Why should you plan out your packing now?

Because unless you are driving home alone, chances are you have limited packing room. (Do you really want to spend even more money for your overweight suitcase at the airport?) Packing smart helps you to maximize bag room, in order to a) bring home more laundry, b) return to campus with more leftovers and c) return to campus with an entirely new wardrobe.

Are we on the same page now? Here is a guide to items you should pack:

Clothing : Assemble clean outfit options for the first few days before you go home so you’re not scrambling to wash something (or forced to steal something from mom’s closet) before you head out with your high school buds on Thanksgiving eve. I’d take options for Thanksgiving eve, the Thanksgiving eat-a-thon, and Black Friday. By the weekend, you’ll either have a whole new batch of clothing (thanks to mom) or you can re-work what you’ve already got for what will most likely be major couch time.

In order to truly save space, pack smart. I recommend versatile items like leggings and long cardigans to:

1) Maximize eating capacity – the stretchier the clothes, the better.
2) Maximize space - not only are leggings small in a suitcase, but they can be worn dressy or casual, so you can pack fewer items, mix and match the pieces, and get more wear out of all of them.
3) Maximize your Black Friday shopping time – Layering leggings, a tank and a sweater means you can avoid those brutal lines for the dressing room and try everything on right there in the middle of the store!

Down time: This weekend is a break from school, so if you’re lucky enough not to have too much work, take advantage of your down time. Bring your laptop, load up your iPod, grab the stack of magazines you haven’t had time to read,  or (gasp!) a book to read for pleasure. A book is a great distraction from your annoying siblings/cousins/great aunt and it’s an awesome opportunity to start checking off  books on our  list of novels you should read.

School work: I know, the last thing you want to be thinking about during the holidays is school. Unfortunately Thanksgiving is followed by crunch time, and you don’t want to have five assignments to do right when you get back. Bring a couple of your lighter assignments (literally, lighter – you don’t need some 10-pound textbook breaking your back as you run through the airport) home and try to get a little ahead bit ahead before your exams. It’s not only smart planning, but it’s also a great excuse to get away from your parents’ nagging questions.

What not to pack:  Leave behind shampoo, conditioner, your hair dryer, and any other bulky items someone will have at home. They are a waste of space — especially if you want your parents to stock you up on toiletries before you head back.  Remember, you’re going home, not to the moon. If you forget anything big, your parents will be so happy to have you home, they’ll be more than happy to buy it.

Oh, and don’t waste any precious room with those running shoes/workout clothes. It’s an admirable goal, but be honest with yourself – you will not be hitting the gym this weekend.

[Come back later this week for Thanksgiving weekend outfit ideas!]

Is there anything better than a Thanksgiving sandwich? I think not.

As soon as you emerge from your Thanksgiving-induced food coma (What? Doesn’t it take everyone 36 hours?), it’s likely that there’s one major thing you’re going to want to do: eat again.

But navigating Thanksgiving leftovers can be a major pain. Just how many turkey-stuffing-cranberry sauce sandwiches can one girl eat, anyway? That’s why CollegeCandy has scoured the internet to find notable post-Turkey Day recipes. Here are seven dishes that especially grabbed us, for reasons good, bad, or ugly:

Most Idiot-Proof: Black Friday Pie (also works on a Saturday)

This recipe calls for lazy cooks to just layer all of their leftovers in a pan and cook them for 40 minutes. It’s like regular Thanksgiving, except all of your food has been mashed together!

Worst Middle School Cafeteria Flashback: Turkey Tetrazzini

Just look at that picture: a beige mess of pasta, gluey white goop, and sad turkey. The only good use for this stuff would be as a projectile in a massive food fight.

Best Way to Liven Up Dry Poultry: Curried Turkey

Heat up a cold, dreary Saturday with this Indian-inspired dish, which should make even Grandma’s dry white meat palatable.

Most Off-Putting Name: Aunt Wanda’s Turkey Carcass Soup

Okay, so this is basically just a regular recipe for turkey stock soup, which could be the least offensive use for leftovers ever. But I can’t get past the word “carcass,” which might be the most unappetizing term ever.

