The Gateway to the Future

Ok, so I know I write alot of posts about dedication ceremonies and such around campus but I just find them so interesting! There are so many different reasons behind why each structure or statue was built.



This new structure is the Purdue University Arch. It's also known as "The Gateway to the Future Arch". It is located between the Neil Armstrong Hall of Engineering building and the Civil Engineering building near Stadium Avenue and like the Unfinished Block P sculpture, it was a part of the homecoming festivities last week having the dedication ceremony on Saturday October, 25th. The classes of 1958 and 1959 raised the money to build the arch which was around $500,000! That's half a million!! The arch consists of two 27-foot columns constructed of Indiana limestone which are crowned with brass lanterns with glass lenses and each lantern itself is 5 feet tall. As you can see in the picture, the arch spells out, in all capital letters, PURDUE UNIVERSITY and concrete pavers and landscaping decorate the ground beneath and around the gigantic arch. Not only did the class of '58 and '59 raise the half million dollars for the arch, they also raised around $150,000 for student scholarships to commemorate their 50th anniversary of the two classes graduation from Purdue. How awesome!

Your Right to Choose

As you all know (as it has been shoved down your throats for the last year) it is finally election time.  In one week from today American history will have been made and possibly changed forever. Tuesday is election day, and it is by far the most important/critical/controversial election we have seen in our short lives; and for most of us, the first we can actually voice our opinions in.  I'm not going to sit here and try to convince you who to vote for, because I believe I would be wasting my time... not many people can be persuaded this late in the game.  What I am going to insist on is that you actually GO VOTE!  

I know, I know, you are tired of hearing this, but it is probably one of the most important decisions you will make all year!  Our futures could be on the brink of changing forever, and how will you feel 20 years from now knowing that you did nothing to support the situation, or to fight it? For those of you who didn't register... shame, shame.  Do better next time, and stand up for what you believe in!  If you are having trouble deciding who you want to vote for or don't exactly know where each party stands on important issues, I encourage you to read up (this is a really good site with all the important information), and make a damn decision!  We only have one week here people, and I believe you should make the decision you feel is really best, and being educated on the subject is the only way you can really make that decision in confidence. 

If you are dreading the 4th because of the painfully long lines, fear not.  You can vote early at the Court House located in downtown Lafayette, right across the 26th/state street bridge.  Big stone building, you can't miss it.  All you have to bring is an Indiana driver's license or your Purdue student ID.  There was also early voting last week on campus in the Stewart Center that I'm sure you all heard about, so there should be no excuse for you not to have cast your ballot by the end of Tuesday!  

Whoever you choose, I beg you (and slightly demand) that you utilize your right as an American citizen, and go out there to make a difference for once!

More Than Just a Party

As most of you probably know, I am a part of the greek system here at Purdue. I'm not one of those people who go on and on about it all day, so please try not to roll your eyes or scoff while reading this particular post. Most people think that the greek system is just an excuse to go out and party all the time while completely disregarding schoolwork, employment, or any other kind of responsibility. This is a complete myth. Although we do like to have a good time, we actually take on a lot of projects and responsibility.

An example of this would be philanthropy. Just last weekend my sorority had what we like to call "Fuzzie Football." It is a flag football tournament that we put on each year in which any or all fraternities can participate. It includes a week of events such as Boiler Market night (tell the people at Boiler Market which house you are from and a certain percent of what you spend goes to our cause), sheet sigh contests, serenades (dances or skits we make up and go perform at all the fraternities who participate) and, of course, the actual tournament itself. Each fraternity that wishes to play and participate in the events during the week must pay a predetermined amount of money that we donate to Lafayette Group Homes for Children. It is a good way to raise money for a good cause while still having fun.

Of course we are not the only ones on campus with philanthropic events. A good thing too, considering we are required to do at least 3 external (not put on by us) philanthropies a semester. Other things we have participated in in the past are an adult size tricycle race, mechanical bull riding contests, powder puff football, and a watermelon bust. A lot of time and dedication are put into each of these events, and it's really fun to get out there and see what others are doing. I hope this gives some of you a more positive view of the greek system, even if that slight change is that not all of us are partying slackers.

