Talk About it Tuesday

Topic: How I’m Prepping for Back to School

Let me just say, while I’m ready for the kids…I’m not ready. Firstly, I haven’t finished getting all of the school supplies on the list. I am one of those parents that believes I need to get every item on the list. There is no reason you want each kid to bring 40-50 pencils (I usually try to send Ticonderoga pencils, but you ask for that many and you’ll get some cheap sets too) but whatever. I don’t have a problem with most of the things that are requested and I understand that not everyone gets stuff so it’s an attempt to have more than you need versus not enough. Our family has been blessed and we don’t mind sharing or needing to add in a little more help the classroom. With the school supplies out of the way, I’ve run into the issue of finding something for the youngest. She has to do school of some sort, but isn’t eligible for Pre-K through our ISD. We aren’t interested in daycare so we are searching hard for private. Of course that sends signals to my brain about money. Are we broke? No…but we also don’t have $1200.00 a month to drop on school for one child either. Let me just stress that it’s beyond frustrating that anyone would need to make these types of choices and they should just open up Pre-K to every child within the district (It won’t matter next year, but I know how much childcare costs others and based on the taxes we pay there’s no reason every child 4 years old and up doesn’t have an available spot in the classroom). I’ll keep everyone posted on our school find, but it’s getting difficult for sure and we are going to have to drive further than desired. 

Aside from the school portion, I am NOT ready to turn back on my alarm clock. I don’t want to be in school traffic in the mornings, and I don’t want to necessarily sit in the pick up line either. Truthfully, I’m still concerned about the health risks for my girls attending school (masks are not optional in this house) and being at school. Our ISD no longer has a virtual option which frustrates me, but I also don’t want the kids at home. My mental dilemma is real, but when it comes to health and safety if that means that my children will fare better doing class online and monitored by us then I’d prefer that over them getting sick and/or bringing it home to us or their younger sister. This is not an area I’m willing to argue with anyone over so if you don’t care that’s cool, but please understand I recognize that it disproportionately impacts Black people so my caution is heightened (also..losing someone impacts your willingness to take it seriously). 

So…here’s the plan:

-  Coffee and water will begin the day. I want to make sure that I’m not foggy brained so I will wake up a little earlier to have quiet time and a sip of java. I enjoy meditating when the house is still so that means either before everyone wakes up or once everyone is gone. Meditating ALWAYS makes my days better and help me mentally prepare for whatever the day my bring. Water makes my body run better and improves my skin so it’s a win/win. I haven’t been that great with this over the summer, but I owe it to me to get back on track so that’s exactly what I will do. 

- Schedules are a necessity. Calendars and weekly notes will be taken care of so everyone is aware of what’s upcoming as well as what needs to be done. I tried this last school year (at the end of the year I slacked, but I’ll do better) and it made a difference with the girls and school. 

- Follow Through. I make to do lists and sometimes I allow myself to “get off track”. Sure you can to make adjustments at times, but I lose focus often and won’t stick to my own plans. This is apart of my issues with finishing up furniture projects (Sure the heat plays a part, but this is my Achilles heel right now and I have to correct it). I will own my plans and complete them. 

- Don’t overly fill my schedule. Being busy isn’t always best and I need to make time to process and make certain I’m not becoming overwhelmed with life. Breaks will also be included in my schedule because it’s important to rest and the position of stay at home mom doesn’t include many of those.

- Find great books. Sitting in the car line is time for me to read. At one point, I was reading about 30 books a month and that has declined drastically. I currently read about 3-5 depending on how much I pick up my Kindle, but I refuse to sit in my vehicle for upwards to an hour and have nothing to show for it. I also plan on working on blog related things so I’ll keep my notebooks handy.

I know this isn’t much, but the truth of matter is that I’m not sure if changes will happen that will impact all of this. I’m putting things in place now so that the 18th isn’t a nightmare for everyone in the house. Fingers crossed for a great school year and best wishes to all the parents! What are you doing to prepare for the upcoming school year?