GETTING KIDS READY FOR SCHOOL

I have recently given up on being the parrot that gets my children out the door. My two boys in school are 5 and 7 now and I have found myself constantly repeating the same catch phrases every morning.
"Have you brushed your teeth?"
"Have you packed your backpack?"
"Have you made your bed?"
"Do you have your shoes on yet?"

You can imagine that after weeks of saying this at least two or three times to each kid, I found myself worn out not to mention tongue-tied. By week eight of school I wasn't even close to saying the right phrases anymore!

Instead of saying "Brush your teeth!" I would be asking or telling (depending on how late we were running) the completely dressed kid standing in front of me "Go get dressed!!" or "Go pack your bed!"

It wasn't what I meant, and everyone knew that and while it provided the kids with funny things to laugh about, I was getting stressed out.

So I came up with a great idea, one that I keep returning to, and that I am sure many other moms have devised to save them time, energy and to prevent excessive squawking! I made a chart that included check off boxes for all the chores that the boys were responsible for before leaving for school such as:

1. get dressed
2. make your bed
3. eat breakfast
4. brush your teeth
5. put your shoes on
6. pack your back pack

Now, I can hand them their charts and watch them get to work. It saves me a lot of stress and squawking and I can actually drink a cup of coffee in the morning and devote my nonsensical nagging to the atypical occurrences that cross my path each morning-like the trail of used toilet paper left on the floor, the yogurt dropped on the carpet, and the kid with his pants on backwards, you know the good fights! Good luck mamas!