To Incoming Seniors

Dear Incoming Seniors,
      Be prepared for the craziness that is senior year. As excited as you probably are (trust me, I had a countdown until the last day of senior year since the first day of summer), it will go by so incredibly quick. Second semester will be so busy that it will feel like a week has gone by, not months. I have a few pieces of advice to pass on to you as you go into your final year of high school. 
       First, your grades matter! It's so easy to slack off your senior year because you're into college and "nothing matters", but don't do it. I pulled my highest grades my senior year, first semester I had a 4.286 and second semester I had a 4.333. I was able to graduate with the highest honors, Summa Cum Laude, amongst other academic awards at graduation because of my hard work. 
        Second, do not take all AP classes. I repeat, DO NOT take all AP classes. If you want to keep your grades up, as I mention in point one, do not overload yourself with work your senior year. I had little to no motivation going into my second semester and maintaining my grades would have been much harder if I took all AP classes. Also, check your college choice's policy on AP exam scores because your college may not take AP exams or they may only take 5s. The advanced/AP classes I did take were classes in the career area I wanted to pursue in the future and had a passion for. You want to enjoy your senior year, not drown in extra stress.
        Do not feel pressured to do all of the "last" events, spend your time doing what you enjoy. If that is the senior sunrise/sunset, do it. If it's spending time with your friends at someone's house binge-watching Netflix, do it. Enjoy the time you have left in high school actually doing what you want. Some people love their high school so much and can't fathom not going to the last senior football game, but if that isn't you, don't worry about not going. 
I'm pretty sure the only football game I went to this year was the homecoming game
        You may not be sad about leaving high school and that's okay. I mentioned in my last blog post that I wasn't sad on the last day of high school, and that I may be sad on graduation day, but nope, not a single tear was shed at graduation. I sat surrounded by 576ish students, a third of whom I have never even heard of or seen before, not sad that this chapter of my life was over. 


       Also, I would say decide your future plans as soon as possible. If you're continuing your education by going to college, decide if that's going to be community college or a four year university. You have until May to make your final decision but I would recommend making it as early as possible. You don't want to be scrambling mid-April of your senior year to figure out what college you're going to, you will already have so much going on.
Drury acceptance letter
        My last piece of advice is probably the most simple/easy tip for you. Take pictures. You'll want to be able to reflect on the year and all the little moments that you would have forgotten otherwise. 
        I cannot stress to you enough how much senior year will fly by. Make the most of your time in high school but also be excited about what the future holds.

Until next time,
Taylor xx 
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High School Reflection

As I'm sure all of you know, I'M DONE WITH HIGH SCHOOL (*cue applause and cheering). Friday was my last day and many of the seniors around me were crying or upset, and I honestly felt none of the emotion (sorry...). I kept telling myself, oh maybe I'll be sad on Monday or something, but it's now Wednesday and I'm still not the least bit upset about high school being over. It's not that I hated high school because I didn't. I was very lucky to receive an education in a great school district with great teachers. For me, I just became stuck in this rut of repetitive-ness. I don't even like change, but this year it hit me that I'm ready for it, and honestly need it right now.

Okay, now on to the reflection part... Here are some of the biggest lessons I learned while in high school.

1. Don't let something negative control your life. It's just high school. If you find that "something"--whether it be a class, club, or sport, is making you more unhappy than happy, drop it. It isn't the end of the world. In fact, it's better that you practice now than wait and never know how to say no to anything. 

 Join something you're passionate about and that you want to spend time doing. Not only will you enjoy yourself, but you'll be happier. For me, newspaper.

2. You'll find friends in unexpected places. At the beginning of senior year I would get to school early (to get a good parking spot because that is essential to being a Timberland student), and sit in my personal finance class to work on things I had to do. One day the teacher was late so I was wandering the halls waiting for her to show up. Some old friends of mine (who I wasn't very close with at the time) invited me to come hang out with them. I thought to myself that it would be a one time thing, but these people became some of my best friends and I have the most interesting, odd, funny stories ever because of them. 

