Create Back To School Dates with Your Kids to Make the Best kind of Memories

I remember it so well, they are some of my favourite memories of childhood. Each year, my mom would gather up my school supply list and me and we'd set off just the two of us. Getting one on one time with my mom didn't happen too often with 5 children in the family. So it was a very special treat for me. We would find all my supplies for school and then we would shop for clothes. Most often it would be Woolworth's (which then became Zellars) and afterwards we'd stop at a little restaurant famous for their carrot cake and a fortifying cup of tea for my mom.

There was still one more stop. 

Before we'd head home, we'd often stop at my Aunt Sally's. Mom would get to have a chat with her sister (I'm sure she was glad of it after arguing over clothes with her pre-teen daughter) and my aunt would demand that I try on each and every new outfit and would make a huge fuss over how great I looked in each one. I felt so special, so loved. 

3O years later.

These memories still lived strong in my heart. They were fabulous days, but in all honestly, I had never thought of doing them with my own geeklings, it was simply easier to take their supply list, go to the store alone and to purchase their new clothes on line.

Then, along came Stacy Julian. The AMAZING Stacy Julian. I want to BE Stacy Julian when I grow up. Or Molly Weasley, I'll take either :D

Stacy posted that she was taking her children on school supply shopping trip, just like my mom did! She sparked a little fire under me, but I still didn't plan those trips. 

Why not?

Well, because, I guess I've already said it, I really didn't PLAN it out.

That's right, me, planner girl extraordinaire, didn't think to plan this special moment with my children. Actually, I never really thought about it that way. 

I tried, I really did, but with 6 geeklings and an 8 week vacation and being gone for most of those weeks, it's not as easy as you might think!

Last year, when school has only just finished, I decided I would plan those school shopping trips with my children. I wrote them in on the calendar! We weren't going to be home much, so that first date, with geekling 5 was only a week or so into the summer holiday!

With each child, I headed off, school list in hand, my own list of the other things they needed (of course I made a list) and we got as much crossed off as we could. Then we went to lunch, just the two of us, they chose the resturant. There was also a lot of Pokémon hunting since it was so popular and brand new last summer.

Now that the new school year is looming close, why not plan a date with each of your children. Grab your planner and schedule it in right now. 

To get more great planning advice for back to school, check out my new class at Big Picture Classes PLAN YOUR BACK TO SCHOOL and send your kids back with ease! In the class, I shares my tried and true method for calmly navigating the new school, music, and sports schedules—as well as all the papers that come home every day—during back to school time. Pop on over now and be READY this year! 

PLAN YOUR BACK TO SCHOOL

 Here's a video showing how I put this page together. Check out the awesome pull out tip in!

Happy Planning!

Teach your Children how to be Organised

I always simply assumed that because being organised was something that came naturally to me and was something that has always made me giddy, that my children would be the same way. The thought never even crossed my mind that I would have to TEACH them how to be organised!

Some of you may have children that are just naturally organised, but by estimating how many adults need guidance in becoming organised, I think it's safe to say that more kids than not need to be taught how to do it.

Here are some simple first steps that you can take to begin teaching you child to become organised.

• Give them a planner
  Don't just hand it to them, however, take the time to show them how it works. Tell them to write down EVERYTHING, check it often and cross or check things off as they make progress.  Do it with them for a week or so, check that they are writing down everything and help establish the habit of checking to see what homework, projects etc they have to do.
  
  
• Teach them how to set intermediary deadlines for bigger projects. Procrastination is everyone's worst enemy and I feel like a lot of us have a natual tendancy to leave things to the last minute. Teach your children that working away at a larger project little by little makes the task easier and there's no big stressful push the night before it's due. Encourage them to do some work on an up coming project when when they have spare time. This teaches them not to leave things to the last minute.
  
  
• Set a schedule for homework. When children know what's coming next there are less questions and protests. Also knowing when homework time is, allows them to ease in to work mode more easily and settle into their studies faster.
  
  
• Have them tidy their room everyday. Putting away the day's toys, books and little 'treasures' that children seem to accumulate, prevents things from getting too messy and getting to the point where the job of tidying becomes overwhelming.

If you are looking to get organised for the new school year, pop on over to my new class PLAN YOUR BACK TO SCHOOL. It started today and you can learn noe only how to get everything and everyone ready for the first day of school, you'll also learn how to keep yourself organised all school year long. So check it out, so you can corral those papers, tackle the long Back to School to-do and never forget a gym bag or permisson slip again! 

PLAN YOUR BACK TO SCHOOL

Today is the last day to sign up and get your FREE bonus handout for class. Sign up in the green tag below. Do it now, as I'm sending out the link tomorrow and I won't be resending it!

