It might be tempting to do the “I’m not listening,” fingers-in-ears dance upon seeing
this headline.
Hey, we sympathize — we don’t want summer to be over, either. We’re not done taking
half-days on Friday, spending long weekends in the sun, and eating every possible meal
outside.
While we still have a good 20 days until Labour Day to indulge in these kinds of
activities, your favorite stores are already plotting for the next big shopping season:
back to school.
Photo: Flora
But before the shopping, one of the largest fairs in North America. the Canadian
National Exhibition, opens from Aug. 16 – Sep. 2, providing 18 days of fun for
everyone.
A wide variety of entertainment & events, concerts & celebrity chef demonstrations,
midway rides and games, a working farm, animals, parades & sports, international food
& shopping, Kids’ World, and a 3-day Air Show!
shopping done at Exhibition Place, which will have plenty of vendors on-hand.
Flora Family
While enjoying the full entertainment at the CNE, you might even get half of your
Whether or not you’re actually returning to school, there’s no denying that the lazy pace
of summer ramps up come September, while the temperature simultaneously shimmies
down, making the act of shopping for a new laptop, warm comforter, or cozy sweater
Panwar Music & Dance
Photo : Surjit Singh Flora
something of a necessity.
Luckily, retailers know this, and they’re softening the blow somewhat with a plethora of
back-to-school sales — which we naturally had to round up for you here.
So, if you take a break from tanning, hiking, or grilling in the next few days, take a
moment to see what’s marked down in the world of fall goods. Your September self will
thank you.
For kids going back to school, it’s that time to make sure your to-do lists are completed.
What all do the kiddos need for class again? Probably a planner, pens, mechanical
pencils and highlighters. They will need backpacks for school, and what about insulated
lunch bags? We have trendy backpacks for stylists, backpacks with wheels for those on
the go and toddler backpacks for your littlest ones. There are even tween backpacks and
backpacks, red backpacks, yellow backpacks and pink school backpacks.
clearance backpacks. Are the kiddos loving a specific color right now? There are purple
Fill their backpack of choice with Five Star notebooks, Crayola markers, gel pens and
maybe some notepads if they’re more their style. Have a little artist? Stock up on
drawing pencils, crayons and white paper.
While all the fun and vacation time is great, as parents, we understand our mild
vexation at keeping close tabs until when they are back at school, for with a household
full of kids to entertain and keep occupied, we feel like I am channeling the 24/7 hour
band on a cruise ship. Never stopping, and always ready to tango!
Also, “summers” get easier when children are a bit older.
Now there are delightful adventures to be had where we can have fun too, rather than
stress about the amount of packing and planning we would have to do. Teenagers
always find ways of entertaining themselves and the younger ones have each other to
get up to mischief with.
Another reality is that when we have small children who will get cranky and miserable
if left to just run wild throughout the day without any intention, things are going to get
very ugly, very fast. Do not forget the usual schedule that we have, wake up on time and
stick to proper bedtimes. We can obviously be a little flexible but still have a general
framework of how the day goes. Too much free time can also be a bad thing!
Everybody loves a good summer. But it’s up to us to make it happen!
Don’t panic and stress thinking the kids are home, for you are then succumbing to the
Summertime madness.
Instead, plan, organize or just go with the flow on some days, and those beautiful family
memories will be had.
We only have a good 18 to 20 summers with our children before they fly off on their
adventures, so make each one a summer to remember!
Happy (rest of the) Holidays and have fun at the CNE!
