So close...

I have two papers to turn in tomorrow and then I will be done with my first semester as a grad student. How crazy is that? It seems like the semester has absolutely flown by! Of course, what finals week would be complete without some type of sickness...this semester, it's a raging cold :)

The final countdown:
10 days 'til I'm back in Wisconsin
2 weeks 'til Asher is back and the fam is reunited
2 weeks 'til Christmas celebrations start
Can't wait!!

Headed home

Tomorrow I will be heading back to Wisconsin for a long weekend. I am so so excited to spend time with family! This morning I daydreamed about Thanksgiving morning all the way to work. Fun fun :) I can't wait to hear Rachel's entertaining stories, cook with mom, hang out with dad and the rest of the Kennedy clan, and spend time in Madtown with Caitlyn!

Wishing you all a great holiday weekend. I hope you eat lots of delicious food, find some great deals and enjoy the time with friends and family. For those I won't get to see...I'll be thinking of you and can't wait to see you in December! Happy Thanksgiving, Tricia

Excitement for the weekend

Amy and her friend, Nicole, are driving down to Columbia for the weekend! We have no major plans, so it should be lots of fun showing them around and relaxing. We're also heading to Charlotte on Sunday to meet up with Erin Jensen Gray. Can't wait!

Evidence of how quickly I've acclimated: I told Amy it was going to be cold here this weekend (so she could pack accordingly). "Cold" is now 50 degrees and sunny. Stumbling across these gameday pictures was a nice reminder...

Late in the season in Wisconsin...

Late in the season in Carolina...

Have a great weekend!

Not-so-fun Study Break

So I spent my Sunday break at the Student Health Center this afternoon...a throwback to elementary school days because I have pink eye. In both eyes. Yuk. Eyedrops four times a day will be a challenge with my whole dislike of putting things in my eyes. Off to disinfect my apartment and wash my linens...any other suggestions??

1st Conference!

This past weekend was tough not being back home with the Kennedy clan, but luckily, I had plenty to keep me busy here in Columbia. I attended/worked my first conference sponsored by the National Resource Center! We sponsor six conferences each year, but the Center hasn't hosted a conference in Columbia in a number of years, so it was pretty great to be a part of one in our "hometown".

The conference this past weekend was the 15th National Conference on Students in Transition and we had about 275 attendees - college administrators, educators, student services and student affairs professionals. This conference focuses primarily on transitions outside the first year, like the sophomore year, transfer students and the senior year experience. Working the conference meant very long days followed by early nights before starting over again the next day. And, since we were in Columbia, it also meant seeing lots of familiar faces from the USC campus and my program -- which was very refreshing and energizing!

I was exhausted after the conference which makes it hard to imagine the Annual Conference in Orlando. It's our biggest one with close to 2000 participants and lasting 5 days! It will be an experience, that's for sure!

Favorite memory

Grandpa Kennedy passed away on Wednesday and many of you have already shared the thoughts and feelings we are all going through. He will be terribly missed but I can only imagine how happy these two are to be together again. Remembering how much they loved each other and their family is what I'll always hold on to.

Happy Election Day

It may be overcast and a bit rainy, but there are already long lines at the polls here in Columbia. Several of my coworkers waited in line over an hour having arrived at their polling locations right at 7 a.m. I hope you all have pleasant waits in line today!

There are actually no classes today at the university or local schools because of the election...it is a big, big day! (It would be nice to have the students around because I'm sure they would add to the energetic atmosphere) No students = a quiet campus and office = productivity (hopefully!). I'm putting in a few hours at work before heading to Charleston for the evening with some friends.

I hope you all enjoy the energy and excitement today brings...happy election day!!