I’m not sleeping.
You could be forgiven for thinking this is because I am about to move house with three small children – three small children who at times have me convinced they are planning to stage a coup.
But no. I’ve moved house so many times before I can pack glassware in my sleep.
No, I’m not sleeping because Ava starts school in less than three weeks and I have no clue what I’m doing. NO CLUE. Of course, I didn’t think I had no clue until last week. Up until last week I thought I had everything under control. This is because I am an idiot.
Just as an FYI, you should know that this post is sponsored by The Athlete’s Foot. But all opinions expressed by the author are 100% authentic and written in their own words.
Last week I found out – thanks to talking to some other Prep mums – that there are, oh, say 50,000 bazillion things I am supposed to have done. Like what?
Like, you know, ordered all the stuff on Ava’s book list.
Contacted her books (once, you know, I ACTUALLY ORDER THEM)
Purchase a new lunchbox that is easy to open and close and looks like Disney threw up all over it.
Purchase a new drink bottle that is easy to open and close and looks like Disney threw up all over it.
Bought cutesie name labels and then labelled the bejeebus out of everything.
Taken Ava’s school uniforms out of the plastic bag they are currently still sitting in and WASHED THEM.
Purchased a chair bag. (Note to self: Google: “what the f-bomb is a chair bag?”)
Top Comments
I have 4 children aged from 6 to 16 so I am familair with the school
system from beginning to end. I have never "contacted" a school book nor
have I ever purchased those cute name labels (which do wear off
eventually). Contact is a complete pain in the @rse to use. If your
child's teacher is old fashioned and insists that you cover school
books, then cover them in brown wrapping paper and allow you child to
decorate with colouring or stickers. If an old fashioned teacher
objects, explain that contact is not environmentally friendly and that
your child will take much more pride and ownership in their work if they
have made the bookcover themselves. I use black marker pen to write
names on books, clothes etc. and whiteout/liquid paper to paint names on
water bottles & lunchboxes (this usually only needs to be touched
up at the beginning of each new school term). For hard to label items
such as pens and pencils, paint a strip of whiteout on each item, allow
to dry then write the name on the strip with a ball point pen. Chair
bags are useful to help a young child learn to organise & take
responsibility for their belongings, most teachers don't use these
beyond year 1 or 2. Sturdy, well fitting shoes are a must and I have
found the fitting
service in Athletes Foot to be far more reliable that in a certain other
leading shoe store that has designted "Kids" branches. However, I have
found assistants even more worthy of a kiss, grope or whatever in my
local branch of Athletes Foot than the gentleman in Bec's photo.
hahahaha...ohhh God, you'll learn soon enough it's a complete waste of time to contact books. But, good-luck all the same (dad of 3 boys and a girl).