The Block "P"

Who ever knew one single letter could stand for so much? The Block "P" has been a part of Purdue's history for more than one hundred years! Now there's a new sculpture to show it. The new Unfinished Block P is located in Academy Park just north of the Stewart Center, outside Hevilon and Weatherill Halls. The sculpture was intentionally left unfinished because it was designed to "symbolize the importance of lifelong learning and self-improvement" showing that even after we leave Purdue, we still grow and will never finish the learning process. The dedication, just last week, among many other homecoming events, unveiled the 8 foot sculpture.

The Block P firt became a part of Purdue tradition on the football field in 1907 thanks to the "All American" Marching Band. It is said that Purdues first Marching Band director, Paul Spotts Emrick, came up with the idea to stand all of the individual band members in the form of the letter "P". He came up with this idea from watching a flock of geese fly in a V formation and it is believed that this was the first time a marching band formed a letter on the football field.

Sculptors, Rick and Rita Hadley made the unfinished P statue to look like it had been carved out of stone. Rick and Rita started by making a clay model of the statue while members of the Iron Key worked on campus getting the necessary approval and raising money to fund the building of the sculpture.

"The Block P sculpture will serve as a reminder that even after you've left Purdue, the educational experience is never complete," said President France A. Córdova. "All students become lifelong Boilermakers and lifelong learners and should strive to always continue to learn and grow throughout their lives."

What's For Breakfast?

I can cleary recall my first real interaction with a Breakfast Clubber. I was a junior in high school and my family and I were tailgating with close family friends from home. My friend and her family had just moved from California, so my parents, both Purdue alums, and myself wanted to show them what Big Ten football is all about. Not to mention my favorite part, tailgating. While enjoying our grilled goodies and refreshments we were greeted by a rather large guy dress up in a Winnie the Poo costume that looked like it had been borrowed from his 6 year old sister. Our visitor went up to my gorgeous blonde friend and stuttered, "Christopher Robin is a piece of s**T!" Needless to say she did not apply here. Totally kidding. But as a junior in high school I was a little overwhelmed with this whole idea of waking up at 6 to go to the bars in a crazy costume. Now that I am a student at Purdue I love the crazy tradition! I didn't realize how long students have been "clubbin" before games. According to an article in the Exponent, the tradition of Breakfast Club has been around for 30 years!
Living in a sorority I get to see what a lot of my older sisters create to wear early Saturday mornings. I have seen everything from a box of crayons, to a bouquet of flowers, to the Purdue Cheerleading Squad! My so far favorite theme that my house participated in took place after the famous DG house fire. All of the older girls dressed up as fire fighters, and our football buddies dressed up as dalmations!
One thing I find really ammusing is the more and more alcohol consumed the more into character the breakfast clubber becomes. I once saw Shaggy give Scooby Doo a Scooby snack before going into the game. Or one time as I was exiting my house, three guys who looked like walked out of the Village People's YMCA, started directing traffic.
Even though it seems like mass chaos, there is something special about this tradition. For me it makes turning 21 even more exciting, so I can take part in these festivities. And with Halloween coming up I have gotten many great ideas!! Thank you Clubbers!

CityBust

Going along with my previous post about the vroom vroom waltz and Purdue transportation in general, I have decided to comment on the infamous CityBus.  As a freshman last year I lived in Hilltop Apartments.  Not my first choice, but I ended up really liking it.  The one downfall was that I was so far away from campus.  As many of you know (or may not know) Hilltop Apartments are located between Ross-Ade stadium and the Tower Acres.  The walk from Hilltop to to campus can take about 10 minutes, and can be even longer of a journey when there is a foot of snow outside and is impossible to trudge through quickly without falling down.  Citybus is usually pretty reliable way to get from the acres or hilltop to campus.  It's not the quickest way to get there, but it is by far the laziest.  In the warmer months it's not that bad of a walk to campus, but in the winter it is way beyond cold outside and the walk is completely unbearable.  

But you know what really grinds my gears?  When the temperature is -4753472348532 degrees outside, the ground is covered in snow, and the wind is blowing so hard you think for a minute you might be in the arctic... yet the bus is so "full" that it will not stop to pick you up.  So there you are, waiting in the freezing cold for at least ten minutes, and the acres bus flies past without even the slightest intention of stopping.  Then you have to start thinking about what you will do next.  Wait for the next bus? But who knows when another will show up.  And will the next one blow past also?  Should you start walking to class? But how long will it take? How many busses will pass you on the way there? As you can see, this becomes a vicious circle that can end in mental madness.  

