School is more fun without homework...

Well hello friends! I know it has been two weeks since I last blogged which can only be attributed to one thing: welcome. Not just the program in general which was an incredible success but also the start of the school year in general. It has been great so far. I know I've said it before but I have some fantastic students that planned and executed an awesome welcome including an outdoor movie, concert, Teal Tuesday, and finished up last night with a comedy show. They did it all with energy and enthusiasm that made it easy to come to work every day (or night).

In the middle of all this craziness I have had lots of visitors as well. Adam Best & Kshan came to visit last week. As many of you know Adam has been out to see the last 7 months so I was more than excited to see him (Welcome home Adam). JoJo (and Spunky) also came for a weekend visit which was wonderful. There is something about spending time with your mom that brings life back into focus. It was exactly what I needed last week. She got to meet and visit with some of my favorite people here in Wilmington and it was nice to share her with them. Lastly, Ashley & Brian Raska came through on their way back from Myrtle Beach for breakfast at one of my favorite places Chris' Cosmic Kitchen . It was great to see them as well! I enjoy sharing Wilmington, the place I now call home with people because I know they will find it as wonderful as I do!

UNCW is an amazing place and I continue to appreciate being at a coastal school. Here are the top 3 things awesome things working at a coastal school I've observed over the past two weeks:

-Making a rain call involves calling Enviornmental Health and Safety because the weather can change in a matter of minutes.
-There are skateboard racks in the dining halls to hold the skateboards of it's patrons
-The biggest Welcome events involves fencing off part of the beach for a giant beach party (Below is A, Katie and I after working Beach Blast)

Other than that I've just been enjoying time with friends, relaxing and enjoying the beach/pool time I have missed over the past few weeks. It feels good to start getting into a normal routine and it feels GREAT to not be bogged down with school work for the first time in 18 years :)






Time for shout outs:

- Happy late birthday to Jimmy O
-Congrats to Alyssa for getting an awesome job at Stevens
-Good luck to those at JMU as you start school this week (especially that Ashley A. Jones starting CSPA!)
-Congrats to my ACErs on a sucessful welcome
- Happy early birthday to Bradley Davis
-Good luck to my teacher friends starting school in the upcoming week. You will be great :)

They're back...

Apparently I'm not as good of a blogger as I thought I would be, it has been a while since I've blogged. Here are some highlights of the last 2 weeks:

- My wonderful friends Katelyn, Kelly, Angela and Audrey came down for an AWESOME girls weekend!

- I got to judge the RA training lip sync which was a total blast (shout out to Belk/APT, Crossing &Schuites)

-My ACE students came back in full force last week planning an awesome fall calendar and welcome programs.

Most importantly...they're back! Freshman move in was Saturday and with that the craziness began. UNCW does an amazing job with move-in and for any of you who work on a college campus you know there is nothing like the energy of the start of the semester. Today, as I volunteered at Convocation I looked at the sea of Teal and was taken back by the amount of enthusiasm and excitement that was around me. This is what it is about. Below is a beautiful pic of KTK, A and I at 7 am Saturday :)

After freshman move-in I went to VB for Mrs. Diane Anderson's retirement party. To say the women is remarkable is an understatement. For those of you who don't know the legend that is DDA she is one of my biggest mentors. I met Mrs. Anderson formally my junior year of high school. I served on a VB city-wide sportsmanship committee represeting good 'ol Tallwood. That summer I was elected the City-Wide SCA Chairman at Beach Workshop and from then on I have never been the same. Mrs. A has been an incredible source of support for me throughout the years. She taught me true servant leadership both as my advisor on CWSCA. She provided me with a once in a lifetime opportunity to serve on the Virginia Beach Leadership Workshop staff for five years and I have never, ever been the same person. I am the person I am today because of Mrs. A. To be in the room with so many who feel likewise was inspiring. It was amazing to hear so many others speak of Mrs. A the way that I do. So cheers to DDA, an amazing influence on my life and so many others.

I also came to a strange realization this weekend. In my less than 24 hours home I got to see Petey before he headed back to LU for his SENIOR YEAR on Sunday. It's a strange feeling when you realize your siblings have become your friend. As many of you know I have adored Petey my whole life but being around him now is like being around a best friend. As soon as he came home on Saturday we began talking and catching up like two friends who hadn't seen each other in a while. As much as I hate to admit it, little Petey isn't so little anymore. He is an adult (in many ways) who I respect and very much love. There is no doubt that I miss him when we're not together but it isn't until I see him again that I remember how much. So Petey, there's your shout out...love you little bro! Good luck with senior year! Don't worry Joann wanted to document the event :)

UNCWelcome has started and so things at work are crazy. Tomorrow night ACE has it's first event. We are showing "The Sandlot" outside while serving cracker jacks, capri suns and ice pops. It should be an awesome event :)

I believe that is all for now... Shout out time? I think so!

