Three Ways to Start the School Year Right

This post was sponsored by Nature Made® as part of an Influencer Activation for Influence Central.

It’s hard to believe that Back to School time is already here again! It seems like we were just celebrating the 4th of July yesterday. (It’s still hotter than heck here, so I think that might be contributing to my denial.) I am usually a huge fan of all things Fall, but this year I’m just not feeling ready. I don’t want my reluctance to embrace everything-pumpkin-season to cause Josh to wind up having a tough start to middle school so here are three things we are committing to doing to start the school year off the right way.

We are starting off with strict electronics rules.

We have gotten really casual with our use of iPads. Chromebooks, and everything else electronic this summer. We are going back to basics and instituting a “no electronics on weekdays” rule. Obviously, we will make exceptions for school work that needs to be done on the computer, but no more hours of watching YouTube videos or playing games. We may revisit this rule later in the year if Josh is able to show that he is being responsible with getting his work done, but for now this is the rule.

We are practicing going to bed and getting up early.

There is a certain irony to the fact that Josh has woken up every morning by 6 am until this summer. Middle school starts an hour before elementary school did and he has consistently slept in until after the start time all summer. Yes, I guess the whole tween thing is finally kicking in. We are going to try and make those early morning wake ups a little less painful by easing into them by going to bed earlier and waking up earlier leading up to the first day of school. (And yes, I am including myself in that plan!)

We are supporting our health by creating healthy habits.

We are planning breakfasts, lunches, and snacks ahead of time. I know myself well enough to know that if I don’t plan ahead, I’ll be running around the kitchen throwing random things in Josh’s lunch box as he is trying to get out the door. Or worse, he’ll head out with an empty stomach because there is nothing he like to eat that is easy to make quickly. We are getting in the habit of taking our vitamins with breakfast each morning. This is actually the easiest part of all of our resolutions because Nature Made® KIDS FIRST Multivitamin Gummies taste so good, Josh actually reminds me to get out the vitamins. This is a good thing because KIDS FIRST Multivitamin Gummies help fill in the nutritional gaps in Josh’s diet. They contain 12 essential nutrients for age-specific nutritional support, including vitamins A, C, D and E, B vitamins, and minerals like iodine and zinc. They also contain all natural fruit flavors and colors derived from natural sources and no synthetic dyes. Grab your own at Target!

We are also trying to be better at washing our hands often and each time we come in the house. Cold and flu season is just around the corner and hand washing is one of the best defences and an important habit to get into.

What are some of your tips and tricks to start the school year off on the best foot possible?