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Wednesday, August 3, 2016

Big Breath...It's Almost Time to Go Back to School

I know lots of moms celebrate the day their kids go back to school.  But I have to be honest, I don't.  Now that's not because I love and adore every moment I spend with them and I'm a super fabulous mom.  That's because my kids go to fun camps all summer - they are happy, I am happy, and life is less stressful.  But going back to school means getting up early, stressful mornings, hectic schedules, and the holidays are coming.  I almost break into a sweat thinking about it.  And I for the record, have historically loved fall!  I love that it's gets cool outside.  I love the holidays.  I love birthdays (every significant date in our family occurs in fall and early winter).  I love football season.  But with kids, all of these exciting things come with mom-to-do lists.  Ughhh.

So I had to assess my anxiety and figure out how to conquer back-to-school without panic attacks.  If you too are panicked about sending the kids back-to-school, here are my tips to fall into school and fall with ease and maybe even excitement!

1.  Shop for everything online!  School supplies, backpacks, lunch boxes, and clothes can all be purchased in a matter of minutes online.  Just spend an hour during your favorite guilty pleasure TV show shopping and you have all of that taken care of.  Even if your kids are old enough to pick out their own clothes, they can still pick out what they want online and then you edit and order their shopping cart.

2.  Get kids signed up for fall activities now.  Some kids know what they love and stick to it every year, so this is easy.  But my kids are young and still trying out new things, so this can be a little stressful.  There's research, signing up, figuring out the schedule, buying the gear, etc.  So get it done now and then that's one less thing to worry about when the school year gets hectic.

3.  Make a list of your typical Fall to-dos and just add them to your calendar now.  Then you know you have set aside time for your to-dos and you don't have to keep these to-dos stored in your head.  To get you started, here was my list of fall to-dos:

  • Order Halloween costumes
  • Plan Halloween and Christmas outings
  • Buy tickets for holiday events
  • Finish photo albums/gifts for Christmas presents
  • Make and order Christmas card
  • Book birthday party locations
  • Order birthday party invites
  • Buy birthday present for day
  • Buy anniversary gift for my husband
  • Buy birthday gifts for son
  • Order Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner (thank you Whole Foods)
  • Update holiday pictures at Piece of Cake Parties
  • Christmas shopping
4.  If you have spare time now, start doing your fall to-do list now before life gets hectic!  For example, I make photo albums of our kids art work and lives each year to give for holiday gifts.  They are definitely a labor of love.  I love having them, but they are time-consuming.  So getting those done this summer, is a big stress relief for fall.

5.  Put all of the back-to-school events on your calendar now, so you aren't caught off guard.  You know the year always starts out with a bang - Meet the Teacher night, Curriculum night, Back to School bashes, etc.  And if you are lucky like us, you get to do all of these at multiple schools.

6.  Start sending the kids to bed early now.  Let's face it, you could use the extra time at night to take care of your to-dos.  And if the kids get used to going to bed earlier and waking up earlier now, the first week of school will be a little less painful.

7.  If you have kids with anxiety, start talking to them about what to expect in the new school year.  My daughter will be going into first grade, which she's excited about.  But first grade will come with homework and real school work.  So I can help her be less stressed, less emotional, and less anxious by talking about how first grade will be different now.  That will make the whole family happier in September!

Hopefully, this list helps you and makes you fall into fall with excitement!