The Holidays: More Stressed than Blessed

Whether your holidays are stressed or blessed, you may have planned for them to be that way. Perhaps that bears repeating: Whether your holidays are stressed or blessed, you may have planned for them to be that way.

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Part 1: School Supplies

Sales on school supplies begin before July 4th firecrackers light up the sky. Sure, no one is thinking about school in July, especially your kids. But it's well worth your time financially to think about preparing for the school year (not just the beginning) because the basics are their cheapest right now.

If you buy too many of some items, that's okay as well, because your child will need them later in the year. In fact, I recommend stocking up as much as your budget will allow. (We'll discuss "what to do with the extras" shortly.)

Once you have stocked up, what to do with the extras?

Responsibility: A bonus lesson

As your kids get older, make it their responsibility to tell you when they are low on a supply. And even for younger children, make their responsibility to take care of supplies. School supplies are an investment, which you gladly make for your children. In return, they should respect this investment. If you have to repurchase something because of neglect or abuse on the part of your child, require the child to pay for it out of their allowance or earn it. If you have to repurchase an item that was misused, let your child know that the money for that replacement could be spent elsewhere, and this will help them understand budgets and responsibility.

As with everything in life, you get what you pay for. Cheap binders will usually fall apart even with the best of treatment. You'll find yourself saying, "so that's what inside the vinyl." It's worth the extra investment to buy sturdy supplies that will be used everyday, such as binders and pencil pouches. If the binder sits in a cubby most of the time and is only used occasionally, inexpensive may be okay.

Choice:

Some teachers don't care what color or type of binders children use. In those cases, give the child the freedom to choose. A Spiderman folder or one covered in dogs is a cheap way to make your kids happy. Just be sure they don't pick out anything that would demean another child or is inappropriate for their age.

A few other thoughts for parents of lefties:

Binders are unfriendly for left-handers. That doesn't mean they can't use them. Just have the child remove the paper before writing on it.