We'd walk into Ames and get our new backpacks and packs of loose leaf paper and paper folders. Then wander into the clothing department and find some acid wash jeans our mother refused to buy and some Garth Brooks looking shirt circa 1993. You know what I'm talking about:
I totally had
The whole experience took maybe 45 minutes, longer if I was feeling extra miserable about the sneakers I wanted, and there were two of us to outfit. Two girls.
Fast forward to 2014 and shopping for my own kids: Want to know how long I spent in Wal-Mart searching for like five items on the Pre-K school supply list? Like two. Two mother effing hours. We didn't even buy new outfits and I couldn't find three of the items I needed. Who specifically requests "9x12 manila drawing paper"?
It prompted impulse purchases including a bottle of Vitamin D, a giant bag of peanut M&Ms (which were gone the next day because stress), two little boxes of Goldfish Crackers and new coloring books.
I left there super stressed and without backpacks ... because I couldn't find them.
Now here we are two weeks later and I still haven't finished the shopping, but have talked about it. A lot.
To save myself the biggest argument of the year with Josie, I looked at backpacks online and stayed away from anything Disney/Pixar/Marvel/Sparkle Movement related. She chose a sweet blue backpack and Charlotte decided she wanted to get the same one in green stripes, which is awesome for me because now I'm ahead on school shopping for next year when Charlie starts Pre-K.
As a kid, I begged almost every single year for a new backpack. Not because they had cartoon characters on them (because they didn't), but because I just wanted the feeling of something new for the first day of school. It didn't matter if my bag was still in good condition or that I had all brand new back to school clothes and sneakers. Nope. The backpack was where it was at. In my head, at least.
Know what happened? My sister and I ended up with a giant freaking stockpile of old backpacks that were used for one or two school years and then hardly touched after that.
Needless (I hope) to say, I learned my lesson that you don't need a new backpack every year, which brings me back to my anti-licensed character stance on school supplies. To each their own, but if I bought the "Frozen" bag Josie really really REALLY wanted when we were at the store but was too small and therefore not acceptable - the list states they need "a REGULAR sized backpack" - then chances are she a) wouldn't be using it for school at all and 2) wouldn't even care to have an Elsa backpack next year. And I would be pissed I spent money on it.
Instead, I bought those beauties up above and this is the inside (or part of it):
It's huge. The material is nice and heavy. I'm saying a prayer these things last until middle school. And I kind of wish I'd bought one for myself.
Because who doesn't love a new backpack!?
The only problem is I haven't finished buying the rest of the supplies. I still need to get a package of small paper plates, toss in a roll of paper towels, find that manila drawing paper ... and put the required $10 in there (it's on the list). Yeah.
I'm learning quickly that our schools seem limited on what they supply these days and, though I'm sure there's a reason, I don't get it. I don't understand why every child in the class needs to supply two containers of antibacterial hand and face wipes and a box of gallon sized storage bags and cold hard cash to cover things like holiday parties and specific projects.
Let's step back in time to 1987, also revered as "Kindergarten" for some of us. We needed a backpack of some sort and needed to supply our own pencil boxes with pencils, crayons ... and I don't remember what else. Not an entire grocery bag full of items to then be shared with everyone, though, that's for sure. We learned not to break our crayons because they were ours and ours alone. We learned not to chew our erasers because maybe our mom couldn't afford those sweet pink pencil topper ones (that are on my kid's required supply list).
Someone somewhere will likely tell me I'm missing the idea of the communal supply closet ... but isn't that part of what our school taxes are supposed to be used for? I could be way off base here. I probably am. I haven't had my usual quota of wine before ranting about things, so feel free to tell me how wrong I am.
Instead of truly bitching about all of this though - because I'm actually only a little irritated by it at this point since I've had all summer to be pissy - I'm just going to be thankful we can afford all these supplies for my kid and the others in her class who might not have the luxury of spending money on pencil-top erasers. Josie is a good sharer (she tells me all the time) so ... whatever.
I'm just going to sit over here with my coveted collection of old backpacks and pencil boxes and hope someday schools go back to the simplicity of four No. 2 pencils, a box of 24 Crayola crayons and one large pink eraser.
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