Ages and Stages-Getting Back into a Routine

Written by Megan from NEPAMom.com for GummyLump.com

photo courtesy Cast A Line via Flickr

Summer at our house means long days of swimming and playing with our friends, late dinners and even later bedtimes.  That is wonderful during June and July but now that August is coming to an end the lazy days of summer are quickly coming to a close.   It is time to gear up for the school year and the busy days and nights of extracurriculars, homework and shorter days.  That means as much as we hate to do it, it is time to get back into the Fall routine.

This is how we plan on doing it:

Getting up earlier--All summer long, unless we needed to be somewhere, we got up when our bodies were ready.  That meant no alarm clock and as summer went on we got up later and later. We need to adjust our bodies back to the earlier waking time, but there is no reason to shock our bodies by setting the alarm.  Start by setting your alarm a half hour earlier than you have been waking up, and move it back 15-30 minutes every few days until your are finally back to the time you want to wake up for school.

Earlier Bedtimes--Hopefully as we start waking earlier our bodies will naturally adjust to an earlier bedtime.  This is especially important since right now, my kids are going to bed almost 2 hours later than I would l would like.

Plan dinners ahead of time so that after school time isn’t such a rush--I love having dinners are ready to go in the freezer so on busy nights I can just reach in and grab dinner, instead of having to get take-out. There are tons of websites and calendars devoted to planning ahead meals that will guide you through the process of preparing and freezing your meal, and will also give you some yummy recipe suggestions. Two of my favorites that will help you stock your freezer are Don’t Panic, Dinners in the Freezer or Once a Month Cooking.

Invest in a large family calendar--Make sure that every member of your family knows where you need to be each night with a family calendar.  There are a wide variety of calendars to chose from, I particularly like the wipe off monthly calendars. 

Hope these tips help you get back into your school time routine!

Megan Wolff Galko, is the founder and owner NEPAMom.com.  Megan is a graduate of the University of Scranton and North Pocono HS. Megan has served as Deputy Communications Director for the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED). She is also a former reporter for The Scranton Times and The Moscow Villager. She and her husband, Vince have five children.  They live in Northeastern Pennsylvania.