My next dance was sophomore Homecoming. This was also an Arlington High School dance. This dance was a lot of fun and the pictures went a lot better. We again took pictures outside, but this time it wasn’t so cold. I went with a different group of friends for this dance and we all had a lot of fun together. This group was girls that I was on the cheer team with so I knew them a lot better, which made it more fun. Photo credit: Kelly Abeles

This dance was Bartlett High School’s Snowflake Dance my sophomore year. For this dance, we were once again freezing during pictures as they were taken outside in November. I was with a smaller group of friends for this dance, but I knew all of these girls pretty well so the night was a lot of fun. I learned that it is good to say yes and get out of my comfort zone by going to another schools dance with people I don’t know very well, with the exception of my few friends in the group. Photo credit: Kelly Abeles

My next dance I went to was MUS Spring Formal my sophomore year. This dance was okay but my night could’ve gone better. My date made us pretty late to pictures and we didn’t know each other well so the night was overall sort of awkward. I also didn’t know most of the girls in the group we went in. Overall, I learned not to go to a dance with a date that I barely know. Photo credit: Kelly Abeles

My next dance I attended was Arlington High School Homecoming my junior year. This dance went a lot better, but had some minor complications. On the good side, I loved the big group I was with and I was friends with my date so there was no awkwardness. On the bad side, some group members on the party bus we were on ended up breaking a few of the TVs on the bus. We then had to pay for the repairs. From this dance, I learned that I have the most fun with a big group of friends. I also learned not to go on a party bus with TVs. Photo credit: Kelly Abeles

My next dance was Arlington High School Prom my junior year. This dance went pretty good and I had a pretty fun time overall. I went with the same group of friends as I went with to homecoming and we once again had a lot of fun. I had a different date and he showed up kind of late to pictures but besides that, the night went smoothly. From this dance, I learned to stick with my friends that I’m close with. Photo credit: Kelly Abeles

My next dance was Briarcrest’s Homecoming Dance my senior year. This dance was fun and the planning was pretty well organized, allowing the night to go smoothly. My date was a lot improved as I went with my boyfriend and we were on time for everything. The group we went with was smaller, but I knew everyone in it making for a fun time together. Photo credit: Kelly Abeles

My last Homecoming Dance was Arlington High School’s for my senior year. This night went pretty well and was a great time overall. I made lots of fun memories from this night. It was pretty hot during pictures but I still really like how they turned out. We were also on time to pictures. The dance was a lot of fun and we drove to cookout on our party bus after the dance. There were also no broken TVs on the bus this time. We learned our lesson about breaking things to allow everything to go better this night. Photo credit: Kelly Abeles

Next, I went to Briarcrest’s Winter Formal my senior year. This night was a ton of fun but a little hectic. The pictures went well, despite it being in the cold of December, because we took them inside a house. The areas outside also had heaters all around to keep us warm. This was big improvement from my past winter dances where we were freezing during pictures. The only hectic part was that there were about 100 or so people at the house taking pictures. My date was once again good because I went with my boyfriend. We had a memorable and fun night together. Overall, this night was a success and I learned that pictures in cold weather are a lot better with heaters. Photo credit: Kelly Abeles

My next dance was Briarcrest’s Prom my senior year. This dance was really fun and the night went pretty well. Pictures were a little hectic once again as there were about 150 people there at once. We also accidentally forgot the boutonnière at home but my parents brought it shortly after we arrived. The pictures turned out good thought and the rain that was supposed to come luckily held off. The group I was in for this dance was really big and I didn’t know a lot of people that well. Despite this, I talked to a lot of people and made many new friends. This resulted in a super fun night together at the dance. From this dance, I learned not to accidentally leave the boutonnière in the fridge and to talk to people that I don’t know very well. Photo credit: Kelly Abeles

My very last dance was Arlington High School Prom my senior year. This dance was probably the best of them all and the night was nothing but amazing. Our pictures went perfectly and there was luckily no rain on what was supposed to be a rainy weekend. I also really loved how my pictures turned out. Our plans were very organized and there were no hiccups throughout the night because of this. My boyfriend was once again my date so there was no awkwardness and we made a lot of fun memories together. I had a lot of fun on the party bus with my group and went with all my best friends. The party bus took us all around town and we had a lot of fun on it. Overall, I learned to truly live in the moment and to enjoy these last memories together with all of my friends. Photo credit: Kelly Abeles