Back-to-School Tips & Tricks

Bittersweet Back-to-School

Back-to-School is a bittersweet time for me.

I’m going to miss seeing all these faces around the house!!!

I will miss the sleeping in, the carefree days, the late nights and leisurely lunches.  We need to adjust to early mornings, adhering to a schedule, prepping & packing lunches spending time on homework.  And yet…I welcome the fresh start to a new school year and getting into routine.

Here is how we hope to make the transition a smooth one.

Make a Plan

Even before school starts have a family calendar set up for everyone to view and use.  It can help everyone keep track of school start times, bell schedules, activities, appointments, practices and special days. My kids keep asking ‘how many sleeps until school’ and I just send them to the calendar.  This year I have 5 kids at 4 different schools so I am going to need to be diligent to keep on track with all that’s going on…wish me luck.

The Wake Up Call

Preparing for those early mornings means we need to adjust bedtimes.  So in the next week we will be waking up a little earlier and heading off to bed a little earlier as well.  That way we will be ready when the alarm goes off at 6:30 am on the first day of school.

Avoid the Morning Rush

Mornings often feel a little hectic getting 7 of us up, fed, dressed and out the door with everything we need for the day.  To make things a little less hectic in the mornings we spend a little time in the evenings to ensure all our ducks are in a row.  The kids prepare their lunches, load their backpacks with whatever they need and set out their outfits the night before.  It makes for a smoother morning.

Loaded Lunches

Making lunches is the most dreaded task for many as the back-to-school season approaches.  I’m not a huge fan either so that is why I have my kids prepare their own lunches (with a little adult supervision and approval).  To make this as painless as possible we go on a shopping trip before hand where the kids can select different things they would like in their lunch.  Don’t get me wrong, I don’t buy them all the processed stuff.  Rather I let them make some choices on the food we stock our fridge and pantry with so they don’t come home with half-eaten lunches saying they didn’t like it.  The kids can select fruits and veggies they’d like in their lunch, they can select the bread, meat and whole grain bread they’d like to use to make their sandwiches, they can chose the granola they want to sprinkle on their @vitalafoods yogurt…you get the idea.

Prepare and Enjoy

We have done all of our shopping, our school supplies are labelled, our backpacks are packed, our wardrobes are refreshed, our hair is cut and now we can relax. It’s a great idea to do what you can to prepare everything before hand so you can enjoy these last few days of summer.  I know I will!!!