Spring Break Vacation

Freshman year of college, a group of friends and I took the Spring Break week to travel to Daytona Beach, Florida. We left Saturday mid-day, it took us 14 hours roughly while we did a straight shot to Florida. It was 7 in the morning the next day when we stopped at the local Waffle House to grab early breakfast. I traveled with my roommate and majority of the women's basketball team and I were friends. We then started the morning by hanging out with some members of the men's basketball team at Aquinas, then we would lounge around the pool, make memories, then hit the clubs at night. We paid $25 dollars for the entire week to go to different clubs through the town of Daytona. It was definitely an amazing time to meet new friends and make memories with them. I highly recommend going with friends on Spring Break while in college as making new experiences that you can share for a lifetime.

Looking that this last picture makes me wish I was on my way to Florida right now while Michigan is debating on what kind of weather it wants to have this week. I really hope that everyone has a safe and wonderful Spring Break! Enjoy!

My Hopes for 2018

Over Christmas Break, it was great to take a moment and appreciate all of the accomplishments that 2017 has given me. I am looking forward to what 2018 has to offer especially with soccer, college, my career, and with Simply Emily Elizabeth.  

Soccer: 
In 2018, it will be my final year at Aquinas to play soccer. As crazy as that sounds, my senior year came way to quick. I felt like I was just a freshman coming into preseason, these years have gone by so fast. Being apart of an amazing team which is full of friendships that will be treasured forever. In being off season (spring semester), I am hoping to continue in working hard leading into preseason with constantly working out besides having soccer practices. With a busy schedule, actually making time in the morning to go workout, drink a lot of water and make healthy decisions when it comes to food.

Career/Internship: 

I can't wait to share my experiences within my career field of Child Life Specialist. I have finished with volunteering at a local hospital in the Grand Rapids area, now I will be working on applying for my practicum in the spring of 2018. Then I will be applying for internships after my practicum in a different hospital around the Grand Rapids area or even in Michigan. Then after the internship, I will take a certification test to qualify within the field. I am continuing to collect children's books, small activities and toys for having my own collection for working in the field of child life. 

College: 
With my chaotic life as a student athlete, my years at Aquinas are coming to an end especially with school. I look forward to this spring semester and staying on top of my education. The end of my undergraduate career is quickly ending with only a few classes in my Child Life department. Into the next semester, I will be taking 14 credits (which is easy to manage). Then I will be doing summer classes at a local community college with three of my classes that is not offered in the summer semester at AQ, plus it is cheaper to take these classes there. I am hoping to graduate in December of 2018, with a Bachelors of Science in Psychology with a Child Life concentration. 

Blog: 

With coming into the new year, I am excited for more photo shoots around different towns and coffee shops. I'm excited to broaden my fashion sense within the newest trends of 2018. I have heard through common demand for more lifestyle blog posts which will be happening in 2018. I would love to collaborate with more bloggers in the world of blogging and also do fun activities with my social media accounts. I am hoping to join other social media sites soon. 

I can't wait to expand my knowledge in college, career, blog and soccer. I want to thank my readers for constantly encouraging me to do what I do. Thank you for being you. This year will bring tears, hope, the positive and negative aspects of life but I'm ready to take 2018 on! 

What is A Child Life Specialist?

With a lot of people has questioned on what my major is as I tell them "My major is Child Life concentration of a Psychology major". I thought I would spend this blog post to describe what exactly a Child Life Specialist career does, how I found out about this career and what my future plans within this career would be. My hope is to educate more people about this wonderful career path.

Well I found out about this career during the spring semester of my freshman year. I was at a crossroads between majors of being undecided and staying with Education. I was introduced to this wonderful major without a lick of knowledge that it even existed. I always knew that I wanted to work with children since I was younger since I was a nanny for years and helped around my mom's classroom. I did a ton of research of this career within a hospital setting and I fell in love. I thought "Where has this been all my life?" Aquinas did not have the specific major of Child Life as many colleges around the Grand Rapids area did not have the major either. I met with a career counselor at Aquinas to understand more about other options to pursue this career. She told me that she has heard rumors of the major of Child Life will come to Aquinas during the school year of 2018-2019 which would be my senior year. For the end of my sophomore year, I was a Psychology major and finishing the requirements for the major and moving quickly to core classes to take for the fall semester. Then the word got out that Child Life was coming to the fall semester at Aquinas, where I was super excited as the major came early than expected.

