How To Survive Your 1st Thanksgiving Break Home From College!

So how do you prevent yourself from falling victim to the unexpected, inevitable drama Thanksgiving break brings upon college students every year? Try some of these handy survival tips on for size:

• Expect your friends to be different.  No one comes back from college exactly as they were in high school. Some people change drastically (we all know that shy girl/guy from high school who became a huge player once they got to college), while the change in others is more subtle. Don't assume that your friends and your friendships to be the same, but do try to figure out a way you can be a part of each others new lives.
• Negotiate new house rules with your parents. Another huge change? Your relationship with your parents. After a semester at school, you're used to new found freedom - from late nights to messy rooms, with no parents to worry about, most freshmen settle into new patterns and habits. But your parents might not be too pleased with your dirty dishes piling up or your late nights out. Before your break starts, set some ground rules. Coordinate your schedules so you can make time for both friends and family.
• Make time for your siblings. While you're busy worrying about spending time with your friends and making sure your parents don't hate you by the end of break, you might forget about your siblings. Don't. Your relationships will have changed with them - if they're older, they might look forward to sharing college stories with you, and if they're younger, they may need someone to gripe with about how strict mom and dad have gotten since you left. Each Wednesday before Thanksgiving, my siblings and I pick up subs from our favorite sandwich shop in town and spend the afternoon catching up.
• Don't expect to get work done. The last thing you'll want to do when you're home will be finishing your world history reading or studying for your Microeconomics final. If you have a long flight, train, or bus ride, you'll have time to get some light reading done, or maybe a problem set or two. But once you're home, you'll be so busy with family, friends, & food that the likelihood you'll get work done is very slim. Your professors may still assign a lot of work, so if you absolutely have to camp out at the library, bring your friends & make it a group activity.
• Take advantage of being at home. College is great, don't get me wrong, but there are so many great things about being at home. I can do laundry without worrying about people taking my clothes out of the dryer and dumping them on the floor, and sometimes when I "forget" to fold my clothes, my mom will even do it for me. Thanksgiving also means lots of leftovers to bring back to school - can you say pumpkin pie for breakfast? (Adopted From http://blog.studentadvisor.com)

Vitamins For The Mind! - Nothing To Be Thankful For?

What if we all got into the habit of making one day a week our “Thank you!” day? Irrespective of your religious view, you can offer the universe a thank you for the blessings. When my children were younger we used to keep a “Thank you” box on the counter. Each person, adults included, had to write at least one slip a day about something they were thankful for. The box was full at  the end of the week, and we all enjoyed sitting and reading the things we had put in there. Hearing what someone else was thankful for was always interesting, because it would point out things throughout the week someone else had missed. Oftentimes someone was thankful to another person in the family for something, and the process of reading the slips out loud always made the person being acknowledged feel good about what they’d done. Try setting a day aside this week as your thankful day. The rules are as follows:

• Every time you catch yourself about to complain about anything, stop and find something you are thankful for instead. Turn attention and energy you are about to invest in a negative     manner into something that is more positive instead. As many times as you can, do it right in the moment.
• Write down the things you are thankful for so that you develop a running list. Set a minimum target of five things you can find in any given day. They can be as big or as small as you’d like. Just make sure they are things you are genuinely happy for.
• Become more aware of things around you – the “simple” things like sunlight, music, silence, or a friendly face. Be really attuned to the world at large as you search for things. You will gain two things, an increased awareness of your surroundings along with some things to be thankful for.
• As a practice, try saying out loud, “Thank you for _____.” Even if you don’t believe in a greater deity, the practice of hearing yourself say “thanks” out loud to yourself can be an uplifting experience.
• Keep your thankful lists in a folder (online or hard copy). Take them out and review them whenever you need a reminder of the good things in your life, or an emotional shot for the day.

Being thankful can sound so simply and so easy. In my experience, most of us don’t do it as often as we should. Look at how easy it is to make a complaint list – we don’t need a blog to tell us how to do that! Try at least one thankful day this week. (Adopted From http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/understand-other-people)

Recipe Of The Month - Double Chocolate Bread Pudding

Bread Pudding:

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 6 croissants, stale and cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1 loaf cinnamon raisin bread, stale and cut into 1-inch squares
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 6 cups milk
• 1 1/2 cups chocolate syrup, such as Hershey's
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5 to 6 scrapes fresh nutmeg
• 6 eggs

Topping:

• 6 tablespoons butter, cold and cut into small cubes
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup pecans, chopped
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. For the bread pudding: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the bottom and sides of the baking dish with the butter.
2. In a large bowl, add the croissant and bread chunks along with the chocolate chips sprinkled over the top. Toss gently and pour into the prepared dish making sure all the chocolate chips don't settle on the bottom.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, chocolate syrup, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg and eggs. Pour the chocolate custard over the bread in the baking dish and press the bread down into the custard to soak it up. Allow to rest for 10 minutes. Then press down a bit again.
4. For the topping: In a medium bowl, toss the butter and with the flour to coat all sides of the butter. Then add the pecans, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon. Mix together with your hands to get the butter to blend into all the ingredients. Sprinkle evenly over the top of the baking dish.
5. Bake uncovered until the edges are golden brown and the center springs back a bit when touched, 45 to 50 minutes. Allow it to cool and settle for about 30 minutes and then cut into squares, or just dig in right away. Serve with a dollop of Whipped Cream. Can also be served cold. (Adopted from: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunny-anderson) 

Best Indoor At Home Exercises & Workouts Without Equipment

Some days, it’s just really difficult to go outside, especially in the winter months. It can be rainy or cold, and the sun may already set by the time you get off work.  Here are 10 ideas for ways you can exercise indoors at home for free or on the cheap.

