It’s official back to school season! Whether you’ve been back for a few weeks now (like we have been) or are gearing up for the return, there’s no denying it’s here! We began our new year in homeschool a few weeks ago, but this week holds some big milestone for us as the kids have their first day in a new co-op. We are all a mixture of nerves and excitement but at least I can say with confidence that we’re feeling ready.

I’ve spent the past few “warm up” homeschool weeks prepping for this fall transition and have created some routines and boundaries to help keep all of us on track without feeling frazzled as we head into fall.

Meal plan **but limited “recipes”**

We have a fairly predictable rhythm to our weeks, which I use as an outline for my meal planning. I looked at our schedule and decided which days I would be able to “make dinner” in the sense of cooking a new recipe or even a beloved meal that takes a a little bit of time. Realistically that’s about thee days a week for me and even though I’m tempted to try and push that because I love making good meals, I know I’ll be stressed out if I do.

So the plans is to pick three meals I’m excited about each week. On Sundays I make a new recipe since I’m cooking my way through Ina’s cookbook (last night I made her pureed potatoes with lemon to go with steak and broccoli and 3/4 of us LOVED it), so that’s one. Then the other two are meals I know we love like Greek chicken wraps or marinated chicken and noodles. Then I fill in the rest of the days with no fuss meals that everyone likes that I will most likely repeat each week, like slow cooker meatballs, taco night, and pizza.

This food mill is so much fun to play with when I have the time.

Make lunches easy

Whether we’re at home or the girls are packing their lunches for co-op, I like to keep lunches simple. H (13) has been into meal prepping salads for herself lately, but otherwise leftovers or snacky type lunches reign supreme around here.

They each have a simple lunch bag that works well with these thin ice packs. I have stainless steel bento boxes and Caraway’s food storage they use sometimes, too.

What also helps a lot (especially for my 11 year old) is buying individual serving sized items that are easy for the kids to pack, like string cheese, mozzarella balls, chips, peanut butter, beef sticks, drinkable yogurts, boiled eggs, mini guacamoles, applesauce, and mini bags of popcorn.

.

Car activities ready to go

We will be spending a good amount of time in the care, but we’re ready! We love audiobooks and I have a different one going for each scenario. If all three of us are in the car, we’re currently listening to Where the Red Fern Grows. If it’s K and me, we’re listening to Percy Jackson. If it’s H and me, Pride and Prejudice.

It’s also nice for them to have things to keep their hands busy, so we keep bracelet making kits, the cats cradle book, and their LCD boards in there at all times.

Schedule and protect downtime

Blank space on the calendar does not need to be filled. And if you really struggle with that, I recommend blocking off a chunk of time and labeling it “down time” so it shows up as a scheduled and nonnegotiable block.

This is such a huge one for me and though we might be all over the place a couple days a week, it’s nice to know that two days are more open, allowing us to have time to hike, play outside, read aloud, craft, play games, and just decompress. We can also use it to catch up on tasks or chores, but some true downtime is so beneficial for all of us.

Refresh their school space and your “work” space

Spending a few hours cleaning the old curriculum and art supplies out and setting up for the new year worked wonders for our play/school room. It also did wonders for my “office” space which is where my computer goes, yes, but I also consider the kitchen and pantry my work space, too. Being able to see and access things easily, as well as clearing out what I didn’t need really helped me go into this new season feeling on top of my game.

Embrace online shopping

This sounds weird, doesn’t it? As much as I love a brick and mortar for many things, to go back to school clothes shopping with the kids would take a full day and honestly with the sizes they are right now, we’d probably have minimal success. It makes so much more sense for me to utilize the evenings on my computer and order items they need that have been vetted by other friends or online influencers to be a good fit for their kids of similar ages and sizes.

For example, Nesting with Grace posted a fall try on with her girls and I scored H two fabulous church dresses (this one is so cute on her!) that she loves from that post. K has a long and lean body style, so shopping for jeans where I know they have slim options (like these) makes life so much easier. I sometimes order a couple size options knowing I’ll have to return some, but a quick swing by Staples or UPS is still a lot faster than hours spent wandering the mall.

.

The Skylight calendar to keep us all organized

I was unconvinced when David brought up the idea of getting the super popular Skylight Calendar. I love a paper planner and it’s always worked for me just fine. Well, he convinced me to just give it a try and now I get the hype.

We are relatively new to this but we’re all already hooked. Why? Because at this age and stage we have a lot going on, sometimes kids going in different directions, and it helps to have a family control center we can each reference. The kids don’t have to ask me what’s going on this week, I know when David’s work commitments are, and so on and so forth. Everything is color-coded, syncs with google calendar, is easily able to filtered, and simple to use.

Additionally the Skylight calendar allows me to set up task list for the girls each day with repeating chores or just a one time need right from my phone. They get the biggest kick out of checking them off. Supposedly you can even set up rewards and incentives as part of it, but we haven’t done that yet. I also love that it serves as a central list maker, so if anyone needs something from Costco or Hobby Lobby, they can add it to a list that is accessible to everyone.

It’s proving to be a valuable addition to our family as it’s helping us all feel on top of what to expect, how to stay organized, and things running smoothly.

.

Have a nightly shut down routine

The secret to a smooth morning is an evening routine, is it not? In my house it looks like a picked up living room and a clean kitchen. Dishes can can drying, but counters get wiped down. Then we set up the coffee, set the dishwasher on delay run so it starts once I’m asleep in case we need to add things to it throughout the evening. I like to have the girls pick out their outfits, set their alarms (with a buffer to hit the snooze button if needed), and have their lunch packed and ready to go (on co-op days).

I heard the sweetest outlook the other day that we should wake up every morning looking for proof that just might be the best day of our lives. Our mind tends to believe and look for proof of what we tell it and while every day might not feel like magic, I fully subscribe to the idea that if we look for the good parts of the season of life we are currently in, they will shine brighter. So here’s to embracing the busy and wonderful fall season! What’s helping you feel organized as we transition into autumn?