Have Courage and Be Kind

devon | 20 | mi | insta: @devonperry96

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This summer has been nothing short of awesome! This has been my first summer not technically being in college, so it’s been full of actual adulting. I am still taking classes in order to become a child life specialist, but it is different now that I have an actual degree.

May

The first month of summer went by quickly. First, we went to Holland for the Tulip Time festival. It was our first time at the festival and it was so cool to see all of the tulips and all of the Dutch culture. A week later, we headed back to the east side of the state for my sister’s thirteenth birthday party, which was filled with lots of middle schoolers. We finished out the month up north in Traverse City for Memorial Day weekend with Zach’s family.

Tulip Time in Holland

Ally’s 13th Birthday

Memorial Day in Traverse City

Memorial Day in Traverse City

Memorial Day in Traverse City

June

June was spent working with my adorable kiddos, and on a trip to Washington state. We went to so many awesome places. We started in Olympic National Park, then we went to the Mt. Baker area and North Cascades National Park. Finally, on our last day we spent a couple of hours in Seattle, then spent some time in Vegas on a layover. It was a great trip and there is a strong chance that I will make a post solely about this trip because the few pictures I chose are just a small glimpse into an amazing trip.

Ruby Beach

First time gambling in Vegas!

Sunset in Port Angeles

North Cascades National Park

North Cascades National Park

Mt. Baker

Horshoe Bend Trail

North Cascades National Park

Ruby Beach, Washington

Rialto Beach

July

In July, I lost my grandfather. He was one of the greatest men I knew and I am proud to say that I am his granddaughter. I am still reeling from the unexpectedness of his passing, but I know he is no longer suffering. The day after the funeral, Zach and I moved in to our new apartment! We love it here so far and I can’t wait to show everyone what it looks like. The day after we moved into our apartment, we got a puppy, a pug named Pablo! SO to say it was a hectic week is the understatement of the century.

Gramps

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Pablo!

August

August started with my week at Camp Catch-A-Rainbow, a camp for kids who are being treated for cancer or who are in remission from cancer. I was a counselor for the 12-13 year old girl cabin and, although I was nervous about it at first, my girls were AMAZING and truly inspirational. It was an awesome experience and I cannot wait to go back next year. Later in the month, we went to a Tigers game where Jack Morris was honored. Some friends and I went to see Jon Pardi at the Intersection here in Grand Rapids and it was such a fun night, even though I had to work the next day. To top the month off, we got to hang out with our puppy EVERY DAY!!

Anna’s

Tigers Game

John Pardi

Back Forty

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September

Finally, the last couple weeks have been so awesome! I got to see one of my best friends from Grand Valley, hang out with the Pabs (aka the best puppy in the world), and go to Chicago! Chicago was such a whirlwind as we were there for 24 hours, but we packed in a ton of sightseeing on top of seeing Childish Gambino. He put on an amazing show and it honestly was the best concert that I have been to!

Evening walks with Pablo

Navy Pier

The Bean

Rooftop patio at hotel in Chicago

The Bean

“This isn’t a concert, this is church”

Although summer isn’t *technically* over, I can say that it was an amazing summer and I am so excited to see what fall (aka my fav season) has in store!

Summer 2018 Recap This summer has been nothing short of awesome! This has been my first summer not technically being in college, so it's been full of actual adulting.

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When I decided to start this blog over this past summer, I had plans to update this two times a week and use it as one of my forms of self care. I knew that I was going to be busy when the Fall 2017 semester started, but I didn’t really understand HOW busy I was actually going to be. Somehow, as a senior in college with one semester until graduation, I decided to change career paths.

At the beginning of the semester, I started my field placement for my social work program. I knew right from the beginning that it was not the type of program that I wanted to work for in the future, which caused MANY panic attacks and a ton of anxiety. During this period of uncertainty, I started doing research on other careers and/or career paths because I thought that social work was not for me. During my research, I came across Child Life. With my Love Your Melon experience, I had heard of Child Life Specialists and knew a little bit about what they did, so I continued researching and fell in love with the field.

What is a Child Life Specialist? “Child life specialists are child development experts who work to ensure that life remains as normal as possible for children in health care settings and other challenging environments. They promote effective coping through play, self-expression activities, and age-appropriate medical preparation and education. As advocates of family-centered care, child life specialists work in partnership with doctors, nurses, social workers and others to meet the unique emotional, developmental and cultural needs of each child and family.” Definition according to www.childlife.org

As of right now, I plan on graduating in April with my Bachelors of Social Work degree from Grand Valley State University. I am currently applying to Western Michigan University’s Family and Consumer Sciences with an emphasis in Child Life graduate program, so hopefully I will know if I got in by graduation! I start volunteering in the Child Life department at Metro Health hospital in the Grand Rapids area next week, along with my final semester of undergrad at GVSU.

