Ways to Survive Your Summer at Home

Are you moving home for the summer after a great year at the University of Memphis? The transition every summer from living on your own to living with your parents can be tough. However, we have some great tips on how to have a great summer without too many arguments. Keep reading and you can learn more at college life.


1. Set reasonable expectations. True, you may have been able to come and go as you please, leave your room a disaster, and have a new guest over every night while you were in the residence halls, but this arrangement may not work for your folks. Set some reasonable expectations -- for everyone involved -- before you even step through the door.


2. Set some ground rules. Alright, you may have to have a curfew so your poor mother doesn't think something terrible has happened to you if you're not home by 4:00 in the morning -- but your mom also needs to understand that she can't just barge in to your room without any notice. Set some ground rules as soon as possible to make sure everyone is clear on how things will work.


3. Expect a combination of a roommate relationship and a parent/kid relationship. Yes, you've had roommates for the past several years, and you may view your parents similar to them. Your parents, however, will always view you as their child. Do your best to keep this in mind as you figure out how things will work once you move back in. Sure, it seems ridiculous for a roommate to want to know where you're going every night. But your parents probably have a legitimate right to ask.


4. Set a time frame for how long you're planning on living there. Do you just need someplace to crash between when you graduate from college and when you start graduate school in the fall? Or do you need somewhere to live until you can save enough money on your own to get your own place? Talk about how long you plan on staying -- 3 months, 6 months, 1 year -- and then check back in with your parents once that time frame is up.


5. Discuss money, no matter how awkward. No one really likes to talk about money. But addressing the topic with your parents -- how much you'll pay in rent, for food, to get back on their health insurance plan, or if the car you've been borrowing needs more gas -- will help prevent a ton of problems later.




6. Have your own support networks ready to go. After living on your own or in the residence halls during college, living with your parents can become very isolating. Do your best to have systems in place that provide you with an outlet and support network that is separate from your parents'.


7. Thing creatively about how the relationship is give and take -- both ways. Yes, your parents are letting you stay at their place, and yes, you may pay rent to do so. But are there other ways you can help, especially if money is tight for everyone? Can you help around the house -- with yard work, fix-it projects, or technical support for the computers they can never get to work right -- in ways that will make your living relationship much more symbiotic?


8. Remember that the person who moves back in with your parents is not the same person who left. Your parents may have a very specific -- and outdated -- idea of "who" is moving back in with them. Take a deep breath and do your best to remind them that, while you left the house as an 18-year-old college freshman, you are now returning as a 22-year-old, college-educated adult.


9. Remember that time at your folks' is still an opportunity to build your own life -- not put it on pause. Just because you are at your parents', waiting until you can move out on your own, doesn't mean your life is on pause. Volunteer, date, explore new things, and do your best to continue learning and growing instead of just waiting for your first opportunity to move on to somewhere else.


10. Enjoy yourself! This may seem completely unthinkable if moving back in with your folks was the last thing you wanted to do. However, living at home can be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to finally learn your mom's secret fried chicken recipe and your dad's amazing way with woodworking tools. Live it up and take in as much as you can.

5 Solutions for a Better Night's Sleep

Is your bedroom keeping you awake at night?  There are five reasons that may be the cause of your lack of sleep in your own home.  This blog has a list of those reasons. It also includes a list of possible solutions that could help you in your quest for a better night's sleep.  You can learn more at apartment therapy.

PROBLEM #1: ALLERGIES

Is your stuffy nose keeping you from getting shut eye? Seasonal allergies are one thing, but dust mites are with us all year round. Your bed is Disneyland for those little critters, who thrive on all the dead skin cells your body provides.

Fixes: Vacuum your room with a HEPA filter and clean your bedding as often as you can— including your pillows, which you can throw in the dryer for 15 minutes to kill off any existing bugs. Instead of scented detergent, use a few drops of eucalyptus oil in your laundry. Put hypoallergenic protective covers on your mattress and pillows. And lastly, strip your mattress before you go out of town to give it time to air out. (I won’t rile up pet owners by suggesting you ban furry loved ones from the bedroom, but it’s worth thinking about.) Read more onbedroom allergies here.

PROBLEM #2: LIGHT

Your room is too bright at night. Whether it’s coming from the outside, a nightlight, the television screen, or your blinking alarm clock, any light keeps your body fooled into thinking it’s not sleeping time.

Fixes: Buy really dark curtains, or add liner, to block out street lamps. Also turn off electronic devices and remove anything else that emits brightness. (If you’re worried about getting up in time, try covering your alarm clock instead.) Lastly, swap out higher watt lightbulbs in your bedside lamp for dimmer ones; these will aid the transition as you’re winding down from the day by reading in bed at night.

PROBLEM #3: TEMPERATURE

Some nights you're too hot, and other times, it's too cold. Sleep is induced when you are at rest and your core body temperature lowers. If your heat is on too high (or too cold for that matter), your internal thermostat fluctuates which leads to restless sleep.

Fixes: Everyone is comfortable at different temps, so experiment to find the right one for you. There's no right answer but cooler is generally better - start in the 65 degree range. There are always fans and blankets to help you regulate, but know that bedding material makes a difference too; memory foam pillows and mattresses, for example, are hotter than more traditional ones. If you are still having trouble staying asleep, look into bedding and pads that keep you cooler at night.

PROBLEM #4: NOISE

There’s the 5 am garbage truck variety that’s impossible to ignore. But when it'stoo quiet, the slightest disruption can reach epic proportions and you find yourself focused on that weird hum or dripping faucet. Either way, you need a way to soundproof your sleep.

Fixes: If it’s too loud, wear earplugs as a first resort. Or, try a white noise machine or app —or even a basic fan— to drown out any noises that violate your REM cycle. If it’s really bad, get as far away from the offending noise as possible. Either move your bed to another wall to dampen neighbor noises, or, if you have the option, try swapping your current bedroom with another room entirely. Read more on bedroom noise here.

PROBLEM #5: MATTRESS

Having a healthy, comfortable, supportive mattress is critical to a good night's sleep.

Fixes: Flip your mattress with the seasons, alternating between end-over-end and side-over-side rotation. If it's time for a new one, check out Danny Seo’sgreat tips on mattress shopping. A couple of years ago, Maxwell also experimented with different mattress brands for twelve months and wrote about it in his Year in Bed series.

Happy Mother's Day!

We wanted to take a moment to wish everyone a Happy Mother's Day!  Make sure to call your loved ones on Sunday!