Hello Readers,

I hope everyone's April vacation was fun and relaxing, I know mine was. For once I didn’t have to worry about filling out applications, finding scholarships or figuring out where to go to school next year; it’s all done! So instead I just enjoyed some time with friends (well-deserved I might add!). To be honest, it still hasn’t sunk in that I am actually graduating next month. Even as I have been writing about it, it always seemed light years away. I am getting really excited now that we are preparing for graduation. We just received our senior activities schedule and there is just so much going on, I can’t wait! Each year we have watched the classes ahead of us get to participate in these end of high school rituals, and now it’s finally our turn!

I need to keep reminding myself to stay on track through all of this excitement. It is still possible for me to fail classes and not be able to graduate; and I don't want that to happen to me (or you!) So now more than ever is when I'm using all my tips on staying organized. I guess my best advice to my fellow graduating seniors is: enjoy the last few weeks of your senior year, you only graduate from high school once; take lots of pictures because you are going to want to remember this time in your life; but remember to stay on track and up-to-date with everything because you worked hard to get this far. Don't give up now!

Over the summer I am hoping to find a job to help pay for some of my college expenses. There is a lot of stuff that I need to buy for my dorm room, and I know that it will add up quickly!  I haven’t been told who I am going to room with yet, so I am going to wait to purchase the big ticket items, like a tv and mini-fridge because hopefully I will be able to split the cost of those things with my roommate.  I want to get a lot of bright colored things to add to my room to make it more exciting and fun!  All of the colleges that I visited tended to have boring colored walls, and I want my room to be more inviting and feel like home!  And while I know I don’t need a computer to go to college (they have computer labs that I can use), I would prefer to have my own with me, so I am hoping to save up enough money to buy one.  I must admit, I love shopping for all of the “beginning of the school year” type of stuff. It just makes it feel like a fresh start (which it is!)
I’m going to go start making a list of everything I will need for my room.  If you’re not sure what you can bring, check your college’s Residence Life page, (here is a sample from one local college). They outline all of things that you can and cannot have in your room.  Before you go out and spend your hard earned money on something, make sure that you will actually be able to enjoy it at school and not have to send it home!  That would be a bummer!

Until next time,
Meryssa