It feels a little wrong to even bring up the phrase “back-to-school” but the truth is school is right around the corner! Ironically I am currently sitting on the beach with no thoughts of routine but I wanted to pop in to share a few tips that have gotten us through the early mornings. This year I will have a 4th and 1st grader, as well as a preschooler so I have slowly learned some tricks that make our life easier during the school year. Amber of Restless Arrow has gathered a group of us to share ideas as part of a Back-To-School Style guide. If you came here from Simple Stylings welcome! Summer and I are real life friends, as in text non-stop, grab coffee, and have even braved a sleepover with our sons (not a lot of sleep that night!) so I am happy to have any readers from over her way! So now onto my tips for making school mornings a little easier…
I am not a morning person at all and sleep is very near and dear to my heart so the 6:00am alarm is brutal. Anything I can do to use my brain less during that ungodly hour is great! These are some of the projects that have made getting up and out the door much easier.
Clothing
I like to prep as much as I can ahead of time, especially when it comes to selecting clothes. I have one child who couldn’t care less about what they are wearing but two others who care verrrry much. I used to battle with them each and every day about what would be too cold or too hot or didn’t match. Even if we laid out clothes the night before I still ran up against the same discussions 5 times a week. It was too much so I decided we would choose all 5 outfits each Sunday. Even better we clip each complete outfit to a pants hanger and then hang all 5 outfits on a hook inside their closet. Every day they grab a hanger and get dressed without a lot of hiccups. Yeah, the process takes a little time on Sundays but it’s one discussion instead of 5!
{Original post on my clothes system}
Another thing that used to drive me crazy on school mornings was searching for shoes at the last minute. I decided to put up this simple white shelf to hold baskets of shoes. The kids each have their own shelf and we only keep their most-used shoe here for easy access in the morning. I am a major stickler about keeping these baskets organized so that we always have shoes on the ready.
I also insist that the kids come straight in and hang their bags on their designated hooks. They know exactly where to find their things each morning so we can get out the door!
{Original post on my mudroom makeover}
Art
Even before “real” school you mamas know how that artwork can pile up! I decided to buy each child an under-the-bed plastic container and it has to hold everything through 5th grade, at least that’s my goal in order to keep it from becoming overwhelming! I only keep things that showcase their personality at this stage, like a writing piece or things about their feelings. I also made this simple art wall to keep a rotating gallery going through the year. It makes them feel so special!
Packing lunches
My kids have most of the responsibility when it comes to packing their lunches. I created this command station so that they can easily grab items from each category and put together a decent lunch. We had it down to such a science that they could pack a lunch in under 2 minutes last year!
{Original post on my lunch command station}
Schedules
If mama ain’t organized this whole ship is going down! I rely on a range of easily accessible calendars to keep our schedule straight. With baseball, piano, dance, appointments, and life it’s crucial to have a daily planner as well as a wall or desk calendar. I took the pages from this Rifle Paper Co. calendar and taped them to the wall over my desk so that I could quickly glance up to reference dates. I write all the important stuff in my small planner that goes everywhere with me!
{Original post on my new office}
{Original post on my old office}
These are just the simple ways I have found to help our mornings run a little smoother and I hope they can maybe help you too! Make sure to check in with all of the other ladies to see what they have to get you back to school in style! Head over to Lindsay of The White Buffalo Styling Co. next!
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Amber says
Beth! So many smart ideas! I love that you lay out clothes for all week! AND the calendar and the shoes and the mud room! Man! I love it. Thanks so much for joining us!!
Krista says
You are a brilliant organizer!! I love all these systems – I need to implement them at our house!!