You know what was awesome today?

[Baby Makes 4]

Going to the big box store, seeing all the school supply displays, watching all the tired kids and frantic parents loading up their carts with supplies and clothes ... and not having to worry about it at all.

: I love homelearning. Our wish list this year comprises a membership to the world ancestry site, Big Brain Academy for our Wii and a whole bunch of cookbooks. We will probably think about buying some of those things in October ... maybe ... if we don't get interested in something else first.

[Mom4tot]

I hear ya. I still enjoy the .88 cent markers and .10 cent packs of paper, but we buy them for fun. I was feeling pressured to finish a book order the other day and I realized.... "Hey, we're not on anyone else's schedule!" It felt great.

[MidwifeErika]

I did do some school shopping to get more markers and pencils and notebooks, but am really glad I didn't have to do the full out shopping.... that would be expensive!!!! I was in one of those stores the other day and the mom infront of me had school supplies and clothes for everyone and it was several hundred dollars. Ouch!

[MyLittleWonders]

I love back-to-school shopping as a hs'er as it's so relaxed and is not dictated by some "supply list" from the school district. I was in Staples the other day getting a few items (not school related) and saw parents and children working their way through the list. Some girl really wanted gel pens but since it wasn't on the list, she couldn't get them. I felt badly for her. I didn't have any of my boys with me, but if one of mine would have piped up at that moment with, "I want some gel pens," I have to admit that I would have been pretty obvious with my, "Sure ... those would be so cool to use this year while hs'ing!"

[Baby Makes 4]

Originally Posted by MyLittleWonders

I love back-to-school shopping as a hs'er as it's so relaxed and is not dictated by some "supply list" from the school district. I was in Staples the other day getting a few items (not school related) and saw parents and children working their way through the list. Some girl really wanted gel pens but since it wasn't on the list, she couldn't get them. I felt badly for her. I didn't have any of my boys with me, but if one of mine would have piped up at that moment with, "I want some gel pens," I have to admit that I would have been pretty obvious with my, "Sure ... those would be so cool to use this year while hs'ing!"

We bought one of those boxes of 100 gel pens from Costco last year. You can't open a drawer in this house without coming across a gel pen ... or ten.

I love buying what we want to buy and not what someone else thinks we should have. We get $333.33 three times a year because we are registered with a particular homelerning program. I use some of that money for thing on our wish list but the best parts of the year for me are the three times a year when I can take Luke to Chapters and say... "Get whatever strikes your fancy". It's so much fun to watch, we make a day of it since we can get a sandwich and drink at Starbucks.

[Jenivere]

We went to Target tonight to shop their back to school sales. There were parents everywhere looking at lists with their kids and discussing what they could and could'nt get. My husband and I looked around and said "ohh, this looks fun and how about this..." We bought tons of crayons, markers, paint, glue, scissors, rulers, paper, chalk and tape because it's stuff our kids will enjoy using. And though I allready have nice big wall maps, we bought a globe too. It's a simple one because the nice one had each country in solid colors and I thought the colorful one was easier to read. The kids are quite excited about it, especially my son who has adored maps for several years now.

We do this every year because its cheaper during these sales but we bought a lot more than usual.