So I'm somehow back already from my sweet six days in Cornwall and I can't for the life of me understand how time can move that fast! I spent most of my time lounging around in either my sister's house or at my parents place, and I've never felt more tired in my life...and the weather certainly gave me good reason to stay inside too!

During the winter months most of the sand is swept out to sea leaving us with a rocky beach that isn't as pleasant to sit on! But the wind and rain certainly gave us no reason for a pit stop while strolling around my village.

I'm used to waking up early, getting my work attire on and sitting at a desk all day, brain engaged, but for those six days, I woke up sometimes at the exact same time as I do for work, sometimes later, and sat on a sofa, engaged only with the television screens and the conversations in the room. It was relaxing to the point that I needed naps to rejuvenate myself, and I've barely napped since I was a student!

The first few days were spent catching up with my sister and her family, and giving some love to their very poorly pooch Pepper, who had come out of surgery a few days before and was thankfully on the mend. She needed the rest so we had her up beside us on the sofa whilst we watched Disney films and I held back my emotions.

On my second day home, I slumped up to my sister's bedroom and had a 5 hour nap whilst my niece bobbed in and out of the room to very kindly offer me popcorn. She also almost came to rouse me from my slumber when my sister sliced her thumb open. Bless my 7 year old niece for believing I was the responsible adult they so desperately needed in that situation; my sister thought otherwise and let me rest, tending to her wounds herself.

There was also a moment when my niece questioned if I'd ever seen Aladdin. Child, I said, you are not the first generation to watch these wonderful creations.

I bet she thinks she's cooler because her generation got Frozen.

Whilst I was missing my other half for the holidays, I had most of my family around me for the Christmas period which was lovely. My brother was absent having stayed in Stoke for the holidays, so we spent Christmas Day as the three musketeers: me, my mum and my dad.

We could barely be bothered to move all day and it was great. We had eggs Benedict/florentine for breakfast with a bottle of champagne opened early in the morning after we'd emptied out our stockings from Santa. Then after a breakfast clean up we slumped on the sofas and just basically relaxed. My Mum and Dad both work a lot in demanding roles at Care Homes that they are very devoted to. They work with people that they truly appreciate and care for, and it's lovely to see them in a job that they find very rewarding, I just wish they got a little more time to relax! So really, it was nice to be home and see them just sit down and lounge around. They worked the first three days I was home so we had to do a speedy food shop on Christmas Eve Eve missing out on buying the important things like cheese and alcohol. I wasn't too fussed that they'd worked these three days, because it certainly beat last year when my mum had to work on Christmas Day!

Dad faced some issues with his new biscuit pocket mug...

Mum and I prepped the lunch whilst Dad quite willingly watched Disney's Brave. We didn't go all traditional with the dinner this year as my Dad and I don't actually like turkey and my mum is a pescatarian, so instead, we got Dad two mini beef wellington's and Mum and I had a big fillet of salmon, of course, all the trimmings were included. Except Yorkshire puddings...as we had no eggs in the house, gutting.

We opened presents periodically - we're an unusual family when it comes to present opening. My parents have always wanted us, and themselves, to appreciate each and every present. We've always opened a couple of presents a day - one or two in the morning, a few after lunch and maybe another before bed, but I've never opened all my presents in one day. I like the way my parents do things. When we were younger we used to make our presents last all the way up to New Years Eve and then on New Years Day we'd open our tree presents. It made Christmas Day into Christmas week and don't recall any of us complaining about it, in fact we were so used to it that it seemed strange to discover people opened all theirs at once.

The day continued as it had started. We snacked on little things from our stockings and watched pretty much every Disney film available, later moving on to James Bond.

In all honesty though, Christmas TV was rubbish this year. I don't watch TV in Nottingham as we spend most of our time in our room favouring Netflix and Amazon Prime, or occasionally BBCi, so I always enjoy returning home to catch up on some good films at Christmas time, but Boxing Day was a huge disappointment in the evening television department. At one point we were watching the Paul Potts film and also a Shaun the Sheep short made an appearance - both of which weren't particularly entertaining.

Speaking of Boxing Day, that was a bigger family affair. We went over to my Grandma's house to spend the day with her, my auntie and my sister's family - minus my brother in law who sadly had to work. My Grandma lives in a small bungalow so you can imagine that six adults, two children and five dogs were a little short of space but we'd been there so many times for these kinds of gatherings that manoeuvring oneself about the place was second nature.

