Back to School shopping

Didn't summer JUST start? Why are we thinking about Back to School shopping NOW?!? Crazy, huh? Well for one, I love school supplies. I think school supplies shopping is very fun. It makes me excited and giddy for some reason. Pencils, erasers, glue, oh my!

Two - prices. I'm a cheapass, but you probably already knew that. The bottom line is, I HATE paying for more than I have to.

With those things in mind, I will admit that I started shopping for school supplies from the moment I got my kids' supply lists back in April. Fo' realz...even preschoolers who aren't even out of diapers yet have supplies lists! Wipes, swim diapers, watercolors, etc.

Appropriately, I came across a post on how to save money while shopping for school supplies from the blog called Organized Home. I really enjoyed the article because not only did it provide tips, but it also confirmed that the way I'd been approaching the whole school supplies thing is right. My husband probably thinks I'm a little nuts for thinking about school supplies so far in advance but the truth is, if I'm prepared with a game plan, I can save us a lot of money. I've been keeping an eye out for coupons, sales, I can afford to play the waiting game on certain items, watching for them to go on sale, then attacking when they do. Time is a great advantage when you work with it on your side.

Here's another justification to my madness though. Most stores have a 90 day return policy so if I see something that's a good deal now, I'll buy it and tape my receipt to the item if applicable. (I'm storing all of my supplies in an old diaper box. If taping the receipt to the item is not feasible, I will keep it in a plastic bag and throw the receipt in the bag so I know exactly where it is and what it goes with.) I know there will be back to school sales when I can get school glue for 10 cents a bottle, but I've also shopped for school supplies enough to know that there are many things...many specific things that teachers and schools want that will not be on the sales fliers come August. Things like an 8 oz bottle of glue will be the same price now as it will be a month from now during back to school sales because it's always the 4 oz ones that goes on sale. Unfortunately, most teachers want the 8 oz bottles instead of a gazillion 4 oz ones even though you can get 20 bottles for the price of one 8 oz bottle.

So yes, I do think of school supplies now, in June while I'm taking my kids to the pool or baseball practice, or while I'm shopping for groceries. I always keep my eye out for things I'll need and stock up if it's a really good deal. The hard part is remembering where you put them. :p

If school supplies shopping is in your near future, now isn't too early to start thinking about it. I also recommend the article from Organized Home. Happy shopping!

And yeah one of the things I have to get is 24 no. 2 pencils, all sharpened. Do you have any idea how uber grateful I am of my husband for finding my electric pencil sharpener that my dad gave me when I was in 2nd grade?!?! That thing is ancient but still works great, and I'm so glad I have it. My blogging carpal tunnel plagued wrists are thankful.