Back to School Shopping

Back to school SAVING

#1 way to save?!

Don't go OVERBOARD!

Believe me, I KNOW how hard it is! Back to school happens to be one of my favorite holidays! We can call it a holiday right? Set a budget and try to watch the sales!

2. Know what you have, what you need.
This chart is an awesome tool for that as far as clothes go. Print one for each kid.

Be realistic. Do they NEED 8 pairs of shoes? Probably not, is it hard to not buy the cute floral ones that match 2 shirts, yes! Make your lists and BRING THEM! It's so easy to get caught up in the cute and fresh to forget you already have 4 short sleeve shirts!
I am going to share how we decided what the kids actually needed next week. I made this list about this time last year

While I did try to stick to that, and I got rid of a lot, we still had a lot of clothes. Actually we still do! I haven't bought much for any of the kids other than a couple cotton dresses for our girly.
Our schools sends the supply list out at the end of the school year, that helps us watch for the deals!


3. Start Early
It's the beginning of July and stores like Target and Staples have been sending back to school stuff for a couple of weeks! If you have your LIST ready then you aren't paying full price when it comes to the end of the summer break. Our Target already has all of the patio stuff on clearance, it will only be a couple weeks before it is full of school supplies.