Grandma had cooked us up a lovely Boxing Day dinner and after we were stuffed we sat around her tree to open another lot of presents. Obviously, the kids really cleaned up here as they always do and somehow, my four year old nephew knew exactly what I'd got him for Christmas:

I turned to my nephew as he eyed this particular present, 'what do you think it is then A?', he pointed and excitedly announced 'A T-rex'. Damn, I said to myself, I thought I had him fooled.

Everyone was very pleased with their gifts and the kids were so well behaved despite the lack of space and the excitement of it all. After a while relaxing and chatting we all made our way home. We almost faced a disaster when my sister, after having joked with my mum that she had locked her keys in her house, discovered that she had in fact done exactly that. The worker came to the rescue - as we pulled up to their house my brother in law had arrived right on time with their other key. I know for a fact I would have been the one sent over the back fence if he hadn't!

After safely getting them all inside, dinosaur included, my parents and I headed home, jumped in our PJs and set out a cheeseboard before settling with another film and later, another James Bond.

I came back on the train yesterday, having given my family big hugs goodbye and also having chatted with my absent brother on Christmas day for a catch up. My journey seemed simple, with one long trip from Cornwall to Derby and then a change at Derby for Nottingham.

Having said that, my journeys back from Cornwall don't tend to go smoothly every time.

I arrived at Derby to discover my train to Nottingham had been replaced by a bus, for reasons unknown, that didn't show up. Eventually a driver for a stationary bus that had been sitting there for the whole 40 minutes I'd been outside the station decided to drive myself and four stranded strangers back to Nottingham. My boyfriend picked me up from the station and eventually, I made it back to Radcliffe at 11:30pm.

Would you believe that I left my house in Cornwall at 3pm? Got to love travelling, aye?

All in all, it was another lovely Christmas. I didn't feel the Christmas spirit as much as I once did but I don't know if that's something that comes with age. Working so close to Christmas, not attending university Christmas parties and singing Wham! and Mariah Carey at the top of my lungs after shots and pints at Keele's Student Union, and even doing Christmas shopping on my own, rather than with friends or my mum, disrupted the usual Christmas cheer I feel.

Though despite the lack of Christmas cheer, it was still a very lovely six day break with some of my family. I hope everyone else had a lovely Christmas too, let me know what you got up to by leaving links to your Christmas catch ups!

Back in August I made my first trip home to Cornwall since moving to Nottingham to live with my boyfriend and his family. I've now arrived back in my cute little Christmas village and am currently all cosy at my sisters house watching Christmas cbeebies, what a hoot.

I thought before I share any Christmas related posts about being home, I'd throwback to the summer. I haven't actually shared much about my first trip down to Cornwall since moving away as, dare I say it, a tourist, so here's a little about out our short and sweet trip home...

MissIsGoode

There were plenty of things at university that helped get me through my degree - I must admit alcohol probably tops the list but it didn't act alone. My friends helped me cope with the stress, coffee helped me through the late night essays, the internet helped me understand a poem that I just didn't quite get, and at the core of my degree, was Amazon, who stocked and delivered all the books that my degree required I read, or at least owned.

I've not met many students that don't use Amazon at least once a semester. I personally have and still do spend hours trawling through this wonderful site looking for anything and everything, even if I don't need it. 

When I was studying at Keele University my time on Amazon was spent searching for many of the books on my reading lists. I was gifted a voucher before my first semester and it was very useful in helping me kick start what was to become a rather large collection of course required books. I think using Amazon probably saved me a good £100 if not more. I bought some classic books for as little as 27p (used) and when you're a student who can't afford to pay £8.99 a pop, it really is financially helpful.

Not all of these came from Amazon, but I'd say at least 80% did!

But how can Amazon get much better for a student? I mean, 27p books seem enough, don't they? I guess you haven't heard about Amazon Student Prime then... 

Amazon student prime, like the normal prime membership, includes unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows via Prime Video, the Prime Music streaming server with over a million advert free songs and Prime photo which gives you unlimited photo storage on Amazon Cloud Drive - trust me you'll need all the storage you can get with all the photo opportunities university gives you! 

So what's so appealing about Amazon Student besides the above features?

There's an Amazon student membership page where discounts will be available for you lovely lot, and these will also be emailed to you on a weekly basis so you can get in quick and buy all the things you desperately need, and more importantly, desperately want.

I feel the most relative benefit of Amazon Student Prime is the unlimited one-day delivery on millions of items. On the occaisons I choose to order some books from a different site, weeks before my classes started, they arrived weeks after the book had already been studied on the course. However free one day delivery means you could potentially leave it as late as you leave your essays (okay maybe not THAT late). 