Sassiest: Saucy Turkey

This is really a barbecued turkey sandwich—which sounds scrumptious, by the way—but the name is so sweet that it sounds even more appealing.

Biggest Head-Scratcher: Deluxe Turkey Club Pizza

It’s like a club sandwich—but laid out on a pizza crust. I don’t know whether to be confused or just weirded out. What self-respecting pizza is anchored by a mix of mayo and lemon peel instead of tomato sauce? What about this is “deluxe”?

The So-Crazy-It-Might-Just-Be-Delicious Award: Thanksgiving Won Tons

Turkey, cranberries, and almonds mixed together inside of wonton wrappers, then fried in a skillet. Sounds like an triumph of food fusion to me.

Got any brilliant leftover recipes? Let us know in the comments.

The only thing harder than saying goodbye to your roommate for the summer is packing up your dorm… and mopping all of the dried beer of the floor.  And scrubbing your desk where pizza sauce has been encrusted for months. And figuring out how to pack it all into your two-door.  Yeah, moving out sucks.  But moving IN with your parents again… well, let’s face it.  It rocks.

Here are my top ten faves about crashing with Mom and Dad for three months.  What are yours?

1.  You can live with your parents without looking like a deadbeat loser.

You have an excuse: You’re still in college and the dorms closed.  If you were 35 and working at the Venus Club and living with the ‘rents… you might belong on Jerry Springer.  But there’s nothing shameful about going back to your teenage years and living under their roof for one more summer.

2.  You’re a legal adult now.

Maybe your parents tried to force some strict rules on you in high school, and you vowed to move out asap.  But now, you’re an adult.  So even if they try to enforce a curfew, you at least have the “I’m a grown up” argument, which can be bolstered with “I just made Dean’s List,” or “In college, you aren’t keeping tabs on me and I made it home alive, didn’t I?” Plus, a lot of parents won’t even pick that fight, because they realize that you are an adult, you are a responsible collegiate, and they don’t want to know what happens on spring break.

3.  Laundry.

I don’t know what’s better, not having to pay for a load of laundry, or having the freedom of throwing your clothes in the dryer in the morning and leaving them there all day long.  Or using the dryer to get out the wrinkles in your cotton v-neck because you don’t feel like ironing.  Or being able to wash ONE shirt on its own because you reeeeally want it to be clean for the bar tomorrow night, but nothing else is dirty.  Idk, all of the above?

4.  You can spread out.

You can walk down a hallway without having to wear shower shoes.  You can watch a movie without worrying that your roommate will be studying.  You can use the downstairs bathroom when you’re downstairs, and the upstairs bathroom when you’re upstairs.  Ah, life’s little pleasures.

5.  Home-cooked meals.

Do I need to explain this?

6.  Home-cooked leftovers.

Plenty of room in the fridge to save tomorrow’s lunch.  Or breakfast.

7.  All of the amenities that are banned from dorm rooms.

Stove, hot plate, caged iguana, you name it.  You don’t have to hide the candles at your parents house to avoid getting fined or written up.

8.  All of your sh*t is already there.

You have to be selective when you move to the dorms, and only bring the stuff you’ll need (or think you’ll need), but everything you left behind when the spring semester started is right there waiting for you.  Go out and enjoy the weather – ride your bike, dust off your Rollerblades, look through your closet and discover all the random fun-yet-unnecessary things you forgot about because they wouldn’t fit in your Yaffa Blocks when you packed up a few months ago.  A personal fave? Discovering that an outfit you didn’t think you’d wear this semester is suddenly “in” again and you don’t have to buy a newer version.

9.  Reunions!

Most likely, you’re not the only one moving home.  Now’s the time to catch up with your high school pals, your former coworkers, and anyone else that you blew off when you were busy studying/partying away at school.  Plus, chances are, your parents already know your old friends, and will be thrilled if you have a few people over for a low-key night in.

