Back and Blessed

Hello Family!

It was so great to see all of you this past week! I have missed you all so much, and it was so refreshing to see some familiar faces.  While I was at home I kept thinking to myself how lucky I was to grow up with such amazing people.  Each one of you has made an impact in my life in some way, and I was always thankful for you guys, but it's not until now that I am realizing how blessed I was to be apart of this family.  Being at school I have gotten used to meeting new people everyday, and it gets to be exhausting at times.  I sometimes find myself having the same conversation over and over again, and it was nice to come home to some genuine laughter and real friends.

This week is going to be really hard, I have already spent the whole day today doing schoolwork, and I am going to be doing the same thing all week.  But something exciting that happened this past week was that Seventeen Magazine called me back about possibly doing an internship with them this summer!!  Most of you know that I have also been working on doing something with Penske Racing this summer, but I want to keep my options open.  But anyway, the girl that called me last week finally emailed me some more information today, and I am going to be sending in my resume tomorrow!! Please please please pray for me!!! This would seriously be the dream job for me!  I would get to live in NYC for the summer and work with the advertising department. Honestly even if they had me scrubbing the toilets I would be happy as a clam haha.  

Some other exciting things that are happening down here is the winding down of the semester. As of today I have 6 days of class left, and I already have a final this week!  Unfortunately it is my geology lab exam so I get to study rocks and fossils! I am seriously so happy that this class is going to be over, there is only so much of that nonsense a girl can take.  I also have a portfolio for english, my seminar final project, an econ final, history final, and ANOTHER geology exam for the lecture part of the class. But anyways, finals down here are supposed to be really exciting because people will camp out all night long in the Student Learning Center, and there is no class so people are just hanging out or studying for like a week.  

But before the study frenzy happens people are going to party down this weekend for the UGA vs LSU game this weekend!!! Apparently only a few upperclassmen students got tickets to go so there aren't any freshman going, but I cannot wait to watch this game with my Dad! I have made a friend on the football team so I'll be able to get a picture with him on the railing by the field in his gear!!  So pumped. Words cannot describe.  

Anyhoo, I have still got to read a whole chapter in my history book for class tomorrow, so I should probably stop procrastinating and do that haha.  

It was so great to see all of you this week! Oh and by the way, for some reason my email has been putting all your responses in the "Trash" so thats why I haven't been answering you! I am so sorry, and I got to read what you guys sent and they were all such sweet notes :)  PLEASE keep emailing me back because now I will actually be able to read them.  

Thank you all for being the best people in the world!

Love you,

Mason :)

Mailing Address:

0712 B Creswell Hall 

University of Georgia

Athens, GA 30609

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Thank Goodness for Thanksgiving 11/18/2011

Hello Everyone!

I am so sorry that I haven't written in a while.  Everyone is getting ready for thanksgiving, and finals are coming up so things are getting somewhat tense around here.  It will be so nice to get home and not talk about school for a while! The dining halls have been serving up some Thanksgiving treats, but we all know there is nothing like a good, home-cooked meal. Along with the comfort food, November has brought in some cold weather and blustery winds, and I am completely loving it right now.  It is so beautiful here, and it's kinda fun to walk to classes all bundled up in jackets and scarves!  The heater that Areshia and I have in our dorm room is about 100 years old, and it is about as loud as a freight train. But it does keep it nice and toasty, and Areshia just loves to snuggle with me!  

Anyhoo, along with the raging winds we have had some crazy times here too! This past weekend UGA played Auburn at home, and if you didn't watch it you seriously missed out on some quality football.  This game was particularly exciting because some of the freshman in Student Government (SGA) were able to have "Better Relations Day" with the Auburn Student Government. There were four freshman here that went, and two freshman from Auburn came over so we could give them the grand tour and exchange SGA advice.  The whole point of the day was to establish good relations between UGA and Auburn, and it ended up being a lot more fun than I expected.  The two Auburn freshman ended up being extremely cool, and we joked around all day while we got VIP tours all over campus.  We actually got to hear from Vince Dooley because he was an Auburn grad, and is a legendary UGA football coach.  The whole day was so fun and I will be able to tell you all alot more about it when I get home!  But at the game on Saturday, Athens had turned to complete madness...and it was beautiful.  The whole town was electric because both Auburn and Georgia fans knew this was a big game.  It was probably the best game I have ever been to in Sanford Stadium just because I was in the student section with kids as crazy as me!  The entire game was so fun, and I was so proud to be a Georgia Bulldawg when it ended haha! 