• Jump Rope - About a minute into jumping rope, I was literally out of breath. I only made it a few minutes, and my calves were killing me the next day.  If you want a good cardio workout in a matter of minutes, try a jump rope.
• Stair Stepping - Stair stepping is a great exercise to do in your home, even if you don’t have a set of stairs available. Find the biggest book you own (or a sturdy chair), put it in front of the TV, and step up and down while watching your favorite show. You may not work up a sweat like you would with a jump rope, but you will be keeping your body active and healthy.
• The Plank - If you don’t have a lot of time, but you want to build up your core muscles, this is the exercise for you. Get into a push-up position, but instead of bending your arms & moving down towards the floor, hold the position with your arms extended. Start off holding the position for 30 seconds, & add 10 seconds every day.
• Lunges - I was in a workout class a few years ago, and one of the exercises was to do lunges down the hallway. Instead of stepping back into place, we would step forward, and we would continue until we made it all the way down the hallway and back. I could always feel the intense burn in my legs with this workout.
• Cleaning - Cleaning can be very physical, especially vacuuming and mopping. If you are unable to go out one day to ride your bike or go for a run, set up a house cleaning schedule and clean your house instead.
• Water Bottle Weights - If you are looking to do some arm, shoulder, and back strength training, you can make your own weights by filling up water bottles. If using water bottles becomes too easy, use milk jugs. You can tailor the exercise to your level by filling the jugs to the exact weight that you need. For a greater challenge, increase the water amount just a little bit each time you workout.
• High Knees - Instead of running in place, I’ve found that high knees can really get your heart pumping, especially if you go double time. To do this exercise, march in place or down a hall, and bring your knees as high as they can go.
• Jumping Jacks - This is another elementary school throwback, but it offers a great cardio workout. If you are watching a TV show, get up during the commercials and do a round of jumping jacks.  (Adopted from www.moneycrashers.com)

What Is Your Home Worth In This Market?

Why Did You Want A Dog?

So you wanted a dog … Many people want a dog for the companionship and love, to have a walking buddy or maybe to feel good about “rescuing” something.

Not all dog owners consciously take advantage of these benefits once they actually have the dog, though.

It’s common for a person to become a dog owner and then fail to appreciate his dog or remember why he wanted a dog in the first place. Like everything else in life, caring for the dog becomes just another thoughtless task. Or maybe even a dreaded task.

You wanted a dog, so you got one, but nothing really changed. You might regret getting the dog, or perhaps you start searching for a second dog in an attempt to chase the initial “high” of acquiring a new pet.

Other owners find themselves obsessing over their dogs without really knowing why. They feel guilty for not going on a daily walk. They try to cram in every type of dog activity. They spend more than they can afford on treats, dog beds, toys and dog daycare – things dogs don’t really need.

So why did you want a dog?  Think about some of the reasons why you got your dog. Do you still feel that way? Or, did those reasons change or disappear?

All dog owners know that one of the main challenges to dog ownership is balancing dog care and responsibilities with life. (Adopted From www.thatmutt.com)

Some people end up ignoring the dog for the most part, leaving the dog outside or in a kennel for hours on end and spending very little time with the dog. Others have the opposite problem and actually have a hard time doing anything that does not involve the dog – taking vacations, going out with friends, going out to dinner, visiting relatives.

A good solution to both situations is to consciously acknowledge the rewards of owning a dog. After all, at some point you did choose to own one.

Find balance!  Maybe you wanted a dog so you would go for more walks, but now you just have an overweight, hyper beagle because you still don’t walk. Why not consciously set aside the time for a few walks this week?

And don’t waste your time feeling guilty about not spending time with your dog. Instead, make some time to do one thing you both enjoy, something you looked forward to when you initially wanted a dog – cuddling on the couch during a baseball game, going on a long hike, playing frisbee at a park, taking an agility class.

Don’t shower your dog with treats, toys and table scraps because you feel guilty. Instead, pick something you’ve always wanted to do together and go do it. Do this often enough so it turns the whole dog ownership thing into the lifestyle you actually want.

If you consciously spend time with your dog doing things you both love, then you won’t feel bad about going out with friends, taking a trip with your family or attending an event and leaving Fido home.

It’s all about balance. When you make these changes, you will appreciate your dog a whole lot more and the stress around routine care such as training and walking will decrease.

Embrace the benefits of dog ownership as fully as you can, in whatever way owning a dog means to you. If you don’t, then you might never have the relationship with your dog that you wanted when you decided to get a dog in the first place. Decide specifically when and how you’ll interact with your dog this week. Then go do it.