Dealing with Homesickness in College

One of my closest friends is transferring to my university this year, and I am excited to see her to show her how much I love my school. She, however, is not feeling as ecstatic to move here like I am for her because, like hundreds of thousands of people around the world, this will be the first time she will be far away from home for a long period of time. The majority of her time from now on will be of her being away from home. Although starting a new chapter of your life is exciting, it is often difficult at first to think about all of the adventures you will encounter because your mind is distracted with what you left behind in the previous chapters. 

Homesickness comes with moving away to go to college. You may spend the first night crying because of how much you miss your family. During the first couple of weeks, you may constantly think about home. Even though it might seem like you are the only one feeling these emotions and crying your eyes out, the person right next door to you in your dorm hall most likely is going through the same time, and so is the person next door to them and so on. Moving away from home to attend college is often the first time people are away from their families for a long period of time. Although it is inevitable, there are ways that can help you deal with homesickness that I've found to help. The goal when dealing with homesickness is just that: dealing with it. You shouldn't allow your homesickness to control you and make you miss out on the fun that you will have in college.

Here are a few things that I found helpful when I was extremely homesick during the first couple of weeks of my first year in college:

Skype Your Family

Thank goodness for the invention of video chatting. Skype allows me to not only talk to my parents but also see them. Even though I am not physically with them, it seems like it when I talk to them through Skype. During the first couple of weeks that I was in college, I would skype with them every single night for at least an hour. Sometimes, I skyped with them just to see their faces and hear their voices. It allowed me to feel like I was not hundreds of miles away. When you miss your family, all you want to do is see them, and Skype allows you to do that from anywhere in the world. Eventually, as you slowly stop getting homesick, instead of talking to your family every single day, it may turn to once every couple of days and then only once a week. For me, there were a couple of times, especially during midterms and finals, where I couldn't really study because I was missing my parents. With the magic of Skype, I called them, talked to them for about 10 minutes, and then was able to get back to studying. 

Distract Yourself by Having Fun

Most universities have some sort of "welcome week" where they welcome the new college students. My university had so many activities to get my mind off of missing my family back home. It's understandable that you might feel guilty for having fun while your parents may also be missing you, too; however, they will understand that these next few years will be one of the best time periods in your life! You should not feel guilty in this case for having fun! It's college! You are suppose to have a little bit of fun! While you are busy having fun, your mind won't be occupied with missing home. Enjoying yourself while participating in your school's attempt to break the world record for the largest water battle, for example, will replace that homesick feeling. 

Befriend Someone at Your College from Your Hometown

When you have someone from your hometown as your friend in college, it's like you have a piece of your home with you. You could talk to them about that one joint on the corner of 1st Street that offers the best burrito in town or that hiking spot with the best sunrise view. I became with someone I met at freshmen orientation that is from my hometown and we bonded during our first year in college because we had that connection of where we grew up. It was nice for me to talk about my hometown and have someone who knew exactly what I was talking about. If you have a friend from your high school, for example, who is going to the same college as you, it's great at first to hang out with them so that you can talk to someone about your hometown, but it's important to note in this case that you should not cling to them the entire time. Branch out and meet new people!

I just started Fall quarter at my university and am going through a bit of homesickness after spending 2 weeks at home with my family. I'm dealing with it, but I'm not letting it affect my college experience and my studies. I think that's what the most important thing about dealing with homesickness. You have to deal with it one way or another, but you should not let it affect your studies, work, health, and college experience. We all go through it at least one time in our life, but we can't let it hold us back from having fun and working hard.

Best regards,

Lisa xx

College Life: Day on Campus Essentials

Oh, those long days on campus going to class or studying at the library. 

You learn a lot spending time on campus, though, like what you absolutely need to have with you at all times. We all know that your should have your laptop and school work with you, but what about the little things that we don't really realize until later on that we actually need always? Because some of you will be heading to college this fall, I thought it would be fitting to list all of the essentials you will need to carry around with you while you are on campus!

1. Backpack

You will of course need something to carry all of your stuff in! It's not like you are going to be lugging a potato sack full of your things around a large college campus. Also, forget the fancy handbags!! I know, they are stylish, but carrying around a heavy bag on one shoulder all day will bother you like crazy after the first quarter! I used to use a messenger bag from Forever 21, and I then ditched it for a comfortable North Face backpack. I highly recommend North Face Borealis backpacks!! So many pockets to organize my things! Don't even get me started on the laptop sleeve! The Borealis backpack is padded on the back and shoulder straps, and it provides excellent support for your back. Get it, and you will love it as much as I do!