This semester is going to fly by, not only because I have something to look forward to (countdown to graduation: 113 days), but also because I am going to be super busy again with my internship, work, volunteering, Love Your Melon, and classes. While I am so excited to graduate, I get teary eyed just thinking about leaving Grand Valley and all of the amazing friends that I have made here. I am honestly SO happy that I chose GV and I wouldn’t trade any of the friends or memories that I have made here for anything.

Thanks for reading and Anchor Up!!

  Life Update When I decided to start this blog over this past summer, I had plans to update this two times a week and use it as one of my forms of self care.

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ITS SPOOKY SEASON (Life Update & Favorite "Spooky" Things)

ITS SPOOKY SEASON (Life Update & Favorite “Spooky” Things)

HI FRIENDS! It’s been a while since I have been able to write on here, but I finally put aside time to write and it’s honestly so refreshing. I am currently interning at Cherry Health on Monday’s and Wednesday’s, in class Tuesday and Thursday mornings, working Tuesday & Thursday afternoons and Friday’s, AND leading the GVSU Love Your Melon Campus Crew. I am super busy but I am loving it. I also…

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Summer 17 Reading List

Summer 17 Reading List

Summer is one of the only times I am able to actually sit down and read a book and I want to read as many as I can before school starts in little over a month (AHHH). Wonder, R.J. Palacio Although this is technically a children’s book, I have been wanting to read this one for a while. I snagged my younger sisters copy the last time I was home and so far, it’s SO good. The book is centered around…

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A couple of summers ago, I stumbled across Christina Marcellino’s blog Carolina Charm and was inspired. Even though I’m still in college, I love reading about her recipes, DIY home improvements, and her freaking adorable kids. Every Friday she does a link-up post called “Five on Friday” and now that I have my own blog, I can finally participate!

One – Pool Day

Last Saturday, I finally got to hang out with my friend Halsey! We hung out at her pool and caught up on the last 10 MONTHS of our lives. It was much needed.

Two – Mean Girls

Everytime me and Zach try to pick a movie, it normally ends up with someone watching a movie they have no desire to watch. This past Saturday night, we were scrolling through Netflix and saw Mean Girls. As I continued to scroll (I’ve seen the movie about 5 million times), Zach said he had never seen it before and wanted to watch it. Obviously, he loved it, and I can’t believe I’ve been dating him for 9 months and didn’t know he had never seen it! Crisis averted everyone.

Three – Movie Tuesday’s

On Tuesday’s, Zach and I normally head to our local movie theater to see a movie. Tuesday night deals are great, and since he is an AT&T customer – I get to go for free (that’s only at AMC theaters FYI)!! This past Tuesday, we saw Spider-Man: Homecoming! Now I have always been an OG Spider-Man fan bc Tobey Maguire IS Spider-Man. With that being said, this movie was the best of the three Spider-Man “series”.  Tom Holland did great and I love that it was incorporated with the rest of the Marvel characters (I am a total Marvel movie nerd!)

Four – Jook and Nona Gold Bar Necklace

Last Fall, I subscribed to the Fab Fit Fun box. In the fall box, there was a gorgeous 18k gold necklace with the word “love” on it from Jook and Nona. I fell in love with it and wear it every day because it goes with everything!

Five – FRIENDS

Tonight I am going to see Brothers Osborne at the Intersection in Grand Rapids with two of my best friends, Autumn and Rachel. I am SO excited to see them and listen to some live country music!!

Five on Friday A couple of summers ago, I stumbled across Christina Marcellino's blog Carolina Charm and was inspired. Even though I'm still in college, I love reading about her recipes, DIY home improvements, and her freaking adorable kids.

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Midweek Motivation: Have Courage and Be Kind

My favorite quote, and twitter bio, comes from Disney’s remake of Cinderella. At the very beginning, Ella’s mother becomes very ill and the last thing she was able to tell Ella before she passes away is, “Have courage and be kind, for where there is kindness there is goodness, and where there is goodness, there is magic.” Throughout the movie, you see that Ella is always able to rise above the…

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A couple of Sundays ago, my boyfriend and I made the trek (aka the 20 minute drive) to Grand Haven State Park to go to the beach. The beach is one of my favorite places so I wanted to stay there for as long as we could. We were there for about 3 1/2 hours…in the 90 degree heat. Probably not my best choice. We had a great time relaxing and eating Pronto Pups, a Grand Haven must have.

