Guess who's back, back again!...for now.

Hey all! I apologize for going missing for a few weeks, but I'm back now! At least for this post. These past weeks have been so hectic with school. 12 more days until I'm home enjoying summer break! But who's counting? ;) I figured since I won't really be able to post much until I'm back home from college, I'll update you all as much as I can in this post. So brace yourselves, it may be a long one!

The first thing I want to cover is Easter! This was the first Easter in a few years that all of us cousins have been able to be together. Since I haven't been able to upload an updated picture of us 4, I'll throw this goodie but oldie at you guys...

From left to right: Taylor, Me, Olivia, and Jess. Clearly, good looks run in the Fam ;)

We had such a fantastic weekend and kept our Easter tradition alive: THE Horton Easter Egg Hunt. The hunt took place on Saturday which means we colored our eggs on Friday night...all 120 of them!

On Saturday before the hunt, my cousin Olivia and I made sure we suck in a little photo shoot around my Dad's neighborhood. Every Easter we take pictures with the beautiful neighborhood horses!

And what is Easter without throwing in a little target practice! ;)

Every year, I begin our Easter celebration in a dress but then later decide to change into shorts. This year was not any different. :p

Yes, my Dad does lives out in the country, so I do have some country pumping through my blood :)

Dress: Borrowed from Olivia

Shorts: American Eagle

Shirt: Wet Seal

Boots: Gift from my wonderful sister (Target)

Earrings: Borrowed from my sister (Monica's Closet Essentials)

The egg hunt this year was pretty exciting because it was the first year that my handsome little nephew Liam could actually participate! 

He still had energy at 8 PM that night! (Hence why he didn't want to be held)

Since we celebrated Easter with my Dad's side of the family on Saturday, I got to see my mom before I headed back to UCF on Sunday. We went to the park with my sister Jess and Liam <3

I had such a great Easter weekend with my beautiful family but UCF came calling for me on Sunday, so I had to head back! Since I've been back it has been non-stop schoolwork. The week after I returned I had tests in all of my classes. But the good news is I ended up passing all of them! Right when I think I can take a break though, I can start to see finals week in the NEAR NEAR future. And by near future, I mean they start on the 23rd. I dread finals just as much as the next person (especially since we haven't had AC in my dorm since last week!) but they don't have to be all that bad! Which brings my to my next main topic: Finals Week in College.

Having already survived finals from the fall semester, I can tell you that finals your freshman year of college really aren't as bad as everyone makes them out to be. Yes, there are those who end up pulling all-nighters but that is most likely caused by procrastination (Trust me, I would know. I am the QUEEN of procrastination). But to avoid all the unnecessary stress (and tears. yes, there might be tears!), I'll give you some tips to surviving....FINALS WEEK :O.

1) Try you best to NOT procrastinate! The worst thing you can do is start studying and reteaching yourself 10 chapters of Macroeconomics the night before your exam. Chances are you won't really retain much information at all. Might as well throw your hands up and say "Oh well!". I've been there. Definitely not fun!

2) Do not turn to energy drinks! If you do end up procrastinating and having to pull an all-nighter (which is very very very likely with all the fun temptations of the college life), do not drink energy drinks to keep your motor running. Even if the reps from Monster show up on your campus and are handing them out for free, don't give in! They are very bad for you and have tons upon tons of sugar in them (unless you get the sugar free ones. But then what's the point? They're still bad for you AND taste nasty). Eventually you end up crashing anyway and you'll wake up on a pile of books 1 hour before your exam...or so I've heard. 

3) Keys to pulling an all-nighter! One of the best things to do to keep yourself awake is to not study in your bed. Sit at your desk or even go to the library! At UCF during finals week our library is open all night (and no, I do not mean Knights Library, the bar : p). If you absolutely need an artificial pick me up I recommend coffee, which should be fairly easy to find during finals week. Play some music too! But nothing slow, play music that will pump you up and keep from falling asleep. I recommend "And We Danced" by Macklemoore, "Hellagood" by No Doubt, or "Country Girl" by Luke Bryan for all of my fellow country fans out there! Also, study with a friend who needs to pull an all-nighter as well. You can keep each other from falling asleep!

4) Take advantage of the free giveaways/services your school offers during finals week! I'm not sure how other colleges work but UCF's student union transforms into "Study Union" during finals. Many of the food places hand out free food, SGA hands out free shirts, and the student union even provides a place for you to go and relax and take a break from studying. If any fellow knights happen to come across my blog, here's the Midnight Meals schedule for next week:

MIDNIGHT MEALS

(4/22) Monday- Subway & Smoothie King

(4/23) Tuesday- Huey Magoo’s

(4/24) Wednesday- Wackadoo’s

(4/25) Thursday- Domino’s

(4/28) Sunday- Chick-Fil-A

5) Last but not least, RELAX! I know studying information you've been learning all semester is pretty difficult but you can do it! You've learned it once before so it is already in the back of your mind, you just need a refresher! Just focus on the information, give yourself enough time to go over the information thoroughly, and most importantly DO NOT STRESS!  A stress-free brain is a happy brain :) Just think, summer is just around the corner! Here are some pictures to keep you all going until summer: 

 Have a wonderful morning everyone and make your Monday fantastic!