We are lucky to have a campus with a public transportation system because I know a lot of colleges in the nation are not lucky enough to have one.  But at the same time it's very irritating when all you want to do is get to class warmly and safely and these series of unfortunate events keep happening to you.  I'm not saying not to ride the bus, I just want everyone to be aware of the winter hardships of Purdue!

King and Queen 2008

I am just curious about how many students even know how to vote for Homecoming king and queen? In high school Homecoming was the biggest week of the year! Everyone knew who was running for Homecoming and people were really excited about voting and then at the game finding out who would be Queen! Granted I know that my high school was a lot smaller than Purdue University, but I was shocked when I saw the numbers of voters this year compared to even just last year! I a recent article in the Exponent shows the drastic differences. One factor that may be contributing to the low numbers is no longer use of flyers. Purdue is trying to impliment a new system called "Get Involved" which serves as a way for students to contact and see what organizations at Purdue are doing. It is kind of like a Facebook in the sense that it is a way to see how students are connected. I think the concept is a good one, but I honestly think that flyers, even though they end up soggy when it rains, attract more students.
My sorority has a homecoming canidate again this year. We have all done a lot of work trying to get her name out there to be recognized. I think it would be a lot harder for those running who aren't connected in the Greek system. Not only did my house of 80 girls make tee shirts and bag tags, but we also serenaded (performed a little skit and dance) 20 fraternity houses one week night to introduce our canidate. Even with all of the efforts that we have put into this homecoming tradition, the overall campus involvement is shockingly low! How many of you even knew about voting? I hope that this tradition does not continue to spiral down ward. I remember being a little girl coming to football games with my parents and thinking that the Purdue Homecoming Queen was the coolest girl ever. I hope that that tradition can one day be carried out for even my child!

Cue the Lights!

Here at Pretty at Purdue we always talk about the cool, interesting or just plain pretty things at Purdue (duh!) but have you ever thought about what could really be improved? One thing, I think this campus desperately needs is more street lights! Although I do think Purdue is a fairly safe campus, things can still happen. I think I would feel even more safe walking around at night if it was lit up a bit more.
As I'm sure most of you are aware of, the majority of crime happens at night. More street lights would help with the crime and more than likely give every one more peace of mind.
Not only would more streetlights help with crime and things like that, it would also liven the place up! Everytime my friend and I walk past the Union at night she always mentions how pretty it would be if they put more lights around it so you could see the building at night too. I totally agree. There are alot of buildings that would look so awesome if there were lights around it or shining up at it.

Try the Dough

So I have gotten a lot of good feedback on my post about the Discount Den. I think that readers really responded to this post because this is a place that we all know and love. Even when I have friends or family from out of town come visit me at Purdue I love taking them to the Den because it rings tradition. Another place that does that for me is Bruno's. If you have never eaten at Bruno's I totally suggest it! There is usually a wait on the weekends but it is well worth the wait! When I was younger and would come to basketball and football games, my family would go eat at Bruno's afterwards. You will always find a crowd of well spirited fans there! Bruno's is a great family place, with a home like atmosphere and large pizzas! Delicious might I add! They are also famous for their Bruno dough, which comes with dipping sauces. I am totally making myself hungry right now! Bruno's is located at the Levee. There is more information on the website.

NEW LINK

Hello There! Sorry for some reason my link didn't work for the video in my previous post. I really love this video so I wanted to make sure the link works! Let me try again!!

Homework Break!

As a college student I have discovered that when attempting to do homework we are easily distracted and will often actually search for things on the web to waste our time on.  Rather than trying to focus on studying and academics (the reason we are actually here), we find things to fill every boring moment.  In my opinion the most popular sites people like to fiddle around on are facebook, bored.com, YouTube, myspace, and google.  I often get bored with my homework, log on to facebook, and look at random meaningless pictures for hours.  Knowing how excited I get when people give me a reason to be distracted or slack off, so I thought I would provide this little break for you guys too.

