Soooo college!

Hi y'all!
I am sitting here in my EMPTY room waiting for my parents to get here. I cannot believe that my freshman year of college is over! It is sooo crazy! It has been such a great year and I have met so many great friends and had many many many funny and good memories. I will definitely miss all of my Dayton besties and seeing them 95037 times a day. But on that sad note, it is officially SUMMER!!!! No more loads of homework, tests, finals, papers or projects! Yayayaa!

What I learned from my freshman year (in a very brief nutshell)..
1) Jungle juice is lethal! Chugging it at a frat party is the farthest thing from a good idea, I learned that the bad way!
2) Keeping up with all of the homework definitely pays off in the end. It also is VERY beneficial to go talk to your professors, as scary as they may be, they do care and will remember you came to talk to them.
3) St.Patrick's Day is the best day of year.
4) Make an effort to get to know all of the people in your classes so you have a study buddy!
5) Enjoy your weekends and have fun! We deserve it!
6) Joining a sorority really does make your college experience even better. I am so glad that I rushed and love being part of ZTA and having a whole new family of sisters!
7) Most important thing - Realize that you will change. It is inevitable and part of being in college. I feel like I grew up soo much this year and although I changed/matured, I am definitely still my Lilly loving,girly self and am so glad I have learned everything I did this year.

Can't wait to get home! More later, wishing y'all good luck on your finals and end of the year festivities!
xx, M

Beauuuutiful welcome home

Happy Monday y'all!

I am "home"/back to school! Back to the bussle of homework, sorority activities, and friends. Although I was sad to leave my parents and the comfort of my own bedroom and bathroom, I am so happy to be back. It kind of takes being away to make you realize how much you love something. My first day back started off wonderfully because it is sunny and warm here today! It was the first day in monnnthes that I woke up and actually did not feel super tired and wanted to get up. It is absolutely gorg here today, sunny and almost 60! I traded in my North Face fleece for my favorite Lilly sweatshirt instead! Brought out the topsiders and sunnies too! With only 5 more weekends of school (can you BEELIEVE that?!) I'm ready to capture the moments I love soo dearly and enjoy being with my friends! Oh what a beautiful day :)
Hope y'all are having good Mondays!
xx, M

I'm Back!

Hey y'all!
I am so sorry I have not been very diligent with my blogging lately. I have been super busy! Things have really picked up and I have had quite a bit of homework and lots of studying\papers. I really like UD though, everyone is so terribly friendly and nice! Things did get really hard right after fall break though. That was the first time I got super stressed and called my mom a few times in tears. She was super supportive and got me through those tough two weeks. I definitely learned the importance of being assertive and talking to my professors and reaching out for help. Plus I reminded myself that I have only been in college for two months and it is quite different from high school. How are y'all doing so far? Have you had stressed out calls to Mom yet?
I have a really great new strategy though that has helped me budget my time. I write down all of the things I have to do in a day.. Physics homework, eat lunch, meet someone for dinner etc.. and give them each a certain amount of time. That allows me not to get wrapped up on just one assignment and allows me to get everything done. It is really helpful! And at the bottom of each day I write down something in my planner to look forward to or a positive thing. Y'all should try it out, it really has relieved a lot of my stress!



So weekends! Oh weekends, how I love them! The weekends are super fun. Lots of fun parties and things to do. Halloween has been the best weekend so far. It was so fun to see everyone dressed up and look totally different for the night. I definitely opted for a cute costume rather than a super trashy one. This past weekend the girls on my floor and I did Dance Marathon. It was so fun but so long! I am so tired today and my body is sore! We danced for 12 hours! Yes, 12 hours! I have made some super great friends too, one of which is super girly like us and loves everything pink too! Those are the big things going on with me lately.

I will try my hardest to be more diligent with blogging!
Have a great week!
xx, M

College student must-haves (University of Dayton edition!)

Hey y'all!
Happy Saturday! I am so happy it is finally the weekend! I stayed in last night and just relaxed after a very busy and tiring week. My roommate and my friend Emma and I watched Final Destination 3 and just as one of the characters was about to be killed, the fire alarm went off! It was so scary! I instantly jumped up and was so frightened! Scary movies are not my thing that's for sure. Today I don't have too much going on, I am going to work on my Religion readings and go work out. Then tonight we are going out! Yay!

