I just finished my freshman year of college. The days felt long, yet when I look back, the year went so fast. Adjusting to college was tough, especially adjusting to dorm life. I quickly learned how much I took for granted when I was living at home. Here are 10 comforts of home that you probably have or are taking for granted:

1. My Room

I spent my summer months before my freshman year planning my dorm decor. I was so determined to make it feel like home. And yes--it felt homey, but it couldn’t compare to my own room back home.

2. Clean shower

I remember my first shower at school. I was horrified--hair in the drain, walls coated in a slimy (and still mysterious) substance and mold in the corners. I quickly got used to this...and bought myself an even better pair of shower shoes. However, when I come home to my own shower, I ask myself how I was even doing it at school. Now I seriously appreciate not having to wear shoes in the shower.

3. My own bathroom

The bathrooms in my dorm got filthy sometimes. It taught me to appreciate the cleanliness and privacy of my own bathroom at home.

4. Water and Ice

I don’t know if this is just me, but the fountains in my dorm were unfiltered and the water that came out of them literally had things floating in it. I used to buy cases of bottled water and carry them up 5 flights of stairs. Needless to say, this experience really made me appreciate my fridge with filtered water and an ice maker. This leads me to my next point...

5. Normal refrigerator

As a Vegetarian I struggled with finding food I could eat at the dining hall...but I also couldn’t go grocery shopping because I was using a tiny shared mini fridge.

6. Having a car

This might be the biggest thing I had been taking for granted. While at school without a car, I felt pretty much confined to campus 100% of the time. We could take a mile walk in a single file line on a skinny sidewalk into a small town, but that was as far as we could get. Now that I’m home for the summer, I really appreciate being able to take the car more than a mile away.

7. My bed

My bed at school was raised so much for storage underneath that I had to bring a ladder from home in order to get into it. I was always terrified that I would fall off in the middle of the night or that I would drop my phone or laptop off by accident. In addition, the mattress wasn’t actually a mattress. It was just springs wrapped in plastic. Now that I am home, I don’t take my bed for granted.

8. Clean floors

Again I’m not sure if this one was just me, but our rooms were never cleaned properly before we moved in. And if I had to guess, I would say they haven’t had a deep clean in years. I did my best to mop, but there is only so much a Swiffer can do.

9. Home-Cooked meals

I quickly became very tired of the food on campus. There’s only so many times you can eat the same oatmeal for breakfast and the same soggy vegetables for dinner. I started to miss home-cooked meals a lot. And now that I’m home I am not taking them for granted.

10. Fam and friends

When I had bad days at school, all I wanted was to be surrounded by my family and friends again...like I always was at home. Now that I am finally surrounded by them again, I'm not taking them for granted.

This summer, I won’t take any of these comforts of home for granted...because I learned what it's like to live without them.