Big school, Kindergarten, Pre-K, MMO, Montessori, Homeschool, Daycare or maybe school is still a long way off...Either way, we could all use a little help getting back into a post Summer/Back to School routine.

This month we asked the FIT4MOM team for their top Back to School tips. Check out our list below:

Plan Ahead

• Pack school lunches the night before when cleaning up from Dinner.

• Have breakfast prepared, ready to grab and go first thing.

• Have clothes laid out and pre picked to avoid arguments in the morning.

• Set the coffee maker to turn on at a predetermined time the next morning.

Communication

Consider alternate questions that you can ask your kid rather than “How was your day?”. For example, what made you smile today, who did you sit with at lunch, what made your teacher smile today, what was the hardest rule to follow today, did you enjoy your lunch, can you tell me an example of kindness you saw/showed?

Time

Have you heard of the ‘nine minute’ theory? There are nine minutes during the day that can have a profound impact on a child:

• the first three minutes–right after they wake up

• the three minutes after they come home from school

• the last three minutes of the day–before they go to bed

Of course, these are the hardest nine minutes of your day. (Breakfast, the school run, and bedtime). So this week, we challenge you to think on which times of the day your interactions with your children seem to have the most impact? Once you identify them, take a pause and see if some mindful attention can change the course of your day.

And remember Mama, you can do hard things! We believe in you!