Can I breathe yet? I feel like anytime I’m writing to you all I feel so overwhelmed with life. Previously I shared a quick post about getting a new job and a little bit of what I plan on doing with the blog. Today I just wanted to give you a look into life lately and what you all may have missed while I was gone. So much has been going on and there’s so many exciting things coming as well!
Last Semester
I found out that I ended last semester with straight A’s in my Masters program and I’m beyond happy! If you knew me in undergrad you’d know that I worked my booty off for B’s and sometimes C’s. It was such a struggle for me and I don’t think I ever got an A outside of my studio art major classes.
Disney GUYS!
I am that person who loves Disney but has never ever gone to Disney World. I had the chance to go when I was a kid but I turned it down because I didn’t think it would be fair to go without my baby sister. I used to joke with my mom that the first time I’ll ever go will be when I have kids. Well, that was nearly the case because I’m 24 and married but she bought my husband and I tickets for a day in Magic Kingdom. It was everything that I had hoped it to be. I do also want to say that to all those people who told me you can’t plan everything, you’ll be disappointed, well I planned it all perfectly and did everything I wanted to do in the order I wanted to do them AND I never waited for more than 10 minutes a ride. Conor was such a trooper the whole day, we were basically the first people in the park and he really helped to make my day magical. Oh we also went to Universal for Harry Potter world which was beyond what I hoped it would be. It was pretty incredible going around and feeling like I was in the books.
Last Semester of my Masters!
This week I am officially done with my last semester in my Masters and I finished it with straight A’s again. This semester was a little rough for me, I had my practicum and international economics. The practicum is basically my final thesis for the program, we had the ability to write a thesis or work with a client to develop a program. I did want to write a thesis but I was really excited to develop a program for a great international nonprofit to help refugees coming into the US. The practicum topic and organization was actually selected in the Fall before our current president was voted in so I had the additional challenge of working around obstacles such as the travel ban and extreme cuts in funding. It was overall a ton of work but so rewarding. As for international economics, I just really appreciate that my professor structured the course as he did because it was really beneficial for those of us who just cannot wrap their brains around the topic.
Immersion
I am finished with my final semester and all my courses but one of my requirements is going to immersion. It’s basically a weekend on my actual campus(remember I’m an online student) and we go to one class for 3 days straight to get an additional credit. We also finally get to mingle with other students and connect with our Professors. I’m actually super excited about this because I’ll be having lunch with Ambassador Susan Rice and I’ll be able to pick her mind about a few areas of interest. I’ll be leaving for the immersion via Amtrak to DC, Friday morning and going straight to class at 8am. Eventually, I’ll be able to check into my hotel which I’m super pumped for. I’m staying at one of my favorite hotels, the Kimpton. After the long weekend, I’ll be getting back to Philadelphia sometime in the afternoon on Sunday.
Graduation
Just walking to get my Masters in International Studies: International Development, International Negotiation, and Conflict Resolution. I never thought that I would have a Masters degree!
So there’s a quick recap of what has been going on with me, there’s still plenty more to share!