The profession of child life will continue to meet the needs of infants, children, youth, and families as they cope with the stress and uncertainty of illness, injury and treatment. The philosophy and practice of child life will be applicable to any healthcare setting and transferable to other community settings or situations in which the potential for infants, children and youth to cope, learn, and master is placed at risk. The services provided by child life professionals will be evidence-based, developmentally-appropriate interventions that include therapeutic play, preparation and education to  reduce fear, anxiety and pain. 

Now in my junior year, I am taking my Intro to Child Life class and every time I learn more ideas and concepts to becoming a better Child Life Specialist. I enjoy learning about how to handle certain situations around the hospital, working with a medical play dolls and the different concepts of theories. I have completed the necessary hours for volunteering in a hospital setting and now I am working on my application for practicums. My goal is to hopefully be accepted in a practicum by the spring semester of my senior year which will lead into my internship.

Homecoming With A Twist

Being now an alumni of Thornapple Kellogg, it always has became a tradition to relive memories around the old stopping grounds of Middleville. Homecoming is a big deal filled with a main street parade, tailgating with family and friends, and Friday night football. This year of football got a new coach with new expectations. A close mentor and teacher Jeff Dock took over the football team with hopes of changing the team dynamics. I admire him for always taking a challenge and going head strong into them. Since in Michigan, the first day of fall was a high of 90 degrees, shorts and a tank top became an essential for the heat. I wore a simple orange tank top/crop top that I bought from a local consignment store in Grand Rapids and white boardwalk pull-on shorts from J.Crew Factory. These shorts are very comfortable and versatile to wear. My tank top was long enough to not show off my stomach but covered the hemp of the shorts. I accessorized with a J.Crew Factory layered circle necklace, my Relic watch, a pearl bracelet and a couple Pandora rings.

Unfortunately Friday morning, in a simple soccer drill, I rolled over the ball, heard a "pop" and down I went clutching my ankle. As being a soccer player, my ankles have always been an issue but this time was different. My ankle swelled up like a baseball ball instantly as Matt (our trainer at Aquinas) quickly made me ice my ankle. I have honestly never seen my ankle get a large as it did. Matt quickly went back to the athletic training room (that was across campus) to grab a walking boot and crutches to stabilize the ankle and be my transportation for the next couple of days. Three days later, there is still swelling in my ankle but hopefully can get X-rays by today or within the week.


Homecoming at Aquinas was over this weekend as well. Since we don't have a football team, many fellow alumni, current students and teachers come out to the soccer games on Saturday while enjoying the beer tent and other activities around campus. As I stated before the temperatures were near high 90's which meant on the turf was ten degrees hotter. Our game was originally suppose to be at noon but the heat index was low 100's so we had to make a quick decision to delay both the men's and women's games to later in the evening. Our game got delayed till five in the afternoon, when we arrived the field was still in the high 90's and we delayed it for thirty more minutes. We finally had our game and lost 1-0 to the third ranked team in the NAIA. It was difficult to sit on the sidelines but it was awesome to see other teammates step up to the plate when time was needed.

This homecoming was definitely one for the books as I have never hated crutches this much in my life. The ankle is still on the mend as there is still some swelling but I still may need X-rays. I hope everyone's upcoming week into October goes great!