10.  Ummm, can you say Rent-Free?

Take the time to save up this summer, because you’re going to have to shell out a few grand for housing next fall – and you might still have to share a room!  When you do move out on your own, that monthly rent check will be the bane of your existence.  Plus, you’ll have to pay for utilities, electricity, heat, water – not to mention hiring repair men whenever things get broken.  Don’t take your dad for granted this summer when he stays on top of replacing the light bulbs, mowing the lawn, and fixing the plumbing.

Yeah right.

The only thing that really got me moving out of bed was a little hair of the dog that bit me… in the form of an Easter Egg filled with Starbursts that I found under my pillow. Thanks, roomie!

Anyways, a long weekend at home with the family was pretty tubular (yeah, I’m trying to bring that word back), but there are just some things about going home that are less than rad (yup, trying to bring that one back, too!):

The Great: Getting away from campus for a weekend to spend time with the family.
The Blah: Being woken up by my parents at 9am on a Saturday so I could come downstairs and “spend time with them!!”

The Great: Mom’s cooking.
The Blah: Being unable to control myself around mom’s cooking and eating until I threw up a little in my mouth. Then going back for more.

The Great: Family traditions – egg hunt, Easter brunch, Easter family photo
The Blah: Dealing with the family’s constant nagging about finding a boyfriend, losing a few pounds to find a boyfriend and finding a “damn boyfriend already!”

The Great: Hitting up the Easter sales at the mall with my mom.
The Blah: Getting to the register and hearing, “You have a part-time job…you can pay for this stuff now.”

The Great: Returning to campus with a bag of leftovers
The Blah: My inability to control myself around mom’s cooking (yet again) and eating them all….late night… in one sitting.

Anyways, in order to get you through the hardest day of the week we thought we’d play a little game of “Would You Rather?” Because what is more fun than pondering life’s most random conundrums?

So, here we go. Choose your answer and explain why in the comments section below!

Would you rather have sultry porno movie music sound out whenever you make a romantic advance OR lose all sexual inhibition in the presence of leftovers?

No, we did not think of these ourselves – we aren’t that sick. All questions come from our friends Justin Hiemberg and David Gomberg, creators of the Would You Rather…? series.

We’re so pooped now we can barely form complete sentences.

Or is that the boxed wine we just drank…

Anyways, here is a look back at this hellish week.

The Bad:

The not-so-great news from the gyno.

The lack of a social scene on some college campuses.

That douchey Jason and his Bachelor mind games.

The leftover pizza…eaten off the floor.

A university preventing students from getting access to birth control.

The knowledge that Ryan Seacrest and I could never be.

The Good:

Getting ready for SPRING BREAK, baby.

Which can still be awesome even if we’re not goin’ anywhere.

An awesome dance playlist.

Relaxed fit (read: no muffin top!) pants are back.

Alexander McQueen is coming to Target!

That not-so-hot boy can still turn you on.

And, the best of all, there are some seriously hot professors out there. 

There are so many difficult choices in life (do we love or hate high heels??), so we thought we’d sort through ‘em right here. Every week we will discuss another issue we are torn up about. Let us know your thoughts in the comments section!]

I LOVE FOOD and enjoy it as often as I can: for meals, between meals, on the couch, on the way to class, on the way to the gym… And I am an equal opportunity eater.  I love Chinese, Italian, Japanese, Mexican, Korean, Brazilian, Greek, and of course, American.

There’s nothing better than walking into a restaurant or – yippee! – a bakery and taking in that hot-off-the-stove smell; the yummy aromas of fresh-baked goods fluttering into my nose and making my stomach growl with hunger. And then that moment when that delectable dish is sitting in front of me and I finally get the chance to dig in…

OMG I’m drooling.

There is one “type” of food that I’m not completely head-over-heels for, though, and that is the leftover.

Love:

That giant bowl of fettucine you had with your parents (and on their tab!) was too. freaking. good to pass up. Too bad your stomach wasn’t big enough to handle it all in one sitting. The beauty of leftovers is that you can box that bad boy up and enjoy it tomorrow between classes. Not only is it the best lunch ever, but it also saves you the time of preparing something new and the money you’d waste on a not-so-good Subway value meal.