2. Comfortable Shoes

I used to only wear boots, flats or sandals, refusing to wear tennis shoes except for my running shoes. How girly of me, huh? At the start of my first year of university, I brought with me from home a pair each of boots, sandals, and flats. I destroyed them all within 4 months from walking around campus a lot. They were terrible for walking around campus because I had to walk through grass and on uneven surfaces at some points. Also, because my university's campus is very large, my shoes did not provide great comfort and support walking to and from class every day. I finally bought a pair of navy Keds and put some insoles in them for extra comfort. I can hear my feet thanking me now. Figuratively speaking of course. My feet don't actually talk to me. What I am trying to say is set aside looking absolutely glamorous every day and wear shoes that are comfortable to walk in. Think to yourself, "Would I want to wear these shoes to walk 3 miles in?" 

3. Reusable Water Bottle

You have to keep yourself hydrated at all times! Also, in the process of making yourself healthier, why not also make the planet healthier by not drinking from plastic bottles? Get yourself a reusable water bottle and keep it in the little pouch on the side of your backpack. A lot of college campuses nowadays have water filing stations that you can fill your water bottles at, which is very convenient. I like water bottles with designs on them because it's like a fashion statement that you can drink out of, oddly enough. 

4. Hair Ties

I have long hair, and I sometimes get really bothered by it if it is either really hot or windy outside. I also prefer to put my hair up when I take exams just so I can focus on acing them and not getting my hair out of my face. That is why I always have with me hair ties to put my hair in a bun or ponytail whenever I want to. Elastic printed hair ties are currently my favorite accessories because they can be worn on your arm as a cute bracelet and don't leave dents in your hair! 

5. Lip Balm

If I forget my lip balm at home and get dry lips midday, I am screwed. That is why I always have so many lip balms in my handbag and backpack. If I lose one, I AM PREPARED! You will be spending quite a lot of time on campus, so don't forget to have lip balm with you. I recommend getting a lip balm that is hydrating and has an SPF to prevent your lips from getting sunburned. 

6. Granola Bar

Have you ever experienced that embarrassing moment when you are in class and your stomach growls like an angry bear starting a motorcycle? Yea, we've all been there. To prevent it, bring a granola bar or some sort of snack with you when you go onto campus. In college, there will be times when you have 4 one hour classes back to back, so there will not be enough time for you to fit in a proper meal. That's why you should bring a granola bar with you to eat quickly in between classes to satisfy your grumbling stomach for a couple of hours before you can get lunch.


I hope you found this blog post helpful. Best of luck to those of you entering into college!

Lisa xx

College Life: My Dorm Room Desk

Around this time, high school seniors know where they are going to attend college, university, uni, or whatever you want to call it. Those seniors are being productive by figuring out what classes they are going to take throughout the next four years and how they are going to make a jump start on their careers....

But let's be honest.....

If they're like me, they are looking at dorm room decoration and organization ideas. I remember spending my nights looking at pictures of other people's dorm rooms, going through Bed, Bath & Beyond's website, making a list of what I wanted to bring, and planning out what I wanted to have on my walls and where to place them. 

Because of this, I thought it would be helpful to show those of you who are or will be entering college what my desk in my dorm room looks like. I'll give you some tips on how to organize and personalize your desk to make it a comfortable little area for you to get all of your work done at. 




In the right-hand corner of my desk, I have a desk organizer that I got as part of a set from Office Depot. I got it for my dad as a Christmas present, but he didn't use it, so I took it with me to college. Thanks Dad for not using the present I got for you. In this desk organizer, I have all of my colored pens, highlighters, pencils, pens, and LOTS of Post-It notes. I love Post-It notes. I use them EVERYWHERE! I also have my Clean & Clear Oil Absorbing Sheets, Nivea Lip Butter in Vanilla & Macadamia Nut, and Nivea A Kiss of Milk & Honey in a compartment of the organizer for easy access to some of my most used products.

My desk has a large cork board attached to it, and I use it to pin up reminders, random papers, etc. One section of my cork board is dedicated to memories I've made while in college. This area includes notes friends have written to me, a lanyard from Justin Bieber's concert, and a calming picture of an ocean horizon sunset. Whenever I'm feeling stressed out from school work, I like looking at this section because it always makes me instantly feel good from thinking about many happy college memories :) 

On the top section of my desk, I have a few of my books and a whole bunch of personal items. I have a box of Puff Tissues which I LOVE because of how pretty box is. I have it on my desk for easy access to tissues and also because it adds a colorful decorative element. Is that weird to do? On here, I have my Vitafusion Gummy Vitamins since gummy vitamins are the best vitamins to take because they taste like candy! I put my makeup brushes in a pen holder that I got at a 99 cents store for, you guessed it, 99 cents. To hold my hair brushes and combs, I use purple plastic plant pot that I bought at Ikea. On the far left side, you will see that I have a 3 layer organizer from Target. It is such a convenient thing to have because it has, within one layer, a multi-compartment unit that I use to put all of my hair ties, bobby pins, cotton pads, etc. I also put my medicine, mini first aid kit and mini sewing kit in here. 

