How to Avoid the Back-to-School Blues

You don't have to be among the millions of Moms and Dads who dread the "back-to-school" drama each summer. With a little planning and organization, you can avoid the stress of dragging hungry, tired, frustrated kids from store to store to spend way too much money and still get everything done.

Clothing

Getting a new wardrobe is one of the things many kids look forward to when it's time to go back to school, especially the older kids who want to impress their friends with their own style. But not many kids enjoy the grueling shopping experience of going from store to store, trying on tons of clothes and dealing with the other back-to-school shoppers. And the sticker-shock after paying for all these cool threads can make a Mom melt in a puddle of frustration. But this shopping tradition doesn't have to be this way.

First take a clothing inventory:

• Make sure all the dirty laundry in the house is done and has been disbursed into each child's room .
• Take an afternoon to go through your child's closet and drawers to make an inventory list.  I always like to start by taking everything out of their drawers and closet and laying it out on the bed. This makes it easy to see what they have and allows you to create outfits or sets. This is also the time to get rid of anything that doesn't fit anymore.
• After you have decided what can be salvaged from last year's wardrobe and hand-me-downs from friends and family, place everything else back into drawers or on shelves to be used as "play clothes" - not to be worn to school.
• My rule of thumb is to buy at least one new outfit for each day of the first week of school, after that, you can start letting them wear the older but still nice stuff.
• I always buy my children mix and match pieces rather than sets (or outfits) to offer more versatility.  I tell them to lay out 5 shirts and 5 pants (or shorts) for the week and they can wear any combination of those any given day.  It takes a lot of the guesswork and last minute searching for clothes out of the equation, and helps make that first week transition back into the early-morning schedule a smooth one.
• Use your inventory list to make a list of new items needed for school, then stick to this list! You can get your older kids' input on this list, but make sure they know that, once you've agreed on the list, there's no adding to it. This will help you save money.

Shop smarter:

• If you do brave the malls and clothing stores, carry your list with you and follow the "Stick to the list!" mantra. 
• Try to wait for the "no tax" days that some states offer to do all of your back-to-school shopping. This will save you a lot of money. But be prepared for long lines at the register and lots of traffic on these tax-free days. The earlier you go in the day, the better.
• On shopping days, make sure you and the kids eat a healthy breakfast (with protein) before you leave the house. Also pack a small bag or cooler of snacks and drinks to avoid the "I'm tired of riding in the car so I think I'm hungry" blues.  If you get your shopping done early enough (remember, your list will help you shop smarter!), you can finish in time to have lunch at home - saving you even more money.
• If you are able to shop early enough before school starts you can find some great deals on name brand clothing in lots (or sets) on www.ebay.com and save a lot of money.  Many sellers have items that are still (NWT) new with tags and others that are in (EUC) excellent used condition.  Even with shipping costs you can save a significant amount of money and it is delivered right to your door within a few days - no kid's tantrums, no traffic, and no lines!!

School Supplies

School supplies can be less dramatic for our little fashionistas, but just as frustrating to shop for. If you don't start early, you'll find empty shelves and embarrassed kids when they start their first day without everything they need.

• Try to get your child's school supply list as soon as possible to get the best deals and to avoid having to run around to several different places to find what you need - many stores run out quickly on things such as highlighters and dry erase markers.
• If you have several children that need the same types of supplies - try to buy in bulk packages and divide them up into ziploc bags at home instead of buying them in individual packages. This saves money and time.
• To save time and not be hurried the night before the first day, as soon as you get home from shopping, take the child's bookbag and load it with their needed supplies so nothing has time to get misplaced or damaged before the big day.
• While you are already in there, go ahead and place any necessary school forms (filled out) in the bookbag - we all know how easy it is to lose paperwork with kids around.

Meals and Meetings

• For many of us, school starting back means sports practices, meetings, and appointments - keep all of those things organized on a magnetic calendar on the fridge.  The dry erase kind work the best.  You don't have to even buy the prefab calendar model - I actually bought a blank dry erase board and since I definitely operate on a "short term goals" basis rather than a planned out weekly or monthly schedule, it works best for me to just write in my "goals" for each day and erase them as I get them done.  You can do this weekly or montly as well.
• Try to make some "cook-ahead" meals to be able to pull out of the freezer and warm in the microwave last minute or throw in the crockpot in the morning to be ready when you get home in the evening. Cook in bulk on the weekends and freeze in disposable freezer-safe plastic containers. Be sure to label them with the meal and the date cooked. This gives you the convenience of pre-packaged frozen meals without the pricetag.
• Don't wait until the last night before (or even the last week) before school starts back to get your kids back into school schedule mode.  Start training those night crawlers and late sleepers to get their body back on the school schedule at least 2 weeks before the big day - 3 weeks would be even better since it takes about 21 days to form a habit.
• If your child takes his/her lunch to school, try to make it the night before and place it in the fridge. If you are like me and will probably forget to take it out of the fridge in the morning, place a note on your fridge board or a post-it on the door of your fridge to remind you.
• Before you go to bed on school nights, lay out the cereal bowls or cups or whatever (non-perishable) is needed for breakfast the next morning.
• Plan a menu for the entire week for all meals that will be eaten at home before you grocery shop.  This will save you time and money.  Post your menu near your fridge board so you won't have to answer the neverending question "what's for dinner tonight?" Be sure to take your grocery list with you to the store and stick to it!

These tips come from years of hard-earned experience. I hope they will help you and your family have a smooth-sailing first day of school. If you'd like to have tips or suggestions to share with our readers, email  .