BUYING SCHOOL CLOTHES AND SUPPLIES
paper, folders, pens, pencils, markers, crayons, etc.
shop ahead of time for sales throughout the year
buy extras of "essentials" and put them away for later
buy off-brands whenever possible to cut costs
simplify your child's wardrobe to "mix-and-match"
take an inventory before heading out to the stores
shop with a list to avoid buying things you don't need
YAY! I GET TO GO TO TARGET! I should buy as much as I can, it says so right here
CREATING A LAUNCHING PAD
set up a spot near the door for items that need to go to school
backpacks, school books, sports equipment, instruments, etc.
spend 15 minutes each night gathering supplies for tomorrow
use a cubby for each kid if you have several children, no more hunting for missing books and supplies in the morning
I'm such a good mother, this is already done since the things are all on the floor right inside the back door where they left them.
GETTING YOUR SCHEDULE IN ORDER
set up a central family calendar in a high-traffic area
family meeting once a week to discuss each person's schedule
record each person's appointments in a different color marker
make each child responsible for reporting his / her activities
schedule in regular appointments (soccer practice, piano lessons)
Busy Girl is just bossy enough to take care of this at all times in order to make sure we, her aging parents, don't forget these things
SETTING UP A HOMEWORK CENTER
set aside a large work area where your child can spread out
make sure there is adequate lighting and a comfortable seat
locate your center away from noise and distractions
set up a box for supplies and stacking trays for extra paper
set a timer to help your child stay on track
include a dictionary, thesaurus, and other convenient reference
dry erase or bulletin board for notes, reminders, and planning
Still looking for the place free of noise and distractions, perhaps we need to sedate busy Baby each evening?
CLEARING OUT THE CLUTTER
go through closets and give away clothes / shoes that don't fit
help your kids let go of old toys and outdated interests
clean out old school supplies to make room for the new
spend one day before school starts organizing your child's storage
do it "with" your kids, and not "for" them
have each child's room spotless by the night before school starts
This is easy, everything fits just "fine" and they are "still playing" with that.
GETTING READY AHEAD OF TIME
make lunches the night before to save time in the morning
do "non-perishables" (juice box, chips, fruit) a week at a time
put in pantry in lunch bags labeled with child's name and day
lay out your child's clothes for the entire week on Sat. or Sun.
collect school supplies for next day before going to bed
plan out and shop for a week's worth of dinners at once
There's always putting out a week's worth of lunch money on the counter, too. Would it be so wrong to have them sleep in their clothes for the next day?
MORNING RITUALS
set an alarm clock allowing plenty of time to get ready
complete your AM routine before the kids start to get going
simplify your morning routine as much as possible
complete as many "getting ready" chores the night before as can
have a set schedule (shower, dress, breakfast, chores, etc.)
make mornings fun with music, but stay away from TV distractions
create a sense of structure to start off the day
put breakfast supplies within kids' reach to make things easier
develop consequences for not being ready on time
Must. Kill. He. Who. Tries. To. Make. Mornings. "Fun".
BEDTIME RITUALS
have a set schedule (homework, dinner, play, bath, etc.)
spend 15 minutes before bed straightening up
gather all supplies for the next day before bed
create "calming" rituals (bath, reading, soft music) before bed
help kids get up in time by insisting on a strict bedtime
stay away from TV late at night
Great idea, if I spend those 15 minutes straightening up, I might finally be able to stand upright after doing all those other things.
« I'm done now!
Thanks, I needed a laugh today. Funny our launch pad is the back door where everything got dropped too.
HAHAH! Mornings should NOT be fun, and LilZ is just like Busy Girl - HE's the one who makes sure WE dont forget anything.
And we have that SAME spot of clutter by our door as well!
LOL! Lay out a week's worth of clothes at once? Where exactly was the author putting this stuff, and does he/she live in an area where the weather is the same every single day???
(Oh, I see, he/she is putting the week's worth of clothes together with the week's worth of lunches... in their basement vault, perhaps....)
Whomever wrote this must not have kids, I don't think all of this is possible. Some yes, but some,.,,,,ummmm I think NOT! When did he put in time to take care of everything else in our lives? Mine is chock full of a whole bunch of other stuff too!
The clutter stays in our car!! That's where the fun happens!!
Oh. My. God. I couldn't even get through half of that. Who thinks this shit up? The Anal-Retentive Housewife? Different color markers, for chrissake - what if you mix up the colors and little Janey ends up at wrestling practice?
wow. with all the requirements, sounds like the launch pad will encompass the whole BusyHouse.
Give 'em lunchables, a backpack and pencils. Beat the morning children into submission (my mom was a morning person... DAMN! was that annoying)
And by launching pad, do they mean a catapult to shoot the kids into the waiting doors of the yellow limousine?
Bedtime rituals... if the kids don't go to sleep, dose 'em with benadryl.
Spend those extra 15 minutes snogging with BusyHubby, instead.
Yeah, I'm a great and doting uncle, but I'd be a piss-poor parent :)
Scrolling back to "GETTING READY AHEAD OF TIME." Store a weeks worth of non perishable lunch items per child in the pantry? What planet are these people living on?
I was one of five kids raised in an atmosphere of benign parental neglect. We survived without this anal retentive attention to detail even when a sibling was dying.
What a load of crap!
Raise your child to know that he's loved, but that he's not the center of the universe. He'll be better for it.
Thanks for the laugh. You would need a 5000 sq ft house for the patry to stroe the weeks worth of lunches and the launch pad. Insane. As soon as you get them to school in the morning youd have to start the "night" routine for the next day. Forget that my son has no problem eating a donut in the car on the way to school because we were out of milk and cereal and he has no problem with the 7-11 lunches we some times grab on the way. Hee hee.
It creates great stories for later in life.
paper, folders, pens, pencils, markers, crayons, etc (check)
buy off-brands whenever possible to cut costs (check)
simplify your child's wardrobe to "mix-and-match" (check)
Launching Pad, still to be determined. (check)
set aside a large work area where your child can spread out (check)
make sure there is adequate lighting and a comfortable seat (check)
locate your center away from noise and distractions (check)
set up a box for supplies and stacking trays for extra paper (check)
dry erase or bulletin board for notes, reminders, and planning (check)
The others I’m still working on, but then I'm home schooling, so we can flex a little here and there.
Lay out clothes for a week? LMAO Lay them out where? If I put five outfits on the bed in Kelly's room she'll wear all five in one day! Do I even have five clean outfits for one child, much less three? And laying them out saves you time how? Aren't you just going to be folding and refolding the stomped piles all week long? ugh