On the first weekend of October, Stockton University held its annual University Weekend. Starting Thursday night and going on until Sunday, families of students were invited to campus to take part in numerous activities. The campus came alive that weekend, and it was one of the busiest weekends so far. It was so cool to see how many people actually stayed that weekend, instead of going home like many usually do. That weekend, I was able to meet the families of many of my new friends and also introduce my family to my new friends.

On Friday night, my family came down here to hang out and see the campus. I showed them around, and we watched the magician in the coffeehouse. He was really good, and my younger brother had a blast. He used to want to be a magician, so it was great to see that he still loved magic! That night my grandparents surprised me by coming to campus and bringing my cousins with them, too. It was wonderful to see them all and they were so excited to see me, too. When they got here, I walked over to the parking lot and then showed them my dorm. My cousins made me a drawing that they gave me, and it’s currently hanging on the wall above my bed. After showing them where I live now, I walked them back to the Campus Center where my family was eating. We all talked and caught up there for a while. Afterward, my friends told me there was a comedian in the gym so I took my brother, sister, and cousins to go see it. We walked in late, so I guess they had taken down the “Adult Language” warning sign by that point. I was not warned that it was inappropriate, although maybe I should have assumed. We stayed in the gym for about five minutes and then decided that my cousins were too young for that type of humor. We left the show and went back to the coffeehouse, to a nice kid-friendly environment. The magician was packing up his supplies still, and when we got there he made my cousins and brother balloon animals. They were having a blast. We spent the next couple hours playing foosball and card games with my family in the coffeehouse, and everyone had a great time.

My parents and brother left after the games because they had a long drive home, and were coming back the next morning for breakfast. My sister was spending the night in my dorm, though, so she stayed with me. My grandparents and cousins came with us to Seaview for milkshakes, and it was a lot of fun. We were blasting music in the car, and my cousins were being so funny at the hotel. They are seven and nine years old, so they’re really goofy. A year before this weekend, my aunt had gotten married at Smithville and we had all stayed at Seaview, so we spent a lot of time reminiscing while we were at the hotel. After we got back to campus, my grandparents and cousins left and my sister and I went to bed. It was great to be able to see everyone together since last time I went home I wasn’t able to. I hadn’t seen my sister in a while because the weekend I went home she was busy, so it was great to catch up with her.

My parents and brother came up again Saturday morning for the breakfast that was being held. I walked around the street fair with my family after breakfast and we all played games at the tables that were set up and won a lot of free stuff. Everyone had a blast! My family was goofing off the whole time, and the atmosphere was great. It made everyone feel at home. After the street fair, my family was having a blast meeting all of my new friends and their families. My mom actually found out that she works with a relative of one of my friends, so that was really cool.

All in all, the weekend was a great way to catch up with my family. They all enjoyed it and Stockton did a great job putting the whole thing together. I think all the events were great for the families, and it really helped them get a sense of what our college experience was all about. I can’t wait for next year’s University Weekend.