Snow Day

"Snowverated" is the word of the day this morning in New York City.  After all of the preparation and worried texts from my parents, I woke up to freshly plowed streets and clear sidewalks.  The 2 feet of snow we were supposed to be covered in was, on my end, only about 5 inches.  With school called off and most of the places in my neighborhood closed, this day is just a continuation of the break that was supposed to end yesterday.  I got back to the city Saturday and was happily reunited with friends and my favorite city.  New York said "Welcome home!" with a lovely blizzard and my winter break is now the never-ending vacation.  My school cancelled classes yesterday afternoon when the storm was at its peak; the prediction looked horrible and I was glad we weren't going to take any chances.  Last year I was just told to trek safely to class in the snow storm that covered Washington Square Park with nearly a foot of accumulation.  This snow day is NOTHING compared to the tundra I had to walk through last year.  On the bright side, my school can't send an email retracting their previous decision to cancel all classes, I think if they could they definitely would. 

I am excited to stay in my pajamas all day and catch up on some reading - I am halfway through We Were Liars by E. Lockhart for my sorority book club and so far it's a good story, and an easy read! My roommates and I have thrilling plans to drink lots of hot chocolate and watch too much "Dance Moms". A snow day is the perfect excuse to do nothing, despite a lack of snow, I'm happy for a reason to stay home all day and make fun of the blizzard that never came. 

{My view of the blizzard, Juno}

♥ Caro

NYC Eats: Gemma at the Bowery Hotel

Nestled on the corner of Bowery and 3rd street, Gemma is the quaint restaurant connected to The Bowery Hotel.  With delicious food and a warm, rustic feel it was the perfect place to have brunch with some of my Pi Phi family.  Meeting on a cold and rainy New York morning, I was immediately impressed with the location.  Candles and white painted brick stand in contrast to the dark wooden bar and exposed ceiling beams.  Interesting light fixtures and mix-matched plates brought out the contemporary hipster feel that the Lower East Side favors.  

Not only was the food delicious, but it was also reasonably priced.  As a college student, I am always excited to find places with food that feels indulgent - without breaking the bank.  I ordered the baked eggs, avocado, and prosciutto, a meal served in a skillet, the three items were cooked in a yummy tomato sauce that was great on toast too.  Our table ordered the pastry basket to share, a little treat to ourselves on the rainy Saturday morning.  Delicious, warm buttery and chocolate infused croissants, sweet muffins, and other mouth-watering carbs were piled into the basket.  I was impressed by everything I tried and we all left the restaurant full and happy.  I can't think of anything better than being with good friends and sharing good food.  I loved having brunch at Gemma and I am excited to go back sometime soon! 

♥ Caro

Jumping Into 2015

Happy 2015! I can't believe it is a new year already, I blinked and 2014 was over - it's going to take me months to get used to writing 2015 on things ;) I started to look back and reflect on the year I've had, 2014 has been an incredible year and I have so much to be excited and thankful for.  2014 was a year of firsts, a year of discovery and growth, a year of recovery and strength. I have been tested in ways I did not know possible and I have come out stronger and ready to take on 2015 and all it may bring.  

I have been recovering over the last week from back surgery I had the day after Christmas - I know, crazy right?! It is still pretty insane to me too.  It was nothing too major and waking up pain-free after the surgery made it so worth it.  I struggled for 8 months with intense pain from 2 herniated disks in my back and I am so thankful that it is finally behind me.    

Taking things easy and letting myself heal has given me a lot of time to think, in between binge watching Gilmore Girls and The Office.  2014 was not only a great year but it was also one of the most challenging years I think I have ever had, and if I am being honest I did not realize how difficult it was until I took a step back.  It was a year that made me grow and helped mold me into the person I am becoming.  I had great moments and I had some very low moments but I believe I can learn from every single one of them. Life is all about change and growth, it is amazing to think about where I am now compared to just a few years ago.  I am so lucky to have an incredible support system behind me every step of the way.  And lucky to have the faith and strength necessary at times to take a deep breath and keep moving.  

I know that 2015 will be amazing! Every moment may not be perfect but it's the imperfections that make life what it is.  Happy New Year to all of you - I can't wait to see where this next year takes us! 

♥ Caro

And A Happy New Year...

Every year, as Christmas comes to a close and the latest, greatest year approaches, I feel nostalgic (as I assume most people do) and I can't believe how fast the years fly by.  At the risk of sounding like the great-aunt you tried to avoid over the holidays, life moves so fast and as much as we want time to stop and take a chill-pill, it never seems to get the memo.  To most, New Years is an overrated and over-hyped holiday, full of awkward interactions, drunken mistakes, and the dreaded midnight kiss.  I never loved the holiday until a few years ago when my family and several close friends decided to get together to ring in the year with a party at the lake.  My very best friends from home combined with their families and a few other friends made for a night full of good food, fireworks, s'mores, and LOTS of dancing.  All of the girls grew up dancing together at the local studio so dance was always a requirement.  My brother was the only boy at the party until a few years ago - this year we even have a fiancé to join in the fun! I love spending time with everyone, these are the people I have known for years, who know me better than I know myself, and are consistently there for me no matter what.   Over the years the conversations have evolved from high school gossip to college decisions to real world jobs and relationships and other scary adult things.  I can't imagine a better way to ring in the new year than with people I love.  I know typically New Years is designed for drunken dancing at a strange club, desperately seeking the perfect midnight kiss - but I have to say, over the years I have become partial to a semi-quiet New Years by the water with my family and friends.  