A couple of hours after we got home, I looked down at my arms and my stomach dropped. I was redder than a tomato. I checked the rest of my body and I was red…EVERYWHERE. I immediately texted my mom “HELP WHAT DO I DO?!?!” and she said to put aloe on it and just hope it gets better.

The next morning I woke up in extreme pain, in my stomach and on my skin. I decided to go to work and try to power through it, but I ended up getting sick so I left. At that point, both me and my mom knew I had sun poisoning. The next few days were probably some of the worst days of my life, and that’s not and exaggeration. It hurt to move and my best friends were a cold washcloth and my aloe lotion.

Luckily, I started feeling better in time to go to Cedar Point and chaperone my sisters last day of school field trip. I made sure all of the kids in my group had sunscreen on and I tried to enjoy my day in the hot sun. About halfway through the day, when I was showing my sunburn to one of the girls, she noticed that my skin had started to bubble on my stomach, the lovely start to the peeling process. Now, almost three weeks later, I am STILL peeling!!

I learned a HUGE lesson at the beach that day, but I won’t let the sun ruin my summer plans. There are ways to prevent getting burnt and the extra steps are 100% necessary to make sure your skin is safe. Read the directions on the sunscreen ahead of time! They aren’t there for fun, they are there to make you safe. Make sure you apply sunscreen with at LEAST 30 SPF once every hour, starting the hour before you go outside, and if you are in the water, either use waterproof sunscreen OR apply more frequently. Also, check to make sure your sunscreen is not expired!

Summer Fun and Sunburns A couple of Sundays ago, my boyfriend and I made the trek (aka the 20 minute drive) to Grand Haven State Park to go to the beach.

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Exactly a month ago, I was in the beautiful country of Ireland. I had planned on writing about my time in Ireland while I was there, but once I got there, it fell to the bottom of my priority list. I decided to briefly summarize what we did and what the highlights of the trip were for me! This was an amazing trip and there are so many things I miss about Ireland, but mainly I miss their Coke. It had sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup in it and let me tell ya, it was SO much better.

Traveling to Europe is Hard

First, our professor wanted us to pack everything for two weeks into a carry on. I am a notorious over packer, so this was a very difficult task for me. In the long run, I’m very grateful to have only had only a carry on sized bag to lug around, AND I didn’t even use everything I brought.

Second, the flight over the Atlantic Ocean is a killer. I am a person that can normally fall asleep anywhere at anytime with no issues, but for some reason I CAN NOT sleep on planes. Our flight to Dublin from Newark was overnight so the following day was a struggle for me.

Third, jet-lag is real. I’ve never traveled to a time zone that was so different from mine before, so I never really thought about jet-lag coming into play. We got to Dublin around 7am their time and 2am my time. We were only in Dublin for two days, but we all got to take a little nap before we went out and explored the city.

Dublin

I absolutely LOVED Dublin. It wasn’t definitely not what I expected, and I think that’s why I thought it was so great. We went to Trinity College and explored a little bit on our first day there. On our first night, we went to a couple of cool pubs and stopped at The Temple Bar. On our second day, we went to Guinness, explored on our own, and had class at Trinity College with a social worker who lives in Dublin. That night, some of us explored some more and found some really cool stuff! I even found a Nandos, which I was very excited about because Niall from One Direction loves it there (I’m lame, I know).

Galway

Galway was awesome. We were there for about 4 days and I knew my way around the city by the time we left. On the first day there, our professor gave us a tour of the city after we checked into the hostel. That night we went to The Kings Head, which was over 800 years old!! The second day, we went to Inis Mor island. It is the largest of the three Aran Islands and it was beautiful. That night we went back to The Kings Head for some live Irish music! The third day there, we got to explore on our own. My room, a group of four, decided to go find the pub that Ed Sheeran filmed his Galway girl video at, or at least that’s what we thought. We walked all the way there only to find out he actually filmed it at a pub around the corner from our hostel! It was still a great walk and we got to walk along the Galway Bay so that was cool. That night, we met up with a former GVSU student who went on the trip who now lives in Galway. We asked her some questions about the different policies and then she took us to a local pub. It was an interesting time and we learned a lot about Irish culture that night. The last day there we went to their local farmers market and then explored the city more. That afternoon we went to an escape room (and escaped before the hour was up!) and then went and found the actual pub that Ed’s music video was filmed at, O’Connells.

