In One Month...

In one month I'll be in Italy
In one month I'll be settling into my apartment
In one month I'll be getting to know by future family
In one month it all starts

Everything is coming so quickly, I found out my class schedule last week and today I found out where I'll be living next semester! I couldn't be more excited about my apartment. It's big, it's close, and I have my own room :)

The biggest thing to get used to will be having no dryer for my clothes. But I'm sure I will get used to it in no time. Every time I see pictures of Italy I get more and more excited to be there. I really won't believe any of the pictures until I see it myself, and trust me there will be plenty of pictures to see, so get ready :)

Until then,

Ciao!

I get by with a little help from my friends

I think big life changes bring people together and makes people nicer.

I have gotten so much encouragement and help from people I haven't talked to in years, which I appreciate, but it makes me think "why now?" They weren't excited for whenever I made a good grade or an amazing craft on pinterest, so why do they want to be involved with my life now? Because people live vicariously through others.  I probably do it also, we just want to be involved in people's life whenever it's great!

I'm not complaining at all, I've gotten great advice from past study abroad people that I probably couldn't get from anyone else!

I just hope these same people will be there to support me even if times get tough.


Food for thought.

#mylifeisaverage

It might seem like I have this perfect fantasy life, well nobody does and I certainly don't.

Even though I have great things that happen to make me enjoy myself, my life is pretty average:

I wake up and go to sleep in this bed everyday.

I get ready in this bathroom everyday

I get try and make myself presentable to the world

I chose the best shoes to take me along the journey

And I pack up and leave.

Some Highlights

Now I will hit on some highlights, both relating to my journey and others not so much.

Enjoy!

This was a big day: the day that I sent all of my paperwork off so I could get approved for a visa!

And last week my passport came back, with my visa in it!

The big reveal! I love my sorority family :) 

My crazy section during saxeT week 

When Gameday attacked my campus

The day autumn hit Norman, I took about 150 pictures of the trees on my neighborhood and ended up printing a 16"x24" of one.   

Who couldn't love this state? 

And the most recent event I got to put on a dress to attend.  With my two favorite boys. 

That's basically what happened this semester! Add in a lot of class, and some exciting football games and you have my life! 

People that I will miss

Now don't get me wrong, I don't hate EVERYBODY.

I don't think people consider other people when they move away like this, at least not like I do. Because I have a such a great support system, I wanted to highlight the people that have helped me so much this semester.

Here are just a few people I will miss terribly

Nicole: My little/roommate. She was the first non-family member I had to tell, mainly because I had to fill out my passport application and I couldn't figure out what color my hair was.  I know deep down, and sometimes not so deep, she doesn't want me to leave, but I know she will be fine!

Rachael: My big. Basically she has been my go to person for advice since she had studied abroad last year.  She helped me make my final decision of places, and is always supporting me.

The three greatest friends God gave me at this point in my life: Paige, David, and Jacob

Paige is my little in one of my other organizations.

Here we are at big/little reveal last year!

She has been my best friend this semester and we have shared some great times, this will be a hard goodbye 

David: He has been the best freshmen, ever.  And that's saying a lot. But no really, he has.  From teaching me a little bit of Italian (most of which I don't remember), to being the most ridiculous person so I can laugh at him.  I'm really sad that I won't get to see you next semester. 

Jacob: Him and I have been through the biggest obstacles together this semester that I don't know how we are still alive and how we made it through that class. 

And to my family. I'm not going to go into detail or individually, because that would take up way to much time.  But they are the hugest support systems I can have (I'm even tearing up a little). That's why I can't go into much detail, because I will just start crying in the middle of my dinning room.  I just can't wait to see my sister and mom in Italy with me! 

Why study abroad, why Italy?

I mean, look at it.


That's not the only reason why though, it's just a little added bonus.

I guess it all started around September and I had been playing along with the idea of studying abroad, but never thought it would be next semester.  What gave me the initial push was one of my sorority sisters was going to be in London in the spring, that made me envious.  The second push was...I was so frustrated with my friends.

I know that's a terrible reason for wanting to leave the country, but it's true.  I was at a bad state with my friends that I considered to be the one's that I would be in their bridal party one day.

Although that was another incentive, it wasn't the biggest reason.

Basically I am at the perfect time in my life to put everything aside and have an adventure on my own.  I'm confident in who I am, I'm getting tired of Norman (and people), and furthermost I want to learn who I am without the confines of these boundaries I'm in.

A little me

To give you a short synapsis of who I am:

My name is Karin Cockran, a Junior Photography major from Ardmore, OK.

That's me on top of the world, in my opinion.

I have three wonderful siblings, two loving parents, and two crazy dogs.

So you must be asking yourself, "Man it looks like she has an amazing life and family, why would she want to leave that for a semester abroad?"

Well stay tuned on the next post and I will let you know!!!

Well here we are, my first post as a blogger

I never thought I would be the one to share my thoughts and experiences on a website viewable to the world, but I guess people change.  And boy did I change this semester.

This blog will take you on journey of why I wanted to study abroad, the preparation getting ready for it,  all of the adventures I will have while abroad, and more!

So let's get started!