Most of you already know that I don’t like to spend money on
things that shouldn’t cost a lot of money.
I simply refuse. I don’t mind
paying someone for their services or products that are worthy of my hard earned
money, but things like school supplies should not cost a fortune! Especially when most items are returned at
the end of the year barely used, but not reusable. Yes… these kids go through tons of crayons,
markers, pencils, paper, etc. but some of the other things seem a bit
wasteful. We have to purchase things for
the classroom as well… and I don’t dare complain about that. I have too many teacher friends and I know
they spend a great deal of their money on purchasing things for their
room. It’s not fair to them considering
how much they actually make for the wonderful job that they do each day. I mean, come on… I send my kids to school for
a reason… I don’t want them home with me all day every day... and I can NOT... I repeat NOT teach them anything without great frustration!! It's in everyone's best interest my kids attend school. So, sending several containers of Clorox wipes,
baby wipes, Kleenex, and paper towels is the least I can do for what their teachers have
to put up with. And, if I send it… they
will use it to keep the room nice and clean!
Anyhow, back to the matter at hand. Purchasing school supplies… I find great deals all summer long and purchase ahead every time something is at a good price. And by a good price… I mean 25 cents or less, like 5 cents or 1 cent. Last week I got 3 packs of index cards and 3 prong, pocket folders all at a penny a piece. I had to spend $5 to get the deal, but there were other things I needed to purchase anyhow, so it worked out wonderfully! I spent my $5 on my other items, which actually only cost $1 each, then got my sale items for pennies… I spent a little more than $5 and got binder clips, packs of sharpies, red pens, erasers, etc. It was definitely worth it!
- Get your school supply list as soon as school is out. The list really doesn’t change that much from year to year. It’s basically the same, so keep it handy and look at what you might need for next year while you are planning to purchase items for this year. If you see that rulers or page dividers might be necessary for the following year and they are on sale for a nickel or a penny… go ahead and buy them now! These things will not go to waste… trust me on that one! They will eventually use things like that – Middle School and High School will be coming faster than you think...
- Sign up for emails for places like Walgreens, Office Depot/Max, Walmart, HEB, etc. I even got stuff from Toys R Us one year. They had Crayola crayons in 24 pks for 25 cents with no limit. I bought all they had left, which was something like 10 packs and shared them with my friends! Some of these companies will send you a sneak peek of the sale paper for the next week, so you can plan ahead what to buy. Go on SUNDAY before everything is sold out. You might get a few things that are left over on Monday… but the early bird… you know how it goes… (I use a junk email account for this – it’s not one I have to look at every day, and I use it for all my online purchases, newsletters, contest entries, etc. – I recommend you do the same or your regular inbox will be overwhelmed!)
- Get a storage box that you can keep in a closet, under a bed, or someplace out of the way. Then you can put all the school supplies that you buy in it until you need them. There will always be that time mid-year that a classroom or specials teacher will require an item or two… chances are you might already have it in your box! Then you seem amazing when your kid shows up with it the very next day. The teachers think you are so awesome and organized… they don’t know you pulled it out from underneath the bed and it probably has been in your box for a year or two… LOL (Well, now all my kids teachers reading this know about my secret stash… but they’ve already had my kid, so hopefully they won’t tell the others in the next grade level I’m not as awesome as I appear to be… Ha!!)
- If it’s a good deal, go ahead and buy extra or at least the limit allowed. You can always donate it to a school supply drive or give it to a friend. It’s funny how sometimes it’s the little things that make a huge difference. Someone will say… “I can’t find XYZ” and I will check my box… if I have it, then I can pass it along and relieve their frustration. Last year red spirals were hard to find in the stores for some reason, but thankfully I had bought them the year before. Sometimes you get lucky like that!
I do try to stick to the name brand items if it’s specifically on the list. BUT, let me tell you… sometimes the other stuff is good too. Crayons, eh… not so much to be honest… I’m a total Crayola girl, but I will occasionally buy other brands to use for craft projects and maybe not to use for actual coloring. It’s not always about the brand, color, or type of item, it’s about having something to use, so just do the best you can! If it does have to be specific, the teacher will let you know. I always find they are happy to work with you on using something close if you are struggling to find that one item they require.
Ok, I think that’s about it for the lesson of the day. I will be sure to add anything else if I
think of it. Feel free to ask questions
if you are confused or overwhelmed. I
really do love to shop for school supplies!
I’m crazy like that, but you already know I’m crazy… yet… you love me
anyway!!
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