A question every parent asks their child before the first day of school.  Lunch box? check. gym shoes? check. School supplies? check- At least you hope. 

School supply lists have been around for years; those supplies parents are required to provide for their children.  What is a Fiskars scissor?  Prang paints?  A Trapper Keeper?  All questions The Write Stuff answer dozens of times in the back-to-school rush.  As the economy belt has been tightened recently, we see more and more items being put on the student supply list.  Hand soap and hand sanitizer, paper towels, reams of copy paper, even toilet paper has shown up this year!

The Write Stuff, Inc has been working with schools across the country to provide the correct school supplies for students for the past decade.  We work directly with school administrations or their parent organizations to package the items each teacher or grade level requests at their school.  Orders are collected thru the school volunteer, or we can organize it and host the sale online.  A “no-brainer” for busy parents!

Our pre-packaged kits, designed by each teacher, are shipped to the school for distribution at events like Meet the Teacher, or placed on desks for the first day of school.  Don’t want to pass them out?  We can ship directly home… eliminating that last step.  How easy is that? 

No more running from store to store, children in tow, trying to locate specific colored notebooks and folders, odd sized crayon boxes, and all the rest of the “stuff”.   Let The Write Stuff do it for you!  If your school does not participate, you can build your own kit from our online store….How easy!

I recently spoke with a desperate mother who told me the story of getting up at 4:00 AM to go complete her shopping before her husband left for work…having NO interest in taking her 3 children.  She found some of the items off the list at one store, had to wait until 6:00 AM at another for it to open, only to find its’ stock was totally picked over.  That evening, at her third stop, she had to buy $30+ worth of dry erase markers only to pull out the specific colors she needed, and toss the rest in a drawer at home.  After her story she asked… “Would it have been cheaper to buy from you?”  My response was, “What you spent on dry erase markers alone would have gotten you everything.”  Her only reply was, “You’ll have my business next year!”

Living in the midwest, schools start for us around the end of August.  Being as today is July 23rd, that gives us about 1 month to get our 4 children ready.  Advertisements for backpacks, lunch boxes, clothes, etc have already entered my post office mail box as well as my email inbox.  I guess it's time to start thinking about it! So, in the spirit of preparing I've listed my top 5 "things" that we historically do to prepare for school.

1.  haircut  2.  backpack  3.  lunch box  4.  new shoes  5.  new shirt for 1st day

As school supplies are our business, that is a given... my kids find no excitement in a new box of crayons like I use to as a child... overexposure to blame.  :)

The count down begins!

The last day of the month is upon us... where did June go?  Independence Day is here though which is my favorite holiday of the year.  In our neighborhood we celebrate with several activities; an adult softball game, kids catch frogs in a local pond and have a frog jumping contest, a parade with oodles of bikes, pets, and even floats, followed by a community picnic that draws close to 500 people.  In the back of my head I know this is when we begin the down slide of summer.  I've been told Hallmark stores will be bringing out the Christmas ornaments soon, and I'm sure if I looked hard enough I could find Halloween costumes.  I'm not looking though.  I'm focusing on the sunshine and swimming pool.  Back to school season is first.   I'm taking these one event at a time!

Children in our area of the country are pouring out of the school house doors and looking for summer fun.  Swimming pools, sprinklers, vacations, summer camps, you name it.  As a parent of 4 children, I often start summer with trepidation in trying to find ways to keep everyone occupied, and not "plugged in" to electronics.  Come August, I will reflect on how fast it really passed and remind myself that next summer I won't feel that way (though I always do).  My goal this summer is to relax and enjoy each day. This is tougher than it sounds!  With one broken arm in the family already (swing set dismount gone bad), we are being creative in finding ways to pass the time.  In the grand scheme.... all is good!

Last weekend was a day to mulch in the midwest.  The decision we face each year is whether to have a delivery of mulch in bulk yards or to buy bags of it. 

The delivery of yards is cost effective; more for your money.  Bags on the other hand, are more convenient.  They can be transported easily around a yard, and the mulching can be done in stages.  

The same applies to school supplies!  Buying supplies in bulk can be more cost effective.  However, finding everything  a teacher requests (or 4 teachers in my case), is overwhelming.  You may only need one hiliter, but you can't buy only one hiliter!

Our company packages all the necessary supplies into a convenient one-stop-shop bundle.  We include all items as instructed by each teacher in each school we service.  Don't see your school?  Then hand pick your items from our school store.  This can be done AFTER the kids are in bed, without dragging them up and down the aisles, and without the "extra" things ending up in your cart!

Have a school list we can add to our store?  email it to us!  contact@write-stuff.com

I always seem to be running… (I’ve been a runner for the past 10 years)
Since 1897, the Boston Marathon has been held on the third Monday of April.  As a runner myself, I look at those participants in wonder and amazement.  Training takes hard work, discipline and perseverance; the same applies to parenting!  When crossing the finish line of a race, a feeling of accomplishment overcomes you.  Thankfully, the “parenting finish line” really is never crossed… allowing us to enjoy the journey instead.  

“Running” a family
Each day I find raising four children and owning my own business a challenge.  Trying to “do it all” is a goal we all try to achieve.  

“Running” a business
At a recent Women’s Business Summit I heard my new motto:  “In order to have it all you can’t do it all”.  So, I’m making time for my family, I’m making time for my running,  and I’m making time for my business.  My life may seem like a marathon sometimes, but it is still a journey I’m enjoying.  

Inspiration and Hope!
I won’t deny there are days I’d like to hit the trail running and not come back.  It is stressful trying to wear a lot of hats -or in this case- shoes!- but I wouldn’t trade my path.  

Each year I set new running goals, from time improvements to earning cool t-shirts at races to supporting good causes; all with my personal growth in mind.  Looking at my business in this way is important too.  Does Crayola or Elmer’s sell cool t-shirts?  Anyway, growth is the key word here and I will continue to find ways to help myself, my family and my business flourish!