Insomnia Anyone? 

It is almost time to go back to school!  I always start the year with a bit of nervous excitement.  On the one hand I am anxious to meet a new crop of third graders, but on the other I am always worried that I won't get everything done before the first day.  Each night before school starts I will invariably have insomnia and struggle with the recurring nightmare of going to school in my pajamas, hair sticking up all over and breath stinky from not brushing my teeth.  

Planning is the Key to Sleep Filled Nights

Some of the things I do to ease the transition is to make sure that I am fully planned for the first few days well before the start of school.  Planning eases my mind and allows me to release that stress from my thoughts! However, we always have that uncertainty in our planning, such as duty schedule or which hoops we need to jump through the first two weeks.  

Pinterest, while making me feel totally inadequate and inferior, does offer many new ideas for the first day of school and beyond.  I am faced with decisions such as whether or not to buy cookies for 32 students for the first day or do I have time to fill bags with Starburst to show students how thrilled I am to have them with me for third grade?  Wait...I am doing what I said I would not do! I said I would never join or exploit the joys of Pinterest!  Dangit! Oh well, I have gone to the dark side never to return to the world of non-Pinterest.  

I also spend much time perusing Target, Staples and Office Depot.  We all know that we can only buy supplies this cheap once per year and no teacher wants to miss the boat and run out of glue sticks in December!  Is it me or does it seem that there are not very many good deals this year?  I always stress about finding the "perfect" deal on folders or glue sticks, only to find that I can only buy 10 at a time.  I will have to drag my entire family to the store to purchase the 35 I will need of any one item. Sometimes,  I will need at least 4 sets of folders or notebooks which means I will need at least 8 friends to join me at Staples, for three days in a row (feel the sarcasm?)

So today I am pondering whether to run to Target, Office Depot, or Staples- or.... just stay at home and enjoy the last breath of summer.  It will be gone in a few short days.