So back to the post. Since I live on top of a mighty hill and spend a lot of my time walking to class, I play a game along the way. I call it the trend game. I pick a trend (think LL Bean totes) and count how many I see along the way. In high school, I would play it with my friends all of the time and we would count the UGGs, which were literally everywhere! So I thought that I would share with you some of the big trends I have seen\counted on campus..
We'll start off with our collegiate store of choice, J.Crew...

The perfect, summer cardigan that looks great with everything.

Critter flip flops, a college student's most comfortable shoe option!


The perfect option for those hot days when you want to look cute and comfortable.

On to the collegiate carryalls..


The ever stylish Vineyard Vines tote!

Longchamp in navy, pink, or black.

The classic LL Bean backpack (which has worked great so far!)

Footwear

Jack Rodgers

Vineyard Vine flip flops

Sperry Topsiders, a favorite of both boys and girls around campus.

Vera Bradley, a must-have!



Enjoy your day!
xx, M

First few days

Hey y'all!
Sorry I have totally neglected y'all for the past few days. I have been SO busy! My family and I left with our car super packed on Thursday for Dayton and all arrived in one piece. We had all of Friday to walk around campus and see more of the town which was nice and made me less nervous about things. We also went out to dinner with my roomie and her family which was great. Saturday was move-in day and a total whirlwind. We left our hotel around 645AM and were busy practically all day and night. Even though it took quite a while to unpack everything our room looks darling. Sunday we had mass and then I went out to lunch with my parents and said goodbye. It was hard saying goodbye but I know that I'll talk to them all of the time. Sunday was a lot of ice breakers (don't you just hate those after a while?). I met a few other girls which was nice.It is kind of awkward though but I'm sure that will all change once we all get used to everything. Classes start Wednesday so I'm sure I'll meet more people then. I will try to do a dorm room picture soon!

Hope y'all had great weekends!
xx, Melissa

"It's not goodbye, it's see you later..."

Hi everyone,
I hope you are all having great weekends. Today is my last day of work so I am quite excited! I will have all of Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday to pack and get all of my last things together. It sure is a lot of stuff to pack. My mom and I packed pretty much all of the things we had bought like all of the toiletries, school supplies, and all of my folded clothes. I am planning on only bringing some summer stuff and the start of my fall clothes. My parents will be back up at the end of September so it's silly to lug all of the stuff when they can just bring it when they come later in the month. It's really starting to hit me now! I only have 4 more days until I am officially a grown-up college student! That's such a crazy thought!

My first friend left today for school. Collegiate C said her goodbyes yesterday and headed out today. We spent her last day at the beach which was nice and then went back to her house and had a delicious dinner. It was a great thing to do before we all started to leave. It's definitely a little bit sad saying goodbye to all of my best friends since so much will change once we get to school and make entirely different friends. I am excited to see how everyone changes and to go and visit them at their schools.

My backpack arrived on Thursday! It seems like it will be the perfect size and fits my laptop perfectly. I think my mom and I are going to go shopping this week to get a few last minute things. I got the new LL Bean catalog and am eyeing the darling pink and green raincoat. It will be just perfect for rainy Ohio in the Fall. I also want a pair of navy Keds. I have a pair of red ones but they got all icky inside from wearing them so often so I may try to pick up a navy pair.

Have a great Sunday!
xx,M

Question and answer time!

Hi girls!

Sorry for my lack of posts lately, I have been really busy with getting ready for school ( I leave in just one WEEK!). I cannot believe I leave in only a week! I feel like the summer as truly flown by! I am so glad I started my blog this summer and so thankful to all of you wonderful readers. It always brightens my day to read all of your lovely comments and to see I have a new follower. It's great to read your blogs and learn about new and creative things. Y'all are really wonderful! I had said in my post a few days ago that I would do a question and answer post, so here it is!

