School Lunch Box Packing System

There are a lot of pros and cons when beginning a new school year. Depends on who you ask too. Personally I'm ready as you may have read in my post about that. But, there is one big "con" if you ask me. Packing school lunches every night. It's one of those chores that my husband and I often forget about until the kitchen is cleaned up, the kids are in bed, and we've slumped down on the couch to relax. Then one of us looks at the other (with a pleading look) and says "lunches." Then it's the usual sigh and he or I will drag ourselves to the kitchen to piece together whatever we can.

The fact remains ... it's a necessity. Kids need to have lunch and they need to be packed. All the sighing and complaining won't change that fact. So this year we're trying something new. We're embracing this chore and attempting to put a system in place to avoid all the bellyaching. Maybe this will work for you too, that's why I'm blogging about it.

Back to School Prep!!!

It's the most wonderful time of the year .... Lol. Kidding! I do love the summer, but like any season, I'm ready for the next one when the end nears. School starts for us next week and the preparation that goes into getting us all ready is a layered process to say the least. So I'm sharing with you the check list of what we do to get ready in the event it is helpful to you.

A Balanced (and fun) Summer

Sorry for the lengthy break between posts these days. Per usual, life is crazy and the time simply gets away from me. But here we are. For must of us summer is in full swing. Schools have wrapped up, kids are home, or in camps and a new routine (or lack there of) is upon us. I don't know about your kids, but mine were bouncing off the walls with all the end of school year activities. And even more so transitioning into summer. Like everyone we want to have a great summer. And with that comes addressing all our expectations (and bucket lists) which prompted a family meeting to discuss all of the above. Here are some of my tips for setting yourself up for a great summer as discussed at our most recent family meeting.

Family Meal Time Game

"Sit down, use your fork, please eat your dinner, stop talking with your mouth full." Sound familiar? It's the general "conversation" happening at our dining room table too. We will get the occasional "how was your day," "tell me about school," etc.  It's been said that having a family dinner at least 5 times a week lowers a teens's chance of smoking, drinking, and using drugs.  So now that we've all made the effort to gather around the table, what should we talk about? Well besides what I mentioned above. Today my friend Martha shared with me a great article about unlocking they key to your child's heart.

4 Questions to Ask Your Kids Every Day

"How was your day?" "Good." Does this sound familiar? Well, in our house that's the protocol after school. Unless I can tell by obvious signs something "went down" and I need to dig a little deeper. As they get older it's harder and harder to get them talking about their day. Girls are a little easier I find, but my boy tends to clam up and isn't interested in reflecting back to update a curious Mom. I'm very aware of the importance of staying connected to your kids and keeping the lines of communication open. It's been proven doing so has a positive effect on their self confidence and also lowers their risk of alcohol and drug use during adolescence (or before). And the earlier this practice is started the better.

Great Parenting Article

My kids are only 7 and 10. So I've got a long way to go. But it's in my nature to always think about what's coming up and around the next corner. So with middle school for my oldest in the fall I'm preparing myself as best I can for what lurks ahead. "They" say middle school is what high school used to be like for my generation. This kind of scares me a bit, but like it or not September will be here before I know it. Sometimes anticipation is the worst part.

I do not think there is any "rule book" for raising kids. We all put our unique spin on what we think is best. It's the reason there is such a variety of people in this world. But I really like this article I read in my Real Simple magazine. I agree with just about all of these and practice many and will continue to work on some (like #12).