3. Freshmen P.E. is terrible, but make the most of it. There are many reasons as to why freshmen P.E. is terrible, and I wish I had the time and space to talk about all of them. There are so many times, looking back, where I just want to ask the teacher why we did what we did because so much of it makes little sense. A majority of freshmen P.E. was me walking with my friends, Maddie and Anya, talking about anything and everything. We needed each other during that year more than I think we thought we did. We have grown so much since those days of "Dance Dance Revolution", the jump rope unit, and running 3 miles for our final (which barely anyone was prepared for), and I'm glad I had them two to go through P.E. with me.
The freshman year struggle
4. THE PARKING LOT IS A DISASTER. Timberland students who aren't driving just yet, be prepared for how disgusting the parking lot is. There are 1,000 parking spots yet only 1 (yes, ONE) entrance/exit. It only takes me like 13 minutes to get to school but I would still leave each day by 6:35 so I could get a good parking spot. At the end of the day, you need to sprint to your car in order to get out of the parking lot within ten minutes. If you walk, you are most likely going to be sitting in the parking lot for at least 20 minutes.
Trying to get out of Timberland like...
5. Get a job that you like. I actually enjoy going to work, and would usually prefer to be there. I know so many people that stress out so much about work and their job and it's not worth it. I have some of the best coworkers and managers. Some of the people I work with are my best friends and have helped me through so much. The people I work with actually care about me and my wellbeing and I appreciate them so much. 

6. Be involved in academic extracurriculars as well as athletic. These activities don't always have to be school-run, but join some kind of club or organization. You'll meet new people, make friends, and challenge yourself. For me these clubs were the High School Tri Club, newspaper, and DECA. Each of them have impacted my high school career and I have shaped my life in some way, shape, or form. 

I learned a lot in high school-- so much more than just what I talked about here, as well as so much more than the assigned lessons in class. Although I'm not said that high school is over, I'm glad I had the experience I did. 

Until next time,
Taylor xx

P.S.:
- Check out the HS Tri Club here

traffic picture from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traffic_congestion
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Dear Mom,

First off I want to apologize for not doing anything elaborate for you this morning for mother's day. You deserve so much and I can never thank you enough for all you have done for me.

 Also, your birthday is Tuesday so I'm going to make a combination post of why you're so great.

 1. You're My Best Friend. I've said this time and time again but it is consistently true. I can talk to you about everything and anything. You're also the one person I can never get sick of. Thank you for letting me ramble and always listening, even when I'm sure you didn't want to. When I go to college I'm going to miss watching "Bring It!" on Friday nights (DD4L!), sitting on the back porch drinking coffee on Saturday mornings, and so much more. 

2. You Stay in Sketchy Motels With Me. From the Quality Inn and Red Roof Inn in Columbia for Trizou, to all of the random hotels for college visits. These trips were some of the best times. Even though we did get lost driving to every single college visit. We jammed to all of Taylor Swift's albums and even some One Direction.
Us at one of the sketchy motels back in 2014
3. You Ran a Race With Me. I've been competing in triathlons for the past 4 years and the entire time you've been my cheerleader (which I greatly appreciate). However, this past Thanksgiving you ran your first 5k with dad and I, and I could not be more proud of you. 
4. You Helped Me Get Ready for Every School Dance. Junior year you easily spent 2 hours trying to straighten my crazy-long hair. I apologize for making you do that.
Homecoming hair transformation
5. You're So Strong in Your Faith. You inspire me each and every day with your dedication to your faith. I only hope that I can have such a great love for God as you do. 

Finally, you're such a loving person. You love your kids at work and do so much to make sure that they are learning and growing to their highest/best potential. You love our family unconditionally. You also put our family in front of any of your own priorities and have scarified so much for us. I love you so much mom, and there's so much more I could say about why I love you. 
Thank you for everything. 

Love,
Taylor xx
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