Thankful for Theta.

Hello was Newark, Delaware!

Since my last post A LOT has happend. During my visit to Hanover College I was able to try a famous milk shake from Henkles, watch 3 Disney movies and spend lots of time with some wonderful women!

The small town of Hanover is just that, small. The girls laughed when they had to drive me to Madison, IN to get the milkshake :) There was also no AT&T tower so cell phone reception was very limited. There was also no Starbucks within 45 minutes, so we got a coffee at the airport both ways. The women were so welcoming and even drove me an extra 45 minutes to Indianapolis so I wouldn't have to fly all day just to go 1 hour and 45 minutes away.

After my visit to Hanover College I headed straight for Headquarters for ELC Interviews! The funny thing about all of the ELCs is the minute we get back together it's like we were never a part. Saturday was such a fun day!! All of the ELCs made the drive to see our Alpha chapter at Depaw University.

We also stopped to see the house our founder Bettie initiated herself in and then later visited her grave. It was an emotional experience once we started thinking that without Bettie the 11 of us would never have met or had the reason to work together. Theta Love at its finest :)

Sunday morning came soon and it was time to interview the women that could potentially join our team for next year! Being on the other side of interviews was such a neat experience. I met so many great women and was able to enjoy time with the ELCs, all while talking about the job I love! Interviews were fast paced and super exciting. All of a sudden it was Tuesday, time for the candidates to leave and for the ELCs to enjoy a GALentines day celebration!

GALentines consisted of shopping, a little office work, dinner at our favorite Naked Chopstix and then seeing The Vow. I absolutely loved my time with the ELCs and was separated waaaaay too soon! I cannot wait to be reunited at end of semester, BUT, before that I get to look forward to both Joni & Justine visiting Oklahoma and seeing my home :)

After my stop at Headqaurters I traveled to Princeton, NJ to see the Epsilon Mu chapter at Princeton! From the airport I hopped on a train that took me straight to campus. I LOVE traveling by train and was able to read the first Hunger Games book! (if you haven't read it yet you definitely need to) Princeton was a GOREGOUS campus!! I had so much fun with the chapter.

Epsilon Mu's chapter president was a sweetheart named Daisy that is originally from England! Obviosuly I was obsessed with her accent and loved talking about my time in London & Oxford! Daisy took me to see a play on campus and to a wonderful Italian dinner.

My favorite part of the visit was learning about Eating Clubs! The entire system intrigues me. Eating Clubs are co-ed groups that you "bicker" to join. Once in an Eating Club that is where you eat, study and hang out. The officers of the clubs live in the facilities. Each group has huge social functions in the facility and are a central part of Princeton's campus culture. Daisy is a member of one of the oldest Eating Clubs at Princeton, The Ivy. Daisy took me to lunch at The Ivy on my last day in Princeton!

Overall I fell in love with Princeton! It was so beautiful and the women were so much fun! From Princeton I headed to Newark, Delaware to help with Zeta Tau's recruitment.

Recruitment was a huge success and I had so much fun hanging out with the women from Zeta Tau again! We had many late night WaWa runs and a huge spread from Buffalo Wild Wings the last night in ERB. Now it is time for me to pack my things and head back to the great state of Oklahoma for a much needed break!

Now boarding for home sweet 'homa!

You mean Lake Michigan?

Since my last post I've been to Pennsylvania, Chicago, Mississippi, and Oklahoma! What a whirlwind of a semester :)

First I visited Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania. I was nervous heading into this visit, thinking it was going to be super snowy and unbearably cold. I even packed rain boots to wear out in the snow. Luckily for me it did not snow during this visit! The Mu chapter of Theta was wonderful! The women had me stay in a cute little bed & breakfast down the street for Allegheny. The sweet woman that owned the B&B made me tons and tons of great breakfast food and coffee of course. It was a fun experience sleeping at a B&B, the bed was so comfy I didn't want to leave!

Allegheny does not have sorority houses, instead they have suites which is pictured below. The past president of Mu hand painted the crest and Kappa Alpha Theta on the wall, gorgeous right?

Mu officers took me out to eat at a fabulous Italian place call Chovy's my first night! It was so much fun! During their chapter meet tons of fraternity men and athletes came to speak to the women. Some of the athletes made inappropriate comments that made the women blush and all turn to me in embarrassment. It was a comical event!

After a cold visit in Pennsylvania I headed to Chicago to visit Lake Forest College! Lake Forest is a wealthy suburb of Chicago. The school is very small with around 1,500 students. I visited the chapter to help with formal recruitment. 56 PNMs went through recruitment. It was definitely the smallest recruitment I had ever assisted with, however, it was so much fun! On Founder's Day the women put on a fun skit of Theta through the Decades! The skit featured three songs from different decades with lyrics made to be about Theta. The women had a lot of fun and I enjoyed celebrating Founder's Day with the chapter! I was not able to out run the snow in Chicago and took a great picture to prove it...

On my last full day at Lake Forest College some of the women took me on a J Crew and Starbucks outing! We had a blast! On our drive back to campus the women told me we could drive by the lake to see it. As we were driving I ask "how big is this lake we are talking about?" the women shot me a funny look and said "... you mean Lake Michigan?" I laughed out loud and said "oh wow, I was under the impression it was going to be Lake Forest". We had a good laugh about that and finally arrived at one of the great lakes! It was beautiful!

My final visit for this trip was back to good ole Oxford, Mississippi! It was so nice to escape the cold and head back to 65 degree weather! While at Ole Miss I was able to reconnect with officers, have my favorite meal.. Poppyseed Chicken, and see Mama Gin one last time. It was super hard to say goodbye to my friends at Epsilon Zeta, but here's hoping I get to return soon!

I left Ole Miss and returned home for a fun filled weekend! On Thursday night I met up with my Theta family for dinner. SEVEN GENERATIONS attended our family dinner :) We were all able to meet the newest addition to our family and then visit the Theta house to relive funny memories. Rainey made sure we got a picture in order of oldest to youngest, which I LOVE! I am so blessed to have such a wonderful Theta family that I know will always be there to support me! I cannot wait to see my G get married in August :)

The rest of my trip home was spent celebrating a birthday, hanging out with friends, running much need errands, and leaving a few surprises behind! I ordered a new comforter that will be on my bed the next time I'm home and I cannot wait (it's the little things in life haha) My next visit home one of the other ELCs, Joni, will be visiting the OSU Theta chapter. I cannot wait to show her around Norman and OKC!

Currently, I am visiting Hanover College. Updates on my new travels will be coming shortly :)