I don’t know about everyone else, but school breaks are never as stress-free and relaxing as I expect them to be. During my final exams right before I leave for home I daydream about long relaxing hours of reading books and baking. I picture waking up refreshed each and every morning with my schedule free as the birds to whatever the heck I want. And finally, in these imaginary fantasy lands that I long for as I’m studying, I see a wonderful, smiling family who never fights, never bickers, and who reside in rainbow-lined cottages among the clouds…
As that ridiculous ending already clued you in on, being home for three weeks straight is no walk in the park. Would I have rather been someplace else? Of course not. I love my family and I’m glad I got to spent all of that time with them. However, sometimes there is something as being together TOO much. And so, for today’s Thinking Out Loud I have come up with my personal list of…
5 Ways To Know When You Have Been Back Home For Too Long
1. You start to notice those little quirks in your family members that you had forgotten about. Like the fact that your mother will not answer the phone if it is an unknown number. “Really? What are they going to do? Reach through and kidnap you?”
2. You start to get so bored that playing Ninja Kiwi with your brother starts to sound appealing. “Tell me again- where should I put the dart monkey to destroy the most amount of balloons?” Just NO.
Note: This is not my picture. I was never able to get past easy.
3. You start to get annoyed by the littlest things. Somebody forgot to wash their plate before loading the dishwasher? Watch out for Godzilla with the reign of terror that you are about to inflict on your unsuspecting sibling.
4. You start to clean up after everyone else’s messes as well as your own. This is NOT acceptable. Leave now before you enter the land of no return.
Okay, not entirely, but sometimes it really does feel this way!
5. You start to dream about being back at school. Literally.
Needless to say, I am ecstatic to be back at school… even if it is only for 5 days before I return home for a holiday weekend.
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Now go make sure to check out all of the other thinkers in Amanda‘s link-up!
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Questions for you:
- Have you ever experienced a similar situation when coming back home for an extended period of time?
- What little quirks bother you?
- When was the last time that you were a “Godzilla” too?
Eating 4 Balance 
Ah ha ha ha ah! Someone need to get out of the HOUSE?!?! I was at home for 3 weeks for the holidays – OH MY that was a BIT TOO LONG, however, the last day I was there, I got really sad because I didn’t want to leave. I had to remind myself that a few days before I WANTED TO GO BACK TO LA immediately, LMFAO!! But now I am back, nose to the grindstone! You will soon enough too, enjoy your time home as MUCH AS POSSIBLE!
3 weeks for me too. Eh, I wish I could say that on the last day I wanted to stay, but I think the only thing holding me back from packing my car was that it was so cold outside. haha.
I think next time I should write a post like this *before* I leave home. I’m sure I’ll remember a bunch more annoyances. 😉
Hahahahhaa oh my god I relate to this too much. With a 6 week winter break, I was definitely going insane by the end, no matter how much I love my family. Although that whole cleaning other people’s messes thing is not me, my mom is straight up OCD clean. I will literally put a cup down, walk to the fridge (or bar) to get whatever liquid substance I want to pour in said glass, turn around and find that she put it in the sink. It’s like magic. Very annoying, mildly funny magic.
Where do you go to school and how can I sign up? Haha. 6 weeks is insane!!
I’m only a clean freak about certain things. Like, my room is definitely not clean, but it annoys me to no end when we clean up the house and then within 5 minutes it gets awful again.
My mom pretends to be a cleaning machine, but thankfully not OCD about it.
I’m guilty of the emptying of the glass when doing the dishes. How am I supposed to know it hadn’t been sitting there for a week?
I know exactly what you mean Madison, when I was at Uni I always used to wish I was home but after a few days I was desperate to be back!
Glad I’m not the only one who got a little crazed being at home too long!
LOL too funny. I feel the same way after about a week with mine!
Haha. I think as I get older the time I can stand to be at home will grow shorter and shorter.
Omg my parents used to annoy me SO MUCH when I lived at home. Coming back from university as well was really hard because I’d have my own routine and meal ideas and we’d just clash. Plus they’re so untidy whereas I am a clean freak. So I’d forever be cleaning up after them. Whew, makes me stressed just thinking about it! And don’t even get me started on when my sister lived at home as well. I could have KILLED her. Sharing a bathroom with her aged me about five years I think.