Loathe:

Now, I’m all about recycling. Paper, plastic, and food. I love Bento boxes, and I think a great way to save the enviroment (and your wallet) is to pack up last night’s dinner into a little to-go box and heat it up the next day for a quick lunch. But I do think that certain foods should be eaten within a closed, contained space in which no one else can smell them, or be kept at home entirely. Have you ever smelled your roommate’s nauseating fish tacos wafting towards you from the public microwave? What about leftover curry dishes from last night’s Indian delivery that linger in your room for days? Gross.

And leftovers never taste as good the next day. Yes, they are probably better than anything you could whip up on the fly, but that hella good panini from last night loses its luster (and crispiness) after sitting in the mini fridge all night. And, of course, there is always that one little box of Chinese that gets shoved to the back of the fridge only to be found months later….covered in fuzz….when you go searching for that mysterious smell coming out of the kitchen.

So, tell me. What are your thoughts on The Leftover?

If you find yourself without the time to cook 3 meals a day, 7 days a week, these dishes are perfect for you. Get in the kitchen once and eat for days.

Door Number 1: Soup

Soup is a classic for good reason. It’s quick to make, it stays well in the fridge or the freezer, and it’s extremely simple to cook up a giant batch and use it for meal after meal. Soup is also incredibly versatile—in almost any soup recipe, you can add or subtract basically whatever you want (don’t like celery? Try some zucchini!) and it will still turn out tasting great. Plus, you don’t even know how much better it is than soup in the can until you’ve made it yourself and experienced the difference. A good starting point is this potato soup, which is All Recipes’s highest-rated soup recipe.

Door Number 2: Rice

My personal favorite thing to do with rice is to cook a huge pan of fried rice with tons of vegetables and bits of chicken or tofu, and then keep the leftovers for my lunches all week. Following this recipe will give you great Chinese fried rice. If you prefer a more Indian flava, leave out the soy sauce, sub the sesame oil with another type of oil (canola or mustard is good), and add turmeric, cumin, chili powder, and pepper.

Making a really big pot of rice and then keeping the plain leftovers can also give you a quick base for almost any meal down the road. To get the most out of your rice, try soaking it in clean cold water for 20-30 minutes before you boil it.

Door Number 3: Casserole

In Minnesota we call this “hot dish,” but whatever you call it, it’s the same thing: the ultimate American comfort food. The definition is so nebulous that it can cover practically anything—chicken and rice, macaroni and cheese, lasagna, etc. Whichever you choose, they are easy to make and big enough to last you through the week. I’m not a fan of tuna, but this tuna casserole was developed by a college student, so it already passes the “quick, easy, and edible” test. And it does look really good…. Mmmm.

So there you have it, ladies. No more wasting money on carry-out, or eating a bag of Doritos for dinner; now you can cook one time and be set for the week ahead. Just heat up those leftovers, and dig in!

[Image courtesy of anthearowe.com.]

Seriously. Wal-mart shoppers trampled and killed an employee.

Michael Phelps bring his GF home to mama.

Carry your lunch in (super cute) style!

Make your hair look 10 years younger! 

Old people aren’t so safe about sex. 

Milo Ventimiglia is better than sweeter than pumpkin pie. 

Jessica Simpson is anti-bras, apparently.

He’s Just Not That Into You, the movie.

Creative ideas for downing those leftovers. 

Upon arriving at home to a comfy bed, clean shower, and lots of home cookin’, we immediately headed out to the bar to enjoy the Biggest Bar Night of the Year. We are using the term “enjoy” loosely, of course, because the evening was really just a night of awkward conversation and not enough alcohol. (Funny, that sounds a lot like Thanksgiving dinner when our bf met our parents.)

We loaded up on the carbs at Thanksgiving dinner to prepare for today’s Black Friday shopping spree, and besides a few broken nails and a black eye (on that bitch who tried to grab the last Flip Cam),  things turned out OK.  We came home with the perfect gift for our roommates, got some hot new jeans, and a really cute scarf to cover the hickey our BF left on the most obvious part of our neck.

Now it’s time to enjoy the rest of the weekend…and all the Thanksgiving leftovers.