Hello to my fellow juniors and seniors!

Congrats! You've finally earned the title as an upperclassmen in college.

You can have a car on campus, and expand your living space to a comfortable apartment style on or off campus.

And with this new living space comes... a decreased meal plan and having your own kitchen.

Exciting, right?! But as awesome as it is to finally have your own kitchen and being able to begin ~adulting,~ no matter how good or bad your dining hall on campus was, there's always going to be some small experiences and perks of having a full meal plan that you're going to miss.

Such as...

Having to do absolutely nothing except pick out your food.
They say college kids have it easy, but boy, lifting up that piece of freshly made chicken and placing it on my plate was truly exhausting! How do they expect me to do this every day?!

Not having to grocery shop for your food.
And so the process to eat begins. Remember when you could look at your bank account without wincing, and you never had to worry about a lack of food? Oh, the good ole days, how we took you for granted.

Full ~squad~ dinners.
Say goodbye to dinners with friends - close and mutual - and hello to roomie or solo dinners most nights.

Having a variety of foods to choose from.
You name it and the dining hall had it. Burgers? Check. Salad? Check. Fruit? Check. Pizza? Check. But we all know making your own meals after class will get old real quick and this running checklist will turn into Ramen noodles? Check. Cereal? Check. 1 minute Kraft mac and cheese? Check.

Seeing the dining hall staff.
You know they're secretly the most loyal and nicest people on campus. Rumor has it that the first step of ~adulting~ is preparing yourself for these major withdrawals.

People watching your own classmates.
Wait - she's friends with her? And he knows her too? But I know her! How do I not know him? And he just invited her over... but if he lives in that dorm and she lives in that other dorm then how do they all know each other? Are they the same major? I need to know the deets!

* * * * *

But although these things will be missed, attempting to bake, cook, and ~adult~ alongside your roommates will be an experience that you won't regret. Learning to adult together will be one of the greatest experiences of your life. So take it in, because just like your underclassmen days, it will go by too quick.