It is Time to Get Ready for Back to School.

  Last week while I was visiting my daughter she ask me to help go through her daughters clothes to prepare for school shopping.  Going school clothes shopping was always a big deal to my daughter. She is a lot more excited than my granddaughter who is just starting kindergarten and has never experienced this tradition. The exercise proceeded like this. Mom sorted the clothes in daughter's closet, daughter tried on clothes that were acceptable for school clothes, and grandma hung the acceptable clothes back on hangers. The last step was to match up clothes that could be worn together. After the tedious task was complete, Mom, my daughter had a very saddened look on her face because her daughter didn't need very many clothes to start school.  She looked like a little girl who had just lost her ice cream scoop from her ice cream cone.  This years school shopping was not going to be as much fun as she had hoped it would be, but the great news, it will also not be as expensive.

This really got me thinking about how this event had come too mean so much to my daughter. Every year when it was time to get ready for school I would make an adventure out of the task. As I was pondering my past experiences I realized that I had raised my kids during the recession in the early nineties and I thought there were some things I had learned that could help mothers today. My husband and I lost half of our income and were forced to learn how to stretch our money. The kids and I would take inventory of what we had that would work and make a list of what we needed. Then we would plan a day for the quest. We were on a mission. I believe it was this attitude that made this experience so much fun for my children.

Here is your mission if you choose to accept it.

GET THE MOST FROM YOUR SCHOOL CLOTHES BUDGET.

Step 1.  Sort through your  kids clothes. Choose the ones that are expectable for school. Have them try them on and make sure they  fit.

Step 2. Put them together in to outfits. Making a list as you go of the items you need. Example: shirt to go with plaid skirt, make sure to list color or take the skirt shopping with you. Make sure to check shoes, socks and underwear. Put all of these clothes together so your child knows that these are for school.  Make a list from what is not in your pile. This step is really important so you do not buy anything you do not need. If you have girls pay attention to the color that is most repeated in their "now school clothes." Put the out grown clothes into a sack for donation.

Step 3. Label all of the clothes that do not meet inspection with a sharpie marker. I use to put a "P" on the label, this stood for play clothes. This a good way to save money by keeping school clothes just for school and play clothes for play. It was always my rule for the kids to change as soon as they came home from school.

Step 4. Check with your child's school for a supply list. This can really help you to purchase the right supplies. If this is not an option,  just buy one note book and pencil until after the first day and you know what your child will need. Add these items to your list along with a backpack.

Step 5. Plan a day for you and the school age kids to go on your quest. Leave younger children with someone else. They become to much of a distraction and you have a quest to accomplish. Make sure you wear comfortable shoes and take some water with you. Plan a trip to the largest city by where you live. Do some home work and find out the address of the thrift store in the high end part of town. This will greatly increase your odds of finding good quality cloths for cheap.

Step 6. Start at the thrift store. This stop is first because if you are lucky this will be the best finds.

Step 7. Next stop is the consignment and second hand stores. Here you can get some money for any clothes that your child has out grown and check for top brand clothing in good shape. These stores also have homemade hair embellishments. Buy something fun to match the school clothes at home. This will make the old clothes feel like new. (Not really, but it really does make them funnier to wear.)

Step 8. Now go to the surplus stores. TJ Max, Marshells, and Ross to name a few.

Step 9. Now it is time to go to the outlet stores.

Step 10. Now you go to the department and box stores and get the rest the essentials and check out the bargains. they are all pretty aggressive this year.

  Remember that your mission is to get the best quality for your money. Make sure that you keep a good attitude. Rejoice when you find a great piece of clothing for a good price. If you are shopping for more than one child you can keep score. Mark each item off your list as you purchase it. Also make sure you go somewhere for a fun lunch and maybe a treat or two along the way.

For children who  are old enough to manage money, the best way I have found to handle  hard economic times is to tell them how much you can give them for their school clothes and let them decide how to spend it. You will be surprised by their decisions.

Happy Shopping, the mom-stuff team, Dianne