Although everyone loves YouTube, I'm not usually the kind of person who goes and watches things like this, but lately I have found something new that has really caught my interest... Bo Burnham.  You may have heard of him, but if you haven't here is the run-down.  He is an 18 year old guy from Boston who likes to make up songs with his guitar and keyboard.  They range from rapping to nice melodies and everything in between.  He sings a little bit about his life, but mostly he uses well thought out satire and word play to complete his tracks.  He has become famous because of his videos on YouTube and has even become so well known that you can now buy his music on iTunes.  In my opinion though, the songs just aren't the same if you can't see him actually performing and recording them like you can in the videos.  His most popular tracks are My Whole Family, Bo Fo Sho, and (my favorite) Cookout.  Some of the lines can be slightly offensive, but it's all supposed to be for fun.  If you are one who likes to start arguments and uproars about nothing, I would suggest that you not click on the links.  These are for people who are looking for a good laugh and maybe some quotable lines down the road.  

One of my friends introduced me to him and now I'm hooked.  Instead of going on facebook as often, now I will go watch Bo and not only waste my time slightly more productively, but I'm honestly entertained and don't feel like I lose thousands of brain cells when I watch it!   So when you are obviously procrastinating and looking for a good way out of homework, go check out Bo. I promise you won't be disappointed.

Pretty is Patriotic

Hello Readers! So I am going back a little bit on what I said I was going to blog about! But no worries if you enjoyed my sketches I will continue to put them up. Today I wanted to talk about something pretty and important... voting! It's that time for all of us who are old enough to take advantage of our rights as free citizens in the United States of America to stand up and vote. I know I totally just sounded like a political commercial, but everything I just said I really believe in. We are so privelegded to be able to have our voice be heard. Why wouldn't you vote? I actually am curious... Is it because people think their vote doesn't count? Is it because they don't know who to vote for? Is it because they dont' know how to register?

I feel very special that I go to a campus that cares a lot about the election. The past few weeks ago there was always someone out on the memorial mall with a clip board getting people registered. Just the other day I was walking through Stewart Center and there was a table set up right there for student to fill out absentee ballots. We are having this vital information handed right to us. SO please if you are registered... VOTE! But also be educated. Here is a little clip I found interesting! Please let me know what you think! (Just a little warning.. there is a little language.. but I think it does a great job of getting the point across)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UaRXvRwhOk

The Dating Scene

Being here, so far from home for some of us, without a car, often prevents us from going anywhere too far off campus and sometimes limits our options for non related college activities. Bummer, isn’t it? If you don’t go out and party all the time and aren’t in every extra-curricular activity offered here, it seems almost impossible to meet people! But let’s just say you do meet someone here, whether it be through those extra-curriculars or a party or just through a friend and you want to enjoy the other’s company without being interrupted by you roommate(s), where do you go? This is a question I’ve been asking myself because I have NO clue and I’d appreciate some help. I’d love to hear some feedback and see if you readers have any idea what would be a good couple of places for a date and some of what these places have to offer and possibly write about them in the future. It could be anywhere within walking distance or maybe a short bus ride. Thanks, readers!! =]

Help!

Dear Bloggers,
I am need of some help! I need input, questions, concerns, ideas! I have what they call, a writers block. Do you enjoy my blogs on my sketches? I love sharing my ideas and creative inspirations, but I want to also please the reader. As you can tell me and the other authors of this blog have kind of hit a road block. Even though there are endless pretty things at Purdue, I have come to a point where I can no longer search for them. The pretty things in life will come to you or stand out to you. I feel as though me writting about the pretty sculpture by my class is boring and unenthused. I myself find sculpture and art work to be pleasing and interesting, but I don't want to force that upon my readers. What one person may think is crap, another my find very beautiful. It's like the saying, "One man's trash, is another man's treasure." I hope that from this blog I can accomplish two things. One being, a better feeling that I am going in the right direction with my focus on fashion. I love fashion and my sketches but I want something you the readers can enjoy and be inspired from. I would even love feed back on ideas for sketches! Favorite, food, movies, cities, seasons, animals... you name it I need the inspiration! And the second thing I would like to accomplish goes back the quote about trash and treasure. I just would like to encourage my readers to think about what are their treasures. What pleases you? Visually, emmotionally? Just something to stimulate your brain. I guess my treasure would be found in fashion and in my designs! ... AH treasure.. I just thought about pirates.. maybe a new inpsiration?!

