Once we hit July, the fear starts spreading. School supply lists are beginning to appear on the district website. Back to school flyers start arriving in my email box. Kids start wonder who their teacher will be next year. And I lie in a state of terror. How will I EVER get school supplies for three children, without breaking the bank?

Last year, for the boys, I was smart. I bought the PTA reduced school supplies package. It came with EVERYTHING except kleenex and a pencil box. It was great. But I forgot to order it this year. So I'm stuck with fighting the crowds at Target and Office Depot again.

Or am I?

I actually started buying supplies for my daughter tonight. I went through the clearance section at Wal Mart and got cute polka dotted folders for $.35 each. I found matching pencils, 6 for $.75. All that's left is a binder, some spirals, pens and index cards. And the locker decorations, of course. Those will be arriving in the stores in about 2 weeks, and we will most likely be among the first in line to purchase shelves, mirrors, and other locker neccessities.

The boys are a different story. Mikey needs generic colored folders, notebook paper, crayons, pencils, erasers, etc. Those can typically be found on sale in bulk at Office Depot. In fact, I believe we have some left over from bulk purchases in the past.

This is Matt's first year to exert his individuality in school supplies. He needs a spiral and pronged pocket folders as well as a composition book. The rest is pretty typical though.

We're hitting sales. When I see something on sale online, I head out to pick it up. Last year, I pretty much hit every penny supply sale I could find. I've also found spirals, 10 for $1 and loose leaf paper, 10 packs of 100 for $1.  Office Depot typically has good school supply sales starting at the first of August.  For your convenience, here is a list of stores that offer office and school supplies stores. Sign up for the weekly notifications so you will know when it's prime time to purchase your supplies:

Discount School Supply
Office Depot
Staples
Office Max
Walgreens
CVS
Target

If you see any fantastic deals on school supplies, add it to the Mr. Linky!  I'll continue to update this post until the end of August, to make sure we all get the best deals available for school supplies.