If your child is crafty, watch this video together and help him/her to decorate their planner. It will motivate them to use it.

 

Happy Planning!
 

Why We Love School Supplies and the Office Supply Store So Much

Notebooks, Pens and Paper, Oh MY!!

Ahhhh, I LOVE walking into any store the is time of year! They are all full of sharp pencils, stacks of pretty notebooks, their blank pages screaming of potential, and flowery pencil cases ready to organise all your supplies and look fabulous while doing it!

project made with the fantastic Hip Kit Club June kits

Some of us are simply paper people. The sight of paper, the feel of it, just makes us happy. Some people collect shoes or they travel, me on the other hand, I like paper! I prefer paper to digi any day, but don't worry, I never let my iphone out of my sight. Even still, I truly am a paper person. I even drafted this blog post out on paper before typing it in. I tried to get organised with a digital calendar once, years ago. I Lasted about 2 days until I was late for an appointment and missed another completely! I went back to paper and it hasn't let me down since!

Being a paper person can't be the only reason we love school supplies and the office supply store. I know people who don't even own a paper planner (GASP! I know, right? The horror!) and they use their phone to track tasks and appointmenets and they LOVE office supplies too. 

So, besides being pretty, what is the appeal of office supplies? What makes something as basic as paper so appealing?

Here are my thoughts, I've got 4 reasons why we love office and school supplies and 4 ways you can use those pretty little supplies that sneak their way into your cart, even if you have no practical use for them...yet ;)

Why we love office supplies :

1. Potential
   When we see those shiny new school supplies hitting the stores barely a week after school has ended for the year, our mind goes to all the potential they seem to hold. Potential projects, potential uses for them, the potential we must hold within ourselves somewhere, that we could discover if only we can find the right notebook to release it.
   That potential is there, pretty notebook or not. So tap in to it and live up to it. The world is waiting! If you need some guidence on tapping into your potential check out my class PLAN YOUR DREAMS at Big Picture classes.  You’ll learn how to determine what your goals are—whether big or small—and how to break them down into manageable steps. My tips and tricks will help you incorporate these steps into your schedule and get you on the right track to achieving your dreams! 
   
   
2. A Blank Slate
   A new notebook is the modern day version of a blank slate. All those blank pages represent a new start for us. A chance for us to change our old habits and start a fresh. This is a similar feeling to what we get around New Year's. When that calendar flips, we are magically going to be transformed into someone who works out an hour before going to work every morning, and finally writes that novel. However, the same thing happens with school supplies, we get the notebook and pretty new pen but nothing happens. No magical transformation. If you are serious about changing your habits, check out this blog post I wrote about how to successfully start new habits long after the motivation of New Year's has passed. The Biggest Secret To Achieving Your Goals
   
   
3. Hope.
   New things always bring hope of happiness, right? New babies, new clothes, new cars, new school supplies. Hope is wonderful, however, just remember that you are the only one that can make you happy, not a fancy pen or a pack of pretty labels. You make the decision of how things affect you, you can't look to external gratification to change you view on life. Be a cup-half-full person and decide how you are going to react to the things that life throws at you, the good and the bad.
   
   
4. To Be a Kid Again. 
   School stuff is generally for kids, right? And being a kid was fun, so it's only normal that we think of all the first days of school and the fun we had with our friends. Those stacks of looseleaf and binders in the store bring back happy feelings. Enjoy it and maybe reminise with an old school friend on Facebook.

Now, here are 4 Ways You can Use School Supplies and Justify Purchasing all the Cuteness:

1. Use a pretty notebook and pen to make progress on your goals. Back to School is a great time to reignite your passion for your goals. Use the notebook and pen to plan and record your progress.
   
   
2. Plan and track your lessons in Plan Your Back to School. Choose a pretty binder or notebook just like you did in school to write down all progress and notes. You'll be ready when my new class Plan Your Back to School opens on August 14th. Put it in your planner! Or sign up here and I'll send you an email when it opens.
   
   
   
    
    
   
   
3. Plan and track your lessons in Plan Your Dreams. Use another notebook or binder dedicated to my class on discovering and Acheiving your Goals.
   
   
4. Organise your Purse. Those cute pencil cases make great organisers. I have several in my purse, one for kids crayons, one for my watercolour crayons and a water brush pen and another for a mini first aid kit.

So there you have it, I hope that this makes Back to School shopping a little more fun this year. If you are looking to get organised this school year, my newest class at Big Picture classes will be right up your alley. I chat about it a bit more in this video where I also share my process on making htis bullet journal spread. Grab a cup of tea and hit play! 

To learn more about my latest class, PLAN YOUR BACK TO SCHOOL, simply pop over to Big Picture Classes.

Happy Planning!