Cheers to a wonderful New Year full of as much love, happiness, and fun as the last! 

♥ Caro

Halloweekend

Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. You get to dress up in a fun costume and eat guilt-free candy, how could you hate it?! When I was younger Halloween was all about the Trick-or-Treating and finding the best costume possible.  I can remember thinking about my costume options for weeks and wracking my brain in the local Party City trying to chose between a pretty vampire or a pretty witch *I never wanted to be scary on Halloween* This holiday is great in college because you never have just one night. It becomes Halloweekend, and gives us "old folk" a chance to run around in costume without too much judgment.  Basically, when you grow up, Halloween changes from being all about Trick-or-Treating to all about how many Instagram pictures you can take or how sexy you can make a Disney character.  The toughest part about Halloweekend is that you now need 3 costumes instead of one.  This year on Wednesday I got this red dress at Express that I am obsessed with - it’s so pretty and flattering! I decided to dress up as a devil on Thursday night (soooo creative, right?) and, instead of letting a great dress go to waste on a good weekend, Friday night I scrounged up a crown and was the Queen of Hearts.  All of these outfits were last minute and, while I would like to pretend I am creative and can plan far in advance, sometimes it’s easier to just look cute and throw on a headband! Overall Halloweekend 2k14 has been a successful one! We will see if I can squeeze another costume out of my red dress, but maybe tonight will be a Gilmore Girls night in – with half priced candy corn, of course! 

{Baby Caroline as a bunny - ready for some candy!}

♥ Caro

Sorority Secrets: "Phamily"

This post is a long one but I think it will be helpful! I realize that some of y’all may not be aware of sororities or may be confused as to how they work.  Over the weekend I became a “Big sister” in my sorority but before I write a post about that I wanted to give a little background about how Big/Little relationships work!

{Part of the Yacht Club Pham - we are actually missing a few, crazy right?!}

In every sorority, at least that I know of, when you join you are given a “Family” or as we like to call them in Pi Beta Phi, “Phamilies” ;) Some organizations assign you a family on Bid Day (the day you receive an invitation to join the sorority) others, like my organization, wait and allow the assignment to be a mutual selection process.  You go on “girl dates” and find a handful of girls you are compatible with, that you would want to hang out with and, in my case, feel comfortable texting in the middle of the night with questions. You get a “Big sister” and become their “Little sister”  - the Pham comes into play when you meet your “Great-Grand Big” and so on.  When I got my Big, Laura, I was welcomed into the greatest (and biggest) Pham! Every Pham in our sorority has a silly name, ours is the Yacht Club Pham (or YCP) the names were selected by the founding members of the phamily and have lasted for generations.

{My Great-Grand Big, Great-Great Grandbig and Big carry me through initiation}

To someone who is not in a sorority I can see how this would be EXTREMELY confusing, it’s a weird concept when you really think about it, but one that has been my favorite aspect of Pi Phi.  When I became a Little, I also became a Twin – which means my Big took two Littles instead of just one.  Callan, my Twin, is my opposite and, also, my other half.  We did not know each other well when we became Twins and the paring has worked out beautifully! Laura, our Big, and Caroline, our Grand-Big both went abroad last semester, only a few months after we had been placed in their Pham.  We stayed in touch through social media and Google Hangout (the best for large groups!) But Callan and I were really able to bond as we went out together, got to know each other and our New Member class, and navigated the rituals and traditions of Pi Phi.  Although we missed Laura and Caroline terribly, having them go abroad gave us an excuse to grow closer and, luckily, become the close friends we are today.  Callan is one of my very best friends and I am so lucky to be a Twin, it is a relationship I did not know I needed and am so happy to have.

{Me and my beautiful Twin Callan}

On the other hand, occasionally Big/Little pairings don’t work out like this. One of my best friends from home had some issues with her Big pairing because the girl was much older than her, not as involved, and she felt torn because she became closer to the other older girls in the sorority, more so than she was to her Big.  Their relationship is great now, and they are definitely closer than they used to be.  But, although some pairings don’t work out as well, this doesn’t mean that the relationship is a hopeless case.  Having someone in the sorority as a mentor is such a blessing, a Big sister is there to help you when you have questions, hang out when you are bored, and check in when you have a stressful week.  Even if you can’t find this in your assigned pairing, it is important to have this in some way in the organization, and I have seen it’s not that difficult to find in the unfortunate case that the pairing does not play out well.

{With my Big, Grand-Big and Twin}

I am so lucky to have such an incredible Pham, and an amazing Big who loves me and cares about me! She is so supportive of everything I do and, because I do not have a big sister in real life, it is so nice to finally have the mentor/sister relationship I always wanted (minus the fighting since we aren’t actually related!) Over the weekend I got my Little sister and became a Big sister myself.  If I can be half the Big sister Laura is to me, I know that my Little will be loved, supported, and well guided through her initiation into Pi Beta Phi and all of her future endeavors. 

{Can't imagine Pi Phi without these two!}

♥  Caro