What college will you be attending this fall?
I will be going to University of Dayton in Dayton,Ohio. It is about five hours from my town so not too terribly far. As you already know, I am very excited!

What will you be studying in college?
My major is English Education. I plan on being a middle or high school English teacher. My mother is a teacher and I see just how extremely rewarding it is to make such a difference in a child's life.

What kind of music do you listen to?
Well as y'all know, I really like indie bands like Delta Spirit, Andrew Bird, Ben Folds, and Vampire Weekend but I also like all kinds of music. I like to listen to Frank Sinatra (just like Summer Wind!), Beyonce and Black Eyed Peas when working out, Coldplay, Kanye West and I love all of the OC Mix CDS.

What are your guilty pleasures?
Oh goodness, well I am TOTAL sucker for bad reality television. I DVR all of my favorites including NYC Prep, Real Housewives, Toddlers and Tiaras (it's so addicting!), and all of the bad MTV shows. Reality television is enticing!

What is your favorite store?
I would have to say my favorite store would probably be J.Crew. Most of my clothes is from J.Crew and their clothes seem to fit me the best. I love when the catalogs come and looking at them over and over again for new styling ideas. I also really like The Gap and Ann Taylor Loft. Most recently I have gotten into the LL Bean craze and just ordered a bunch of clothes for college. I sadly have never gone to a Lilly store! Can you believe that? There's only one in IL and it's very far away so all of the Lilly things I have I have gotten at either Ross or online.

What's your favorite item of clothing?
I guess I don't have one favorite item but a few that I think I will hang onto forever. My J.Crew cashmere monogrammed sweater I got for Christmas that I wear to pieces would definitely be a favorite of mine. I am a big fan of dresses and seem to buy one every time I go shopping. I also love capri's, I have them mostly every color and wear them quite often. I think they are very feminine and always look so cute.

Are you planning on rushing a sorority?
I am planning on rushing. At my school, you do not rush until second semester so I will have plenty of time to get acclimated and find which sorority fits me the best. I am hoping there is a Kappa Kappa Gamma on campus!

What is your favorite television show?
My favorite television show would definitely be Gossip Girl. I just love Blair, she is so fabulous and I also really love Chuck Bass. Blair's style is impeccable and I love all of her bows and headbands.

Do you have a boyfriend?
I do not have a boyfriend. I did not have a boyfriend all of high school actually. The boys that I went to high school with were never my type and were always very immature and into the same kind of girl. I am hoping that the boys in college will be different and I will be able to find my kind of boy. I like preppy boys, not a surpise, and boys that are nice of coarse and have good morals and get along with many types of people.

What is something you are proud of?
Well of coarse I am very proud of myself for getting into a good college. I am also proud of myself for becoming a lot braver and less square. Something my friends and I were proud of this past school year was being voted "Best Dressed" in our school's yearbook for our Blair Waldorf style. We all just about died when we found out that we all got it and it was because of our Blair style! It was very exciting!

How did you get the idea to start blogging?
I had read blogs for quite awhile before I got the idea to start my own. I used to read the Teen Vogue website and came across the blog section and that is where I first found out about blogs. I then starting reading Teen Fashionista and somehow came across Hopsy's blog. I fell in love with all of her Lilly's and her positive and creative take on life. I found many others that I loved along the way and after graduating high school decided to take the plunge and start College Belle!

I hope you learned a little something about me! Have a lovely night, only a few more days until the weekend!

xx, M

Busy busy busy

Oh goodness girls, sorry I have been so out of the loop these past days. I have been busy working and running around town.
Since I am going to be a freshmen at Dayton in the fall, I am busy preparing. I am getting quite anxious! I recently found out who my roommate was and she seems to be perfect. She is from Ohio and seems really nice. And guess what? She loves PINK AND GREEN and her favorite place to shop is J.Crew! It is a match made in roommate heaven! I am so relieved that I seemed to have gotten a really good roomie. We have decided on a pink and green color scheme so I'm sure our room will look quite darling and preppy. Have y'all had good roommates and college experiences?
Have a lovely night,
xoxo M

PS: I will be back with a longer post tomorrow, promise!