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School shopping. The stores love this time of the year. They load their shelves with products – full of color and covered in cute patterns and popular pictures. They tease us with the newest and best products available, guaranteed to save us time and make things simpler. My children run up and down the aisles in the school section, hoping I will buy them the decorator erasers.

I have a tote in my closet full of school supplies from last year that we didn’t need. I seem to be collecting them. We didn’t need them again next year, but rest assured - I will keep them yet another year. We might want to use the forty red pens that I purchased two years ago.

You can be more sensible when purchasing school supplies. Go with what items you used last year. Your daughter might want the big, shiny trapper keeper, but did she use one last year? Did she find it easier to keep subjects in individual folders, or did she like a binder system with folders? When purchasing supplies, also consider how much of the items will need to go back and forth from home and school. When you add in books, do you or your children want to be carting around that much weight?

Decorator pencils are very cute. However, the average yellow pencils work just as well. The same idea applies to other supplies. Determine what items you need and use, and decide if you will allow a few of the cuter (and not necessary) items to slip into the cart as well. Packing school supplies to take on the first day of school is part of the excitement. And that striped eraser just might make someone smile wider.