After the six month trial is up it will automatically convert to a £39 per year Amazon Prime membership which is £40 cheaper than the normal membership price, yet you still get all the same benefits! Furthermore, upon transitioning to Amazon Prime, students gain access to additional benefits including Kindle Owners Lending Library - where you can borrow popular Kindle books at no extra cost, as frequently as one book per month with no due dates (no library fines - the Amazon world is a better place). You can choose from over 600,000 titles too, if you're a literature student you're bound to find some of the books on your course! 

You'll also get access to Kindle first - this offers early access to new Kindle books across genres from Amazon Publishing. You can choose one of the books a month selected by the editors for 99p, which is a steal if you're a bookworm.

To sign up you must be over 18, have an Amazon.co.uk account, be a student or apprentice enrolled in a higher education institution geographically located in the UK and have a valid academic email address that contains '.ac.uk' or be able to provide proof of enrolment (i.e an NUS card or proof of tuition payments).

So here's a little recap of what you get for FREE for six months and then £39 per year thereafter: 

I tried out Amazon Prime in my second year of university but didn't feel I could afford to pay that bit extra per year on top of all of my other outgoings. However, had this been what was on offer, I wouldn't have hesitated. I only had a one month free trial when I tried Amazon Prime out but it was enough for me to see the benefits, however, at the time I couldn't part with the yearly fee. Six months free followed by a huge discount on Prime makes me wonder why you're not already signed up...

If I've already twisted your arm, click here to get started! 

MissIsGoode

It may have been a while since I updated this series of university tales, but whilst I was on the job hunt I felt it appropriate to keep my image clean rather than revealing some of my antics. Alas, I've had a job for a while now and I've managed to find a nice balance with work and blogging, so back it comes.

So, if you recall my pizza post then hopefully you've learnt your lesson when it comes to stealing food? Yes? Good. What about when it comes to cleaning the remnants of it? Even the most adult of adults don't enjoy cleaning up after themselves that much, but what happens when you live with six students and none of you are even adult enough to admit what mess is yours?

It was a rare Monday night where we had chosen to stay in rather than throwing some shapes at K2 Monday and chugging down some £1 drinks. During dinner time, as is sensible, we went to the fridge to gather some ingredients only to find some white substance covering the packaging of some discounted goods. Don't worry, someone didn't get over excited about the 14p garlic baguettes, but rather, the cream that was so often left half used, as we had always predicted, finally met its end at the hands of one of us, spilling its contents all over our fridge. For how many minutes, hours, days - we knew not. But we did know that the culprit needed to be found. 

As any student would we turned to Twitter and even to the radio in an attempt to find out who spilt the cream in our fridge back on that dreaded evening of 20th November 2013 (don't worry it's been cleaned up now - what do you think we are, animals?) and chose not to clean it up. 

At university, and if this isn't the case you must live with angels, you'll come across at least one person who doesn't tidy up after themselves and often, won't even admit it's their mess. Sometimes, they genuinely forget about it. We've had occasions in which we've opened a cupboard to discover dirty dishes, forgotten by the drunk person who hid them. And you can't blame some students, when they're exceptionally intoxicated who knows what they'll do, but on the occasions they're not, don't expect much from them either.

On this evening, our housemates and a friend were doing their weekly KUBE radio broadcast, and upon opening the fridge and discovering spilt cream, we wanted some answers. The four of us that were home claimed no guilt in the spilt cream, so we turned to twitter to ask the boys on the radio if they had any idea who may have spilt the cream...unsurprisingly this then turned into a hashtag amongst us and friends and alas, we never found the answer. 

I think my first reflection when I come to write this new series of posts at the end of each month is 'where on earth has that time gone?!' Time seems to be moving faster with each year that goes by, and 2015 is almost off the radar and we're so close to Christmas I can hear Buddy the Elf cheering.

But wait, it's not quite over quite yet!

My November smashed most of the other months in 2015 by being the month that I visited the Harry Potter studios - I felt so close to being a part of the wizarding world that I have watched religously and repeatedly on my televsion screen and in movie theatres, and it was so nice to finally be able to take part in the tour.

However, I did feel quite torn about what it's like to see everything from behind the scenes; it almost felt like the magic had been ruined - not that I was ever dim enough to think that the magic was real, but the moment you watch the films you become part of a magical world that takes everything real and blows it out the water. Or maybe not everyone gets as absorbed in the films as I do?

But anyway, on the other side of things it felt pretty amazing to be in the same place where all the Harry Potter films that I love so much came together. All the effort that goes in to every little detail is astounding and to actually wonder around some of the sets and see those miniscule elements that were barely on screen long enough for you to notice was magical in itself.

If you want to read more on my visit to the Harry Potter studios, click here!

I probably got up to more interesting actitivies this month than I have for most of the year, so on to the next one!