AQWS Takes Chicago

First off, thank you for being patience about having no blog post for more than a week. College started last Monday (which was a great day), all of my classes have already been full go and I'm already doing assignments that will do for the following week which is crazy with 18 credits.
This weekend, Aquinas College Women's Soccer team took a weekend trip to Chicago for two back-to-back games. The weekend started with the team leaving early Monday morning with the three hour bus ride (along with a time change). We stopped for brunch at Panera Bread (where you can't go wrong). We played our first game against St. Francis (IL) where we tied 0-0 in double overtime. In the late afternoon, we had dinner at Olive Garden which was super yummy! It's fun to hang around the girls while not playing soccer. Saturday morning we traveled downtown Chicago to adventure in the city and be a "true tourist" (a phrase coming from our British coach). A couple girls and I went to the Navy Pier then to Millennium Park to see the giant "Bean". I can finally check off for seeing the "Bean" and it was probably the highlight of my weekend. Our second game was later that evening as I finally captured my first starting spot for my junior year. We won against St. Xavier 2-1. I got to see my family that spent the whole weekend in Chicago with me for about roughly ten minutes but they are my inspiration for playing college soccer.

Chicago was an amazing team bonding weekend, but also a victorious soccer weekend. Thank you again for being patience about the lacking blog posts, I promise that there are more on it's way.

Picking the Right College for You

While choosing the right college for you can be the most nerve wracking situation that a senior goes through as the process is long and hard. My college story is unlike anyone's. In October of my senior year, I had my dream already set with attending school at Olivet College to continue on playing soccer while the thought of studying Education (like my mom). During the week of my graduation in May, Olivet decided after many hard years within the hardship of the education system and low numbers in the classroom for Education major in the upcoming years, the college itself called it quits of the major all together. I was devastated with the news that my new major was dropped. I had to decide whether to say and possibly take my basic courses at Olivet or transfer to a new college before fall semester starts. Being absolutely clueless on what path to take or what would be considered the “right path”. My mom went to a bridal party of a family friend and ran into the Aquinas College Women’s Soccer assistant coach who told me to come check out the campus and the team. So in the middle of June, I took a college visit to AQ and found my home. I don't think that I would be happier anywhere else. I fell in love with the openness of the campus, how in a small range the buildings are and the freedom of not being home but still knowing that I can go home whenever I wanted to.

                                            Types of Colleges:

With my college process throughout high school, I had two list for what types of colleges that I would have wanted to attend. One list was if I wasn’t playing soccer and the other was of colleges that I would consider for playing soccer. The type of college that I wanted for being a traditional student would be a larger college and probably join a sorority. I would be probably be at Central Michigan University, studying a major that would be involved with children.

When deciding a college to play soccer for, it was completely different as I wanted a smaller college that would be more personable with my professors and coaches… I also wanted to have a life outside of soccer instead of it being a full time job while being at a Division 1 or 2 school. Being at a NAIA school, it’s not about traveling around to different states almost every weekend or during the week (of course, missing school) but more being local and traveling a couple of hours to play games. Typically we spend a weekend playing multiple games (conference or non-conference). This year we will be spending the first weekend of school and soccer in Chicago playing two teams (one on Friday and one on Saturday). It is a new change that will be happening this fall and I cannot wait to share with you on my adventures.

Ultimately, it is your decision whether what type of college you are wanting to attend. Take as many college tours as you want to get the experience of a small, medium, or large campus. Also, do a pro/cons list if you are unsure on the decision you are going to make. Do make sure that the college of your choice has your major or at least a route to be similar with your interest. As I am a Psychology Major with the Concentration of Child Life, my major of Child Life is slowing being organized to become its own title. Plus it is your life and your decision in the end (do not forget about that)!!

                                                 Class Sizes:

One things that I really enjoyed about Aquinas is the adaptability of the different sizes of the classrooms. With the ability to have smaller class sizes, I wanted to be personable with my professors whether than not just being a random person that a professor may not know. The class sizes are so different than being at a large university as my smallest class was eleven people and the largest class would be forty people.  Many of my classes are standard while spending two days in the classroom once a week, others have been half online and then days in the classrooms. Be open on the willingness to adventure out with your classes to experience which professor is a great one or a not so good one. There has been plenty of professors that I have experienced that were absolutely amazing, who helped me develop as a student and professor that I struggled in their class who also did not want help their students even visiting their office hours. With the topic of office hours, if your professors does have available office hours, GO TO THEM! I cannot stress it enough, if you do not understand material or have additional questions... GO! Professors love having students come to their office.

