Even Dragons Have Their Endings

'So comes snow after fire, and even dragons have their endings' - J.R.R. Tolkien

CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                Christmas! The best time of the year is finally here. You either celebrated last night on Christmas Eve, or you have just waited for a more traditional morning like today to celebrate. Whether you enjoy Christmas dinner the night before or the day of, today is sure to be a good day!

The Broke College Student's Guide to Inexpensive Fun Over the Holidays

With holidays approaching and the end of the semester so close we can almost taste it (I imagine it tasting like bacon. Yummy bacon), everyone is making plans for what they want for Christmas or how they want to spend their break. However, this time of the year can leave a student financially drained and exhausted. So what are we students to do? While the idea of sleeping for a few days sounds totally appealing after finals, the inevitable boredom begins to set in.

Bacon is always there for you

The Close of the Year

   Winter is coming in full force soon. This means for many the close of the Fall semester of 2013, visiting family, food, presents, carols, and renewing bonds with friends and kin alike.  As we all approach these wonderful times, there should be a moment taken to consider the state our lives are in.

If You're Happy and You Know it... Why?

This is the time of year where the temperatures start dropping and hearts start warming up. There’s a magic in the air, whether it’s from holidays impending or just knowing that we the students (and professors!) are so close to the end of the semester and Winter Break! However, is it actually from knowing that we’re so close to a fresh start (Here’s looking at you, spring semester 2014!)? What makes us happy? 

Look at these happily levitating students! (ok, ok, they're jumping..)

Best Spring Break Ever- Freshman year at UT Tyler



Boyfriend and brothers

First off, a word of advice to everyone coming to college planning their awesome spring breaks down by the beach, DON'T do what I did and wait until a week before spring break to decide you might want to go to the beach. No. Plan ahead. And save money, because no matter where you go, it's not cheap.

I did not take my advice (obviously), and instead spent spring break at home in San Antonio, hours away from any sort of coast.

Even though I was kind of hoping for some sand and sun, I ended up having the best spring break ever.



I didn't even realize how much I had missed my best friend and family until seeing them again. And it wasn't even just my parents, brothers, and cousins. My grandparents, thousands of other cousins, and aunts came down to come stay with us for the week.

On top of that my boyfriend even came to stay with us.

My beautiful mother, aunts, and cousins

It was a full house and it made me realize how much I had missed them and made me grateful for the time I got to spend with them all.

 It's not that I forget how important family is, but sometimes you kind of take them for granted. Personally, my family is everything to me and I wouldn't have spent my spring break any other way.



Little brother and cousins learning to be nice to each other



My awesome little cousins



So make sure you call your mommy, your dad, your siblings, cousin, grandma, step parents, ANYONE you consider family and let them know how much you appreciate them(:



Homesick?

Lately I've been feeling a little homesick.
I'm from San Antonio which is 5-6 hours away from Tyler. I also don't have a car, so going there requires either catching a ride from someone going to Austin (because I know almost no one from San Antonio), or getting on a bus. However I manage to get there, it's not easy, so I don't get to go home very often. (Nothing near how bad Katrina had it though)

I also happen to have a VERY close family, so not a day goes by when I don't talk to my Mommy, or text my aunts and grandma. Being away from all of them is hard, but here is how I make it through

my lovely family visiting one weekend!

1. Call home when you miss it
Hearing your parent's voices is nice. Especially talking to your little siblings just to see how school is. It makes you feel like you're still at home.

2. Go socialize!
Do NOT lock yourself in your room. All you will do is think yourself into a sad hole.

going out with friends!

3. Go outside
Take a walk, ride a bike, go hang out by the dock. You always find something to do or run into someone interesting here on campus

walking around UT Tyler!

4. Let your friends know how you're feeling
Feeling homesick is normal. I'm sure they probably miss home too. Talking about how you feel helps out.

5. Talk to a counselor
When you feel like you can't talk to your friends, we have counselors available here on campus!

There's always ways to distract yourself when you're feeling down. Just remember that it never lasts for long and you always have someone to talk to!

Gabby's Winter Break!

Today marks my first official work day of the new year! I'm not going to lie, leaving home and coming back to school was not something I was looking forward to :( I definitely got use to lounging around, not having to think about school related things and mom's home cooking, not to mention the Filipino food that my grandpa was cooking during the holiday season! YUMM:) My grandparents from the Philippines came this past October after being out of the US for 2 years! It really made the holidays extra special <3
  So now i'm back at UT Tyler and enjoyed an extremely busy day of re-organizing my room and putting my gazillion stuff back in my apartment in PV ( I kinda have an over packing problem.... ) So my very first blog of the year is of course about my winter break!!!:) Instead of writing long and detailed paragraphs about it, i'm just gonna show you in pictures and captions :) Hope you enjoy it!( By the way, I didn't do anything special since I am taking a GINORMOUS 5 week trip to Japan this summer )

My Thanksgiving!

                Hey Guys! Well, Thanksgiving break has come to an end, and normal life has started back up again for everybody. Overall, my break was amazing. I must admit that this has probably been one of my absolute favorite Thanksgivings ever!

Family Ties

I come from a large family-I'm one of 5 kids! Now we are all starting to venture off into the world and do different things, so we don't always get to see each other as often as we want to. For example, my only sister, Valerie, has moved on to finish school at Lyon College in Batesville, Arkansas! She and I are very close in age, so I miss her very much. Now that I'm attending UT Tyler and living at home, we never get to see each other!

Our first picture at the hotel!

Last weekend, we went to watch her play softball in Conway, AR! I am very proud of Val and her many achievements, both on and off of the field. 

Family is such an important aspect of my life, and I think my family is vital to my success in life. Often, they are the ones who provide the most support and love, and they are always there for you without judgement.

Sometimes, people are dealt a less-supportive group of people in their blood relatives. In that case, it is vital that you work towards making good, solid, close friends wherever you are so that you can support each other through the good times and the bad!

My mom is very supportive and loving, and apparently I look like a mini-version of her! You can't tell in this picture though, because it was FREEZING at the softball fields! It was raining off and on all day, and the temperature was about 50 degrees-WITH WIND! I am a summer baby and very cold-natured, so we tried to stay warm by bundling up!

The Curious Case of the Snooping Dogg pt. 2

Hello fellow believers! Tickets for the coming of Snoop Dogg to Tyler are on sale now at the Clicks website! General admission tickets are $40 plus tax and V.I.P. tickets are $350. I don't believe I could ever be that big of a fan of Snoop Dogg for V.I.P. tickets. Especially on my budget.... Actually I'll be missing the show all together.



I'm really upset about missing that smiling face

UT Tyler Student Vlog: Family Dinner Night

This my college family I hope you enjoy!!!