A Slightly Different Route

Can you believe it is already the middle of the semester? We are currently in week 7 and I feel like time is passing in a dead sprint. Getting this far in the semester, I have found myself in a bit of a predicament. The original "common interest" (of pretty or visually interesting things on Purdue's campus) that myself and the other members of my group first decided on has left me a little bored and quite at a loss to find things to talk about. Don't get me wrong, I had some fun with it at first, and really enjoy reading what the other members of the blog come up with to write. But now it seems like all the ideas I come up with are a little cliche. I am the kind of person who, when they get too bored or distracted, can be impossible to set back on track. So to keep this from happening I have decided to broaden my horizons a little. Instead of talking about things that are strictly "pretty at Purdue," I will also discuss general student life such as some of my (or other's) favorite places to eat, things you may get involved in, or other things that i find generally interesting (not just strictly beautiful). I am hoping that by doing this I will not only keep myself interested and excited about writing and what I have to say, but will also keep you, the audience, interested as well.

Boiler Apartments

Sure, dorms are cool and all, but have you ever thought about staying in an actual apartment while you're getting your higher education? There are many apartment places around campus if you prefer to stay close to your classes or you could go just outside of campus and still be within walking distance. Personally, I live in Purdue Village Undergraduate apartments and while it may not be the ideal situation… having two roommates in a one bedroom place, and being almost a mile from the academic buildings… its certainly much better than a dorm, in my opinion. Its really nice to know that if one of my roommates is listening to music at her desk in the kitchen/study/dining room/living room area, I can always go into the bedroom and get a little peace and quiet. The only problem with that is the other roomie might be in the bedroom talking on her phone. Sometimes its super difficult to get any privacy. For instance, the other day, I mentioned to the girls that my date and I were going to watch a movie tonight (hinting that I might hope they have somewhere to be or something) and ten minutes into the movie they were going in and out, doing laundry, talking on the phone, flipping lights on and off and such. No one wants to cuddle with two other people walking about and making noise!!

When you get an apartment and you don’t just live by yourself, it may get a little frustrating when it comes time to do the dishes, take out the trash, clean the bathroom and so on. My roommates and I just had a “meeting” about who would take out which trash bag whenever it got full. That kind of thing is necessary if you don’t want to live like a bunch of slobs. When living with multiple people, respect is a MUST if you don’t want to go crazy. I got very lucky when I got roommates who are very respectful when it comes to all of our things and belongings. Different people have different ways of living. One of my roomies has a bit of an organization issue. Her stuff is EVERYWHERE! And the other has a major phobia of germs so she’s cleaning allllll the time (which doesn’t quite explain why I’m the one doing the dishes everytime….. hm……we might have to have another “meeting” about that...).

An apartment complex just off campus that seems to be pretty popular is the River Market Apartments. Just a short walk down Chauncy Hill from campus and you’ll be home! River Market Apartments has a number of shops in the ground floor such as The Silver Dipper ice cream parlor or Marco’s Pizza (as seen below) with three floors of apartments on top.

This isn’t the only place around either. By clicking here you can go to a website that will help you find exactly what you are looking for just by entering in a bit of information. Let them know your price range, and preferences such as a pool, game room, club house, if you want pets etc. and it will spit out a lengthy list of possible apartments for you!

My Apologies

Dear Pretty at Purdue Bloggers,
I would like to take the time to apologize for my lack of images! I realized I wrote a whole blog entry on how the beginning process of creating a garment are the initial sketches. I also began to tell you I was working on a few sketches.. and I failed to include them for you to see!
Here are a few that I am working on. For the first sketches you will see, the inspirations was Twislers candy, and A Gatorade bottle I found.



The next two sketches the inspiration came from modes of transportation. One came from a taxi which you will see is pretty obvious. The other comes from a picture of a jet. The sketches I created reminded me of a modern day flight attendent.







I hope this gives you a better idea of what I am talking about when I refer to sketches! If you have an ideas or inspirations PLEASE let me know! I am always looking for new ideas. The crazier and out there the better! Thanks for looking at my rough copies! More art and sketches to come!

