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 

Turning Twenty

I have always loved birthdays; they are a fairly big deal in my house. When I was younger it was always so fun to have a fall birthday because that meant I was able to celebrate in class with cupcakes! October is my favorite month, partly because of my birthday and Halloween candy (candy corn – yum!) and partly because the weather is always so perfect. Crisp cool air and the leaves beginning to change, it is my favorite time of the year.

{Delicious cake from Momofuku Milk Bar}

On Sunday, I turned 20… I know, ancient, right?! ;) I have to say, I did approach this year with some hesitation.  When I was little I couldn’t wait to be a teenager, it was all I talked about. Now that my teen years are officially over it is very bittersweet.  I am happy to be moving on to bigger and better things – I hear your twenties are the best years. But I also feel like I am leaving my childhood behind which is terrifying.  It’s easy to get freaked out by a birthday and worry that you’re not doing enough, or doing too much, or growing up too fast, or not growing up fast enough.  Pretty soon all you’re thinking about on a day devoted to you is how much you want the day to end.  After much thought, and a mild freak out over a possible grey hair, I came to the realization that birthdays – no matter the year – are honestly great.  I have never felt so loved and appreciated as I did on Sunday when I received phone calls, text messages, and Facebook posts from friends all over the country. From people I saw that day, to people I haven’t seen in years, with every post and comment I grew more and more excited to turn 20. My friends helped make my weekend incredible – taking me out, enjoying brunch with me, and giving me the most thoughtful gifts that were so perfect and sweet. Looking back, I think I can safely say this has been my best birthday yet. I am excited to see what my 20’s have in store and I am looking forward to continuing this journey with such incredible people by my side!  

{Ringing in my 20's with my favorite girls by my side - and brunch, of course!}

{Looks like 20 isn't so bad after all}

♥ Caro

Sorority Secrets: Bid Day

{The theme was Pi Phi Phest ~ hence the flower crowns}

Recently I had Bid Day for my sorority! For those of you who aren’t familiar with sorority lingo, Bid Day is the last day of sorority recruitment when girls who have been accepted into an organization get an official Bid to join a chapter.  It’s a mutual selection process that typically lasts a week, or 4 rounds. Through out this process potential new members meet with each sorority in rounds to talk to the sisters and learn more about the sororities.  Each night choices get narrowed down and you go to fewer sororities for longer periods of time (in order to allow for deeper conversations!) After a long recruitment process I am excited to welcome the new members home to Pi Beta Phi! We were very lucky and had a beautiful day in the park for this special day. My Bid Day was a bit different, the way the schedule fell it was at night and it happened to be in our sorority house, as opposed to outside.  It was a great night but I was happy to have this year’s celebration in an area with more space – especially since we have 54 new girls! I know based on Southern sorority standards this isn’t much, but for my school and chapter it’s huge! I was so excited on my Bid Day to get my top choice sorority and I remember being thrilled to see the familiar faces of the sisters I had spoken to during recruitment.  This year, being on the other side of recruitment, I was so happy to welcome the girls I spoke to throughout the week and on Preference Night with a hug and a halo! It is such an exciting time for everyone.  I know that joining Pi Phi is one of the best decisions I have ever made and I have a feeling our new girls will feel the same.  I am happy to be apart of such an amazing sisterhood and I am SO excited to have more girls in our incredible chapter! 

{Pi Beta Phi}

{Bid Day isn't complete without cute crafts}

{Me, Emily, and Bailey}

{YCP}

{Roomies take recruitment}

♥ Caro