Alexander HAMILTON.

 Well, we're back from our first college visit. Our first of many I'm thinking! Yikes. And of course, we chose the most freezing weekend on record. I woke up yesterday up there and my phone read 3 degrees. LOL  It snowed about 6 inches while we were there, so it wasn't the most optimal visiting conditions for a walking tour, to say the least, but for the first visit, even in the snow, it was pretty impressive.

(the gorgeous chapel with Hamilton facing it)

It's a beautiful campus way up on a picturesque hill in a sleepy town. Only around 2,000 students. Campus was quiet (probably much due to the snow storm) but it sure was the prettiest campus I've seen. Filled with historic mansions and stone buildings, the dining hall looked straight out of Harry Potter's Hogwarts. We stayed on campus in a nice 15 room historical building. We felt like we were staying in someone's beautiful house. It was really nice. Some downsides for me- It was much further upstate than I thought- Had it been 3 hours I would have liked it more. It was a solid 4 hrs going up, coming home- in traffic, a bit more. It was a drive. Wasn't super happy about that. It was small. Like a lot smaller than I had imagined. Super prestigious, yadda, yadda }"little Ivy League"  but small. Not sure if that was a meh factor for Char. The nearest town was tiny- Clinton. Not too much going on there at all. You would have to have a car to drive probably 15-20  minutes away to see life. Lots and lots of farms. Different than say, Boston, ya know? So yes, beautiful, gorgeous, aesthetically, but I'm very eager to see other schools on the list. It's D3 Softball, which is great for her because it would allow time for her studies. She did love the two coaches she had the clinic with. The athletic complex was gorgeous, big, beautiful, immaculate and close to the housing and science research building which got her excited.

(our beautiful hotel room)

So we'll see... First one was good. Lots to go, but informative and eye opening. The ballgame changes when it's YOUR kid going to college. LOL  So much to consider. Even the weather. LOL  So now we have a little marker as to what we/she liked-loved, what we/she did not. Web said he was quitting his job and going to school there. I guess he really liked it...

We didn't get home until a little after 8 last night. So we crawled in the back door and tried our best to unpack, etc. and get ready for work/school today. Charlotte starts her big Midterm Exams tomorrow and we started today. Thank goodness I didn't have to use my brain today, because momma here was draggin'... Once we took her to the camp at the athletic complex at 11 AM yesterday, Web and I had to keep ourselves busy after checking out of the room, in a snow storm and really nowhere to go for 4 1/2 hours. So it was a lot. The biggest attraction nearby was Turning Stone Casino- Which was fun for a little while- But it's over and we survived. It was nice to experience the first visit together. And they say, you know it, you feel it, when it's the right fit for you. So time will tell.........She really didn't say, too, too much I think she was probably a little overwhelmed. I also think going to a clinic that far away on a Sunday is something to be considered. She was very stressed about her schoolwork, etc. So I'm not sure that Sunday thing would be a good idea unless we were on vacation from school or something. It's A LOT. And it's not around the corner. So, things to consider...

I think our next visit may be to Amherst in Massachusetts. Closer than Hamilton and same academically and with softball. So that may be the next.

I would like for her to see Quinnipiac while we are not "as busy" as we usually are also. Just to sort of knock some of this off the list.

So that's that. It was a nice weekend "away" for the three of us. Sorry to hear about that heartbreaking Bills game. Dang. We caught the end of it which, well, you know how that ended... They'll get it next year!

Stay warm you guys.

xo, Annie

(beautiful historic buildings)