I’ll be the first to admit that I’m the annoying mom that hates to see her kids go back to school! While all the other parents are singing “Its the most wonderful time of the year” I’m over here all red eyed and puffy faced.
Don’t get me wrong, as they’ve gotten older I’ve understood why parents celebrate. Summer time can be BRUTAL with kids. They just get to a point where they are climbing the walls and ready for a much more strict and structured routine. Because no matter how structured you are at home kids will eventually get bored. And They are constantly hungry! My Eleven year old eats like a linebacker all summer. Its impossible to keep the fridge and cabinets stocked! She does get it honestly though. 😉
Anyway….
Yesterday my Facebook feed was flooded with friends and family members whose babies started back at school! Pretty sure every single school in our state started back yesterday but us. So we figured we’d take advantage of it and enjoy the local pool to ourselves! Loaded our bags, packed a lunch, applied the sunscreen and drove to the pool, only to find out that all of our lifeguards also started school yesterday and the hours had changed.
WOMP WOMP
So we did the next best thing!
NOTHING.
Yesterday ended up being one of our laziest days of the summer. I think we’ve all just gotten to that point where we need school and routine back in our lives. We’ve soaked up every bit of summer that we possibly could.
So today we’re having another pretty lazy day.
Spent a little time outdoors and then will be heading to see Christopher Robin later this evening with my mom.
The hardest part for me about this upcoming school year is that my littlest will be jumping on the school bandwagon for the first time! He’s never been in any kind of child care or had a babysitter other then his grandparents or a close family friend. I’ve been through this whole preschool phase twice already, but the truth is it never gets easier!
I’m trying my best to prepare him for school though so that the first day goes over as smooth as possible. So here are some tips to getting your little one ready to conquer the world of preschool!
- Talk about it constantly:: Talk it UP! I think this one is a given. Obviously we want our little one to know how great school is going to be. But they will still be hesitant and nervous about going somewhere new. Especially without you! Make sure they know how wonderful school is going to be. All of the friends he is going to make. The toys he will play with and the crafts he will create! Its going to be the time of his life.
- Let them know you WILL ALWAYS COME BACK: The hardest part for them will most likely be the confusion of you dropping them off somewhere. Especially if you are in the same situation as me where you have never dropped them off anywhere before. They might initially be excited for the toys and all the new things, but then they’ll see you leave and they be panicked. Make sure you let them know way ahead of time that you WILL come back. Talk to them about that a lot in the days leading up to the first day. They are little but they will still understand if you talk to them about it far enough in advance. Making even do a mock drop off at home. Designate a room in the house as “preschool”. Have another family member pretend to be the new teacher. You walk them to school and “drop them off”. The “teacher” reads them a book or does a little craft. And then you come back to pick them up! It wont be exactly the same, but it’ll give them the idea of how the first day will go!
- Get them into the night time/morning routine several weeks ahead of time:: Summer time schedules are just never as strict. We tend to stay up later then anticipated and sleep in a little longer. At least that’s how my families summer has been going. Even for families whose kids are in summer camps or daycare centers. Staying up later in the summer just happens. We BBQ with friends. Are out at the pool for late night swims. Stay outside riding bikes and chasing fireflies pushing bath time back to much later then normal. To make the school year transition go much smoother though, start you routine way ahead of time! I would say that first week in August is the best time to start, especially with the littler ones. It can be tough since it might still be daylight out when the bedtime routine starts but just try your best to stick to a routine and a schedule. The more they do it the more used to it they’ll get. So when school does start, it’ll be like second nature to them.
- Be Organized and Prepared the night before:: Especially on the first day or week. Its always good to be preparesd for the morning the night before. If you wake up to dishes in your sink and are frantically searching for that other shoe before you’re running out the door there is no way the morning drop off will go smoothly. They will feed off of your stress. If you simply take an extra 20 minutes after you put the kids to bed to load the dishwasher or hand wash if needed, lay out the outfits (socks and shoes included) make sure the backpack and any new school supplies are already packed. And if you’re feeling really frisky maybe even throw something in the crockpot like this amazing cinnamon roll French Toast I found on Pinterest from Messforless.net! This way you will literally have everything done when you wake up in the morning!
5. Wake up at least an hour before your kids:: This one sounds harder then it is, but believe me you will be so thankful you did it! It is so crucial to have that “me” time in the morning. Wake up, do your workout, drink your coffee, watch the news, write your blog. Do things for YOU that will relax you and make you feel less stressed during the morning routine. This one kinds of ties in to the last tip about being prepared. You’re mood is just so critical with how the morning routine and drop off goes. If they see you stressed, or sad, or nervous they will be stressed or sad or nervous.
6. Start a first day of school tradition:: Make it exciting! It doesn’t have to be expensive. Something as simple as the breakfast you make. Just make it special and tell them that every year on their first day you will do the same thing! Go to the dollar store and get some streamers and balloons and decorate their room when they are asleep. Make a banner. “Cole’s First Day of Preschool!” really celebrate them and let them know how exciting and special this day is! Then when you pick them up after school, take them to the park and talk to them all about their day! Not only will it make all the days to come easier, they’ll remember these moments for years to come!
These tips are really helpful for the littlest ones but they work for any age! Because no matter how old you get, first days are just full of emotions! Always a big mix of excitement and nerves, because the unknown is SCARY! But with a good routine and lots of support, it will be ok mama…For you and for them.
xoxo Kerri
