Back to School – A New Year, A Fresh Start

Tammy, Me, Gina, Laura

Then

I remember when I was younger and in grade school.  I would look forward to each new year determined to keep my grades up, strive for perfect attendance, and look my best in all of the wonderful new clothes my mom would buy me (on sale, of course).  Going back to school was like Christmas only with school supplies.  I would go back and forth on which outfit would be the perfect first day of school outfit.  I could not wait to see my friends, meet my teachers, learn something new.  Okay, so I was a bit of a geek (still am).  This euphoria only lasted a short time.  About two months in I would dread waking up so early, almost always missing the bus.  Those wonderful new outfits had become ho-hum.  And perfect attendance almost always eluded me.  I did manage it one year – 8th grade.

Now

I watch my children get ready for their first day of school.  Amanda has started marching band practice, Stephen cannot wait to see his friends again, and Megan will have a whole new adventure this year as she starts college.  Honestly, I do not remember any of their first days of kindergarten, except being nervous on how they would behave and handle the transition from home all day to school all day.  And now it is old hat for them.

This is Stephen’s last Business Day.  Business Day is the day kids in kindergarten through eighth grade find out their class schedule, meet their teachers, and find their locker.  Next year will be Freshman Orientation at the high school, then we will be official done with back to school gatherings.  The years go by so quickly. Sigh.

This year I hit all those glorious back to school sales and even made a nice donation to my local elementary school.  If you are looking to save money, then be sure to watch those ads and follow some of the best frugal bloggers around.  Many are listed in my blogroll, but I do want to mention a few specifically.   If I had to limit myself to one blog for finding the best deals around, then it would be MommySnacks.  Andrea lists everything and then some.  I also find great advice at LittlePeopleWealth, ChoysterCash, and SweetwaterSavings.

My best advice for getting your kids prepared for the new school year

Get them excited about it. Get them involved in the process of picking out shiny new school supplies and a new first day of school outfit.  Remind them of all the fun they had with their friends and of all of the great new things they will learn.  I have had no problem with my kids wanting to go back to school.  They are a bit nerdy like their mother and as Amanda would say, “at least it is something to do”.

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