Once again I paid a visit to Faye back in Keele, though despite the amount of times I've been back there I've only gone on to campus on three occaisions, all only for nights out - but that's the deal when you graduate university I guess, you're not exactly expected to return! It was nice to pay another visit to Faye, but it seems a shame I can't fit one in during December due to my weekend shifts and, on her side, deadlines (ah what a relief to be free of deadline December - I don't have to feel guilty over the Christmas weekend about not doing any essay writing!). We did the usual of starting a new Netflix binge, Reign, on the Sunday but then did something a little more fun the day before.

Off we popped to the Birmingham German Market. Not only did this give us the chance to get our Christmas on but we also got to catch up with Sara too! It's so nice to have the time to catch up with university friends, even if it is just every once in a while. We had a hoot wondering around the German market, even though it's the same every year and the same few stools are relentlessly repeated, it's still got such a nice feel to it!

We had a play on the carousel, about the only 'ride' I can actually go on without panicking...Sara didn't seem to enjoy it quite so much, hanging on to her horse on the outside of the carousel for dear life! I tactically ran towards the horse on the inside to avoid this same fear.

We also decided to pop into our beloved Wagamama's for some lunch and of course paid a visit to the Bullring. I only picked up a few gifts for Michael and a large sausage to share with Faye. It was a lovely day despite the achey feet I had afterwards!

I also celebrated two years with the fabulous chap in the photo below. It's only been two years but it seems like we've been together so much longer. We've been living together almost 6 months now, though as you know we're still at home with his parents, but it's definitely made us closer than we've ever been, very much attached at the hip!

For the rest of November I worked, and got a pay rise (woop!) and relaxed playing the Witcher 3 at any given opportunity, because it's highly addictive.

What did you get up to this November?

And I guess now it's also time to say...Merry Christmas!

Small fact about me: I love listening to music with earphones in. Speakers are great, and my boyfriend has an amazing set, but nothing beats putting those buds in your ears and cutting yourself off from the outside world - provided their decent earphones that is. 

I've never liked chunky headphones either, earphones are a must for me. I can slip them into my bag, keep them wrapped up in a small pocket or pouch. I don't have to feel strapped down by headphones, I don't have to create a space for them.

Back in August I was lucky enough to review some beautiful Klang earphones by Sudio, and boy am I excited to introduced their newest range, Vasa. 

I've not been near another set of earphones since I first tried out Klang, so the only reason Vasa is getting the chance to tear me away is because they are still made by Sudio. 

I've come to really like Sudio as a brand - not just for the quality of their earphones but their quality as a company. I respect the fact that this brand knows exactly what it wants out of its products, and I feel like it understands its audience too. Here's a little bit of background for you:

I've also come to love Sudio as a brand because they have a back story and a reason for everything. Not only does their name pay homage to Phil Collins but the Vasa earphones are named after 'King Gustaf Vasa, who led the Swedish War of Liberation against King Christian II of Denmark during the 16th Centruy' - you truly do learn something new everyday!

Sudio produces 'elegant products with studio quality sound and exquisite quality' and I feel like Sudio as a brand stand for elegance themselves. I'm so enthusiastic about these products because they're everything they claim to be and more. I love the packaging the products come in, boxed neatly unlike tacky plastic packaging that surrounds your cheap earphones with disappointing quality and a 2 month life span. The packaging is all part of the quality that Sudio provides - and it's even better when it's wrapped up for Christmas!

The crisp white colour of the packaging against the bold black font keeps it simple and elegant, and it continues with the earphones themselves. The brand aims to be, as written above, a brand like Ralph Lauren - meaning high end, aspirational. And I personally think they've achieved this with each pair of earphones, particularly with the gold finish - or in the case of the Vasa earphones, a beautiful rose gold.
So what's the difference when it comes to Klang and Vasa? (though let's not forget Vasa Bla and Tva, Sudio's other ranges!). At first glance, there's not a huge difference. But with such elegant and simple designs, you need not look far or listen hard to see and hear the difference. One of the simple differences in design is the cord length. I love the flat cords that lay so effortlessly upon you and, so far, I haven't had any tangled wires! The cord lengths on Klang were designed to have one longer than the other to make them more difficult to catch and pull out, however, this isn't something Vasa features. Personally, this feature on Klang was great for me because I mostly use my earphones at the gym, when ideally I want the cords out of the way. My partner made this same comment when he tried out the Vasa earphones at the gym too, but it doesn't really make a huge difference, because like all Sudio's earphones these come with a metal clip to attach the cords to your clothing to keep them secure, and it's so easy to slip on to any type of clothing with the flat cords.

