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It’s the second week of school and we are slowly inching our way towards figuring this whole thing out again. We thrive on routine and all of us just do better that way, but seriously, getting your babe out the door to school on time (especially when you have two working parents), is just no joke. The biggest hats off ever to all of you who have more than one kid currently in school – because I’m not sure how I’ll ever do it. 🙂
So although I am far from an expert on the subject, I thought I would share some of the things we do this time of year that make life just a little bit easier. And please, if you have any of your own, share at the end of the post, I am all ears!!
A planner. I recently posted about my new favorite planner here, I seriously couldn’t live without it all year long, especially during back to school season! There is just so much going on right now, if I left it up to my jumbled brain or notepads, there is no doubt I would miss half of what I have to do. For me, I work best with writing events, meetings or due dates on the weekly pages, and then to-do lists for each day. Those to-do lists are usually written down for at least three days in a row (because I don’t get them done the first or second time), but eventually I get to put a check! It’s crazy how many due dates Waverly already has just in pre-k, I know this will be even more important as my kids get older.
Packing & hanging our bags the night before. SUCH a big thing for us! We have little hooks by our door and that’s where both my bag & Waverly’s bag stay. I try to have everything she needs in there the night before, and I am also trying to get her in the habit of hanging her bag back on the hook when she walks in from school.
Get to bed earlier. I was nervous about this all summer, as it seemed that Waverly was just going to bed later & later each night. She very much likes a routine, and had gotten used to playing with her dolls each night in her room before going to sleep, no matter what time we ended up in there. So we now try to do a bath and books about thirty minutes earlier than usual, and take her to room way before we actually want her to go to sleep. This is the hardest thing for us, I know it will get easier when it gets dark earlier!
Lay out our clothes the night before. This is probably Waverly’s favorite thing, even in the summer. I always did this when I was younger (all the way up until college, and even teaching), it must be the fashion lover in me! 🙂 This also cuts down on the drama of what she is going to wear, which is TOTALLY a thing already, god help us with two little girls!
Meal prep on the weekends. I say this, but I am really not good at it. I always have the best intentions of cooking chicken and cutting veggies on Sunday afternoons or evenings, and then Sunday afternoon or evening comes, and I am exhauuuusted! 😉 But when I make it happen, it really makes such a big difference, especially now that Waverly has dance and other activities during evenings in the week.
Give yourself at least ten minutes extra. If there’s one thing I’ve learned since having kids, everything takes longer than you think it is going to. Everything. Even on the days I think I’m super organized and am going to show up early with clean kids and a perfectly packed diaper bag – nope. So I always try to set my alarm and get out of bed ten minutes before I think I need to.
Make lunch the night before. This is KEY! For both me and if I need to pack one for Waverly. I recently got these bento boxes and they have made packing lunch so much easier, and cuter!!!
I just pick some favorites and try to switch it up day to day, with any snacks, fruit, or leftovers we may have. One of our current favorite snacks are the Kellogg’s® and Special K® products, they are such an easy snack to throw in the box and not really think about, but are still so healthy for you!!! We’ve tried so many, two of my favorites are the Special K® Granola and the Special K® Sea Salt Cracker Chips. They are so, so good & nutritious, the perfect option to keep you nourished during crazy seasons such as back to school!
You can get the Special K and Kellogg products at your local Kroger, you can find out more information here. And you can also enter to win a gift card to Kroger, scroll down to the end of the post to enter! Good luck!
XO
We do a lot of the same things. I feel like our morning goes much easier if clothes are set out the night before, backpacks are by the door, etc. I don't want to be running all over the place in the morning while trying to get out the door.
Oh my goodness, even with getting the boys to daycare, it's such a crazy morning routine! I think I should lay the boys' clothes out, too…that might really help. I'm a girly girl with two boys, poor things! And those bento boxes?! Where did you get them? LOVE.
Great tips! I used to love picking my outfit the night before too! Whenever I don't, I'm always late because I spend way too much time in the morning!
Yes, yes, yes! Great tips. I try to do as much as possible to prepare the night before so that our mornings are less hectic. Love those lunch bento style boxes. Where are those from?
I hate needing to be places early. We are awful at getting out the door. School is going to be a rough transition I believe ha. Really cute bento boxes though!
These are great tips! We only have a couple days a week we have to be out of the house early but when we do getting up early, laying out outfits the night before, and having quick and easy breakfasts ready and on hand for the morning make SUCH a difference! And definitely make it so that we make it on time!
I am SO bad about preparing the night before but you are right, it does make things go so much more smoothly. With 2 kids in school now, mornings are definitely a rush! {client}
These are some great tips! I'm not going to lie. I'm almost always a bit late when I have all 4 kids with me. No matter how much preparation I do ahead of time we're always rushing out the door!