Note: Fresh Cravings Salsa sponsored this post all about creating an after-school routine in college. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands who support The Happy Arkansan.

I am all about creating routines. In college, though, routines can be harder to establish as you taste your first bit of true freedom. Today I am partnering with Fresh Cravings Salsa so you can create an after-school routine you love.

If you want a great deal on the most fantastic salsa you will ever eat, check out the Ibotta deal for $1 off any 16 oz. tub of Fresh Cravings Salsa at Walmart.

The Importance Of Creating An After-School Routine In College

Now, you may be thinking to yourself, why do I even need an after-school routine in college? I am not here to baby you or make you feel like you have to have a routine, but I will tell you a few of the benefits.

Routines Create Structure

Your whole life is turned upside down in college, adding a routine will help you feel like you have better control over your life during this transitionary period.

Routines Save Time

You won't have to ask yourself “What do I do now?” because you'll already know what your afternoon/evening consists of. Knowing what to do next saves you a lot of time, especially if you are indecisive.

Routines Reduce Stress

Since you know what you have to do, there is no need to stress over it. A routine can be flexible, but it's flexible within a certain limit. Limitations may not be great for everyone, but most people do better with some restrictions on what they can do.

What Is A Typical After-School Routine For College Students

Now that we've talked about the importance of creating an after-school routine let's chat about what a typical after-school routine might look like for college students.

1. Take Some Time To Decompress After Class

I am not a fan of getting to work as soon as you get back to your room. You've likely just spent hours learning in the classroom, so it's important to give yourself a break. After class, give yourself at least 30 minutes of uninterrupted me-time. Here are some things you can do during this time:

• Take a power nap
• Read a book
• Listen to music
• Watch an episode tv
• Call your friends/family back home
• Journal
• Take a shower
• Put on a face mask
• Read your favorite blogs
• Play a game on your computer/phone

Whatever you do to decompress is up to you, but self-care is essential in college, and we don't chat about it enough. It's never too early to spend some time each day doing something that makes you happy. You don't have to focus on class 24/7!

2. Have A Snack On Hand

When I got back home from classes, I was usually starving. Unless you have a late class, it likely won't be time for dinner when you get home from school. If you get done early, it's essential to have a few snacks on hand in your dorm room at all times.

I have personally been loving Fresh Cravings Salsa. It's so yummy, and it's made of ingredients you know and love like tomato, onion, jalapeno chili pepper, and more. Most of these ingredients are things you find in your kitchen, with a few things added to maintain freshness and thicken your salsa. When a salsa's first listed ingredient is tomato, though, you know you have the right salsa!

Fresh Cravings is all about giving you options, y'all! The salsa comes in:

• Restaurant Style: Fresh Cravings Restaurant Style salsa comes in Mild, Medium, and Hot Crave. Everything is well blended, but you can still taste all the fresh ingredients.
• Chunky: Fresh Cravings Chunky salsa comes in Mild and Medium Crave. You get more of those chunky bits of tomato and pepper; it's far less blended than the Restaurant Style salsa.

You can also get Fresh Cravings Pico De Gallo and salsa in bigger tubs.

Where To Buy Fresh Cravings Salsa

I found my tubs of Fresh Cravings Salsa in the produce section of my local Walmart. Many Walmart's nationwide have Fresh Cravings Salsa in stock. Fresh Cravings is also expanding into other stores (for example they were just picked up at all Dierbergs locations.) If you'd like to see what stores near you have to offer, check out the Fresh Cravings Where To Buy page for more information.

Fresh Cravings Salsa Ibotta Deal

Deal alert! You all know I am the queen of loving a good deal. You can save a lot of money on Fresh Cravings salsa right now by checking out the Ibotta deal they currently have up and running.

Until September 22nd, you can take advantage of an Ibotta offer to get $1 off any Fresh Cravings salsa 16 oz tub at Walmart. This is such a good deal because you can redeem this offer multiple times on one receipt (which is helpful if you want to stock up) and you can save nearly a 1/3rd off of each tub since they retail for $2.98 per container.

You won't regret checking out the Ibotta offer and buying this delicious salsa in store. Trust me! Everyone in my family loves this salsa, and I know that you will too.

3. Do Your Homework As Soon As Possible

One of the things you should do after you spend some time on yourself is to do your homework as soon as possible. If you finish up your work ASAP, you'll have less to do later on. Yes, that means you'll need to get back into school mode, but you'll love yourself for finishing it now before you hang out with your friends later.

