Backpacks

Boy, I am back to blogging in full force now. I've been thinking about backpacks a lot lately. Soon my children will be going back to school and I need to purchase them a new backpack. Natalie needs something large as she starts middle school this year. I have heard they get a lot of work in the 6th grade too. So I want to make sure she has a large enough backpack to carry all of her books in. But it also needs to be able to hold all of those books without ripping. And really if I'm going to spend $50 on a backpack I would like it to last more than a year. So I began my search with Lands End backpacks. This one has caught my attention:


Natalie likes it for it's color. I like the padding and the appearance that it's sturdy and lasts long. It also seems like it would hold a lot in it, but it's hard to tell without actually touching it too. However, I know Lands End is a good company that stands behind their products. I have no doubt that if I had any issues that they would resolve it.

Then there's the Jansport bag. I have one actually. Got it when I was in high school and I still have it. It does have a hole in it, but it actually still functions very well for me. We still use it a lot. I carried my high school and college books in it. We have used it for travel as well. So I know Jansport is a good quality bag. Here's the one I like which also happens to be like mine:


This one is slightly larger than the Lands End bag. Given my previous experience with Jansport I am almost inclined to go with the Jansport.

But still I'd like to hear others opinions on this. So please tell me if you have any experience with Lands End and Jansport and which you prefer. Or if there's something out there that is 10 times better than either of these brands. My ideal situation would be that I get a backpack that will last my girls through high school. Now I know this might be asking for too much out of a back pack and when children are involved, but I'm so tired of having to buy a new backpack every year. And while my children insist that I get a new one for them they rarely get rid of their old one. So we have quite the collection of old used backpacks going on here. So if I could cut down on that growing collection that would be great. So please don't be afraid to post your opinions here on which would be the best backpack to buy.