Family Fun :)

My weekend with my family in Notre Dame was amazing! Though I did miss life back at the Hill, I was so happy to spend time with my family. On Friday night, my friend Kelly and her mom dropped me off at the airport. I flew into Chicago to meet my parents. I got in 4 hours before them, so I took a shuttle to our hotel and checked in. I have never traveled totally alone, so I was a little nervous that something would go wrong, but the trip there went smoothly. Saturday morning, my parents and I made the two hour drive up to Notre Dame to meet my siblings and get ready for the game. Because none of us live at home anymore, it is pretty rare when my whole family is together. But every time we do get to be together, it seems like we were never apart. I love my family so much! We are all really close and always have such a good time together. Hanging out with my family is just like being with my best friends.

The football game was a lot of fun. Because my sister goes to Notre Dame and my brother goes to Michigan State, I usually have to switch off what team I root for. This year was my year to root for Notre Dame since it was their home game. But, I was sitting next to my brother, and the State band was right in front of us, so I did some cheering for the Spartans as well. I probably looked really confused with my Notre Dame t-shirt and ND face tattoo while singing along to the Spartan fight song, but all that matters is that we were having fun. My sister Christine is a student athletic manager at Notre Dame, so she got to be on the field for the game. It was a bummer that we couldn't spend time together at the game, but it was really cool to see her down on the field looking all official. Notre Dame ended the game with an interception and beat the Spartans 33 to 30.

After the game, we went to mass at one of the dorms on campus that has its own chapel. We sang some of the same songs that the choir at our masses sing, so I got a little reminder of Stonehill while I was away. After that, we went out to dinner to celebrate my sisters' September birthdays. We opened gifts and had some tasty celebratory milkshakes. Once we got back to campus, I met up with my friend Joe. He's a freshman at Notre Dame. We've known each other since kindergarten, so it was really great to see him. He was the first of my friends that I have been able to visit at college. It was really cool to get a glimpse at what his new life is like. We just wandered around campus talking. It is always so great to catch up with old friends.

Overall, my weekend away was so much fun. It was also sad though, because it was so short. Getting to spend such a little amount of time with my family makes me miss them even more. But, my friends at Stonehill make it so much easier to be away from

home. I know that the rest of this semester with my friends will be really great, and Christmas break with my family will be here before we know it!