The sound quality has improved in my opinion. Sudio claim Vasa to be their 'best so far' - on their website they say you can hear every detail in the music. Trust me now, you really can hear everything very clear and crisp within each song. Each musical instrument used to create the track can be heard perfectly. And of the outside the world, you can barely hear a sound. Nothing gets me more focused at the gym or helps me zone out better than being cut off from the outside world and the Vasa earphones do this flawlessly and you don't have to deafen yourself in the process. For example, whilst writing this post my boyfriend sat only a metre away from me clapping to get my attention and saying my name, not only was I so absorbed in writing this, but I had the earphones in and was blissfully listening to some quality music, not hearing a peep from the world around me! He only got my attention by waving his arms!

Like Klang this comes with a full feature 3 button remote that doesn't take long to get used to - the centre button is your control centre basically where you can pause, play, skip, rewind and it also features a mic for iOS and Android - you have a choice to buy the pair that is compatible with your device.

Here's some technical details on Vasa for you tech-heads out there. I've raised my hands on numerous occasions and admitted I'm not tech, and neither music, savvy and therefore, these specs may not mean to me what they do to some. In layman's terms, these are some good earphones!

Driver & specifications: 

Type: 10,2 mm Dynamic Speaker
Sensiivity: 113dB SPL @ 1 kHz
Impedance: 32 Ohm @ 1kHz
Frequency response: 18 Hz - 23 kHz

Housing: Composite, Aluminium
Finish: High polished metal parts
Model: In-ear
Weight: 22 grams

If you have a music lover in the family, or know someone who has to commute to work on the noisy tube or via buses in rush hour, aren't these just the perfect present for them? As I said I love using mine at the gym, the sound quality really helps you get in the zone and focus on pushing yourself that much harder. I think these appeal to so many people and anyone who's tired of earphones dying on them, tired of buying cheap products that never last and tired of being able to hear the Jeremy Kyle-esque disputes on public transport is 100% in need of a beautiful pair of Sudio's earphones! Treat yo' self.

source

*I was gifted a pair of Sudio's Vasa earphones in return for this post 

Start date: 1st February 2013

End date: 30th October 2015

Total completed: 62
Total failed: 39

Personal:

1) Move into my first rented house

2) Go on a family holiday

3) Enter the Great Run in Manchester - I entered this but on the day I was sent in to A&E for sinus tachycardia

4) Go for a weekend or day get away with my sister

5)  Start a savings jar
Don't use any social networking sites for an entire week

7) Keep room tidy for an entire week 

8) Do something different during the summer holidays - I went abroad in 2014 which was different for me!

9) Take photos at every event of my first year

10) Make a first year scrap book - The photos are printed and ready to go, but I've never got round to it...

11) Learn to drive - I passed on 29/10/2015 - first time - and just in time too!

12) Make a holiday scrapbook

13) Skydive

14) Make a penpal

15) Get published online somwhere other than my blog - I worked for the The Daily Touch.

16) Get a tattoo when travelling - maybe too ambitious, I didn't really travel!

17) Own a car - apparently also too ambitious, my boyfriend has a car does that count?

18) Write up my CV

19) Print off favourite photos from uni- I've printed off pretty much every photo from uni in fact!

20) Eat the extra extra hot sauce in Nandos - I can't understand why 2013 me felt the need for this to be a goal?

21) Unlike all those Facebook pages from my youth - Felt like quite an achievement, there were hundreds

22) Do a photo shoot with Rosie
Go on a girls day out with my sister and Mum

24) Take my niece on a day out

25) Go to Cambridge to visit family 

Style & Beauty:

26) Get a pedicure

27)  Get another manicure
28) Get a massage - it was only a leg massage, I'll have to pay a bit extra and get a good back one. Though my boyfriend is also talented at massages!

29) Sort out my wardrobe

30) Grow my hair to a length I'm happy with - It's well past my chest now! 

31) Buy a piece of clothing I've never owned - It was a Hollister vest - I never buy branded clothing but decided one piece could enter my wardrobe and that would be quite enough

Travelling & Exploring:

32) Go abroad
Visit Amsterdam

34) Visit the Lake District again

35) Visit Michael in Nottingham - I went before & after our holiday in August 2013, again in December and look at us now, I've moved in! 

36) Stay in a London hotel

37) Go abroad with friends

38) Point to somewhere on the map of GB and plan a weekend away there

Health & Fitness:

46) Do a detox

47) Don't have any fast food for an entire month 

48) Don't have any fizzy drinks for a month

49) Join a sports club

50) Complete Kayla's guides - I got to week 8 but then university finished and I had no gym access for a little bit, back to it now! 

