Breaks

Holiday breaks are the absolute worst, right behind summer break. Your parents, especially if they pay for your tuition, believe that they are completely in charge of you like they were when you were in High School. You believe that you're independent and can make decisions for yourself since you've been living on your own for months just fine without them.

But here's the thing:

You can't tell them how you feel (like you're suffocating, that you want to go back to school, that you don't want to go to church with them on Christmas [apparently that happens]). You have to roll with a LOT of punches. If you're like me, and your parents are older and their minds are starting to go a little bit, you kind of have to just smile and nod and let their craziness just roll off your back. If the only thing they ask you to do is go to church with them on Christmas, GO! They aren't (usually) still around to go to church with you every Sunday, so they don't even know if you're going anymore. Even if you're not going anymore and they ask that of you, do yourself a favor and just go with it. They'll really appreciate it and it will save you a world of suffering.

Whatever you do, do NOT tell your parents that you're tired of being home, EVEN IF YOU ARE! I made this mistake at Thanksgiving time, and let me tell you, it is still biting me in the butt! That, and I also called my boyfriend and vented about it and, right in the middle, I realized my mother was listening because, oops, she started crying... AVOID THIS AT ALL COSTS!!!! It's not worth it.

Spend time with your parents. You may think that you know everything and that they don't understand you, but really, you don't understand them if you never hang out with them. I realized that my dad is one of the funniest people I know just by playing a round of Scattergories with him and my mom. I also realized that I don't mind being at home so much by spending more time with my parents.

So, let it be known, that I am 100% advertising SPENDING TIME WITH YOUR PARENTS/FAMILY!!!! (This goes for all ages, but college age especially since, well, the fight for independence thing)