10 To-Dos Before School Starts

Okay, so the back-to-school commercials were out before the kids here in the Northeast were even OUT of school (and, by the way, Halloween merchandise has been in the stores around here for at least two weeks). But with tomorrow being August 1^st and many institutions of higher learning starting before Labor Day, it may be time to turn a tiny portion of our parental brains toward the first day of school because many things will not wait until that fateful day. 

 

So here are 10 suggestions of things you might want to handle on sooner rather than later:

1. Scheduling the kids yearly physicals and eye exams. If you haven't made an appointment with your pediatrician, you're behind the curve already! According to my doctor's office, phone calls started flooding in back in Spring, so bite the bullet and schedule one for your child today. I usually wait until Fall anyway so I can get the kids their flu shots with their physicals. Eye exams tend to be less pressing, so I never have trouble getting them in to see our beloved optometrist; the problem then becomes fitting the appointment in with the kids' busy schedules.
   
   
   
   
2. Check your school supplies closet/drawer/basket – whatever. I've wasted plenty of money buying supplies I already had (what am I gonna do with 50 Office Depot erasers). Make a list of what you already have so you can bring it when you go back-to-school shopping. 
   
   
   
   
3. Clean out last year's backpacks. In June, my children gleefully throw their backpacks into the closet and don't want to see them for the next two months. Sneak a peak and see if you can salvage any old supplies. I grab any notebooks containing blank paper and I use them for my writing and lists; pencils and pens go into pencil cups around the house; markers are placed in Ziploc bags for arts and crafts projects; and old smocks get washed for use next year. As for old, broken crayons, there are thousands of websites on the Web with ideas for how to re-use them (ThriftyFun is one), but even if you're not crafty, you can send them away to the Crazy Crayons where they'll be recycled and not wind up in landfills.  Oh, and if you need guidance on how to choose a backpack for the upcoming year, read this.
   
   
   
   
4. Inspect old backpacks and lunch sacks. I bought these reusable sandwich/snack bags (see below) at Walmart last year. They're washable and can be used from year to year. Similarly, unless a lunch sack has last year's favorite TV character or band, see if you can sell your kid on the concept of re-using it by updating, perhaps by letting them draw on it or adding a glue-on patch. Honestly, with my kids living in their backpacks throughout the school year, their old backpacks aren't usable from year to year, BUT they do make great library bags, gym bags, and can be hung in their rooms to hold stuffed animals, etc. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
5. Take look at their Fall clothes. In my area, it's HOT the first few weeks of school. No matter what the commercials on TV show, they do not need new sweaters on the first day of the academic year. Sure, I'll buy both kids new sneakers (because they ALWAYS need them) and will buy Diva one new shirt just to make her feel special, but otherwise, they're not getting new outfits unless they really, truly need them.
   
   
   
   
6. Make any before-chool purchases you need to. Sometimes you need to pre-order lunches and supplies. Check your school's website for information.
   
   
   
   
7. Send any musical instruments out for tune-ups (pun intended). My son plays the clarinet and every year we have it sent out for cleaning. That way it's pristine for Band in the Fall. Oh, and if your child will be starting to play an instrument, now is the time to shop around for the best rental price.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
8. Document the Summer while it's fresh in your mind. If you're waaaay behind in your scrapbooking like I am, make a list of what the kids did this summer so you can remember when you finally do get around to ordering your photobooks (or doing it by hand like I do). It's too easy to forget the nuances of the Summer.
   
   
   
   
9. Stock up on anti-lice shampoo and/or conditioner.  Kids come back from camp with those critters and even if your kids haven't gone, there's ALWAYS a lice outbreak every fall. I swear by Fairy Tales conditioner! My daughter has long, lush hair and even when she was exposed to lice by a neighbor's kid who literally had bugs crawling in her hair, Diva never contracted it. Fairy Tales smells like amazing; it contains rosemary, citronella, tea tree, lemongrass, peppermint, sage. School nurses SWEAR by this stuff and so do I!
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
    
10. Stock up on clothes and footwear for next Summer. This stuff is on sale now to make way for Fall and Winter merchandise. If you have a sense of how much your child will grow over the course of the year (the Teen is a crapshoot), now is the time to buy flip flops and bathing suits in a bigger size.
    
    

And, of course, enjoy the rest of the Summer!  Your children will never be younger than they are now. All too soon, they'll be out on their own. Have fun with them while you can and cherish almost all the moments (because, let's face it, not all are rainbows and lollipops) with your kids.

Happy Rest Of Summer! 

