Today is the day I take the kids to Target to buy their school supplies. Currently on the list are 101 individual items, $50 in cash for various things that must be purchased at school, book covers, backpacks, and lunchbags. Luckily, R and A's trusty LL Bean and Lands' End backpacks have held up extraordinarily well. C's REI pack held up well but was never really big enough to hold her behemoth binder she's required to carry from class-to-class in middle school. The need for the mega-binder grew out of the prohibition of backpacks (and coats) during school hours (for reasons that undoubtedly stem from the tragic Columbine school shootings just down the highway from us but I'm going to stop thinking about that now and get back to my school supply rant). So, we may be looking at backpacks today as well.
Let me be clear - I am perfectly willing to foot the bill for these supplies given the grim state of educational funding in the great state of Colorado. What bugs me is the fact that I'm going to haul my butt around town looking for some pretty specific items (Prang watercolor paints? 3 plastic pocket folders in red, purple, and green? - seems easy enough but you'd better believe Target will carry the red and green but I'll have to go to WalMart to get the purple... things just work out that way). I wish the schools would buy the supplies in bulk (thereby saving money over our individual purchases), tell parents how much to pay mid-summer (adding a little extra to cover supplies for families with financial struggles), with the option of buying a "full kit" or leaving a short list of items (pencils and folders, maybe) to be purchased locally for the kid who just can't make it through the year without something bearing the Transformers logo (or can't face a day of school without a picture of that dreamy Zach Efron to stare at during boring lectures about the 6 P's or whatever else they're calling "Sit down, quit your yapping, and don't be a jerk" this year. I wonder if they'd pay me big "consultant" $$ to make posters to hang around the schools that say that... I can see it now, soft focus kittens, a ball of fuzzy yarn to the side, and "Sit Down" "Quit Your Yapping" and "Don't Be A Jerk" written in groovy bubbles letters. I may be on to something...)
Sign that my kids' school experience is nothing like my own? R needs a USB flash drive. I thought I was high-tech when I was rocking the Trapper Keeper (and feathered hair and winged-out eyeliner and endless pots of Carmex...).
Anyway, I plan to try to enjoy the process of shopping for supplies as much as possible. When we hit a rough patch (Washable Crayola Markers cost HOW MUCH???), I will invoke the name of the goddess of my own youth to pull me through.
I'll let you know how the Target security personnel reacts to me yelling "Oh Molly Ringwald, high priestess of puffy-haired 80's coolness, give me the strength to keep this $2 cardboard folder in perspective!"
I am blessed with a PTO that will buy ALL the supplies for $35 and then hand it to me in a plastic bag on the first day of school. God love them (did I tell you I joined the PTO - yah, I've cut out Campbells soup labels and thats it... I'm the worst...).
ReplyDeleteFor E. we went to Target at the beginning of July and "VOILA" done. And did you know that this week Old Navy had all their clearance on for 50% off? Back to school clothes have been purchased. It's insane.
I couldn't take fighting some kid for the purple binder this year. Really, that's what I did last year. It was awful. (hangs head in shame)
Look at you all on top of it! I'm impressed. I wish (wish!) our PTO would buy supplies like that. I suppose I could volunteer to spearhead the effort... Nah.
ReplyDeleteI know R needs some new clothes and I should probably get on that but he absolutely refuses to go shopping and he's starting to get pretty particular... Maybe I'll wait until the first weekend after school starts (when he's realized he owns exactly 2 pairs of shorts and 2 pairs of underwear that don't squeeze his junk).
I can't believe E is off to kindergarten (or maybe I can't believe E is just now starting kindergarten... depends on the day).
The school supply shopping required trips to 4 different stores. I am now about $150 and a big chunk of sanity lighter than I was on Thursday. Luckily, we got to the stores early enough in the morning that the crowds weren't too bad.
I think we've all had our own version of the "purple binder fight" - I would have torn flesh from bone if someone had taken the last package of highlighters with yellow, green, blue, and pink (the magic combo that school requested but, in the end, was available only in a big dollar multi-pack) out from under my nose.
I think I'd better stay home, away from the public today.