Gearing up for back to school

Sadly, summer is quickly coming to an end & first grade begins for Cam in two short weeks... waaaah!  I can honestly say that this time has gone by in a blur & rather than three months, it feels like one.  Gone will be the days of more relaxed evenings!  But all good things must come to an end, right?  I don't like the person who came up with that saying.  I want all good things to last forever!!

Anyway, like it or not, the school year is lurking & I have to be ready.  Last year we bought Cameron an overpriced yet cheap character backpack that lasted about two weeks before it ripped.  I ended up putting ducktape on the damn thing since I can't handle wasting money; keeping it classy in the Perno house!  This year Cameron is into everything happy or smiley face, so we bought him this, more high-quality backpack that will hopefully last him a few years.

When I was a kid, my mom bought me one JanSport that basically lasted me my entire school career, but seems that kids these days get a new backpack each year.  Not for this gal!

We keep the kids on a pretty strict bedtime routine, basically only straying when it's a special occasion, so that won't be much of a transition.  What we are nipping in the bud is Cameron's way too early wake-up time.  No joke, last Saturday I thankfully forgot to close our bedroom blinds that look into the slider in the family room & woke to the light from the TV blaring in my face.  I looked over at the clock & it was 4:50a.m!!!!  Out of instinct, I immediately shouted, "Mike, it's 4:50 in the morning & Cameron is up!"  Mike leaped out of bed (I'm a horrible wife for waking him!) & the kid went back to sleep for nearly another four hours.  What a nut!

So we ordered Cam this Perry the Platypus alarm clock so he knows when it's an acceptable time to get out of bed.  Mike was worried that a clock might end up causing Cam anxiety, but I feel otherwise.  I cannot stand it when there's not a clock in a room I'm sleeping in & I have no idea what time it is.  The rule is that he cannot get up until 7 a.m.

School supply shopping is knocked out so I'm just making sure our homework station is up to snuff.  I don't care if a room or system looks good, but it it's not functional, it's not for me.  I want things to make my life easier, not more difficult.

{Source}

I picked up this striped caddy to go into our homework basket for under $15 at Target, otherwise we'll keep the same homework spot in the playroom that we used last year.

We're also planning on doing another back-to-school photo shoot with Cam's fellow first graders.  We're hoping to make it an annual thing & use this same desk as a prop so we can see how much they grow as the years progress (sniff, sniff).

I'll also start a new folder to save Cam's first grade work & start it with a picture from the beginning of the school year with all of his stats.

{Source with free printables}

I do have to say though, I'm pretty choosy on the things I save that come home from school.  I'm not overly sentimental so I don't save a piece of paper that has scribbles of color on it.  That about does it, ready or not, first grade, here we come!!!