Things That Make Me Happy — Summer!

The first week of my junior year of college is officially over, which I guess also means that summer is officially over. This summer had so many ups and downs, but there were a million moments that made me happy that I want to share with you!

The summer began with the end of the school year, and my older sister’s graduation from college. She did it in 3 years and graduated summa cum laude with a million accomplishments under her belt.

Everyone was so proud! After the ceremony, it’s tradition that graduates jump in the river that flows through campus–gown and all!

After her graduation, my best friend Corban finally graduated from high school!

His parents hosted a fun little party at his lake house to celebrate!
He’s a major vegan, so everything at the party was vegan! His guests loved all the fruit and the vegan hot dogs, and I loved eating everything!

Back home, I bought my first car! Like officially totally mine with my name on it and everything!

She’s so cute and spacious! Her name is Baby. 🙂

Corban and I took a really fun weekend camping trip. We made hot dogs, canoed, and just had a lot of fun!

Our tent was right on the river! We saw a snake slither into the water, which officially freaked us out for the entire trip.
It was really nice to just be outside and be together.

The rest of the summer was mostly a blur because I spent my time working as a camp counselor from 6am until 6pm every day. I had such an amazing time playing with and getting to know the kids. I’d go back to it in a heartbeat! Unfortunately, I wasn’t on my phone at camp, so I don’t have any good pictures!

I won counselor of the week my very first week, and had to wear a balloon crown the whole day to celebrate.

My boyfriend and I broke up. Not exactly the most joyful moment, but it was really for the best. The joyful moment that came from it was how incredibly sweet and understanding my friends were to me.

My roommates each separately got my cherry coke and brownies for when I got home from work. The sweetest, kindest people.

I spent some time with sweet friends, and I got to know my friend Emma a lot better, which brought a lot of joy to my heart.

We celebrated Emma’s birthday with a fun lunch at a nice river pub.
And celebrated my roommate’s and I’s last weekend in our apartment with a small pool party!

As soon as I moved out of my apartment (which was so, so, so sad), my family and I headed to Branson, Missouri for a family vacation. We met up with my aunt, uncle, cousin, and grandparents to stay in a lake resort!

We got to spend a lot of time just playing on the lake.
I absolutely loved spending time with my cousin and getting to know her as a little person. She has so much to say and so much to learn!

Once we got back from vacation, we moved my little sister into college (which seems impossible).

We helped her get her dorm all set up, and we’ve been visiting every weekend because no one is ready for the baby to be grownup.

My best friend, Megan, is spend the fall semester as a foreign exchange student in France. We’re all going to miss her so much, but I’m so excited for all the experiences she’s going to have.

Wesley and I drove all the way to Megan’s hometown to spend one night and say goodbye. Totally worth it.

And then finally… it was time for school to start. It’s my first year of nursing school, and after one week, I’ve already learned so much.

Our first day of lab was so exciting! I felt like I was actually becoming a nurse.

So, this summer has been an amazing time of joy. I’m going to share a few more moments of joy. Here’s to the past, which was wonderful, and the future, which will at least be new.

Thank you for being a part of my journey.