Other than football, this week has brought on massive amounts of studying and school work.  It seems like all the teachers are piling on the work because they don't actually want us to have a break over thanksgiving, but hey, I only have 1 full week of classes left!!  I just can't believe that it has all gone by so quickly, and I am about to finish my first semester of college!  Mind blowing.  I still haven't done half of the things I have wanted to do, but at the same time I don't know when I would've had a free moment to do anything else.  But as I am reflecting on these past couple months I am happy to say that I have made some great friends, and I have set myself up pretty good down here.  Sometimes I get scared that I won't be able to make it, and that I won't be able to even pass this semester. But I have learned that I just need to pray everyday, and trust that what I am doing here is right. 

I think one of the best things I have become apart of down here is the Westley Foundation, which is the on-campus ministry.  Even though I can't go to the Freshman service anymore because of SGA, I am still really involved, and I feel so loved there.  I am taking a leap of faith and going on a mission trip with them to Jamaica for spring break, and I couldn't be more excited!  We have had a couple of meetings so far, and it seems like everyone who goes comes back with life-altering stories.  I have got to do a lot of fundraising for it because it is around 1500 dollars, but I truly think it will be worth every penny.  

One more thing that I just have to mention is the Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 1 Premiere.  Oh my gosh, so great.  It was last night at 12:00, and it was completely awesome.  If you can only imagine like every girl on campus packed into a movie theater, complete with a few scraggler boyfriends, and a couple of closet men Twi-hards.  We ended up sitting on the second row, and I loved every minute of it.  The book has some extremely weird parts to it, and the way they made it into a movie was just hilarious.  This is not a movie that I would go see with any person that does not like Twilight, because it is a bit extreme.  All in all, it was a great night.

As much as I am loving it here, I cannot wait to come home and see all my friends and family! One thing about going to a school where you don't know anyone, you become so grateful for people you already know and don't have to make small talk with!  I am going to be home on Saturday and I am going to be leaving the next Sunday, so come see me!!

I love you guys!

Mason :)

P.S. Shout out to my boy Matthew McEntire who has been the best penpal everrrr

The Gift that Keeps on Giving

Hello Good People,

I just don't think I will ever slow down here.  This past week was homecoming week, and I am on the homecoming committee for Student Government, so I had a very eventful week. There was something to do every night, and on Friday I spent the whole day painting a banner and getting the float ready for the parade! Our theme was "Here Comes The Boom" and we had a cannon on the back with balloons everywhere, and it was totally awesome (of course it was...I was there).  But I got to ride on the float and throw out candy to little kids, and I felt oh so cool.  I did my little wave and my audience couldn't get enough haha.  But really... Anyways, it was even better since Callen and Dad came down to spend the night and go to the game! I got to give Callen the exclusive college tour and introduced her into dorm living, great stuff.  We went to a carnival at like 10:30 and rode the "Ring of Fire" and ate some fried oreos, needless to say she loved it.

On Saturday we went to the game and Callen got to come down and watch in the student section, and Dad played with the alumni band on the field!  Callen got to meet some of my crazy friends, and Dad actually had a solo during the marching band aftershow. After the game we went out to Lunch/Dinner (Dunch if you may) and it was sooo tasty.  Then we had to say our sad goodbyes :(

On Sunday I went to church with Meredith and her family (they had all come in from Virginia for the game), and then we went to Sunday brunch to use that chocolate fountain (now you see why I really wanted to come to UGA).  The rest of the day I spend doing the occasional homework while also watching Gossip Girl (totally dumb show, yet addicting).  Sunday night Freshley (Freshman church organization) had a scavenger hunt downtown where we were in groups and we had to find all the leaders who were dressed up as characters. My group consisted of like 6 girls and one guy, and we ended up winning the whole thing! Everyone (including myself) underestimated our ability; we somehow beat this group of guys who were maniacs, and it was great making fun of them.  