Letterfrack

Letterfrack was also super cool. I loved how small it was and how friendly the people there were.  When we got there, we loaded our stuff into our rooms and then we went hiking. We first stopped at a cemetery which honored the little boys, some as young as 6, that were killed at the industrial school in Letterfrack. It was so sad to think about. We then hiked up Diamond Hill, which is a 1,450 foot tall mountain. It was a gorgeous hike and the views from the top were spectacular. The second day we were there, we went to Kylemore Abbey, which is one of the huge touristy spots of Ireland. It was gorgeous and had so much history. After that, we visited the town of Clifden to explore for a little while. Then on our way back to the hostel, we stopped at a place called Sky Road, which is a scenic view place and it the view was SO gorgeous.

Lisdoonvarna

The last few days of our trip, we were in Lisdoonvarna, which is a tiny town in Connemara. On our first day, we visited the Burren, which is a large national park. There, we visited Corcomroe Abbey, which was built sometime in the 12th Century. The rest of the day, we just hung out at our hostel. The next day we hiked the Cliffs of Moher. We went on a path built by local people and were guided by a man named Pat. The path actually goes through his farm and where he grew up. It was really cool to not only get views of the Cliffs that no one else really does, but to hear his stories about what it was like growing up there. The Cliffs were amazing and we even got to see a coast guard rescue, which scared are professor who didn’t do the hike with us! The next couple of days were spent exploring some local towns (Ennistymon and Lahinch) and going to St. Bridget’s Well.

  Study Abroad: Ireland Exactly a month ago, I was in the beautiful country of Ireland. I had planned on writing about my time in Ireland while I was there, but once I got there, it fell to the bottom of my priority list.

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With finals coming up next week and the school year coming to a close, I have been able to do a lot of reflecting on my college experience so far. Choosing Grand Valley was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. It’s brought me some of the greatest people I have ever met, some of the greatest experiences, and given me the chance to be a part of two amazing organizations!

The past three years, I’ve been able to make some amazing friends. From those that I met freshmen year, to those that I met this semester. They all mean so much to me and they make Grand Valley feel like home. Also, huge shout out to Matt, Rachel, and Autumn for sticking by me even though we are all so far apart. You guys are the best and I love you all so so so much.

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Pals Student Mentors is a community-based mentoring program, meaning that mentoring will take place outside of school. Mentoring can take place in your mentee’s home, out in the community, and during Pals Student Mentors group events.

I talk about Love Your Melon A LOT on social media, but I don’t really talk about the other amazing organization that I am a part of, Pals. I am actually on the executive board!! Not only have I made some awesome friends from this organization, but it also brought Elliodea and Amalia into my life. Watching Elliodea (or Ya Ya as we call her) grow and open up to me and Jamie over the past couple of months has been amazing. Around December, her mom texted us and said that Ya Ya’s younger sister, Amalia, also wanted a mentor! So we took her on as well.

As most of you know, I have been a part of the GVSU Love Your Melon Campus Crew since January 2016. Since then, I have been able to do some pretty awesome things and have met some pretty awesome people! I got to meet Dawson and having a Nerf Gun war, do a hospital visit on Superhero Day, hang out with Dawson at our last GVSU home football game, volunteer at the Ronald McDonald house of Grand Rapids, go to the LYM night at the Palace of Auburn Hills, be the team captain for our crew’s Relay for Life team, and so much more. This organization means so so much to me and I can’t wait to see what is in store for next year!!!

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While I have spent a lot of this year looking ahead to my future, I have also spent time just being present. College is such a unique experience, and although I am so ready to be a “real adult,” I’m not sure if my heart is ready to leave Grand Valley. I’m not ready to not be constantly in the same town as my friends. I’m not ready to not be on campus everyday. I am definitely NOT ready to start being a grown up and making important decisions. Can someone make time slow down please?

End of Junior Year Reflection With finals coming up next week and the school year coming to a close, I have been able to do a lot of reflecting on my college experience so far.

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With finals coming up next week and the school year coming to a close, I have been able to do a lot of reflecting on my college experience so far. Choosing Grand Valley was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. It’s brought me some of the greatest people I have ever met, some of the greatest experiences, and given me the chance to be a part of two amazing organizations!

The past three years, I’ve been able to make some amazing friends. From those that I met freshmen year, to those that I met this semester. They all mean so much to me and they make Grand Valley feel like home. Also, huge shout out to Matt, Rachel, and Autumn for sticking by me even though we are all so far apart. You guys are the best and I love you all so so so much.

