The Happy and Healthy Series: Eating Healthy on a Budget

It’s hard to get into healthy habits especially in college but it doesn’t have to be! From motivation to making it budget friendly. Here at Sisterhood Redefined, we want to help! Each month you’ll get a post about how to be healthy in a college environment from eating to working out to managing negative stress.

This month is all about eating healthy on a college budget!

The first thing I notice myself spending money on while I’m on campus is snacks. Snacks that are really not good for me. You also lose a lot of money buying a coke and a bag of chips out of a vending machine. Carry a water bottle with you onto campus so you can refill it in free water fountains when you are thirsty. I usually drink a cup of coffee on my way to campus so I put it in a tumbler with a straw that way I can refill that with water! The next thing is avoiding vending machine snacks. Eating before you come on to campus is the easiest way to not spend a dollar on a bag of chips. Second bring snacks from home if you will need something else to eat! Carrot sticks or Honey Nut Cheerios are easy snacks that will be ok if you have them in your bag all morning. If you have to buy food from on campus, grab a side salad or a side of veggies at one of the on campus restaurants –this way you are eating more filling and all around better for you things and are only spending a dollar or two more.  

The next thing to work on is your grocery lists! Note that I said list. The biggest cause of overspending is not following a list and just picking up what you decide that you want at the time. Preplan your meals at the beginning of the week and look through your pantry to see what you already have. Sandwiches (while unexciting) are easy, healthy and customizable depending on what you have in your pantry. Eggs are another healthy and quick meal.

As far as meal ideas go, check out our Pinterest board, recipes! We have tons of ideas for what is doable in a college apartment and on a college budget for one people or for a party!

If you have any requests for what to see in this series, email sisterhoodredefined@gmail.com! I hope you have a happy and healthy month!  


Author's Note: This article was written by Sonia. She just forgot to upload it from her own account! 

5 Cheap Dates for the College Couple

Well, Valentine's Day is this weekend so naturally we are all checking out our bank accounts to decide whether or not we can go out for the night. Let me just tell you that actually going out to dinner on V Day is quite expensive and almost not worth the stress. Here are 5 alternatives to a $100 dinner with bae.

1. Make Dinner! Look up a recipe or call home for a suggestion from mom. You can go all out and make a steak or keep it simple and make a pasta from what you already have in your kitchen!

2. Build a Bonfire! Cuddle up after wandering around together picking up firewood!

3. Have a movie marathon! Pick a series of movies that you both want to watch and settle in for the night with popcorn!

4. Go on a long winding drive! Take turns picking left or right and drive until you are completely lost!

5. Learn how to give a great massage! Take turns giving each other massages.

These are small and would work for any night not just Valentine's Day and some can even be done with a group!

Have a love filled week and share Valentine's Day photos with us on Instagram (@sisterhoodredefined)!

4 Apps Every College Girl Needs

The one thing we keep on us at all times is our smart phone. We try to live without it but let's be real it's attached to our hand pretty much 80% of the time. We may as well make good use of the 15 GB in our lives.

1. Pocket Expense - This is an app that I use to track my finances. It's amazing to use for budget management, tracking your bills and keeping your accounts organized. I love it because it allows me to see where my money is being spent and where I'm going over budget. It enables me to adjust monthly and see a month in a review that shows me when I am spending more money than I have. 

2. Adobe Reader - I don't know about you but almost all of my professors send me articles, assignments and syllabuses in pdf format. When I use the Adobe Reader app, I can access all of these pdfs whenever I want. My favorite feature is being able to sort and save all of my pdfs. 

3. Quizlet - Flashcards are the easiest way to study on the go, but who wants to put up with all of the paper, I know I sure don't. Using the Quizlet app, you have access to all of the online flashcards from the Quizlet site as well as the ability to make you own! 

4. Your Chapter's Website Made into an App - So this isn't an app that you can find in the app store but it's certainly one you'll use daily. Both Apple and Android give you the ability to bookmark frequently used websites into apps on your home screen. Auto save your login information and have all of your chapter information at the click of a button! 

What apps do you use daily? 

A Few Things to Remember in 2015

Each new year, we set resolutions to make ourselves better. Each new year, we strive to be healthy or to study more. Each new year, we often forget a few things that stress us out in our resolutions. Here are 6 things to remember with your New Year's resolutions.

1. A cupcake won't break your diet goals. Nor will that slice of pizza you are craving nor the candy bar that you throw into your basket at the grocery store. Eat that cupcake! Treat yo self!