51) Start jogging

52) Find a sport I love

53) Try Yoga

54) Find a workout plan 

55) Start eating healthier

56) Attempt the 30 Day Shred - I attempted it multiple times and it was really tough, but I started to find it boring and repetitive. I would have completed it if had it kept my interest peaked!

University:

57) Get a degree (English and American Literatures) - I graduated in July 2015!

58) Print off handbooks or make own for every module at uni

59) Achieve a first in a module - achieved in first year, semester one

60) Get 100% attendance in a module 

61) Get a job at uni - I got a job as a Student Ambassador!

62) Join a society - I was a part of UBT Keele and Concourse

63) Join Concourse (student run magazine at uni)

64) Publish my first article in Concourse

65) Become a student ambassador- I became a Student Ambassador for Keele University in October 2014

Sell, Save and Earn:

66) Save over £500 in a savings account in 2013 - My second year ruined this entirely

67) Continue my copper collection and cash it in at the end of 1001 days - I've continued it all throughout university but it's currently down in Cornwall so not much chance to cash it in!

68) Sell all the old clothes I no longer wear

Purchases:

73) Buy a new camera

74) Get a passport

75) Buy presents for friends and family for at least an entire year 

76) Buy a smart phone 

77) Go on a Primark shopping spree - I've done this far too many times now

78) Fix my phone 

79) Buy Mum a giant tea pot 

80) Get a new iPod

Fun:

81) Go to a comedy gig - I went to Jack Whitehall in March 2014 - read about it here!

82) Go to a music gig - I went to see Example on 18/10/2014, I suppose all the acts that came to Keele count too!

83) Visit an aquarium

84) Visit a zoo - went on 27/04/2013 to London Zoo

85) Go to Nando's for the first time - went on 3/3/2013

86) Go to the cinema 10 times - #1. - 3/3/2013 - A Good Day To Die Hard #2. - 25/04/2013 - Iron Man 3 #3. May/2013 - Fast and Furious 6 #4. - 13/06/2013 - Hangover III #5. - 24/08/2013 - 2 Guns #6. - 28/05/2014 - Maleficent #7. 15/10/2014 - Annabelle.

87) Go to the theatre

88) Visit Stoke's monkey sanctuary - Visited on 1/06/2014 - read about it here!

89) Go make pottery in Stoke

Blogging:

90) Join postcrossing and send 10 postcards around the world

91) Go to my first blogger event

92) Join in with more blog link ups - I joined in with a few over the years but they're not really my thing now! 

93) Do the A-Z blog challenge - check it out here! Excuse the tardy look of these old posts, since my blog has been updated a lot of my old posts don't quite fit in! 

94) Reach 10,000 hits on my blog - Reached on 14/04/2013 - and now I'm also at 100,000!

95) Choose a new theme for my blog

96) Blog about getting fit

Charity & Giving:

97) Set up a reoccurring donation 

98) Do Race for Life 2013

99) Send a care package to a friend or family member
100) Do a charity bake sale
101) Donate to a small charity

MissIsGoode

MissIsGoode

I have to say that the past six months have gone incredibly fast considering I don't feel like much has happened. Sure I've graduated, passed my driving test and successfully got my first job post-univertsity but other than that we've been living a quiet life in a relatively dull village in the sticks of Nottinghamshire.

As many of you know from my previous 'Hotel of Mum and Dad' posts I'm living in a house with five fully grown adults, compared to life at university where I lived with only students and the rest of society was okay with the fact that we weren't associated with the adult world.

However, when you move back in with either yours or someone else's parents, you're part of the adult world, but never quite considered an adult. Sure they'll expect you to act like one, but by no means does that suggest you'll always be treated like one.

So, what's it really like living with parents post-university?

They'll forget your age

Parents tend to treat their children like children no matter their age, but it's exacerbated when you actually live within their four walls. After family visits you can pretty much forget about parents telling you to 'be careful', 'stay safe' and all those other concerns that make you feel about five again. On the other hand, when you're living under their roof there's pretty much a constant concern for your wellbeing as if you're a teenager gallavanting around the place with the motto of YOLO.

source

They'll also forget your life experience

Cooked for yourself for three/four years? Doesn't matter. Lived on your own, paid bills, rent & had money in your account that you had responsibility for? Doesn't matter. Happily did your own washing without dying all your clothes? Doesn't matter. Got a degree? Doesn't matter.

All that matters to the parents is that you're under their roof and therefore, you're clearly in need of their guidance. You'll be told how to navigate a supermarket like you've never been in one before, how to cook pasta as though you didn't exist on it for the past three years of your life and how to separate your whites and darks as though your underwear was never supposed to be tinged pink (haven't they heard of colour catchers anyway?! - and we all make mistakes...like throwing our friends' bright red shorts in with our white underwear...obviously before I heard of colour catchers).

