Getting Ready for School Countdown-part one

Even though it seems like summer just got started, it's time to start thinking and prepping for the coming school year. Three of our four children will be off to school in just four more weeks. While there is still time to enjoy the summer sun and festivities, we also need to be aware of how we can prepare our kids and our home for the upcoming academic year.

It breaks down as follows:

1. Register for school and intake conferences

2. Establish a healthy morning routine

3. Initiate bed times with going to bed routine

4. Revamp wardrobes

5. Acquire school supplies

6. Prepare freezer meals for breakfast and a few dinners

Registering for school really depends on your school district/school setting. Ours is really simple as it is done completely online. When we first had kids in schools, there was a LOT of redundant paperwork to fill out. The best thing to remember is to have all your information gathered: emergency contacts and their phone numbers and addresses; Doctor's name, phone, and address; Dentist's name, number and address, and Medical and Dental insurance cards. Once registration is complete, the countdown begins.

A healthy morning routine looks different for every person and the next blog post will go over this in a more depth. The main question here is: what do you need to do/accomplish before leaving the house to prepared for what the day may bring you? This changes for kids as they mature. Our little guy, who is still at home, pretty much just needs the following: go to the bathroom, change into clothes, have breakfast, brush teeth. Our teenagers on the

other hand, have more they need to and their routines are different to fit their personalities and preferences.

We choose to let our kids relax on bedtimes during the summer, especially in July. We do have summer sports in June, which sometimes call for earlier mornings and we are pretty strict through the school year. So July ends up being kind of a party month with Fourth of July and County Fair and other community events.

Once we've outlined what the morning routine for each person is, we take one week to time how long each person needs. This is then used to determine what each person's bedtime is. For example, if we need to leave the house at 7:30 and it takes you 45 minutes to get through your morning routine, then I make sure you are up no later than 6:45. If you need 8 hours of sleep, then you need to be asleep by 10:45. If you need more sleep, your bed time will be earlier. Setting up a going to bed routine is similar to their morning routine with the following two questions: what do I need to do to be prepared for tomorrow? What will help my brain and body relax so I can fall asleep easily?

This summer in particular, our oldest son has done a lot of growing. It's hard to believe that my little buddy is now as tall as me at almost 6 feet! The kids each take turns bringing me their entire wardrobe, including under garments and outer wear. We get rid of anything they no longer want and/or what no longer fits. I make a list of what they have and what they need. Once everyone's list is in hand we go shopping.

School supplies shopping is one of my least favorite times. For whatever reason, getting all the kids in the car, to the store with lists in hand, and then having them scatter to pick out what they want, sends my anxiety and blood pressure soaring. To help keep that to a minimum, I've found a few tricks. First, I download a copy of the school supply list and then copy and paste only the grades that I need. Each grade goes into a different column and I increase the font size so it's easier to read. Next, we shop our house. Then we watch for the school supply give out our PTO puts together.

We are very blessed to have an active PTO that puts together a supply give out for all students, regardless of income. Usually, I can find everything I need as they get everything on the lists. If there is something we did not get, then we head to the store for those few items.

Freezer meals can be a life saver when there is so much going here, there, and everywhere. I like to have some on hand for when school starts, for the holiday season and when I help all week at our church's VBS program. Yes, my kids can just get breakfast at school; however, the school breakfasts don't meet my standard of a healthy beginning of the day meal. They are very high in carbs and very low in protein. At the beginning of each month, I print out the school menu, and each of the kids decide which breakfasts and lunches they want to have at school and which they would prefer to have from home.