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Whether they’re starting their first year of kindergarten, heading off to a new school, entering into their first year of school altogether or even starting this year off with a new classroom, new teacher, and new room full of unfamiliar faces, back to school season can be scary -- for our kids and for us parents. Or at least it is for me!

I worry about bullies and pray I’ve raised Ava well so that she’s inclusive, kind and respectful. I worry about whether or not she’ll feel scared, whether she’ll make friends quickly and easily, if she’ll have worries and fears, just like I do for her. And while the fears I have will most likely never go away for the rest of her life, there are some things I want her to know as she enters this school year, or every school year of her life, for that matter -- preschool, kindergarten or her last year of college.

These are the things I want Ava to know before she heads off to her second year of school and this year, she’s got Kindi Kids to help her with some of this. Kindi Kids are four quirky, colorful bobbly head dolls with big glittery eyes that are designed to help make going school a bit less scary – aka the ultimate back-to-school essential.

1. Always dream, believe + imagine.

No matter her age, I want Ava’s imagination to run wild. I want her to always have big dreams for herself and to create a future and a life that she can only now imagine.

Have you ever just sat there and watched your toddler play? It’s amazing, it’s inspiring. The things this little girl comes up with, the things her dolls “say” to each other and the kindness each doll shows toward each other in the eyes and words and imagination of Ava is just incredible. I mean, I want an imagination like she has -- that imagination will help her dream big now and in her future.

2. You’ve always got friends here at home.

Whether she’s made 16 friends on her first day of school or zero friends by the end of her first week, I always want her to know that she’s got friends back here at home -- her Kindi Kids Dolls, pup, brother and US -- her mom and dad. No matter what happens at school, I want her always to remember that we’ve all got her back and she will be our best friends for life.

3. If you work hard, you can play hard.

I know she’s only three, but it’s a lesson I want to instill in her from a very young age. I don’t know about you, but when I was a kid I had no idea why I didn’t get every toy I wanted, why we couldn’t just buy a pool for the backyard when we wanted one, why things were the way they were. Yes, my parents worked very hard and yes, we were provided with a wonderful childhood full of travel, toys and so many amazing memories and you know why? It was because my parents worked hard for us that we got to experience all of that.

My point? Ava won’t be going off to work for her first job for quite some time now but if she understands that she has to work hard at school to then come home and play hard with her toys, then there’s a tiny little lesson she will learn that will hopefully help her work hard to create the future she dreams of.