March, it is finally March. Between nights out with friends, lazy Sundays and study sessions at the UGL, where has the time gone? This month will also pass in a blink of the eye with the never-ending madness created by midterms and the week long vacation from all things school related known as spring break.
That leaves just April and then the few beginning weeks of May, which are consumed by finals, before we pack up and leave Champaign for three long months. Other than saying goodbye to all that is school during summer, we also more uneasily leave behind all of our best friends, our sorority sisters.
But, fear not! No need to cram in every possible minute from now until summer trying to get the most out of the time with your sisters. You do have homework, exams, extracurriculars, jobs and internships after all. Create memories with your sisters with these seven sisterhood event ideas you’ve probably never tried.
Go Rock-Climbing at the ARC
I know you’ve been to the ARC. Other than hitting the treadmills or taking a dip in the pool, have you ever actually gone on the rock-climbing wall? It’s time to start taking advantage of one of the nation’s largest recreation facilities just for students and utilizing its amenities. Get a group of your sisters together for a fun and different kind of work out! Bonding with your sisters and working on your fitness? Win-win.
Ice-Skating at the Ice Arena
This is probably another facility you’ve never utilized while in Champaign, but a fun activity to do with your sisters. This idea is old school, but in a good way. Did you ever attend camp when you were little? Ice-skating was one of the field trips every year, I swear! While it’s too cold to be outdoors, bring the fun inside. So grab your sisters and bundle up with this fun sisterhood event idea.
Cold Stone Creamery Ice-Cream Party
A craving for birthday cake remix landed me in Cold Stone the other day and while waiting for the greatest creation on earth to be made, I noticed a sign that advertised group tours of the store. Now, I have no idea if the tour includes ice-cream, but I would like to assume so. Even if it doesn’t, at least it gives everybody an excuse to get ice-cream. If the first two activity-driven ideas didn’t really appeal to you, this one has got you covered. Who doesn’t love ice-cream?
Favorite Things Party
I think every sorority girl can agree that they get some of their best ideas from Pinterest. Well, I found this one there. The idea is simple: everyone who is participating buys three of their favorite things in the five to ten dollar price range. All of the items have to be the same and can be anything from favorite snacks to beauty products. Each girl writes her name on three slips of paper and puts them into a bag. Then, one by one everyone explains what their favorite thing is and picks three names of girls who get to keep the presents! Not only is learning something new about your sisters fun, but so is receiving gifts.
Skydiving
Want to feel a rush of adrenaline? Grab a group of your sisters and all go skydiving together! There’s a skydiving center about twenty minutes off campus. You know all of those intense dates on The Bachelor where they propel down the side of a building or do other crazy, adventurous things? There’s something to be said about these adrenaline-inducing activities: they promote closeness and bonding. So why not do something you have never done, most likely will never have the chance to do again and have probably secretly always wanted to do? Plus, it’s a great photo opportunity!
Clothes Swap
Spring is upon us and that means one thing: spring cleaning. One of the best things about living in a sorority house with sixty different girls is the access to sixty different closets full of shirts, dresses and accessories you can take out for a night on the town. Sometimes it feels as if you like your sisters’ clothes more than your own. So have everyone go through their closets and bring at least one item of clothing to “donate”. Then let everyone dig through the pile and swap clothes for something new to add to their closet! Shopping without spending is the ultimate sisterhood event.
Trunk Show or Beauty Party
One of the advantages of going to a big school is the diverse student population. A large number of students hold internships and represent brands on campus as student ambassadors. Take advantage of these campus ambassadors and the goodies they can offer you. Rent the Runway at the University of Illinois can bring an entire rack of designer dresses to your sorority house for your sisters to try on and offer discounts on renting for upcoming events like formal. Chloe and Isabel Merchandisers will set up a trunk show with their unique jewelry exclusively for your sisters to shop. Or, have a Mary Kay consultant come to the house and provide makeup services for a day of sisterhood pampering! Some salons on campus will even send multiple stylists to a house with group discounts so all of your sisters can get their hair done for formal.
While special events aren’t necessary to promote sisterhood, they are a fun way to celebrate it. So grab your sisters and try something you’ve never done before!