Yesterday my day was filled with classes, gym, homework, meetings, and finally sleep around 1:30.  Daylight savings has been such a blessing, I had no idea how good an extra hour can make you feel.  I somehow woke up 10 minutes before my alarm this morning!

All in all, my time here at UGA has been totally unbelievable.  I am so glad I decided to take the risk and go to a school where I would be put in unfamiliar settings and I could go out of my comfort zone.  I have gone to so many random events to try new things, and I have learned a lot about myself by doing that.  I feel like I am really growing into myself here, and I am confident my decision making.  I just want to thank all of you guys for being there to support me, because it really was you all that made me who I am today.  

Never forget how amazing life is, and God gave it to us to achieve our dreams!

Love Love Love,

Mason :)

No Sleep For The Restless 11/3/2011

Ello Friends!

I'm sorry it has taken me so long to write this email! Life has seriously been going by so fast, and I am going non-stop here.  There is so much stuff to do, and I have listened to many speakers here telling us how there is a triangle that we have to balance between sleep, school, and social. Well, I think my triangle is leaning toward school and social because I get around 5-6 hours of sleep, and there is no time to take a break!  

This past weekend I went home to the mountains, and it was so nice to see the fam without the craziness of homecoming.  Dad came and picked me up around 11 on thursday, and I was home by 12:30. I'm pretty much the luckiest kid ever. I mean who's Dad comes and picks their kid up in a plane?  But anyway, I spent the rest of the day working on a paper in Green Sage Coffeehouse while Dad was at work, and then I came home for a nice home-cooked meal. Yum yum! Then that night we went to the Chorus concert, and of course I sang along the whole time because I knew all the words haha! On Friday I went to J&S with Callen for breakfast and I got to hang out with all her peeps and talk about whats going on at Reynolds.  Not much has changed, the people are still amazing, but it was weird having all of Callen's friends talk about going to college.  Then I got to thinking, I only have 5 more weeks left of my first semester! Exciting and sad at the same time.  Later on I got my hairs cut and mom and I spent the entire day together!  Friday night I somehow got roped into working the concession stand at the Reynolds Football game in the freezing cold weather.  I was not to fond of the idea when Callen told me I had to do it, but it actually turned out to be really fun!  I got to see a lot of my Wyldlife girls and they were cuter than ever.  Saturday morning Mom and I woke up at the crack of dawn to go to the J. Crew Sidewalk Sale (so freezing, but soooooooooo worth it!!).  Then later on we watched the Georgia vs. Flordia game and it was a heart-wrencher! I was so happy when we won, I just wanted to go back to Athens because I knew it would be CRAZY!  On Sunday I went to church, and I had to go to the college class :( It was so strange not going to the youth room and hanging out with all the kids in youth group. I'm such a geezer now.  Anyway, I went back home, packed my stuff, and somehow ended up bringing way more stuff back than I came with...

So this week is homecoming week and Student Government plays a big part in all the homecoming events. Sunday night after I got back to Athens I stayed up until 2am street painting! The girl that had put all the stuff together was not really prepared (she went to the game...and to the beach...) so all the freshman pretty much did all the work.  It was soooooooo cold, but it really was fun. The next morning I had an 8am and I was so unbelievably tired. Mason=zombie. But I managed to write a paper and take a nap so it all worked out.  It was also Halloween so that night my 3 friends were the three blind mice and I dressed up as their exterminator!  It was so funny because we all looked ridiculous, and I even went to my Student Government meeting dressed up, and of course the Dean was speaking to us that night haha.  He kept giving me funny looks, but I just smiled haha.  

Anyway, I am really excited because I have signed up to go on a mission trip with the church I am going to here.  It is a Freshman-Only trip, and we are going to be traveling to Jamaica to work with the sister church there.  I have been praying about this a lot, and I finally just decided that I needed to go.  I have heard nothing but amazing things about it, and I really think God wants me to go. Its going to be an adventure trying to raise all this money ($1500), but I have already got some tactics up my sleeve!  

I love you guys so much! I can't wait for Callen and Dad to come see me this weekend! Please please please write me or email me anytime!!

Peace and Blessings,

Mason :)