2. One bad grade doesn't make you a bad student. Make up for it next time by studying extra hard for your next test and make sure to get all of your other assignments in on time!

3. Looking perfect everyday is impossible and striving for that isn't worth it. Instead shoot for being pulled together when you need to be pulled together and as long as sweatpants only make their appearance every once in a while you're okay.

4. You will go over budget. It's fine. Cut back and adapt accordingly when you do. Try to avoid going over by limiting how often you eat out and if you won't ever wear something you bought out with friends, return it!

5. Sometimes it's hard to spend more time with family when you are away at school. Try scheduling 2 weekly phone dates with your family.

6. Being less stressed is a ridiculous mission that you will fail at! Volunteer or find other ways to relax that you can incorporate into your schedule. Goals like this are way easier to make happen!

Accept that everyone makes mistakes and that it's not that serious if you don't maintain all of your resolutions!

Leave a comment with your thoughts! 

A Gift Giving Guide for a Large Group

One of the challenges of being so close to so many people in your sorority is that once holiday season hits, you feel obligated to shower everyone with love and presents. Here are my top 3 large group and inexpensive gifts for your favorite sisters!
Travel Coffee Mugs – this is actually what I am doing for all of my friends this season. I found a cup I liked online and ordered 50 (my little sister is passing them out to her friends as well) and each cup rang up under $3. I stuffed mine with hot chocolate and instant coffee travel packs but you could fill it with candy or baked goods as well! It’s an easy gift for under $5 each.

DIY Ornaments – hit up your favorite craft store’s holiday isle and you can pick up a dozen clear glass ornaments for around $4. Then just decorate with glitter, fill with pearls or bedazzle these ornaments for an easy gift. If you want to personalize it even more, pull out your trusty paint pen and add a first initial, monogram or even sorority letters to each ornament.

Finals Week Survival Kits – This is what I got from my little last year and I absolutely adored mine! Pick up a few bags and fill each one with anything from highlighters and a spare pencil to a candle or travel size lotion. Add some candy and some peppermints to help fill in space. You can also add in hot chocolate mix or instant coffee here too! 

I hope you have a great holiday season and be sure to let us know what mass gifts you do for your friends and sisters! Happy Gifting!

How To Budget For Your New Sorority

When it comes to Greek life one of the biggest things that comes up is affording Greek life. I am not going to lie, it can get a bit expensive, but it's all about being conscious of how much money you have to spend and keeping to a strict budget. Here are some tips on keeping your budget together and how to budget for your new sorority.

1. Always budget a little more than you think you'll need: The sticker price of your new sorority might not be the only charges you face. You might want to go to a semi-formal or a pageant; you might want that extra shirt you never thought you'd want. Also some fees just pop up that you never thought you would have to handle. Make sure you are always prepared for more.

2. Learn to say no: If you can't afford an event and you don't have to go don't be afraid to say no. If you can't afford that shirt that isn't mandatory you don't have to sign up for it. Being in a sorority shouldn't break the bank so if you don't have to sign up for something and you don't want to sign up for it, don't.

3. Check for national and local resources: A lot of sororities offer a ton of resources for members in the form of great scholarships for dues. Also a lot of local sorority councils might offer a scholarship to the new member of the year or other people so that they can pay their dues. With paying your dues every little bit counts so if you can find a great scholarship it might make affording sorority life easier. Some sororities also have special consideration opportunities for those in the chapter who can't afford the whole of their dues.

4. Adjust your lifestyle: If you eat out a lot, cut back on going out. Eating in saves a lot of money and don't forget to use your meal plan if you have one. Instead of eating off campus every night, be sure to actually use the meal plan that you have. This also goes back to learning to say no, if your sisters want to eat off campus and you can't afford it, it's okay to say I'd rather stay on campus today.

5. Remember that sororities cost: When you join a sorority you are committing to every part of that sorority, even the boring parts like paying dues. Paying your dues in full and on time is important to the existence of your sorority. Sororities are expensive to run; especially when you are dealing with a sorority with a national organization. When your sorority has a national organization you have those bills and then you also have a ton of local dues that go to things like t-shirts, important events thrown by your chapter, and keeping your chapter afloat. There are many ways to make a sorority more afforadable, but in the end you also have to realize this is what you signed up for when you signed your bid card.

I hope this was helpful for you. If you have any other ideas on budgeting for new sorority women please leave them in the comments below!