College Commuter Student's Perspective

Today's conversation is sponsored by the Michelin 

There is so much to think about when you are preparing to send your young adult children to college. Whether they are out of the state, in-state or local, there is a lot of planning involved. Both of our daughters attend college locally at the University of South Carolina, and commute back and forth. It was a united family decision that they both live at home at least for the first two years of college. It has been about 3 years now since my older daughter, Chardonnay started at USC and it has worked out with the commuting aside from the complaints of early wake-up times, traffic, or simply feelings of 'not wanting to drive today'. I've shared those feelings of not wanting to drive for many years (carpool pick-ups/drop-offs, sports, after-school activities, and more).

I asked Chardonnay to give me her personal list of pros and cons of living on campus vs off and here is what she came up with.

Pros of living on campus:
• Easy access to everything on campus, easier to get involved
• Easier to make friends because you have roommate, suitemates, people on your hall
• You can wake up 30 minutes before class starts and still be on time
• Don’t have to deal with traffic

Cons of living on campus:
• Might not have a car, so you might feel as if you’re stuck on campus
• More expensive to live on campus (cost of housing, meal plan, etc.)
• Limited meal options because of meal plans
• Not much privacy
• Homesickness

Pros of living off campus:
• More privacy and independence (depending on where you live)
• Home-cooked meals

Cons of living off campus:
• Have to get up much earlier to get to campus on time
• You can feel disconnected from campus
• Not as easy to make friends
• Spend more on gas
• Feeling of missing out

As a parent, I think that being there for your new college student both emotionally and physically are key to helping them make that transition. There were so many adjustments to be made during the first full year. One of them is when you decide to let you student have their own car. I'm sure my daughter must have been sick to death of me nagging about driver safety. An 18 year-old may think they know everything, but they have so much to learn when it comes to being responsible for their own car.

My husband had to go through so many details in regards to fueling up the vehicle, when you need an oil change or service, and using common sense to determine if there might be an issue with the tires or brakes. She has experienced a couple of minor fender benders, but seems to finally have a handle on being cautious and responsible when behind the wheel of a car. She never gets a single mile over the recommended oil change time, and gets her tires checked regularly. I guess on the perks of living at home is she can get assistance right away if there is any issue with the car.

Are you a parent of a college student or have a high school senior preparing for their next journey? You can share your stories or moments on social media using the #BeThereMoments hashtag and check out the stories on the Be There Moments website by Michelin. As parents, it is so important for us to simply be there for our college kids, don't you think?

How to Make Anything Taste Better With Finlandia Butter and Cheese

June is a special month.  It marks graduation, the start of summer, weddings, vacation season. But did you know that June is also National Dairy Month? Finlandia is a brand that has been crafting some of the highest quality cheese and butter for over a century. Their butter and cheese products are all-natural and do not contain additives such as growth hormones, preservatives, and dyes. All you get is pure deliciousness that you can feel good giving your family. 

Many of my family and friends refer to me as a food snob. I'm okay with that label and I think more people should be food snobs as well. Caring about the quality of your food and eating real food is important.  Finlandia Butter is made from pure, hormone-free milk, which comes from happy cows that live on family-owned farms in Finland—the greenest country on Earth.  No hidden chemicals, no factory farms—just pure, creamy goodness. Let me tell you something, Finlandia butter is perfection times 20! It's so creamy and delicious and perfect as a spread on your toast or incorporated in both sweet and savory dishes. 

I love a good omelet (or scramble as mine tends to turn into) and the addition of Finlandia butter and cheese make it extra tasty. Oh and you can't forget the crunchy buttered toast. 

When you put quality ingredients into your dishes, you will be able to taste the difference. I am currently obsessed with Finlandia's perfectly salted butter. I'm waiting on some bananas to get overripe so that I can bake up a loaf of banana bread. Oh, and I'm thinking about a nice pound cake too! 

Be sure to check out the Finlandia website and follow on Facebook for recipes and promotions. 

I received product samples in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own and I absolutely love this brand!

Harmless Harvest Coconut Water Is The Real Deal

Do you ever have a taste of something or even a scent that transports you back to your childhood? I grew up in Miami, Florida and it was very common to see vendors on the street corners selling fresh fruit, vegetables, flowers, and various goods. One of my favorite things to get was the fresh water coconuts as we called it in my culture. You would get a fresh green coconut that was sitting in a huge cooler of ice and watch the vendor chop the top off with a machete. They would then stick a straw in it and hand it to you to enjoy. There is nothing that can compare to drinking that gorgeous chilled coconut water straight out of the actual coconut. Once you have experienced the real thing, you can't have it any other way. Fast forward... I have lived in South Carolina for close to 18 years and it has been more than 20 years since I have had coconut water like I did in Miami.

