Supplies on Shine

Plan ahead and save on back-to-school shopping

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Okay, so if my kids find out I'm already writing about saving money on back-to-school shopping, they would be very unhappy. Just the other day when I was taking my soon-to-be 7th grader and her friend out for cool-drink treats, her friend asked, "How many weeks until school starts?" Immediately, my daughter put her hands over her ears and made loud "la-la-la" noises. Her way of saying, let's not count down just yet.

The fact is the start of the school year will be here sooner than some of us would like, and the shopping will begin even sooner. So, it's never too late to think about ways to avoid a budget-breaking back-to-school shopping frenzy.

Here's what's worked for us, some years more than others:

Amazon Subscribe & Save: It will save you

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It's every new parent's nightmare: Baby is on the changing table.You reach into the bin for a fresh diaper, and feel nothing but air. Bottomless Baby starts to giggle. Irresponsible parent breaks into a cold sweat. If you're lucky, you might find an oversized, left over swim diaper from the summer to get you from the drugstore and back, but the real shame of it all is that the entire situation could have been prevented.

Home office essentials checklist

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<img alt="" src="http://img4.realsimple.com/images/tv/episode-102/files-two_160.jpg?160:165" align="right" width="160" height="165">Print this checklist and gather these items -- suggested by REAL SIMPLE. REAL LIFE. design expert <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.realsimplereallife.com/television/host-guests/gia-russo-design-expert-00000000002853/index.html?xid=yshioffes6">Gia Russo</a> -- to make your office space work for you. Furniture <ul> <li>Desk </li> <li>Comfortable chair </li> <li>Desk lamp </li> <li>File cabinet </li> <li>Bookcase and/or floating shelving </li> <li>Storage cabinet for supplies </li> <li>Table or small cabinet for printer and fax</ul>

Class Participation: Where to draw the line when it comes to parental involvement in school

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Facing an inbox full of requests to buy this, bring that, come here, go there, one mom begs for some relief.

By Jennifer Steinhauer

The breaking point, in the end, was the e-mail about the soda bottle.

There it was, the latest of roughly 20 missives that week, warning that if I failed to send my youngest child to preschool the next day with a two-liter bottle, she would not be permitted to participate in a puppet-making workshop.

Cookie has some tips on how to pick the best nursery school for your child.

Tips and Trips: School Supplies

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As my kids and I gear up for the upcoming school year I begin to pull the school supplies left over from last year that we hadn't used. There wasn't much of course- a package of paper, rulers, glue and some crayola crayons still in their boxes. Atleast, it's a start and I...