Day One...

We started our day bright and early yesterday. We were on the road at 6:45 am. We arrived at the airport in plenty of time...got her all checked in...got through security...found her gate...and had about 30 minutes to spare. As we sat and waited we started to see other kids that were dressed in the required khaki pants and white shirt for arrival day...as it turns out there were 5 other JrNYLC kids on her flight...and one of the boys father was flying with him...so he would make sure that everyone found there people on the other end! That was a huge stress reliever for sure!!

They started boarding the plane at 10:30...and at 10:45 we said our teary goodbye...(I was teary...she was embarrassed that I was teary!) and at 10:57 her plane pulled away from the gate.

We headed over to Lincoln Park Zoo, and just after we found a parking spot...(which took about an hour...and cost a small fortune) the phone rang and it was Tate! She had landed safe and sound...she thought the plane ride was "cool"...and she was excited to get off the plane and get to the hotel and meet everyone.

I can't wait for her to call to let us in on some more details...like her roommates...what sites she has seen...etc.

Here is the email that I received this morning...I will be getting an email everyday...and there will be a slide show with each of them. Tate is in a few pictures in this slide show...


Dear Parent,

I am happy to report that Tatelynn has arrived at the Junior National Young Leaders Conference (JrNYLC) and is already immersed in a journey of learning and self-discovery! Tatelynn has been assigned to the Character 2 Leadership Focus Group (LFG) led by Kim Johnson, her faculty advisor for the week. The Leadership Focus Group is a small group that Tatelynn will meet with over the course of the week to focus on and discuss leadership concepts in a close-knit setting.

In her LFG's first meeting, Tatelynn participated in icebreakers with the other students and received an introduction to the different leadership concepts that will be covered throughout JrNYLC: character, communication, goal setting, problem solving, respect and teamwork. Tatelynn also worked with her group to set goals for the week and write a group constitution.

To view a photo slideshow from the first day of JrNYLC, click here.