-Congrats to 3 of my favorite teacher friends for getting jobs this week: Rachel Ann, My little one Ashley     Carlton & Leslie Ann Lehner
-Lots of love to Lindsey McDaniel for organizing a successful move-in
- Tyler Jones for being selected to speak to the Board of Governors this weekend
-Good luck to the UNCW students as they start classes this week
- Happy Birthday today to my Uncle Joe
-Welcome home to Adam Best...back from a 7 month deployment! 

I want to give the last shout out to my amazing students who have worked SO hard over the past few weeks to plan what I believe will be a great start to the semester. I am the luckiest girl to work with such an amazing exec board and graduate assistant :)

Live a life less ordinary...

Hello Friends,

I know it has been a while, I suppose life started getting busy, or less interesting leaving me little to blog about but none the less, I'm back. Life in Wilmington is going well. For those of you who have heard about the couch saga, my new couch was delivered today and thanks to my recent paycheck and Sarah giving me another table my family room is really coming along :) I am very pleased.

As I predicted, with August hitting life has picked up at work and the rookie moments are becoming more frequent. I must say that for every rookie moment I have, I have 5 moments when I think to myself either how lucky I am to have found this job and opportunity so that keeps a smile on my face. More and more I am becoming more comfortable and the true Stefanie Mancuso comes out. Example: At the Student Affairs division retreat yesterday in Southport I was standing with some friends on the deck telling a story (full out, Stefanie story... acting it out and everything) actually, let me rephrase I was acting out what I believe I would be like as the Bachelorette (Christina was convincing me I should be on the show) and I knock my whole plate and cup off the ledge of the deck onto the hill. There was no good way to get onto the hill to pick up my mess, so, classy as ever I hoped over the railing, picked up my trash, and then climbed back over (no, I was not wearing a dress or skirt). Classy as always.

I saw Charlie St. Cloud Sunday night. Good movie, clearly some tears occurred, even from the guys. Again, I need to do a better job of not interacting with the films, it seems those around me aren't into it...it's just a challenge...I've never had an inside voice. I will put the disclaimer that it is not a chick flick, they just flash Zack Effron all over the screen in the previews to get 15 year old girls to buy tickets. In fact, it reminded me a great deal of the 6th sense only with a hotter actor and less whispering.

Yes, I am sad about the Ali not picking Chris L on the Bachelorette, however, I am happy for Ali and Roberto. They seem happy. I just hope they honeymoon in Alaska so he doesn't sweat so much. Poor guy. Did anyone else notice how tight Roberto's pants were and how difficult it was for him to get down on one knee, I know our house did.

Lastly, I have a public confession to make. As many of you who work at UNCW know, I am a regular at the local Fisher Center Einsteins. Today, I had a meeting with a student there and my boy Samual offered me my usual coffee cup for my regular Vanilla coffee. I chatted with Daniel, the manager and proceeded to have my meeting. Following my meeting I went over to fill up my coffee cup with a little more coffee before heading to my next meeting. Daniel yelled over to me "do you want me to charge you for that refill" to which I responded "don't hate on me Daniel". Tonight, I share this story with Katie and she informed me that you do not get free refills from Einsteins and that was the reason that she and Adrienne never do when I do after our frequent breakfasts. Clearly, I feel terrible for taking advantage of my dear friends at Einsteins and abusing my regular status. Lesson: Do not assume all places have free refills. I will remedy this situation, asap.

I think that is all for now... I've got some serious shout outs going on though:

- Congratulations to Katie and Clay Haley - they had a BEAUTIFUL wedding that I was lucky to attend last Saturday.
-So much love to the two newly employed teachers for the city of Norfolk, VA: Mrs. Ashley Carlton & Miss Rachel Myers. I am so proud of both of you!
- Love to my housing folks who are in the midst of RA training right now
-Best of luck to Miss Ashley Jones who moved to Hburg to start grad hall director training tomorrow (Go Dukes!)
-Time to come back east LK...congrats on finishing your NODA internship in Texas :)
-Phillip Burns: thanks for the great life talks, I appreciate them, still.
- Jimmy Oliverie making his victory lap this week at his internship in Philly.
-Early birthday shout out to Angela Damiano and Jemilia Harrison -Monday

Next up: a visit from some of my favorite girls this weekend.

Always,

Stefanie Jo

ADPi's with the beautiful bride this weekend <>