In a college world of distress, looking for discounts will bring you success!

Surprise surprise, another food blog! This time, we are going all out because we are not eating in we are eating out! Still on a budget though.... 
Why lie!? Sometimes I want someone to cook my food for me. A nice burger, a delicious milkshake.  However, the fact that we are college students will not go away. Over the years I have found restaurants that give out student discounts. You can't go wrong with 10% off for being a college student. 

Denny's is my all time favorite! They offer student discount and the waiting staff is super friendly!

 This is a local favorite. It is a snack shack called "Garrafas" they offer all things Mexican sncaks and delicacies as well as give out 25% discount coupons!

 I love Denny's so much I decided to put another picture. Like I previously mentioned I love burgers and Denny's is definitely my go to restaurant to go eat one! (That is one of my resident's having dinner with me! :)

 This milkshake is from "University Drafthouse" They show many college sport games. The cool thing about this place is that they do offer discounts, and they do it in a interesting yet fun way. So, whenever you go to any kind of university sporting event, they give you a ticket to enter the game. On the back of the ticket they have a "University Drafthouse" dollar printed on it. Those dollars are valid to reduce one dollar from your meal at the restaurant. If you go to enough school games you'll have enough dollars to eat a meal for free! (Cool right?!)

These are some of my residents and I at Dairy Queen. They were giving out free Ice Cream cones because it was the first day of Spring! 

some other restaurants that offer student discounts are:

-Burger King

-Chipotle

-Chick-fil-a

-Subway

-Hard Rock Cafe

-Waffle House

Xoxo- Mera♡

Paint the stress away!

Ugh, homework, exams, midterms, finals, labs...it never ends!

People that are curious about living on campus always ask me "so what do you do for fun?" Well, several things, when and if I have time. Truth is, it's hard being a college student, and it's hard to have time for yourself sometimes. One great way to relieve the stress is to paint. You cannot always be outside, because of weather or because you just want to be inside. Painting really free's your mind and let's you forget about all the troubles of being a college student even if it's for a while. I enjoy painting so much. I have created various art work that I never knew I had in me. To me, painting reflects how I feel inside. The best part about it, is that the dorms I reside in, offer paints and brushes so that I can paint the night away. Don't think that this is the only activity that their is to do in your dorms there is plenty more! But painting is definitely my favorite...

Here are some more fun stress relievers to undertake while living on campus:

-Read 

-Write poetry

- Play board games 

-Watch movies/ play video games

Xoxo- Mera♡

Feeling Fancy on a Financial Plan

So, it is no secret that us college students live on a budget. As a matter of fact, we kind of depend on a budget to get through college. Many of us work part time jobs, full time jobs, or maybe no job at all. As broke as one may be, we still gotta' eat. Throughout my years of living on campus I developed several snacks that definitely got me through some deep hunger struggles. Even if you are not on a budget these snacks are super yum and easy to make while living on campus!

This is a very simple midnight snack. I enjoy this late at night while I am studying or reading or just in the mood for something light. All you need are strawberries and any chocolate or hazel nut spread. The spread that I used is an organic hazel nut spread from a neighborhood organic market called Sprouts. The strawberries are also from Sprouts. 

I will admit, this "snack" is totally Mexican. Also, it is not even a snack, it's actual food. It definitely satisfies my Hispanic self. This is a tostada, and as I mentioned before, it is a Mexican dish. You can get everything from Wal-mart, and if you live in Texas you can also find everything at H.E.B or any other neighborhood market near your school. The ingredients are:

1.) Tostadas

2.) Beans (refried)

3.) Cheese (any kind you prefer)

4.) Sour cream or "crema"

5.) Chicken (The chicken is optional, my friend's mom was kind enough to make us some to make these bomb tostadas, if you really want chicken but don't have any way to cook it, you can always get the one that is already cooked from wal-mart and just shred it up and add it on the tostadas!)

These are my two top college food/snacks. One is simple and the other one not so much but they are what I enjoy as a college student and it definitely meets my budget standards. With less than $10 you can create these snacks. There so many things you can create while living on campus and being on a budget you just have to explore and know what you like to eat. Get creative! :) 

Xoxo- Merary ♡

To Be or Not to Be......(bored)

It's Friday night, you are in your quiet dorm laying down in your twin sized bed wondering why you have no plans. You have no vehicle to go explore the city and no money because tuition left you broke. What to do, what to do?

Believe it or not, in my couple years of living on campus I have seen students go through this dilemma several times, myself included. It happens. You wonder what you can do on a low budget and no car but realize that without these two things, you're options are extremely limited. 

The number one and most common thing to do on campus to get out of a funk is to of course, GET INVOLVED. Cliche, I know, but it's true and it works. By getting involved not only are you not bored anymore, you also get to meet new people, mingle and have fun. 

The university I attend to always has some sort of activity going on. We are very fortunate that the university enjoys offering various activities that are very diverse and always strive to be inclusive. 

One of my favorite activity (It's more of a week's worth celebration) on campus is HOMECOMING. I've always loved homecoming and all the things that come with it. Around mid February the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley hosts these week long festivities that give students the opportunity to enjoy themselves. There is a parade, there are games, there is free food, there is school spirit. It's great. Going out to check out your school's events is an awesome thing to do on campus, especially if you are there 24/7. 

 One of my favorite memory was the infamous burning of the UTRGV letters. I met new people, enjoyed myself, laughed, conversed and socialized more than I thought I was capable of.

                                                                                                                                                                    These are some of the people I shared the night with. Living on campus gives you access to all these events and more. My advice to any incoming freshmen or maybe students that might still be in there shell is to go out and explore your university. I can guarantee you you will find something that suits you and find where you belong!

Thank you for reading my first post!

-xoxo Merary