Simplify The Whirlwind Of Going To And Coming Home From School

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Jimmy Dean®. The opinions and text are all mine.

School craziness is about to start up again. Exciting times of new classrooms, new friends, new studies and of course the same craziness of trying to get the kids out of the house to school on time. This is followed 7 hours later by a hurricane of kids coming home from school. Even though we only have 2 kids, it seems like at times those 2 kids act like they somehow multiplied while at school, and heaven help us if any friends or cousins are coming over after school.

Since this will be year #5 of school, we have picked up some tips and tricks to make things easier in the morning. The 2 biggest issues we face in the morning are both food related. If the kids are packing a lunch for that day, they always delay and do it at the last moment and it takes them forever to start and finish eating breakfast. We have been that family who has their child(ren) running out the door with breakfast in their hand so they can make the bus on time.

So for your morning, try these 2 simple solutions

• Have your child pack their lunch before bed the night before – this will free up time in the morning and now the only hard part will be remembering to grab it on your way out the door.
• Jimmy Dean® Pancakes & Sausage on a Stick can save the morning – These tasty treats are ready in under a minute and kids love the taste of the sausage and pancake together.

I admit, even with the kids packing their lunch the night before, we have still had them running out the door with a Jimmy Dean® Pancakes & Sausage on a Stick or a Sausage, Egg & Cheese Croissant Sandwich in their hand! Like I said, mornings can be hectic!

After putting in about 6-7 hours of work while the kids are away, that same bus that they run to in the morning drops them off and once again all chaos ensues! Here are our 2 tips to help with the after school craziness!

• Do homework first – I cannot stress this enough, get the homework done, this means you won’t be dealing with it after band or soccer or before bed b/c they forgot.

After school means homework first, here is the simple math problem we as parents deal with daily.

Kids home from school = Chaos + screams of “I’m STARVING”

• Feed the beast(s) – As you get them starting their homework, it is important to keep them fed and focused on homework, otherwise homework takes waaaaay too long. Our kids love State Fair® Classic Corn Dogs. We like how easy they are to prepare and serving the corn dogs to the kids with a fruit like grapes or a banana is a great way to provide a balanced snack.

The State Fair® Classic Corn Dogs are a great treat for the kids, they taste great, and they can eat them as they do their homework. Also, the corn dogs are awesome for a quick snack to make sure they have something in their tummies before going to soccer or whatever the practice or event is for the day.

These treats are possible with a little bit of help and a great value from Walmart. Walmart carries both Jimmy Dean® and State Fair® products and that’s great, because we can grab these and anything else we need as our kids continue to eat us out of house and home!

Walmart helps us keep our kids fueled for school, as well as after school activities. Jimmy Dean® and State Fair® let us spend more time with the kids and less time at the stove.

How do you handle the whirlwind of going back to school?