                                        Extracurricular Activities:

Find a college that will be able to make you happy in all situations within the social aspect. Whether you play IM sports (Intramural) such as soccer, basketball, or volleyball it will more or less keep you entertain and looking forward to in the week. At Aquinas, we have a convention called Saint Slam where all the clubs and organization basically recruit new members for their group. Of course, there is free food and tons of free items to take back home or to your dorm room. Also, dorm life is a lot of fun and probably one of my favorite memories while staying at Aquinas. I still keep in touch with my freshman roommate who is still one of my best friends, meeting her was a blessing!

I hope the beginning of school goes smoothly this next week or so (unless you started today)! Enjoy your last week of summer! Study hard and get your rest!

How I Organize My Lilly Agenda

As part of Simply Emily Elizabeth takes on year three of college, I thought it would be wonderful to show helpful tips on organizing a Lilly Pulitzer Agenda.

In high school, I never used a planner or agenda ever. I always thought that I could get by remembering certain due dates and times of events throughout the week. Which looking back now is absolutely crazy. I live by my Lilly Pulitzer agenda day in and day out.


                            Separating to-do's and schedules:
I have found this to be essential when organizing my agenda. I would write down my classes for the day or look at any assignments that were due or within a couple of days, then I would write down what I needed to do for those particular classes. I like to rewrite the upcoming week usually every Sunday right while I prepare for the week. Many times I will use Post It notes to write down my to do list for either the day or week. By the end of the week, there are tons of sticky notes around my agenda, reminding me what I need to complete for the week.

Using the Monthly View of the Calendar:

I never really used the monthly view for the past two years until now, when looking at the bigger picture for the due dates that are coming shortly. Also writing down birthdays, celebrations and schedules for soccer, work and personal events gives a great reminder throughout the upcoming weeks. Although I haven't written in anything August, I will surely begin write dates down for September. It will be easy to plan ahead accordingly with major test and projects for school.

                                              Color Coding:
To keep me organize I like to keep my classes to a certain PaperMate color pen. I am constantly coordinating colors with specific events and due dates. For example, for my summer course Human Anatomy and Physiology had two parts for there is a lecture three days a week and a lab twice a week. How I stay organized throughout my Lilly agenda is by color coordination towards the many different schedules that gets put into the agenda.
According to the following colors:
Dark Pink- Lecture
Lime Green- Lab
Black- Ellie (my sister) soccer games
Cobalt Blue- Joey's baseball schedule
Lilac Purple- Schedule for the Hospital
Black pen- Work Schedule at Uccellos
Neon Pink- Blog schedule
This helps me understanding what events are on each day. This planner becomes my life and a necessary utensil that I use within the school year. I seriously don't know how people don't write down test dates, deadlines for papers, or even homework assignments. With my class schedule, it is easy to identify by a glance what events are going on through the week.

I hope these simple tips on organizing your agenda helps. This fall will surely be a handful (with 18 credits) but nothing will compare being successfully organized with my Lilly agenda.

Must Needed School Supplies

1.  Binders/Binder Covers: At the beginning of my freshman year of college, I wanted some binder covers to decorate the boring looking binders. My binder covers have stayed in amazing shape throughout two years of college. I found this wonderful website with a full front and back cover of simple Lilly Pulitzer designs. Instead of paying major $$ for the covers, this website is free. All you do is download the PDF in Adobe Reader, change the monogram and then print on cardstock. With the size for the binders, I majority get the one inch ones but if I knew the class will have a lot of papers then I would purchase a two inch binder to give more flexible room for more papers. I prefer to use the color coding for each course (being a certain color) and then switch the binders at the end of each semester. Rather than buying brand new binders for each semester, it is easier to reuse plus it saves you money.