As I said, it doesn't matter. If they didn't teach you much life experience before university don't expect it now, and if they were happy doing things for you without hassling you to do it yourself, expect that to likely stay the same too.

They'll expect a few meals cooked for them

If it's not the parents making a joke about having a top notch meal served up by yours truly, it'll be another family member piping up about those culinary skills you must have gained whilst at university. They may not expect much from you, but I'm sure at least once they'll want some proof you didn't live on noodles and cheese alone...at least, to put your mother's worrying mind at rest.

They'll moan about you not doing anything, but won't let you do it anyway

Whilst they will berate your laziness they'll also take responsibility directly away from you. You may offer to do your own washing, but they'll still throw it in with everyone elses. You may offer to clean up after dinner but they'll insist it's fine, that they'll do it themselves.

But be careful my dear graduates, this is in part, a trap. They'll do these things for you, sure, but they'll also complain about how 'you never help out' and will never rememeber the million times that you offered.

They'll do a lot of things for you

I find this both a perk and and slightly frustrating, but perhaps I'm one of the few. Having dinner cooked for you every night sounds great, but I quite liked this part of university. I could have it whenever and could make whatever I wanted. When I fancy something in particular, I'm too late by the time I get home to request it or cook it for myself. It's helpful and means I have more time to relax in the evenings though, but it also adds to the feeling that you're still a child.

I won't complain about the fact all my washing is done for me because that was by far my least favourite chore.

You also don't appear to get harassed to hoover as often as you once did as a child. 

You'll appreciate it no matter how annoying you find all the things done for you, but realisitically, it can get a bit frustrating over time because you've lost all responsibility for the things that became a part of everyday life for you at university. 

They'll drop hints of you moving out

In my case, the openly want us to stay for as long as possible in order for us to save money but I think there's plenty of cases in which the family pose the question 'have you looked at any places yet?' as though you haven't got over £40,000 of debt, a half decent or less than decently paid job and also the rent you pay to them directly to juggle...how can you afford to rent a place of your own?!

The fact is, in most cases, you want to move out much more than they want you to. You've lived with friends for the past few years of your life and now you're back with the 'rents, your uni friends are more than likely further away than you want them to be and most of your nights are spent in your room because it's a chilled out environment up there that demands nothing from you...plus, you also probably have work in the morning.

You'll have to tell them where you're going and when you'll be home

I'm only 21 years old but my fingers and toes wouldn't be enough to count the amount of friends I've lost. I completely agree with the belief that losing friends shows that you are changing and/or growing up. I've left some people behind because I needed to take my life in a different direction, and occasionally it's been the case that people have left me behind because they could do better off without me. 

MissIsGoode

It's been a little while since I shared some of my experience of student life with you lovely lot for the obvious reason that I am no longer a student! But being a graduate doesn't mean I've forgotten what it's like to be one of you! So here are a few of the realities of student life and some advice that I think would have helped me through university had I known it beforehand: 

So first off, your student accommodation:

It really depends on how much you're able to fork out, and often you get what you pay for. In my first year I paid around £3,300 for an on campus room (which you can see in the photo to the right) with a washbasin in a block with 4 toilets, 2 showers, and a kitchen with 3 ovens, all pleasantly shared with about 30 people. In my second and third year I paid just over £3000 for a en-suite room with a double bed in a house shared with 6 people, with bills included except from electric (which is pretty pricey if I'm honest). It varies for everyone, so when you're looking into moving off campus make sure you get your contract checked over and that you understand what you're getting yourself into. Having bills included is often a godsend and can help avoid many house disputes.

My first year university room.

Societies are not for everyone. Personally, I never got myself really stuck into one for the reason nothing jumped out at me. I dabbled with the university magazine and joined the breast cancer charity team at Keele but I found, especially in third and second year, that it distracted me too much from all the work I had to do. I wish I had got more stuck in, but if I had I don't think my heart would have been in it. Everyone pushes you to join societies but if you really don't fancy any, don't feel the pressure to join one. 

Why did I never join the Quiditch team? Follow link for source.

House dynamics are always complex at uni. You get thrown in with a bunch of strangers and there's no saying how well you'll all get along. After only a few months you're then told to start searching for a house and decide who to live with. Sometimes, you'll regret the decision and other times you couldn't be happier with the people you choose. Once again it's different for everyone, and I can't say choose carefully because you never know what it's going to be like. When it comes to mess, bills and bin day rotas it may not always be dished out fairly and this can create tension. My advice is, take your time to think about who you're living with, be sure that you can get along with them and don't be surprised if, on occasions, there are a few little tiffs.

