What are you spending for Back-to-school?

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The National Retail Federation said families with school-age children are expected to spend $563 on back-to-school merchandise, up 7%.

Spending on clothing and accessories is expected to be flat, but families are likely to spend 13% more on electronics (like cellphones and iPods).

"Electronics have evolved from luxuries to necessities, not only for college students but also for their younger siblings," Tracy Mullin, the group's chief executive, said in a statement. "While some students may be pleading with mom and dad for an iPod or a cellphone, parents are also investing in desktop or laptop computers, educational software, and printers to support their children's learning."

What the heck? I'm buying pencils, erasers, notebooks and a backpack. For clothes - the school basics as they have a dress code. So far I spent about 30 cents at the penny sale at Staples. I guess I will spend in the vicinity of a couple hundred for the two kids (granted one is in Pre-school), but they both have school supplies requirements.

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Wow!

I'm looking at backpacks and lunch bags. Haven't decided what to get yet.

There's a school supply sale every year that seems to run $20 or so. (Show up, grab a supply list, go around tables and get those supplies, bag 'em, pay.)

Sozlet is up a size from when she was last wearing cool-weather clothes so I'm going to need to do some shopping there. I'll take advantage of some back to school sales (20% off purchase at the Gap, etc.) to do that. But she'll be able to wear her current clothes with a few additions (some jeans, some tights) through late October probably.

I can't imagine spending more than $200 max on everything, with $100 being more likely.

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What do I spend for "Back-to-school"? Without having kids, over $2,000
in property tax.

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With uniform, new backpack, and school supply I probably will spend
around $ 250 - $ 300.

It is higher this year, as my daughter is going to a new school which requires us to buy all new uniforms. School supply typically has been around $ 30.-

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sozobe wrote:

Wow!

I'm looking at backpacks and lunch bags. Haven't decided what to get yet.

There's a school supply sale every year that seems to run $20 or so. (Show up, grab a supply list, go around tables and get those supplies, bag 'em, pay.)

Sozlet is up a size from when she was last wearing cool-weather clothes so I'm going to need to do some shopping there. I'll take advantage of some back to school sales (20% off purchase at the Gap, etc.) to do that. But she'll be able to wear her current clothes with a few additions (some jeans, some tights) through late October probably.

I can't imagine spending more than $200 max on everything, with $100 being more likely.

I have two going this year - so I predict in the $200 range probably not much over though.

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CalamityJane wrote:

With uniform, new backpack, and school supply I probably will spend
around $ 250 - $ 300.

It is higher this year, as my daughter is going to a new school which requires us to buy all new uniforms. School supply typically has been around $ 30.-

What no iPods for school? What kind of parent are you?

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iPod was three christmases ago, and I am surprised myself that she
hasn't lost it yet. Okay, I had the iPod engraved with name and
phone number, but still..... Laughing

She's working on a cell phone now, but I told her to come back
when she is 16.

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Geez...

I'm a little bit envious. As a kid, of course I loved this time of year. I'd suspect that if I had kids, I would still love this time of year. But again, maybe not.

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At the rate SonofEva is growing, there's no telling.

At this age (13) they can change sizes overnight. He's up to a size 9 in shoes now, and 5'4" or 5'5"...I haven't measured him yet today.

He's had a cellphone since he started middle school. It's a necessity. With sports after school most days, we never knew where or when to pick him up. At the gym? At the soccer field? At the park down the block from the school? (We paid the $5/mo. extra for insurance, though. That was a good decision.)

Anyway, his school supplies were included in his tuition payment (private school), and I suppose I'll buy whatever clothes he needs whenever he needs them. No sense rushing out to buy fall clothes now. Who knows what size he'll be in three months when the weather turns cooler.

Teenagers. Rolling Eyes

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Eva - the problem I have if I wait is they run out of the uniform type of clothes - I have difficulty enough finding clothes to fit her - she is tall and thin - pretty much a stick and very fussy about how things fit.

Even though my daughters attend private school we need to buy school supplies - they sent out a survey last year saying they could include it with tuition or have parents buy it and bring it in. I guess most parents felt they could get a better deal shopping themselves.

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Believe it or not, SonofEva's school doesn't do uniforms. That's really unusual here...even the public middle schools here have gone to uniforms. His school may be the last one that still allows regular clothes. He thinks he's so lucky!

I buy most of his clothes at Old Navy or Dillard's (a medium-priced department store here.) I get Polo shirts when they're on sale at the Ralph Lauren outlet store. He's not big on the pricey Abercrombie, etc., stuff, and it's a good thing because I wouldn't spend that much for a growing kid.

I'm really grateful they take care of buying supplies for us, and if it does cost a few more dollars, it's well worth it to me. It saves me the trouble of tracking down all that stuff and carrying all of it up to the school and making sure it gets to the right classrooms on the right days. (If I left it up to SonofEva, it'd still be sitting in the hallway outside his bedroom in mid-November.)

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Eva wrote:

He's not big on the pricey Abercrombie, etc., stuff, and it's a good thing because I wouldn't spend that much for a growing kid.

Isn't there a grrrl sort of on the edges of the scene now? Prepare to shop some more.

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It's terrible - all the girls (11 to 14) talk about is Abercrombie Evil or Very Mad

and I am guilty as charged. I do understand that the girls want to fit in
and be part of the "popular group". It's an awkward age now, at least
for the girls.

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It's harder with girls. Everyone tells me so, and I believe it.

Ooh, ehBeth. I hadn't thought of that. I hope he remains clueless. Laughing

He goes to a school that prizes individuality. He doesn't want to become known as the "Abercrombie Kid" (his words, not mine.) I took one look at their prices and decided to cheer him on.

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It's not so much the prices, Eva, but Abercrombie has poor quality and
I've tried to tell my daughter this over and over again, yet she still wants
it. *sigh* I am just glad that they have to wear uniforms in school, or it
would be worse. Hopefully the new school will be less pretentious.

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I'm so old that..........

I remember when Abercrombie, Beverly Hills, was a good store.

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....and I didn't know what Abercrombie was until my child started talking
about it, practically non-stop. Rolling Eyes

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CalamityJane wrote:

It's terrible - all the girls (11 to 14) talk about is Abercrombie
and I am guilty as charged. I do understand that the girls want to fit in
and be part of the "popular group". It's an awkward age now, at least
for the girls.

Thank goodness my daughter hasn't taken note of that store. The only type of clothing she seems to like is this brand with Bobby Jack - it isn't so bad as they are usually in less expensive stores. Also, where she has a dress code, there is no issue about wanting a certain brand - they have polo type shirts, but are not supposed to have anything on them - so no branding.

She can earn dress down days though and I let her wear her favorite Bobby Jack outfits.

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Bobby Jack, that's a new one.

Sozlet doesn't care about brands yet but clothes she likes tend to come from Old Navy, Gap, hanna andersson, and MiniBoden. And she has very definite ideas about what she does and doesn't like. But she doesn't really enjoy SHOPPING, which makes the whole thing a bit more complicated. Online or catalog seems to work best.

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I don't shop at Abercrombie because of their advertising. I told the girls if they want to spend their own money at a store that portrays young girls as sex objects, then I wouldn't stop them but I won't support it.

As to back-to-school spending. Clothing will run about $200 each, school supplies around $50 -60 each and books (I flipped out when I found out that kids buy books in high school here) are about $350 each.

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What are you spending for Back-to-school?

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