To My Friends with College Bound Kids ~ Are You Ready?

*This post is sponsored by Sears. All opinions are mine.


As Summer winds down, we are getting ready to send Boogie, our oldest, to 1st grade. We are shopping for a new backpack, crayons, pencils, paper and glue stix. Grandma enjoys taking him for new clothes and shoes. I can't imagine what my friends with college bound kids are going through. I have one friend who is getting ready to send her twin girls off to the University of Michigan, on full academic scholarships, and I'm sure amidst all the shopping and preparations, she is trying to spend as much quality time with the girls before sending them away from home to start their adult lives...it could have been me. This is a classmate of mine. A friend I've known since 7th grade, a friend I re-acquainted with at our 20 year class reunion and continued keeping up with through facebook. It amazes me how different our lives are. It's encouraging to know I always have someone who's "already been through it". I think of her often and wonder how I will handle this transition when the time comes.

Sears is doing everything possible to make this summer an easy transition for parents in the same situation. While they can't help with the "empty nest" anxiety parents are feeling, they have set up CampusReady to insure the shopping is quick and stress free, so parents can enjoy the last moments with their kids before sending them off into the world.

The site is easy to maneuver and contains checklists with all the necessities for outfitting a dorm room OR first apartment. I love their decorating ideas and they've made it easy to find accessories to match. With everything from financial tips to must have clothing, Sears has left nothing out in getting your child prepared to leave home. I really like the "shop by need" category that is broken down into 5 categories; eating, sleeping, studying, playing and cleaning. It allows parents and students to find everything with a simple click. With tips from Ty Pennington throughout the site, it's your one stop before school starts and the rest of the time can be spent enjoying the adults you've raised. They have also partnered with Upromise and are giving away $25,000 towards tuition.(see site for full details)

With a re-loadable gift cards. you can send your child off to school with the tools they need and some extra money to get anything that might have been missed or left behind. They've even added CampusReady on Facebook for the ease of students (and parents) who enjoy connecting through this site.

It will be a long time (though I'm sure it will feel like a blink) before we are sending our kids off to college, I can only hope that tools like this are available to make the transition as easy and fun as Sears has made it for parents and college-bound kids today.