Are you ready for back to school?

Some of us have already gone through back to school and the rest are coming up to it quickly.  I'm on my fifth year of back to school and I thought I'd share a few thoughts.  Please add any other ideas and tips to the comments below!

Clothing

• What still fits?  We go through a fashion show and get all the kids to try on all their clothing and depending on the kid, clothing gets moved to their younger sibling, or it gets put into donation or consignment piles (the older the kids get, the smaller the consignment pile gets ;)  It's a great time to purge all the stuff that doesn't fit any more or that has been destroyed.
• When possible, I try to get my kids' clothing used.  There are lots of great ways to do that in Ottawa, including great consignment sales (the Hot Tots is September 6 and the MBFA sale is on September 13) and there are all kinds of Facebook groups where people sell clothing, toys, etc, not to mention sites like Used Ottawa.  Leave a comment telling us what your favourite place to get used clothing is!
• Another great option is to have a clothing swap with your friends.  Kids go through clothing so quickly as kids and they play so hard in them, I'm all for keeping it as affordable as possible!

Making memories

I'm not always a super organized mom but the one thing I've always done is take first day of school photos.  I love seeing how the kids change over the years!  Make a point to take a shot on the first day of school.  We take ours in the same spot every year outside our front door.  The bricks really show how much they've grown from year to year.  Unfortunately this means we can't move until they're all done school now ;)  If you're worried your skills aren't going to capture the moment as well as you'd like, there are lots of photographers now offering back to school sessions too :)

Being mentally prepared

A lot of the hardest part of back to school is being mentally prepared.  Just remember:

• Breathe.  :)
• Don't sweat the small stuff.   (For all the planning I tried to do with clothing my daughter wore one of the most ridiculous outfits ever on the 3rd day of school.  If it isn't inappropriate weather wise, I just go with the flow )

Extra stuff

I asked people to share their back to school tips with us on Facebook.  Come add yours (or put them in the comments here!)

Want to share your back to school photos with us?  Do that on this Facebook post!

Bit of Momsense shares so great tips on back to school shopping and lunch ideas.

Happy back to school everyone!!

Back to School (or, what to buy if you DO have money!)

My post from last week was all about Back to School on a budget. Well, I recognize that many of you probably enjoy spending money on new products, and thought it was time to share some of the stuff I would love to buy from my favourite stores!  

Mastermind Toys

This backpack from Bixbee is adorable! I love that it's a horizontal design for little ones, and with every backpack purchase, Bixbee will donate a schoolbag with supplies for a child in need!

We love our Bento Box! This stack of colourful containers provides a fun, practical way to pack on-the-go meals . Stack them directly into your lunch bag or use them inside your bento box. The extra large container is perfect for salads, sandwiches, and leftovers.

Me to We: Staples

This year Me to We is partnering with Staples and ACCO Brands to launch its first line of eco-friendly school supplies. Each purchase gives back by helping a child in a developing community with things like healthy school lunches, notebooks and pencils. I love this portfolio design with "hello" in several different languages!

Well.ca

I do have to say that Well.ca is one of my favourite places to shop online! I love that shipping is free over $25, and they carry all of my favourite eco-friendly brands. And with weekly sales, I always manage to save on household and beauty products (pssst....Green Beaver products are 20% off this week!)

I'm loving this tote from Keep Leaf!

Terra20

Kids in the Capital really appreciates Terra20's focus on a healthy environment and community. I recently read their blog post on Sling Sisters - we own some of their snack bags, and I love them! They're super easy to clean out, and are great for anything from fruit/veggies, to crackers and cheese.

Where are you shopping for back to school?

Back to School on a Budget

Big groans! I'm sure we're all seeing the back-to-school posts in our newsfeed, and if you're like me, you're dreading the end of summer (although this cold/rainy summer can go away now, thank you very much). Or maybe you're more like that parent in the Staples commercial, with "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year" blaring in the background? I'm sure my husband feels that way, after being at home with both kids all summer. But whichever way you see it, Back to School is coming, and will be here faster than you can say "School Lunches!" Given that my blogging theme this week is budgets, I decided to share a few ideas for back to school on a budget.

I remember LOVING back to school as a child - a brand new outfit for the first day, that barely broken-in backpack, and the shiny pencils and notebooks. But buying new supplies each year is both pricey and wasteful. Join me in saving money and helping our environment!

Buy Used

So simple, yet we always think of "new" when we shop back to school. But if we truly want to reduce our consumption and waste, we have to make use of what's already in circulation. Hit up your consignment stores (Boomerang and Value Village are great), and see what's already out there. Online classifieds are another great way to find shoes, Fall jackets and even snowsuits (oh yes...the snow will come eventually!)

Organize and Purge

When we already own a lot of stuff, it's really easy to miss supplies that we never knew we had. How many times have you picked up something in your house and and said "oh man, I didn't know we had this brand new pack of markers!" Then you dump them into the giant bin of dried-out markers, broken crayons and pencils.

Get your parents to come by or hire a babysitter for one whole day (this is a difficult task to do with kids around, as they're constantly crying "no0000, you can't throw that out!!") Dump out all the supplies you own, and sort. Discard any dried out markers or pens, and take stock of what you already have. You might be surprised to find you don't need to buy anything new!

Hit up the Family

I'm lucky in that both my girls celebrate birthdays in the Fall. So I've already sent an email around to the family, with a list of things that we really need for back to school.  I've also asked them to contribute money to an "activities fund" so that we can sign the girls up for swimming lessons, ballet and gymnastics, without breaking the bank.

Sales, Coupons and Price Matching

If you do end up needing new stuff, make sure to take advantage of sales. Watch the flyers, and pay attention to special offers from online stores (I love Well.ca, and they sometimes offer $5-$10 off if you're spending over a certain amount).

Hide Your Stuff

Young kids are notorious for opening everything in sight. Keep a small bin tucked away in the closet, so that when those pencils and markers really do run out, you can re-stock with what you already have.

Have you done back to school on a budget? What are your tips?

Back to School Traditions

I love the idea of establishing a few special back to school traditions to start things off on a positive note. No matter how old your kids are, going back (or starting) school can be a bit overwhelming. I’ve had the chance to look online and I found a couple of cute traditions that are pretty neat:

• Take the traditional "back to school" portrait up a notch by pairing it with a list of likes and favorites. How fun to compare from year to year! Here's a cute way to do it!
• Drawing a kiss or special note on your child’s hand so they can take a look at it throughout the day.
• Back to school breakfast in bed. Anything goes.
• Special notes in your child’s lunch box. This one can go past the first day.
• Make a yearly time capsule by getting a few favorite items, recent photos, current likes, etc. and put them in a container to hide away until the next year. Each night before the first day, pull it out to see how much everything's changed. Then make a new one.
• Hang a sheet in the back yard and have a night-before-school backyard movie night. Here’s how to turn your iPhone into a movie projector.
• First Day Back dinner extravaganza. At the meal, each kids gets to talk about their day then as a family setting some goals for the year, discussing things to look forward to and other things of that sort.

I love all these ideas and will likely pick a few to make this year’s back to school a memorable one for all.

What will you do to celebrate back-to-school?

Question of the month: Back to school

Many kids are heading back to school today - or starting for the first time!  It's an exciting, nerve-racking and stressful time for many.

My biggest struggle with back to school is packing healthy lunches with limited time on my hands and a picky eater. I'm trying to involve Kiernan in the process more now that he's in grade one but also rely on buying hot (and healthy) lunches from the school.

What are your struggles with back to school and what are your best tips for making things run smoothly?