I was doing some crowd sourcing on Facebook a month or so ago asking what natural food or drink was rich in potassium. One of my old friends from Florida mentioned coconut water. I told her that would be a winner if I had access to proper coconut water like I did in Miami. She told me to look for one called Harmless Harvest. She is also Guyanese so she knows I know what real coconut water is supposed to taste like. I finally got around to trying it with full hesitation. You see, I've tried about 2 or 3 brands already and I ended up pouring it out in the sink from pure disgust. I took into consideration that Harmless Harvest is refrigerated and is simply organic coconut water with nothing added. It is free of GMOs, toxic pesticides, artificial additives, and irradiation.

I poured some in a glass and was a little intrigued by the pink color. Honestly, I didn't realize that it can be that color (clear to pink). I took my first sip and guess what? I was on transported back to being a kid again. It was the real deal and what coconut water should taste like. No lie, I closed my eyes each time I sipped. I can finally have that taste back in my life all the way up in South Carolina. You can find Harmless Harvest Coconut Water in grocery stores including Kroger, Publix, and Whole Foods in the refrigerated organic/health foods section near the produce department. Check out the amazing story behind Harmless Harvest here.

The back of this t-shirt says "I'm Harmless" :-) 

Harmless Harvest coconut water is the perfect hydrating beverage to help beat the summer heat. Have you tried it yet? If you haven't, I really suggest you do!

I received product samples in exchange for my honest review. It doesn't get more honest than this.

Making Sure Your Big Family Holiday Goes Off Without a Hitch

Most people have family scattered across the country. Even when they’re scattered across the state, that can still mean they’re pretty out of reach. In these situations, people find that they only get to see all of their family at things like weddings or funerals.

But why wait for either of those things to occur? Why not consider making a family reunion happen yourself? Better yet, why not arrange a family reunion vacation? These sorts of vacations are very popular in America, given the country’s sheer size and potential for great vacations.

Here’s a quick guide to getting it all set up!

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Pick a suitable resort

If you’re having a family reunion, then I imagine you’re going to be with a lot of people! This can make finding the right accommodation a little tricky. For some families, it’s a simple as going to the same hotel. This usually splits them up across the building quite a bit, though. Many families will try going to different hotels in the same area.

But to make the whole thing easier, you should probably consider resorts that expect guests to come in large packs. Thankfully, there are several of them dotted all over the country! Many of them also contain a bunch of activities for everyone, if you don’t feel like arranging all of that yourself. From golf resorts to mountain range getaways, there are plenty of places tailored to family reunions. Of course, you could eschew a resort altogether and go on a family reunion cruise across the ocean!

Arrange transport

Family reunions can get pretty darn big. And, as I’m sure you know, using public transport with a lot of people is somewhat of a hassle. In fact, even using public transport alone is usually a massive hassle!

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For this step, it really depends how far you’re going and how familiar people are with the area. If it’s close enough for everyone to take a car, then that might work out for you. But if you’d prefer to keep things as smooth as possible, you might want to consider other options. For example, you could look into renting a charter bus from somewhere like GOGO Bus Charters. That’s pretty much all the benefits of public transport with none of the negatives! (Except, of course, for the fact that one of you has to drive it!)

Keep a loose schedule

A loose schedule? Surely the key to good planning is a strict schedule? The problem with a strict schedule with this sort of vacation is that it’s destined to fall apart. Sure, you’re going to have certain things on your itinerary that you want everyone to do. But with that many people, there’s simply too much opportunity for timing to be off.

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When people are catching up with family members who they haven’t seen in years, the conversations are going to be long. People are going to be very busy catching up and taking part in the arranged activities. You’ve also got to account for the sheer variety of interests. One activity is sure to enthrall some members of the family, but other members might want to move onto something else nearby. So keep it loose and fun!

Twitter Loop Giveaway $100 Amazon GC or PayPal Cash

I've teamed up with a group of fabulous bloggers to offer a great giveaway on Twitter. The prize is the winner's choice of either a $100 Amazon GC or $100 PayPal Cash prize. I'm sure anyone would love some extra cash for the summer. Go enter now! 

All rules are here.