Graduation Day

Well everyone, it’s official.  I graduated!  Last Friday I said goodbye to my school and have now moved on to bigger and better things, like moving and trying to find a job (good luck on that one).

I wanted to share how my big day went with you all, since I had such an amazing time!

What’s on my gown?

As you can see, I’m wearing two separate cords as well as a stole.  The solid purple cord is for students who graduate Cum Laude, or with a 3.60 GPA or higher.  The silver and purple cord is from the honorary I’m in, Student Ambassadors, which is basically a fancy name for campus tour guides.  Finally, I purchased my stole as a way to show pride for my sorority, one that I love and will miss greatly!

Onto My Day:

6:20am

I was up at 6:20.  That is so early; I even beat my alarm clock!  I will admit, looking back I don’t even know what I did, I just know that I was scrambling while I was doing it.

7:00am

My boyfriend and I made our final visit to Bloedow’s, which is a famous bakery in Minnesota because of their amazing doughnuts.

7:15am

My poor roommate had offered to do my hair, so I woke her up at 7:15 and we got to work curling it!  I have very long and thick hair, so I expected it to take quite a while; surprisingly, she got it done in half an hour!

7:45am

At this point I was freaking out, putting my makeup on quickly and then throwing my dress on after.  God bless my boyfriend, who helped keep me calm while I was having a mini anxiety attack about being ready on time.  I was in such a rush I didn’t even get to eat a doughnut; sad!

8:15am

8:15 was check in time, so we quickly drove to my school and I jumped out of his car while he went to find parking and then the rest of my family.  I went to get my name card and then found my friends, where we chatted until we were asked to line up.

8:45am

It was time to line up!  I separated from my pals and went to my spot in line, where I talked with my buddies there and had some final touch-ups provided by the adults helping organize us all.  Thank goodness, too, because my cords were not attached properly!

9:00am

The procession started!  There were a ton of people in my graduation (about 300) so we had to walk around some of the buildings on campus before heading into the gym, where the actual graduation was.  Along the way there was a line of professors and staff on either side of us, applauding as we went.

9:30am

After all of the introductions and speeches were given, it was finally time for us to begin receiving our diplomas!  My last name is near the beginning of the alphabet, so I was pretty early in the lineup and received mine right away!

10:30am

Graduation ended at about 10:30, and at that point I walked out of the gym and waited to meet up with my family.  Afterwards, we walked around, took a few pictures, and went inside so I could say goodbye to some of my favorite professors. I didn’t get pictures with many, but I assure you all, I had plenty to say to quite a few!

11:30am

After all the pictures were taken, we walked back to the car and headed to one of my favorite Mexican restaurants.  Unfortunately, my boyfriend totally forgot where he parked so we had to wander a little before making it.  Then I got to enjoy a delicious meal, plus a tequila shot – bad choice on my part, but it tasted so good!

The rest of my day was spent packing my room and relaxing.  I was exhausted by the end, but it was well worth it!