Get your family organized over the Labor Day Weekend!

This three-day weekend gives you the perfect opportunity to get ready for the school year. Using the Merit Planner , meet with every family member -- yes, your husband, too, to discuss what's happening over the next few months. Turn off the TV, take away the cell phones, and open up the Merit Planners. Have everyone enter in the dates for parties, out-of-town plans, and appointments. Then add in after-school activities, games/competitions, and other obligations. By getting everyone in your family on the same page, you'll find that you won't overbook the family, and the kids will have a better handle on what the family is doing.

Once you get the family activities organized, get your home organized for the fall. Pack away the summer things like water toys, beach gear, and other seasonal things. Set up your children's rooms for studying. Clear their desks and stock them with Diana Hacker's "A Writer's Reference" and a dictionary. Make sure their computers and printers are in good shape for the year; you don't want to find the printer malfunctioned just before a paper is due. And, finally, stock their drawers with plenty of printer ink cartridges, pens, dry erase pens, and a good calculator. By starting the fall organized, you're setting up your children for success.