Back To School, Back To School...

...to prove to mom I'm not a fool! 

Say "bye-bye" to summer! Fall is just around the corner. Can you believe it?! However, the transition from summer to fall can be quite challenging for the kiddos headed to school. We thought it would be helpful to put together a little list of tips and tricks to make the ease into a school schedule a little, LITTLE easier :) 

1) A couple weeks before school starts, try and get the kids on a school-sleep schedule. This means earlier to bed, earlier to rise! Hopefully, by the time those dark 6:30 mornings roll around, they will be prepped and ready enough and won't fall asleep face-first in their cereal. 

2) Meal routine! Make sure the kids (especially the little ones) are generally accustomed to eating throughout the day. I always remember being STARVING when I came home from school because I wasn't used to eating a snack in the middle of the day. SO, we suggest establishing a snack-schedule so when snack time rolls around, they are ready to devour those Goldfish and string cheese (and carrots of course). 

3) Activities calendar! This is crucial for a family with multiple children. Make sure all of their after-school activities and meetings are schedules and written down in a planner/family calendar. This leads to not only organization and timelines but an easier transition for chauffeur..I mean, Mommy!

4) Back to school supply shopping! Still to this day, one of my favorite places in the world is Office Depot. Pathetic? Well, it is probably because my mom and I used to make a day out of getting me organized for school. In a way, it got me excited to go back! Even just thinking about showing off my new sparkle pencils and obnoxiously large pink binder was enough to get me through at least the first week of school relatively painlessly. Make it fun! Print out the list of grade-appropriate supplies required by their teachers and let the kids go crazy! Hey, you can even let them get the JUMBO pack of highlighters, because everyone knows you need 23 shades of neon markers!

And always remember to make the transition from summer to school FUN! If you have a new Middle Schooler, take them to explore the school when they get their classes, help decorate their locker etc. If you have a new Kinder, decorate their backpack together or pick out an AWESOME first day of school outfit. You want your child to look forward to the school year, so get creative and prepare ahead of time :) Good luck!!!