Now let's take a look at what I have in the drawers of my desk!

Starting with the drawer that's located right where I sit, I have a whole bunch of office supplies in here to the point where I probably don't have to go to Office Depot for a good two years. To organize all of the things I have, I use a desk organizing tray that I bought at Target. I highly suggest you purchase a desk organizing tray like the one I have because they are extremely helpful with keeping your drawer nice and organized. 

Note: Though I have a graphic calculator, I can't really use it in class for exams because they're not allowed. Usually, professors do not allow you to use programmable calculators on exams to prevent you from cheating. Instead, bring a simple scientific calculator with you to college.

I got the idea of using the pages from my old magazines to line the bottom of my drawers somewhere on the Internet. Not only does it save money and recycles magazines I don't read anymore, but adds pops of colors, and I always find excuses to add pops of color anywhere! All I did was ripped out pages from an old Seventeen magazine, placed them on the bottom of the drawer, and tape them together. Easy!! 

The first drawer on the side of my desk has the makeup that I use the most at the moment and things for me to read/watch during my leisure time. Let's take a closer look, shall we?

The three containers came with the desk set I was talking about earlier. I separate my eye, face, and lip products among them. I also have a couple of palettes that I'm currently using in this drawer. (I will post another blog about what I'm currently using in the future.) 

Peeping out from underneath my Naked2 palette and Nars Laguna Bronzer, I have my Les Miserables book that I bought at the end of last year. I started reading it at the beginning of this year, but I became too busy and it's been in my drawer ever since. I'm determined to finish it before 2014 though! In this drawer, I also have a few DVDs, and can you guess what CD I have from looking at the picture?! Hint: look at one of the other pictures in this blog ;) 

As you can probably see, I own a box of earplugs. In college, especially when you are living in a dorm where the walls are thin, you will need earplugs!! There will be nights when all you want to do is sleep, but your dorm mates may be talking loudly or slamming their doors shut. A normal person might go and ask them to keep it down.....

.... However, because I can sometimes be a lazy college student, I prefer to save my energy, pop in some earplugs, and sleep soundly throughout the night ;D 

Moving onto the middle drawer, I keep blank sheets of both lined and printer paper, extra printer ink, flashcards, and two unopened packets of highlighters in here. Why do I have two packets of highlighters? Because I love highlighters and they were having a two for one sale. That's why. I'm a sucker for two for one deals! Even if I don't currently need it, I will often convince myself that I will need it in the future. 

Lastly, this drawer contains binders, folders, a clipboard, extra lined paper, sheet protectors, notebooks, and any other officer supplies that I could possibly need! I really made sure I was prepared for ANYTHING supplies-wise! There's nothing wrong with being prepared! Well, that's what I tell myself...

I hope you found this blog very helpful! I wish those of you who are planning for college the best of luck!!!


Lisa xx

What to Bring to College

When you are packing for college, you are constantly thinking “Should I bring this? What about that? No, I should probably leave that behind, but then again, I might really need it!” You go back and forth because you don’t want to forget about bringing something and you don’t want to bring too many things that you will never use.

Though what each person brings to college depends on them, here is a list of often overlooked items that, from my experience, I think everyone should bring.

1. Earplugs

You will not believe how much earplugs come in handy, especially if you are the type of person who cannot sleep when they hear even the slightest noise. Whether you are living in a dorm or an apartment, these are fantastic when the people living next door to you are being noisy whether their talking or….. doing something else……

With long days full of going to class and studying, you really need as much sleep as possible, and you can’t sleep if you hear a whole bunch of noise.

2. Old High School Notes

Whatever notes from high school you have that you think you will need in college, bring them. If you know you will be taking math classes, bring along your math notes. They are great to reference to look back at if you have any trouble. Notes are only useful if you still have them, which brings us to a very important point…

Don’t throw away your notes from high school!!!

I threw away all of my material from high school every year because I don’t like clutter. The only notes I kept were my calculus notes because I had an amazing teacher and I just couldn’t throw them away because it would be like throwing away my bibles! I did, however, throw away my accounting notes from high school. Guess what? I didn’t have to take math in college, but I did take accounting and am planning to pursue a career in accounting … I wish I had saved those notes…..

3. Comfy Slippers

If you are like me, you like to walk around in your house barefooted. When living in a dorm, you can’t really do that because the floors of a dorm hall are not as clean as the floor in your home. I didn’t want to wear proper shoes everywhere, so I opted for some fluffy pink slippers. They are great for walking around in your room and around your hall. Plus, they are incredibly comfortable and make me feel at home!

4. Air Freshener

Because in a hall, you live with many other people, there may be times when the hall just doesn’t smell right. The smells can be of eclectic food cooking in the kitchen or random mystery smells that no one knows where they are coming from. Air freshener is, therefore, much needed!