“Clash” is the absolute perfect word for what happened when I came home. I think we fought more than ever over the littlest of things because we hadn’t been together for more than a week in about a year.
Ugh. The bathroom. I just permanently moved residence to downstairs because of the horror I returned home to there. Eventually I just couldn’t stand it anymore and took about a half hour to put everything away. But still.
I think during breaks i would literally start cleaning just to clean. luckily my breaks were always on the shorter side. I honestly can’t believe you are still on break!!!
Actually this was my first week back! I just had a 3 week break. Some of my friends had even longer though… I just couldn’t imagine.
Hahaha oh yes. As much as I love my family, even overnight stays can be rough sometimes. I’m with your mom on the unknown caller thing, though, haha…if I don’t know your number, I suggest you leave me a message and I’ll call you back 😉 Otherwise, you’ll never hear from me! Enjoy your first week back, love!!
I’m surprised by how many people say that about the unknown number! I figure it can’t hurt to answer, and with my mom being in charge of things at church and school 50% of the calls she gets are unknown. It drives my family crazy.
😆 I never experienced the thrill of coming home for the holidays since I went to school in the same city I grew up in, but after living away from home for a couple of years, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t be able to manage moving back in again. I love my parents, but I definitely need my space… Even spending a lot of time over there for Christmas was a bit of a challenge. And the cleaning bit? Definitely… Let’s just say me and my parents do NOT have the same stance on what constitutes as clutter…
I think if my parents read this post they would completely disagree on my comment about being “clean.” I have like this on/off switch where I can be as cluttered as all get out (like with baking/books/writing) but then with other things it just drives me crazy. I wish I was more neat all around. At least I am at school!
Hahah I wish I was back at home! School is pretty stressful for me (and ugh, it’s just the beginning of the quarter) and I feel like I’m constantly running around/busy. I know what you mean, though, when you know you’ve been home for too long! I get pretty antsy and get irritated by the smallest things haha
I really don’t wish I was back home. haha. It’s enough to go home every few weekends because I have to get food. 3 weeks was just too much. It’s really not my family’s fault, I’m just getting too “independent” as they say 😉
In a way I hear you. Moving back in with my parents temporarily has definitely refreshed some of my memories of their quirks. In the end, I’m actually pretty blessed living with them again for all the benefits it has. One thing that gets me, though, is my mum constantly reminding me of my to-dos [hello, I’m grown up] and generally making me feel like I was 15 again.
Oh, wait, I’m supposed to wash my dish before placing it into the dishwasher? We never did. Okay, we’d empty large pieces of leftover or cheese rinds into the trash but other than that … You never stop learning, I guess?! Speaking of dishwashers, though, one more quirky habit of my family: when moving into my own apartment I worked out the perfect [obviously, right?] system of loading it – and nobody is following it here. Hello, crowded dishwashers and plates not getting all clean. If only my parents listened to me 😀 …
The to-do’s probably is what bothers me the most too. There were a few things that I was supposed to get done over break and I only got about 50% done due to the fact that I had to help clean the house instead for my brother’s NYE party, and then I was sick for like a week.
Not necessarily wash the dish, but living in the country our water pressure sucks so nothing will get clean otherwise. I am an expert dishwasher loader 😉 Forks and spoons in their separate compartments. No odd overlapping dishes that don’t get clean. I completely hear ya there.
Haha – too funny!
But, I gotta confess, I am like your mum in #1, I so often let the call go to voicemail when I don’t know the number – but I will answer a text pronto!
Oh man. That’s what everyone else is saying too!
Haha tell me about it! I’ve been ready to get out for 2 years (not that I don’t love my family but…). Glad you’re settling back in at school 🙂
Going to college 2 hours away, the only main perk is not having to live at home anymore. After two years I’d be ready as well 🙂
I don’t like to answer the phone when it comes up as Unknown. It’s usually a telemarketer or a doctors office reminding you about an appointment. I’m with your mom on that one, although I’m with you when it comes to the mess. I’d be sneaking behind people trying to clean up after them. Sometimes they think that’s rude. Ah, whatever.
The very last week when my mom and brother had returned to school, I kind of just went around to all of their little stations picking up “this and that.” haha. I should have been working on my own stuff but…
I rarely get called with telemarketers anymore. And I guess just from high school when I sometimes had to use someone else’s phone due to horrible reception, I’d rather just answer it in case it was my brother or mom needing something.