For the past couple of days, the weather has been unusually warm for February, the birds have been singing, and the sun has been shining. All of these factors can only mean one thing: spring is coming! With the endless days of frigid weather and blistering winds finally starting to pass, here are a few reasons why I'm excited for spring and all the warm weather and sunny days that come with it.

1. There's finally some sunshine!

During the winter, it seems like the sun follows the pattern of most animals and hibernates for 3-4 months. By the time spring rolls around, it feels like it's been an eternity since the sun was out, and it feels amazing to finally have the warmth of the sun on your skin. Especially for pale-skinned people like me, the sun does wonders to make us no longer look like ghosts.

2. My college campus is no longer deserted

Most weekends at my school are pretty empty. Because it's such a small school, a lot of students like to go home, and in the winter no one really goes out to do anything. Who wants to go walk around the city in 30-degree weather?? Now that the weather is starting to warm up, it's nice to finally see some sort of life come back into the campus (a.k.a. students hanging out and playing sports on the quad).

3. There are dogs EVERYWHERE

Since my school is located in a city, there's no nearby trails or dog parks for owners to take their dogs on long walks. So, a lot of the time, people will walk their dogs through campus so they can run around the quad and get away from city traffic and busy intersections. If a dog walks right by you, how can you resist petting such an adorable creature? By the end of the day, you could have pet an average of at least 5 dogs (it's amazing, I know).

4. Everybody seems to be in a good mood

Once the weather starts to warm up, it seems as though everyone you walk past is in a good mood. People are saying hi, students are holding doors open for others, and professors are a bit more cheery. Warm weather also means being able to sit outside and do work, and even through the mounds of assignments that college students have to wade, being able to soak up the sun still makes it all worth it.

5. The start of spring means that the end of the semester is coming, which means SUMMER BREAK!

You know you've truly hit the home stretch of spring semester when the weather starts to get warm. You only have to suffer through less than 2 more months of grueling work and then you get a 4 month break. Just keep using the sunshine as your motivation and you can get through it!

Whether you choose to go outside and throw around a football or even just spend a few hours outside doing work, soak up as much sun as you can get and appreciate the warm weather before you're hauled up inside studying for finals.

Happy Spring, everyone!