Thanks for reading!

How Was Your First Day Of School Without Kids?

 

Last night, the one before the kids went back to school, my husband asked, “Is this like Christmas Eve for you?” He's referring to the fact that I recently wrote about how I am DONE with Summer Vacation (to visit that post on Jersey Moms Blog, click here). I love my children, but I need to get stuff done without hearing, “MOM!” every time I sit down to do something.

No, last night was not like Christmas Eve. As anyone with school-age children knows, there's a lot of prep work to get kids ready for their first day. There are lunches to pack, snacks to prepare, forms which need to be filled out and placed in backpacks, supplies to send, etc. And, of course, Junior, who is starting high school, realized at the 11^th hour that he needed to get his 3-ring binder in order. Then I needed to make sure both kids were showered and had their clothes ready for the early-morning wake-up call.

After all that was done and everyone, including hubby, was asleep, I could not. Like a movie, every time I closed my eyes, I saw my kids, at various ages, flash before my eyes. I watched my son, who every day gets closer to leaving the nest, progress from kindergarten up to 9^th grade. I saw my daughter standing on the blacktop as Junior stood in line for first grade. Then I viewed her progress through pre-school up to 3^rd grade. Like an hourglass, I could feel the sands of time slipping through my fingers.

As I went downstairs to escape the movie playing in my head, I felt guilty. I've done quite a bit of complaining about the kids this Summer. I've played social director, taxi, maid, referee, tour guide, laundress, and many other roles throughout the hot months. I've honestly tried to give them a good vacation, despite their reluctance to go anywhere that would take them away from either a computer or television screen. I reviewed schoolwork with Lily (who has asked that she not be called Diva in any of my blogs anymore) to keep her sharp and encouraged Junior to keep up with his clarinet playing. And I did all that while trying to stay within our budget. Still, since my husband works late and I'm essentially a single mom during the week, I was stretched to my limit. I yelled waaaay too much, explaining to the kids how frustrated I was. As good as I was, I feel I could have been better. Wracked with so many thoughts, sleep did not come for more than 2 hours.

After getting them to school this morning, I thought I would miss them, but was so busy during the day that I barely did. People often wonder what I do during the day with both kids in school. Plenty! My house has many, many projects I could not do with kids underfoot. It, along with my sadly-neglected car, needs a thorough cleaning. Closets need to be organized, toys must be purged, the garage needs organizing, I'm woefully behind with scrapbooking, and there's so much writing to do since I write for four blogs.

Today, after they came home, there was a mountain of paperwork to be signed and initialed. Lily has gymnastics, dinner has to be made, and things made ready for the morning. Of course, Junior just handed me a list of supplies he needs by tomorrow, so I've got to figure out which store I'll visit tonight that won't have me waiting on line at the register for more than an hour.

 

Last night lacked the anticipation of Christmas Eve. But it did hold religious meaning. I am eternally grateful to The Almighty for giving me these children, these miraculous human beings who make my life so rich and drive me crazy in the process. They make me happy in ways I never could have imagined. Now, their growing gives me time to get things done I could not while they were here.

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Thanks for reading!   

Why I WON'T Buy Back-To-School Clothes

Cry on, Kid.  Not happening.

In case you hadn't noticed, the ads for back-to-school clothing are in full swing on TV. Some of them are pretty aggressive, telling kids the “must-haves” they need to look good come September.  The commercials insinuate that the success of your whole school year is determined by what you are or are not wearing.  My daughter is taking more copious notes than she'll ever take any semester and even the Teen is occasionally looking up from his iPad to catch a glimpse of the latest fashions.

They can look all they want. Diva can plead with and eventually scream at me to take her shopping until she turns blue. I do not buy back-to-school clothes. Here's why:

1. My kids have plenty of nice tops and shorts to wear. They don't need any new clothes. At least yet. 
   
   
2. Their clothes have not been placed neatly in their drawers as I've asked them numerous times to do. Garments are strewn all over the kids' rooms, hanging from drawers, littering the floor. Since my children are not taking care of the clothes they have, they do not deserve new ones. 
   
   
3. The weather is my part of the country is presently cool; too cold, in fact, to go to the pool this past week. It will stay cool through the next few weeks and go back up into the high 90s just AFTER Labor Day. That means any of the woolen/corduroy/heavy-cotton garments currently being sold will be too warm for the kids to wear, probably for many weeks.
   