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Pals Student Mentors is a community-based mentoring program, meaning that mentoring will take place outside of school. Mentoring can take place in your mentee’s home, out in the community, and during Pals Student Mentors group events.

I talk about Love Your Melon A LOT on social media, but I don’t really talk about the other amazing organization that I am a part of, Pals. I am actually on the executive board!! Not only have I made some awesome friends from this organization, but it also brought Elliodea and Amalia into my life. Watching Elliodea (or Ya Ya as we call her) grow and open up to me and Jamie over the past couple of months has been amazing. Around December, her mom texted us and said that Ya Ya’s younger sister, Amalia, also wanted a mentor! So we took her on as well.

As most of you know, I have been a part of the GVSU Love Your Melon Campus Crew since January 2016. Since then, I have been able to do some pretty awesome things and have met some pretty awesome people! I got to meet Dawson and having a Nerf Gun war, do a hospital visit on Superhero Day, hang out with Dawson at our last GVSU home football game, volunteer at the Ronald McDonald house of Grand Rapids, go to the LYM night at the Palace of Auburn Hills, be the team captain for our crew’s Relay for Life team, and so much more. This organization means so so much to me and I can’t wait to see what is in store for next year!!!

While I have spent a lot of this year looking ahead to my future, I have also spent time just being present. College is such a unique experience, and although I am so ready to be a “real adult,” I’m not sure if my heart is ready to leave Grand Valley. I’m not ready to not be constantly in the same town as my friends. I’m not ready to not be on campus everyday. I am definitely NOT ready to start being a grown up and making important decisions. Can someone make time slow down please?

  End of Junior Year With finals coming up next week and the school year coming to a close, I have been able to do a lot of reflecting on my college experience so far.

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New Semester: Tips and Tricks

New Semester: Tips and Tricks

The Fall Semester is starting in less than a week and I couldn’t be more excited (Yes you read that right, EXCITED). I love the learning and I love *most* of my classes. Also, I am a office supply junkie and a new semester means new office supplies!!! With that being said, I thought I would share two of the things I do at the beginning of every new semester! 1) Use a planner Every “New Semester…

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I have read a ton of blogs with “Five on Friday” or “Fun Friday” posts, so I decided to do something similar to that!

Personally, I think Monday’s get the rough end of the deal. It’s not their fault that they are the beginning of the work week! It’s important to have a “Merry Monday” in order to have a good week! So each week, I am going to post a “Merry Monday’s” post with a list of the things that have made me “merry” in the last week!

One. 

Last week I stumbled upon The Daily Tay and fell in love with her blog. Taylor seems like such a fun person to be around and I love her sarcasm. Hit up her T-shirt store and get a super cute shirt!

Two. 

Lake days. Last week, some family friends were here visiting from Florida! We were able to have a cook-out and spend a day on the lake with them! It was awesome to see them and we had so much fun tubing and just chilling on the water. 10/10 would recommend having a lake/beach day to relax and have a great time. 

Those are just a few things from last week that make me happy! This week is pretty exciting as well, 4th of July is this weekend! From fireworks to cookouts, it should be a really fun time. Do you have anything that made you happy last week? Is there anything you are looking forward to doing this week?! Let me know!

  Merry Monday! I have read a ton of blogs with "Five on Friday" or "Fun Friday" posts, so I decided to do something similar to that!

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101 in 1001

I’ve decided to do the “101 things in 1001 Days” challenge. I’m so excited about it! Start Date: June 10, 2016 End Date: March 8, 2019 101 Things to do in 1001 Days  Get on the dean’s list Study abroad Volunteer for an agency in the Social Work field Become fluent in Spanish Take a summer class Stay up late/wake up early enough to watch the sunrise Go to a concert Learn how to french braid Get a…

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10 Tips to Beat Summer Boredom

10 Tips to Beat Summer Boredom

During college, summer has it’s perks, but it also has it’s downsides. If you are like me, and stuck in your hometown for the summer, it can be hard to find things to do. I have come up with 10 things that I plan on doing this summer to beat the midsummer slump. 1) Go to a baseball game Whether your local baseball team is doing great, or doing terribly (I’m looking at you Tigers…), going to a…

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5 Books to Read This Summer

5 Books to Read This Summer

I love reading, but unfortunately reading for fun takes a backseat during the school year. Going outside and reading a book is one of my favorite things to do in the summer, whether I’m laying by the pool or just sitting on my deck. I always spend hours and hours at the library trying to find good books to read, so I thought I would make a short list of the books that I will be reading this…

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