Let me share with you the smartest and easiest time-saving tips before you go back to school. I am in my late 40s, I have two beautiful little girls, and I have recently graduated top of my class. Handling the going back to school season wasn’t easy at first, as a working mom, I have a very tight schedule. It was always tough to get ready and at the same time prepare your kids for going back to school. Life is all about finding the right balance between work, school, and family or else, everything would soon turn into a disaster.
You don’t have to be working outside of the home to benefits from these time-saving tricks. In my personal definition, all of us moms are working moms. I mean we cook, we clean, we chauffeur, we plan and schedule things for our family, and a lot of us are literally the hub of our families. So, whether you work from the outside of your house or not, these tips will be helpful for you.
- Plan and schedule ahead of time
I can’t stress how important this is guys, and you don’t want anything to slip through the cracks or for you to forget something at school a test or things like that. It is essential to have some kind of planner to plan your activities ahead of time. Remember sticking to a plan is another challenge, but don’t stress too much regarding changes. Changes are not too bad if you do them wisely. It is best to update all the events if you want to make changes in schedule. I always leave room for changes while planning.
For me a notebook works fine, at night before going to bed I write everything I need to do tomorrow. I also have a monthly planner in the kitchen that I check every day to make sure everything is going according to the schedule. I am not a tech person, so I don’t like using my smartphone too much. However, if you want, you can use your smartphone for scheduling and planning. I am sure you can find plenty of time-management mobile apps these days.
- Do your back to school shopping early
I know that it can be very frustrating to wait until August when the back to school sales really start hitting hard. But school supplies actually go on sale all year round, and you just have to keep an eye out. So, what I would usually do is that I always went out shopping for the school in the second week of July. One of the benefits of early shopping is that there is plenty of stuff because there aren’t that many people who start early, so you have, the pick of your choice. The second thing is I always found that if I waited to make the back to school supplies list, it felt like I was scrambling. The pressure if much more in the last days before the start of the school plus competing with many others for a limited bucket of school supplies, is not something I can ever do.
- Have a homework station
Yes, it is a must to have a homework station where you can collect every kind of paperwork that your kids bring home. It is crucial that your kids know where to go when they need to do their homework. You don’t have to have something fancy, I mean you could use the floor a tray or the dining room table. But it is essential to have a station where your kids work because by doing this you will promote a sense of responsibility in them and they will learn to respect time. Believe me, a homework station is the only place where the work that needs to be done is actually done. In the long term, you will notice that this really helped you in managing your schedule and helped the kids in doing their homework duly.
Believe me, a homework station is the only place where the work that needs to be done is actually done. In the long term, you will notice that this really helped you in managing your schedule and helped the kids in doing their homework duly.
If you’re on a budget but can spare enough money for a gadget, buy a refurbished computer instead of a brand-new one. Refurbished PCs may have been pre-owned or returned to the manufacturer for certain reasons, but they go through rigorous quality tests and thorough cleaning before they’re resold. That means you’ll have a computer that’s equally functional as a new one is but without having spent too much money.
- Cook on weekends only
Everybody in the family has to eat, right? I love to save time by doing make-ahead meals or freezer meals. Yes, frozen meals are a lifesaver sometimes and an excellent way to eat a healthy home-made meal even in the busiest days. Did you know to make ahead meals not only save time but are also save a considerable amount of money? When you make large batches of recipes, you can take advantage of lower bulk prices at the grocery store. Also, with ready to eat meals in the freezer, you will eventually spend less money on eating out. On crazy busy days having frozen meals to pull out and eat are such blessings.
- Prepare The Night Before
One of my best time-saving hacks for back to school season is to prepare clothes, especially kids clothes ahead of time. I pick out my kid’s clothes the night beforehand so that I am not getting crazy and rushing around in the morning. If you have the time (and your washing machine can keep up!) you can simplify things even further by laying out the whole-weeks clothes all at once!
Clothes aren’t the only thing you can prepare ahead of time! I picked up a timed coffee maker. They aren’t that expensive, and all I have to do is throw some beans in the top and put your cup below the spout. At 6:30 when my alarm goes off, I know there will already be a cup of coffee waiting for me. The perfect addition to your morning routine.
Lunches are another key thing to prepare a head of time. Any lunch food should be fine in the fridge overnight, so why stress about it in the morning?
I can never have enough of my kids, I love them so deeply, but it is also vital to have my own time for doing the things that are enjoyable to me. The only way to maintain a balance between my own time and my family time is to save time effectively. Thank you for reading, and I hope my experiences and ideas were helpful for you!