   
4. They are both due for growth spurts sometime between September 1^st and October 15^th. I'm not kidding. It happens every year and is most prominent in The Boy. The sweatpants that fit him perfectly in early September look like knickers by mid-October. And the shorts that looked great on Diva that first day of school will be inappropriately short a mere few weeks later.
   
   
5. She especially will be influenced by peer pressure and change her mind about what she wants after she sees what her richer friends are wearing. So even if I bought clothes now, she'd want different ones after the first week of teaching ends.

Now don't get me wrong: I'm not depriving my kids of new clothes. But there's a massive difference between WANTING a new wardrobe versus NEEDING one. Do I want them to be social pariahs? No. But as I said, they have nice clothes, fashionable clothes, ones they chose in the Spring after their last growth spurts. I'm not asking my daughter to wear saddle shoes and poodle skirts or my son to wear cardigans. My brood will get new attire when the time is right and I decide, not a bunch of marketing executives circling my kids like sharks pressuring them to pressure ME to buy the latest merchandise. “Must-haves?” I know what my kids must have and when. Not advertisers. 

May you, dear reader,  always be able to resist the temptation of marketers...

Thanks for reading! 

How To Choose The Right Backpack For Back-To-School

I just cleaned out my teen's backpack, or rather, what remained of his backpack because it looked like it had gone through a war zone. In some ways, it had. He'd lugged it on and off buses, through his large school, to friends' houses, etc. Like my purse or the car, it was an item he basically lived in throughout the 9 months of this past academic year. And even though it's only July, NOW is the time to start looking for a replacement, while the stores are full of them and choices are abundant. So what should one look for when buying a new backpack? Here are some guidelines and tips:

1. If your kid will be using a locker during the upcoming year, try to get a handle on how big and wide the locker will be. When my son started middle school, the backpack that had wheels on it that I'd bought at Walmart was too big to fit into his locker. He was mortified on that first day when he had to ask a teacher to store the backpack under her desk for the day. Now we only buy backpacks without wheels because they'll compress into lockers easily and are usually lighter.
   
   
2. Think about what the student will carry because this will effect how many compartments are needed. Will he/she be carrying a laptop, lunch box, etc.? How many binders are they likely to bring home? Backpacks with large, exterior pockets allow for easier access in crowded hallways and in the classroom. Multiple compartments also distribute the weight better. 
   
   
3. Choose a model made out of synthetic fabric which will last longer and be lighter than those made of leather. It should also have wide, padded, adjustable shoulder straps and a padded back. 
   
   
4. The choice of a backpack is a very individual decision. If at all possible, have the child try a few on. Again, they're going to be LIVING in their backpack during the year and need to be comfortable. Consider the wearer's height and weight; when filled a backpack should never weigh more than 15% of a child's weight. Also, models which are wider than your child's torso are not recommended. For safety reasons, they should rest against the curve of your child's back, but not be more than 4 inches above or below their waist. Thumb loops, a waist belt and sternum strap help prevent excessive shoulder pain. A backpack's shoulder-strap anchor points should rest 1 to 2 inches below the top of the shoulders. 
   
   
5. Check the quality of the models you're looking at. Sloppy stitching, loose threads, exposed fabric edges all indicate poor manufacturing. According to Consumer Reports, look for zippers that are protected by flaps because if they're not, water is likely to seep in. Double-headed zippers mean the zippers can be locked for security, which is especially important in the upper grades. Reflectors or reflective fabric add safety when the child is walking to/from school or the bus at dawn or dusk.

   

   How cute is this!

   
   

Review with your child how to carry and pack their backpack:

• Pack light and don't bring home unnecessary items. Organize the pack so that all compartments are used and the weight is distributed as evenly as possible. Pack heavier items closest to the center of the backpack. Place bigger books at the back and smaller ones in the front to make the backpack feel lighter. 
  
  
• Always use BOTH shoulder straps because slinging a pack over one shoulder strains muscles. 
  
  
• Tighten shoulder straps to fit closely to the body.

Oh, and consider popping a few Ziploc bags in your kid's backpack. They're great for protecting electronics in case of oopsies involving forgetfully open zippers, the inevitable rips, etc.

Remember: a backpack is crucial to your child's comfort and organization the upcoming year. Shop now, while you have time the inventory is plentiful. September is right around the corner!

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Sources used for this post included: http://www.wcch.org/sites/www_wcch_org/Uploads/files/Downloads/Backpack-Guide.pdf; http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2010/07/how-to-choose-a-backpack-for-back-to-school/index.htm; and http://www.wikihow.com/Choose-a-Backpack-for-School.

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Thanks for reading!