I spent my childhood around the country and in some other parts of the world. When my family finally settled in North Carolina for my last two years of high school, I was relieved. Living so close to the beach as well as all the reasonable year-round weather (besides hurricanes) made living at Camp Lejeune a great high school experience. The sports were fun, it was a small school and the fact that all of us were military brats made us a tight-knit group.

When it came time to decide where I wanted to go to school, I applied to schools all around the country. But what it came down to was deciding between the University of Kansas and Michigan State University. KU is in Lawrence, Kansas, one of the best college towns in America, and I had never been to East Lansing before. Honestly, after I got accepted to Michigan State there really was not much of a competition. Getting the acceptance letter (email beforehand, but oh well) was one of the happiest moments of my life. It felt right. In about twenty minutes, I had decided I wanted to go to Michigan State. I wanted to be a Spartan.

It's been almost three years since I first step foot on campus here at MSU. There's been ups and downs associated directly with being an out-of-state kid. When I showed up at West Holmes for my freshman move-in, I did not know a single soul at this school. I had been in this situation before and more than anything, I was excited. The thing I miss the most about freshman year is being so unfamiliar with everything. It was awesome. Exploring a college campus for the first time is an exhilarating experience. I only used a map when I needed to know where a building was my first semester of freshman year. The experience of walking around campus not knowing anything about the place is intimidating but that will always be one of my favorite memories as a Spartan.

But after I set up my dorm and said goodbye to mom, I realized it was just me. For the first time in my life, it was just me. That has been the toughest thing about living out-of-state. I can't go home on a weekend or even an extended weekend. I miss out on a lot of big family events and accomplishments.

But overall, I have had the time of my life being an out-of-state student. I love living in Michigan and being able to go home to a completely different place over break. My father is in the military, and my family has once again relocated to Northern Virginia. Going home to the DC area over breaks is a blast. I like to think that I get the best of both worlds. East Lansing is a special place. There's so much fun to be had here and some of my very best friends in the world are here. I love it. I also love spending time with the family in special places such as DC, Gettysburg, Baltimore and so many others when I'm home.

My parents are originally from Michigan and I like to think that they enjoy having an extra excuse to come up here and visit the mitten. Having the family take a trip to visit is an awesome experience, even if these visits are rare. To me, that makes them even better.

I value my experience here at MSU as an out-of-state kid and I know that looking back, I will always look back fondly on every day here. I look forward to finishing my education, but being here at MSU definitely makes it harder to leave.

Playing IM football, studying, going to all kinds of sporting events and everything else that goes along with college is such an incredible experience. Leaving your comfort zone is something that is never easy to do. But I've made wonderful friends and have been blessed with so many amazing experiences. Getting a chance to experience all this as an out-of-state student has made it that much better. Go Green!