been put into quarantine. As you know, I live with six girls and three of them tested positive for the COVID. I will be chilling with the COVIDs until the end of the dead week and then I pack up and head home for a month. I feel horrible my roommates had to go through the scary virus, but I have been healthy during this time and I tested negative. I just pray for a smooth recovery and we all make it healthy during these crazy times. 

This semester has been really rough for me. Whether I am worried about capstone, basketball, my weight, working out, the COVID, the election, my grades and literally so much more, I'm ready for a break and for it to all be over. I'm trying to see the positives of the current situation and me in quarantine. I'm thinking God wanted me to take a rest and listen to His word. 

I have been blessed with the most amazing people and I'm realizing they keep me going. My professor (well, some of them) are so helpful, my roommates are my best friends, Chris is my rock, my teammates and coaches bring me joy and my family helps me laugh. 

Something I didn't know happened with the COVID is how much it messes with your mental health, but damn, it really messes with your mental state. I think for the first 48 hours of quarantine, I cried the entire time. I was a hot mess, but we got through it because I have the best people. 

I'm super thankful the weather has been nice because I have been able to get outside and run. I am not able to go to basketball so I am back on my running and body workout routines, which I have honestly missed a lot. 

I hope everyone stays safe, healthy and doesn't catch the COVID. I know this blog was all over the place, but this semester was all over the place so it is very much on brand. I love blogging and I will keep blogging my life. 

Happy senior year. I love you all. 

XOXO, Em out. 

I MISS SPORTS

If you can't tell, I'm kinda over the COVID. It's crazy to me to think everything was different a year ago and it has been like this since March. I don't know about you guys, but Snapchat memories from a year ago really make me emotional. I was going to soccer and football games, I was able to walk around without a mask and I was allowed to hug all my friends without the fear of getting yelled at to socially distance. 

I haven't been to a sporting event since my basketball game. THAT'S UNREAL. My cousins, who are still in High School, have been able to continue playing football and volleyball and I would be able to watch the livestream, but I missed watching under the lights. 

With football, I got extremely lucky to go see my cousin play Friday. We live in Akron, but the game was in Tiffin. It was under an hour to get there and I got to see my aunt, uncle, grandma and my grandma's friend. I took Chris with me and my family was really excited to him as well. Even though there was thunderstorm and there was an hour rain delay, I was very happy to see my family and watch some football. 

My cousin is the quarterback and he was playing so well. He had to take a year off from football due to a torn shoulder, but he looked confident and a straight baller out on the field. I was so proud of him. The game was close and we were winning for the majority of the game, but the other team came back in the last quarter and we lost 21-28. 

Even though the game didn't end the way we wanted it to, I was able to see some a lot of High School people and it made me realize how much I miss home. I can't wait to go home soon and spend time with my family. I think I have been exhausted and drained from school, so I'm ready to go home for a little bit. 

I can't wait for the spring to come and I'm ready for all the ONU teams to start playing. Please COVID, go away. 

HOMECOMING

Keeping up with the year of lasts, I just participated in my last homecoming ever. I never knew the power of homecoming until a global pandemic hit and took a lot of the activities away. This year, I was nominated to be on homecoming court and it was a huge honor. 

All last week, people would tell me congratulations and it made me realize how amazing Northern students and faculty are and how lucky I am to call this place home. With the COVID craziness, homecoming looked a little different this year. There was no parade, no football game and no in-person events. This was really tough because I would have loved to be a part of the parade and have my family come up for the weekend, but I have to remember this year is different. 

I was partnered with a men's baseball player, so it was a little athlete couple and we got some great photos with Klondike. I was running straight from practice, but I had enough time to shower and put on my face! My roommate let me wear all her clothes and the sun was out. It was a beautiful day for homecoming. 

I know homecoming is a huge deal because normally alumni would come back home and we would all get together to celebrate. Even though it didn't happen this year, I am so thankful and grateful for this school because they try to make it normal and give students an experience they won't forget. 

Although I didn't win queen, I felt so honored to be a part of this court and it is definitely a highlight of my college experience. I can't wait to come back to ONU next year for homecoming and I'm hopeful everything, I mean EVERYTHING, will be back to normal.