4. Tidy Up Your Room

You should also make a habit of tidying up your room after school every day. You don't need to spend a ton of time picking up. Take about ten minutes each day in the afternoon/evening to clean your room and put things back where they belong. If you spend 10-20 minutes every day cleaning up your space, you'll save yourself so much time and energy in the long run. Why? Because cleaning for an hour is not any fun, so you'll keep rolling it back until you need to clean for two hours or three hours.

5. Hang Out With Friends/Roommates

One of my favorite things to do in college was taking time to hang out with my friends after school. If you have the time daily, make time to foster great relationships. You won't remember all the facts you learned in college, but you will remember the fun nights you had with friends and roommates. You do this after you have done your homework, though, that way you can hang out guilt-free.

Get Some Dinner

A great way to hang out with your friends is to get dinner! You can either make something in your dorm kitchen or eat at the campus cafeteria. If you decide to make something, I highly encourage you to check out the Fresh Cravings recipe page. It's filled with all sorts of wonderful dishes you can make with your Fresh Cravings salsa. I am dying to try the Taco Lettuce Cups and the Fresh Cravings Salsa Con Queso Dip.

10 Other Ways To Hang Out With Friends/Roommates

1. Go to a college game.
2. Head to the movies to see a new release.
3. Get your shopping on at the mall.
4. Play board/card games.
5. Have a sleepover in one of your dorm rooms.
6. Go to a local museum.
7. Check out some shoes and go bowling.
8. Use your camera and have a photo shoot.
9. Study together in the library.
10. Pump up the jams at a concert (big or small!)

6. Make It To Bed At A Decent Hour

Last, but not least, make it your mission to get into bed at a decent hour. I know you may want to stay up late as a new college student. I mean, your free, no one can tell you when to go to bed! You realize quickly, though, that you need rest to survive in college. So, don't make a habit of all-nighters and being coffee dependent. Try the method where you get proper rest first!

As a freshman or sophomore, you really shouldn't need to pull late nights studying. You may be taking a pretty difficult class, but hopefully, you aren't taking classes that make you pull all-nighters.

If you find yourself falling behind so much that you need to pull all-nighters, consider reaching out to your professors and tutoring center for help.

Extra Tips On Creating An After-School Routine In College

To wrap up this blog, let's chat about a few more extra tips for creating an after-school routine in college. Creating an after-school routine during your college years is often more difficult than creating one in grade school, so I want to make sure you have all the tips you need to succeed.

Create A Few Different Routines

When you think of the word routine, you often think of something that stays the same and never changes. That's not possible in college, because each day is different. You are better off creating a few different routines that you can cycle through.

You may create one routine for Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and then another one for Tuesdays and Thursdays to denote how college class schedules usually behave. If you have after-school activities you need to attend like sorority meetings or student council, you will also have to factor those into your after-school routine. For example, my routine often changed a ton on Tuesdays when I was in college because I had to get ready for sorority chapter meeting.

Don't Beat Yourself Up If You Can't Stick To Any Routines Some Days

College is so strange. You may think you finally have a routine down, and then BAM, it completely mixes up on you because of things like midterms or a big presentation that's due. You may not be able to stick to your routine every day, and you shouldn't beat yourself up over it. As long as you are trying to tackle a few of the standard routine practices every day, you are doing great sweetie!

Write Your Routine Down & Keep It In Sight

Some people stick to things more when they are constantly reminded of what they need to do. You may stick to your routine more if you write it down so you can see it all the time. Write it down and put it on your desk or near your bed, so you know exactly what each day after school is supposed to look like.

Learn To Focus When You Are Doing Routine Tasks

One of the most important things you need to learn in college is focus. You have to be focused on each task; otherwise, the routine won't help you. For example, if you spend 30 minutes to yourself every day, but you don't focus on that time in the moment, it won't feel like you had that thirty minutes at all.

Every routine task you do should be focused on, that way you can take advantage of the time you spend with friends, the time you spend doing homework, etc.

Focus will also help you finish routine tasks faster. No one likes cleaning up their room, and it's even worse when you lengthen the time spent cleaning by getting distracted. So work as hard as you can on focusing while you are handling all parts of your routine.

Conclusion

Yay! We did it! We talked all about after-school routines and how can help you as a college student. I hope that this post was helpful to you as you create your best after-school routine. Being in college is hard enough as is, don't make it more difficult by having a loose schedule. Tighten up your schedule during the week, so you feel more accomplished. Take time for self-care, and do what you need to do to survive and thrive each day.

While you are surviving and thriving in college, don't forget to pick up my new favorite salsa from Fresh Cravings. You can even save $1 off your purchase by using the Ibotta deal which makes these tubs of salsa too good to pass up. These will store easily in any mini-fridge and create the perfect snack with the tortilla chips of your choosing.

What does your after-school routine look like?