Netflix is probably going to be one of your biggest distractions and I'm not going to say don't get it,
because that'd be terrible advice. Just make sure you know your limits (I honestly don't) and that  your work doesn't suffer because of your Netflix binges!

Source

There's almost always something going on at uni. In terms of nights out there will always be someone up for one, and make the most of it all. You do have a decent amount of free time at uni and often it's so helpful to blow off steam. Uni can be pretty high pressure at times, with deadlines coming like a freight train, so take the opportunities to go out and enjoy spending time with your friends.

You'll experience plenty of money woes, but try not to let it really get you down and instead find a balance. When your loan comes in, don't blow it straight away. It may be tough but just attempt to budget as much as possible. Consider your overdraft a godsend too, but don't rely on it, just know it's there if you're a bit tight for money. Don't let money cause you to isolate yourself, and try not to let it constantly stress you out either. I've been stressed out by money an incredible amount of times, but I hate to let it get in the way of me having a good time with my friends too. Find places you can cut back, look for cheap used books on Amazon, don't splurge on expensive alcohol and food and don't buy things you really don't need. My advice when it comes to money and university life is to not let it control everything you do. Money kind of does make the world go round, and honestly you'll feel forever torn between saving and splurging. Just make sure you don't put yourself in the position of stressing out because you've spent it all too fast or stressing out because you've made your budget too tight. Back home it's awesome to have a job that will take you back during the holidays just to top up your funds and also, if there's a job you can get at uni consider all these points before getting one! I worked as a Student Ambassador during my final year and I never felt my job got in the way of my studies at all, I may have only earnt a few hundred from it but it gave me that bit extra and also added something impressive to my CV!

Know your limits. It's boring when people say that right? But with alcohol comes not only hilarious stories but horror stories too. Be careful on nights out, stick together and never leave your drink unattended. When you're out and about in a new place you've never been, try to go with people you know, or at least don't get so intoxicated you don't know what you're doing. Also, alcohol can have such a huge dent on your budget, and it's hard to control your spending when you're out. On more than one occasion I've found myself buying drinks for people as if I'm rolling in the dolla...but of course, I'm not.

Learn from your mistakes. When you mess up an essay, go see a tutor and find out what could be  have been done better. Your first year may not count, but I learnt the hard way that it's pretty good practice for your next few years at uni. If you know you're more likely to mess up an essay by doing it in the early hours of the morning, try harder to put time aside for it. Or, if you're constantly being distracted by things, try going Cold Turkey. I'd recommend learning from your mistakes in other areas of your life too, especially nights out!

Don't be surprised if you drift away from people. Some people do and others don't, it really depends on a number of things. You've got your friends at home who you may have known for years, but just like you a lot of them may have gone to university too, or some perhaps haven't and are still used to the same old life you knew before uni. Sometimes you can just drift apart as you change and grow up. When it comes to making friends at university, you may drift apart from them because you realise you didn't have as much in common as you first thought, or because your groups of friends vary and change. I've lost friends over the years throughout school and up to now, but I tend to remind myself that losing friends is a part of life and it just means you're all growing up into different people. Don't assume it'll happen though, because there's a chance you may not lose anyone along the way! Everyone is completely different!

Also, don't be surprised if you put on weight. It's not always just the crap eating at university that can contribute to your expanding waistline but often all those boozy nights too. I was underweight when I started university but putting on around 10lbs didn't look good on me! Enjoy yourself but remember to look after yourself too! Many people find that their uni years can really affect their eating habits long term, so don't let them get really bad because you'll find it very challenging to make your way back. When it comes to the alcohol, try to avoid fizzy drinks for mixers because they add an incredible amount of sugar to your diet, and it may be hard but try not to binge drink excessively. I may be a hypocrite because this advice is all from experiencing the exact things I'm advising you guys not to do! But learn from my mistakes! One thing that obviously contributed to my weight gain wasn't just the alcohol and bad eating, but also the lack of exercise. Exercise is a lot of effort for some people, but if you can find a cheap gym locally, frequently go for a jog or join a sports society it won't only help you keep those pounds from piling on but it also works wonders for stress and helps with motivation in other areas of life!

I hope this quite lengthy advise helps you guys learn a few things and take some advice into consideration. As I said this advice all comes from experience, and I do believe the easiest way to learn from things is by making your own mistakes but it's also nice to know that you're not the only one making them!

I hope university is as fun and memorable for all of you as much as it was for me, good luck!

MissIsGoode