2.  Notebooks: Now everyone is different about notebooks, a lot of people like to have one five-subject ringed book, while others (like myself) prefer one notebook per course. For me, it helps with organizing notes between classes and not losing them. I usually like to pair a color notebook along with the same binder color (go figure). Recently, my mom has begun working with her Cricut to create monogram stickers (I’m trying to convince her of starting her own Etsy shop, but so far, no luck).  But in past years, I have seen people but stickers or monograms on their notebooks to give them more personality. I would love for this year to monogram my binders or notebooks.

3. Pencil/Pen Bag: For this a simple one zipper bag that I found at Target in the dollar section, it has held up many of the PaperMate colored pens (that will be later discussed in another blog post). I love to use these pens for writing down important dates and deadlines for school. I also like to keep one or two sharpies in my pouch along with a couple of pencils. A simple bag will keep your pens or pencils for the semester and keep them from the bottom of your backpack.

4.  Agendas/Planners: I have been obsessing this summer over my new 2017-2018 Lilly Pulitzer agenda. Mine is a large agenda in the Beach Loot pattern. I seriously cannot wait to begin writing in my brand new agenda. I will have an upcoming blog post about organizing an agenda or planner to be successful for the upcoming semesters. I often like to write down all course material deadlines in the specific color that I assigned when writing down the time frame of classes. Plus do not be afraid to personalize it with an adorable monogram on the cover.

5. Backpacks: In past years, I would have backpacks that do not stand to the power of multiple books with binders inside. At Christmas of my freshman year, I got a NorthFace backpack that can hold majority of my books and binders per day during the week (including my laptop). I kept with the classic black color as black goes with everything. With two main compartments, there is room for many little things along side two water bottle holders. At Aquinas, it is a very common backpack to have around campus.

I hope everyone has a great couple weeks before school and the craziness of fall begins. Soccer has been in full swing for the past two weeks, I love walking around Aquinas and seeing the new additions to the campus.

Daily Life of A Student Athete

People ask me "How do I have to manage being a student athlete?" During the fall, my schedule is completely crazy and full of soccer and school. Times get stressful when it seems like all due dates come together with barely any time left to finish them while having soccer games once a week then one on the weekend. In the fall, soccer become my full time job along with being a student.

I start the morning off with practice from 9-11am, then classes start at 1-4pm, along with finding time to eat and study turns to a long day. When the game during the week, especially away games can become stressful as the possibility of missing class becomes an issue. At Aquinas, our coaches always believe that school comes first as that was the reason we came to this school to further our education.

During season, I'm constantly staying in contact with my professors of my schedule for the week. Emailing back and forth of assignments that I may possibly miss if our bus time is during class. Professors are typically understanding of college athletes and their schedules but also hold us to a higher standard to complete papers, assignments, or to know the material that would be missed during lecture. Professors will respect you more when you continue to make the effort to communicate on your conflicts and questions.

I live by organizing my life into my Lilly Pulitzer agenda where I write down all the assignments, paper due dates, test dates, along with my soccer and work schedule. My agenda becomes my best friend especially at night when figuring out the next day. I don't know how some people can just remember what assignments are due when they don't write anything down.

As a commuter (I will be living at home for the year), I have tried to organize my schedule to only have classes on certain days to give the rest of the weekdays to catch up on homework. Also it will give my body take a break from the craziness.

If my body is beaten up or strained from game day or practice then I will often go visit our athletic trainer's room to do slight physical therapy, to get rolled out before and after practice, or to get taped on whatever muscle needs it (I have terrible ankles and had knee surgery December of 2015). Our athletic trainer for soccer knows many of the soccer girls really well as we basically live in the trainer's room.

Being a college athlete is a blessing as I met amazing women who have the same amount of passion to commit on playing college soccer. Playing a college sport has taught me life lessons of patience, commitment, and toughness (mentally and physically). I seriously don't know how we (student athletes) survive on most days. It's a miracle.