Back to School Guide

Use our back to school guide to help you take control of the new school year and make a great fresh start for yourself and kids.  Our guide is a collection of all our back to school tips, articles, resources, printables, and products so you can easily find everything you need.

Easing the Morning Rush

Back to school time is often a great opportunity for families to get a handle on their morning routines by minimizing the morning rush.  Use these tips to help you get started.

Make breakfast simpler and quicker by scheduling daily themes.  For example, make Monday’s egg day, Tuesday’s waffle day, Wednesday’s yogurt and fruit day, etc.  Breakfast schedules make grocery shopping easier, prep time quicker, and are a great way of teaching and introducing routines to kids. 

Set out all breakfast non-perishables and utensils the night before.  Things like cereal, vitamins, bowls, spoons, cups, etc can easily be set out on the counter and table the night before and make the morning breakfast prep calmer and easier.

For parents who can’t start their day without a cup of coffee, go ahead and make the coffee the night before and set the timer so it is ready when you wake up.  If your coffee pot doesn’t have a timer, go ahead and just add the water and coffee so that all you have to do is hit the brew button when you get up.

Teach kids to rinse their own dishes and place them in the dishwasher.  If they are too young to rinse their own dishes, try having them at least place them in the sink or have an older sibling help. 

Try and pack as much of the kids’ and your lunches the night before.  Sandwiches can be made the night before and placed in the refrigerator and all non-perishable snacks and fruits can easily be placed in the lunch bag the night before as well as napkins and milk money.

Last but not least, use a chore chart to get the kids involved as much as possible, and to seal the deal add all of these tips to your daily routines.

How to Choose the Right Planning and Scheduling System for Your Family

We get a lot of questions from customers and visitors about how to choose the right style of planner or calendar for their family.  Gone are the days of one style fits all and parents today have a lot of choices when it comes to choosing a planning and calendar system for their family.   But unfortunately, with the many choices also comes the potential for a lot of confusion.  So to better help parents make the right choice for their family here is a quick guide to choosing the right planning and calendar system for your busy family life.

Stationary or Portable Planner?

The first choice parents need to make when considering a planning system for their family is whether they need a stationary or portable planner. 

Stationary planners are primarily family wall calendars or desk pad planners.  These types of planners are stationary in that they tend not to lend themselves to being carried in either a briefcase or purse.  Parents should choose this type of planner if they do most of their planning and scheduling from one central location such as their home or office.

Portable paper planners are typically the note book style planners and are often referred to as day planners or mom planners.  They are designed so they can easily be transported or carried.  Parents should choose this type of planner if they are frequently on the go and do most of their planning and scheduling at a variety of places such as the office, home, meetings, or school.

Note Taking or Not?

The second choice parents need to make when considering a planning system, is whether or not they need or like to take a lot of notes throughout their day. 

Parents who like to write and keep detailed notes of their plans, conversations, and tasks, are best suited for a paper note book planner style because they typically provide more open spaces for writing.

For parents who tend not to take a lot of notes, or like to use files or paperwork folders to keep track of their notes, then a family wall calendar is probably more of what they need.  Wall calendars keep track primarily of schedules and offer only limited space for note taking.

The Best of Both Worlds

For many families, combining the two styles can be helpful.  For example, some parents find having a family wall calendar hanging in a central location helpful for communicating events and schedules with the entire family while also using a portable style planner for keeping track of schedules, notes, and shopping lists while away from home.  The drawback though when combining systems, is that both will require updating to avoid confusion and missed appointments.

So to summarize, choose a wall calendar if you do most of your planning from one central location and you don’t typically take a lot of notes or have an alternative system for note taking.  Choose a planner, if you do a lot of scheduling away from home or the office and you like to take a lot of notes. 

American Diabetes Association’s Step Out To Fight Diabetes

Here is a great opportunity for your family to get involved in your community and support a great cause.

This year, more than 3,500 area residents will come together on Saturday, October 27, 2008 at 3rd Street and Pennsylvania Ave, NW to raise funds for Step Out to Fight Diabetes.  Formerly known as America’s Walk for Diabetes, Step Out to Fight Diabetes is a whirlwind day packed with energy, fun, support for others and a perfect amount of selfless dedication.  Step Out is the fund-raising walk of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and all funds raised from Step Out to Fight Diabetes are used in support of the Association’s mission: to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. Be a part of the cure-Step Out to Fight Diabetes-and start raising money today!  To register, volunteer or find out more information, please visit diabetes.org/stepout or call 1-888-DIABETES.