My favorite pit stop

Dear Readers,
Many of you may find this post out of place and a little random but today when I was walking on campus I spotted a bright colored tee shirt sporting the words, "I love the Den!" Wear this shirt at IU or any other campus and they will never know what greatness the Den brings to Chauncey and our Purdue University Campus.
I myself am one of the many who make a stop to the Den a part of their daily routine. For only 60 cents you can indulge in almost every kind of soda pop that you can imagine. If you are tired of being original you can try one of their signature mixes. A hand written list on the wall reads mixtures such as "The Sorostitue" which consist of Cherry Coke, Diet Coke, and Dr. Pepper. Or my favorite, Diet Mt. Dew and Blue Powerade, named "Mr. Popular".
One of my favorite features of Discount Den is you pre buy a den pop for your friends. This is really popular for birthdays, congrats, or thank yous! You will find the fountain machines decorated with note cards reading "Great Job Jenny! Go Get your free den pop up front!" Or "Happy Birthday Brooke! Love your sisters!" As cheesy as it sounds I always love reading the note cards. To me they read community. I know its a silly note card for a 60 cent coke, but I think it is something that makes Purdue so special to me, community!
To me the den is like how the on the OC the spoiled teenagers all hang out at the same coffee shop. Or on Saved by the Bell you could always find them after a hard day of classes hanging out at the Max. If I have had a rough day I can always count on a friend or one of my sisters to walk with me to the den. It is one of the things I most look forward to, den pop runs! I hope that the den pop run tradition continues and becomes a classic pit stop at Purdue University!

Not a French Sandwich!

What is a croqui? I have heard many interpretations of this word. No it’s not flakey bread that you enjoy with your lunch salad. Nor is it an outdoor game where you hit large balls through little fences with wooden mallets. Although I enjoy both croissants and croquet, a croqui has become part of my everyday life.
According to Webster dictionary a croqui comes from the French word croquer, which means to sketch, rough out, literally, to crunch. As a fashion designer, I define croqui as my little best friend. A croqui is the basic starting point or building block for all my designs. It is where I first layout the form of my garment. Before coming to Purdue I used to sketch outfits out all the time. My bodies were always so un proportional. Either the model was too top heavy or her arms were somehow drawn out longer than her legs. This posed a major problem. Then after a few weeks in the college of Consumer and Family Sciences studying Apparel Design, I was introduced to the term croqui and my sketches were forever changed!
I have included a few examples of what a croqui is. As you can see the sketch can be drawn in different poses or movement. I like to mix it up a bit depending on what type of garment I am sketching. Each week I have to create 10 croquis with my inspired ideas. I feel as though my little croqui has become like my little side kick.
Check out these images and see if you are inspired from these sketched human forms!

Fall Has Arrived!

It’s finally here and you can feel it as soon as you step outside. It has grown increasingly chilly over the last few days, and when I walked to class today a common sweatshirt was barely enough. I found myself frustrated that my hoodie wasn’t just a little bit thicker—you know how you can feel the wind coming through a few specific gaps in the stitching… no bueno. Huddling in closer on yourself isn’t much help either; it just causes other parts to get cold. Let’s face it people… fall has arrived!

Aside from half way freezing to death (and I say only half way because the temperature right now is blistering compared to what we will be experiencing in just a few months) fall is one of my favorite seasons. I love when it gets a bit chilly because that says to me that Halloween is coming! And that is by far my favorite non-religious holiday. I love the eerie feeling that this time of year brings. I don’t know what it is, but something about it makes me feel slightly… nostalgic? It could be from the memories of trick-or-treating when I was younger. Or it could be the anticipation of being able to jump into a giant pile of raked together leaves, which yes, I still do. It’s as the leaves start to change into beautiful hues of red, yellow, and orange that the memories start to become reality again. They act as a reminder of how beautiful things can get here right before everything dies and all hope of a bearable winter go right out the window. It’s time to throw on that scarf and face the elements head on.

To me this is one of the most colorful seasons also. Not only does nature change its colors, and very rapidly might I add, but people change their colors too. I find it fun to watch how people start to mimic the colors that nature has chosen. We see more reds and oranges at this time I think than at any other time in the year. Browns too become increasingly predominant as the season progresses. Being in an art major here at Purdue I feel that I notice things like this maybe more than your everyday engineer walking down the sidewalk. One thing I have found myself doing while walking on campus is squint so all the colors blend together; sort of like a painting. Autumn is my favorite time to do this, because as I said people’s clothing start to blend in with the trees and other plants around them. It makes for a very entertaining walk to class.

In the end, even though it’s annoying to have to deal with the weather starting to get more and more frigid by the day, I still find myself really enjoying fall each year. Yes it signals that school is officially here to stay, but there are so many other fun aspects to brighten back up your day!