10 Signs That It’s Back to School Time

It’s here.

The time kids have dreaded since the middle of June and the time that parents have been counting down since the middle of June.

It’s back to school time people.

In my house, 50% of my children (that would be one), are actually excited about going back to school, while the other 50% (the other child), would be happy if summer vacation was a year round thing.

As for me, I fall somewhat in the middle. At the beginning of their vacation I was ready to poke my eyes out with a spork after one day of hearing them argue which Barbie would get to date the Kristoff doll. Sure he’s cute, but for the love of Elsa, I don’t care!!! Anyway, I digress. Slowly, and I mean like shopping by yourself in Target slowly, I began to embrace the fact they were home. I learned how to get my work done with them home (bribery, lots of bribery!) and we got to spend a lot of time together doing fun things. In the end, a bonus.

Now that it’s their last week of vacation, I admit I’m actually going to miss the little divas, although it will be nice to get back to a schedule that includes a steady wine time, I mean bedtime!

Besides the obvious indicator on the calendar, here are 10 signs that it’s back to school time.

  1. You have enough sunscreen left for one more beach day. There’s no way you’re going to buy another bottle. Why can’t they clearance these things like they do beach chairs in the middle of July? Hmmm…
  2. You see the ads for pumpkin spice everything. Let’s drink a piping hot cup of pumpkin spice coffee at the end of August when you’re still putting deodorant on twice a day because of the humidity. That sounds like fun. By the way, I’m not a big pumpkin spice fan if you couldn’t tell.
  3. Your car has more sand than the beach. No matter how hard you tried, your car is full of sand. It’s time for a deep clean.
  4. You have dreams about shopping at Target…alone. Momma has to get her Target on and doing that with the kids is no fun. Those dollar bins end up being anything but when the kids are around.
  5. Dust bunnies have taken refuge in your home. Let’s face it, cleaning the house takes a back seat during the summer months. When you’re aboard the fun train, there’s no room for the Swiffer. Now, it’s time to get down and dirty.
  6. You’ve memorized the entire order of the Kidz Bop CD & sing it more than your kids. I’m guilty of this one. One day my kids told me to stop. I was apparently embarrassing them while belting out “Hand Clap” when it was just the three of us in the car.
  7. You fall asleep before your kids. Being the head counselor at “Camp Mom” is exhausting. You can’t help but fall asleep by 9…ok 8:30!
  8. You can’t remember the last time you used the words “bed” and “time” in the same breath. Let’s face it no matter how much you love your kids knowing that they’re off to bed in two hours gives you hope that you will get to binge watch some of your shows. Thank-you back to school time!
  9. All of the flips have flopped. The kids lived in their flip flops all summer and they have the broken shoes to show for it. Sure it’s still warm out but there’s no way you’re buying another pair now. That would be silly. That’s why they created duct tape.
  10. Your kids are arguing for the tenth time in one hour & you could care less. As a mother you learn to block things out that other normal humans can’t. With that said,you can also hear your child call your name in the middle of a Bon Jovi concert. It’s a skill. But, there comes a point when hearing your children argue again doesn’t phase you in the least. Quite frankly, you don’t care. The neighbors may be yelling at them to stop but you don’t hear a thing. Not one.

What are your tell-tale signs that it’s time to hop back on the school bus?

Time to raise your glass to another school year! Cheers!

Review: Cave Tools Fish Grill Basket

*This is a sponsored post for Cave Tools. All opinions are mine.

Cooking fish on the grill is a totally different experience than cooking meat. I’ve found with different kinds of meat you can usually just put it on the grill and not worry too much about pieces falling off or getting caught on the grill.

Depending on what types of fish you cook and whether it has skin on it or not, cooking fish can become a little tricky. That’s where the Cave Tools Fish Grill Basket comes in handy.

I love to cook salmon so I decided to give my new gadget a try.

 

After seasoning it with garlic, salt, and pepper, I lightly sprayed the grill basket and put my salmon in. It was easy to get into the basket which snapped tightly so I knew the fish wasn’t going to fall out and spill out into the grill.

 

From there I gently placed it on the grill and waited for the magic to happen. The trick was to place the basket in the right direction so that the handles didn’t get stuck in the grill grates. The fish never fell out and cooked evenly. But, when it came when it came to turning over the fish, you need to be careful that the basket doesn’t get caught in the grates; no matter what kind of tongs or over mitts you use.

Once the fish was cooked, I took the basket off the grill and got it ready to serve. The fish was cooked perfectly. Although I had used cooking spray on the basket before putting the salmon in it, it did stick a bit as I tried to get it out. This was really the only issue I had besides figuring out how to turn over the basket without it getting stuck in the grill.

The Fish Grill Basket from Cave Tools is a great catch if you cook fish regularly and don’t want to get that fishy smell all over your grill. It’s also easy to clean and dish washer safe, so you won’t be scrubbing forever. If you want to order a basket from Cave Tools be sure to use the coupon code FISH15 to get 15% off a small fish grill basket.