We’ve prepared 10 ideas to help you and your family enter the new year feeling well-prepared.
1) Make it easier on yourself to find things the kids like in their school lunches by trying out some new flavours and different foods over the holidays. Introducing them over the relaxed holiday period will make your children more likely to accept them in their lunchboxes next year.
2) Discuss with your kids what extra-curricular activities and sports they’d like to do next year and think about registering your interest in time for Term 1, as many of the popular classes will fill quickly. Refer to our Classes and School Holiday Activities page in the directory section of the magazine for further ideas.
3) You could also try some new holiday programmes as an opportunity for your kids to try something new and see if they’d like to do it on a more regular basis once the new term starts.
4) And, how about planning something for yourself? You might want to consider doing some study next year, or an exercise class (there are zumba classes, boot camps and green gyms popping up all over the place) or maybe join a club of some sort. Use the holiday time to write a list of some things you’d like to try next year.
5) Now’s the time of year that you need to start thinking about childcare options for next year. If you’re thinking about moving to or starting your child at a new centre, consider visiting some early on and talking to them about suitability for your child.
6) For those of you with school-aged children, the latter part of the school holidays are a good time to start thinking about ordering uniforms and new shoes, as leaving this until the last minute is never a good idea! Quality shoes on developing feet are super-important when kids are wearing them every day, and getting sturdy and functional school and swim bags to hold all their gear also ensures an organised start to the new school year.
7) Labelling and personalising your belongings is also another must-do prior to the new year starting. Make your child’s life easier by clearly labeling their uniforms, shoes, bags and even lunchboxes. There are some great products for both school kids and preschoolers out there, from bag tags and wristbands, to pencil cases and stationery.
8) Sort out old clothes and toys. Fill a bag of unwanted or outgrown clothes and toys to donate to your local hospice or charity shop – gives you some more space to house all the inevitable new Christmas toys, and you’re doing a good deed at the same time.
9) Clear out a patch of garden (it doesn’t have to be very big), and plant some seedlings for vegetables and/or herbs you use daily. By the time Christmas is over, you’ll have fresh lettuce, tomatoes or herbs, for example, to add variety and extra goodness to your meals (and save time by not having to shop as often).
10) Use some quiet time these summer holidays to go through any magazine recipe clippings that you may have collected or cookbooks that you’ve not looked in for a while and use those to make yourself a list of ‘must-try’ recipes. Find some tasty new recipes to add to your weekly dinner repertoire
