The blogosphere is buzzing, the web is whirring, and TV and radio commercials are in overdrive about back-to-school. Every fall you’d think parents had never done this before. Surely there can’t be that much controversy about what to put in kids’ backpacks, how to dress kids coolly but economically, or preparing healthy lunches! Yet, every year the same stories, with the same theme, asking the same questions, and giving the same answers appear, heralded with enough fanfare to make you believe the writers are discovering America or inventing oxygen. “Top Ten Back-to-School Tips!” “12 Back-to-School Essentials!” “5 Back-to-School Pitfalls to Avoid!” Sheesh.
\nHere’s the story I’d like to see: “What to Do When Your Kids are Old Enough to Get Themselves Back-to-School without You.” We have a wonderful collection of pictures of our kids over the years, posed with their backpacks on the front porch on the first day of school each fall. Spanning from kindergarten through high school, this gallery is visual testimony to the wonderful experience of parenting kids when they’re at home, tucked in their beds each night and groggy before school each morning. But, alas, there comes a time in their lives when all you do for back-to-school is drive them to the airport or make a deposit in their bursar accounts for the new semester’s tuition. Back-to-school becomes empty bedrooms at home and a lonely dog. This is NOT sadness you’re reading. Or regrets. This is warm nostalgia about days that were long, years that were short, and times that we remember like they were yesterday because we were there with our kids every step of the way.
\nAnd this is also about the great pride we have that our babies are now packing their own backpacks, picking up their own luggage at baggage claim, and returning to their own apartments where they now belong.
\nCherish every backpack you pack when they’re young, and then be grateful when your kids reach the stage where back-to-school doesn’t involve you much anymore.
", "datePublished": "2012-08-27", "dateModified": "2012-08-27", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Dr. Harley Rotbart", "url": "https://harleyrotbart.com", "jobTitle": "Pediatrician, Author, Parenting Expert" }, "publisher": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Dr. Harley Rotbart", "url": "https://harleyrotbart.com" }, "mainEntityOfPage": { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://harleyrotbart.com/blog/our-new-back-to-school-reality" }, "wordCount": 332, "timeRequired": "PT2M", "articleSection": "parenting" } --- [Harley Rotbart, M.D. Author • Pediatrician • Grandfather ](/) [Books](/books) [Blog](/blog)[About](/about) [Contact](/#contact) [Back to Blog](/blog)parenting # Our New Back-to-School Reality August 27, 2012 2 min read The blogosphere is buzzing, the web is whirring, and TV and radio commercials are in overdrive about back-to-school. Every fall you’d think parents had never done this before. Surely there can’t be that much controversy about what to put in kids’ backpacks, how to dress kids coolly but economically, or preparing healthy lunches! Yet, every year the same stories, with the same theme, asking the same questions, and giving the same answers appear, heralded with enough fanfare to make you believe the writers are discovering America or inventing oxygen. “Top Ten Back-to-School Tips!” “12 Back-to-School Essentials!” “5 Back-to-School Pitfalls to Avoid!” Sheesh. Here’s the story I’d like to see: “What to Do When Your Kids are Old Enough to Get Themselves Back-to-School without You.” We have a wonderful collection of pictures of our kids over the years, posed with their backpacks on the front porch on the first day of school each fall. Spanning from kindergarten through high school, this gallery is visual testimony to the wonderful experience of parenting kids when they’re at home, tucked in their beds each night and groggy before school each morning. But, alas, there comes a time in their lives when all you do for back-to-school is drive them to the airport or make a deposit in their bursar accounts for the new semester’s tuition. Back-to-school becomes empty bedrooms at home and a lonely dog. This is NOT sadness you’re reading. Or regrets. This is warm nostalgia about days that were long, years that were short, and times that we remember like they were yesterday because we were there with our kids every step of the way. And this is also about the great pride we have that our babies are now packing their own backpacks, picking up their own luggage at baggage claim, and returning to their own apartments where they now belong. Cherish every backpack you pack when they’re young, and then be grateful when your kids reach the stage where back-to-school doesn’t involve you much anymore. Share this post: [](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fharleyrotbart.com%2Fblog%2Four-new-back-to-school-reality)[](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fharleyrotbart.com%2Fblog%2Four-new-back-to-school-reality&text=Our%20New%20Back-to-School%20Reality)[](https://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=https%3A%2F%2Fharleyrotbart.com%2Fblog%2Four-new-back-to-school-reality&title=Our%20New%20Back-to-School%20Reality) HR ### Dr. Harley Rotbart, M.D. Nationally-renowned pediatrician, parenting expert, and bestselling author helping families thrive for over 38 years. [Learn More About Dr. Rotbart](/#about) [Previous Post #### Update on Our New Back-to-School Reality ](/blog/update-on-our-new-back-to-school-reality)[Next Post #### Why I Love Little League Baseball, and Why You Should, Too ](/blog/why-i-love-little-league-baseball-and-why-you-should-too) Harley Rotbart, M.D. Nationally-renowned pediatrician, parenting expert, and author. An archive of his books, essays, and writing. [](https://www.facebook.com/harleyrotbartmd/)[](https://www.linkedin.com/in/harley-rotbart-m-d-4817a66/)[](https://www.harleyrotbart.com/youtube-features/) #### Explore - [About](/about) - [Books](/books) - [Blog](/blog) - [Contact](/#contact) #### Books - [The Countdown](/books/the-countdown) - [101 Lessons From The Dugout](/books/101-lessons) - [No Regrets Parenting](/books/no-regrets-parenting) - [No Regrets Living](/books/no-regrets-living) - [Miracles We Have Seen](/books/miracles-we-have-seen) #### Connect - [Blog Archive](https://www.harleyrotbart.com/blog/) - [Reviews & Appearances](https://www.harleyrotbart.com/reviews/) © 2026 Harley Rotbart, M.D. All rights reserved. Parenting Expert • Pediatrician • Author • Educator Made With [](https://heardmarketing.io)by [HEARD](https://heardmarketing.io)