It's that time of year! There are about 10 different sales forms in the kitchen at my office; you can buy anything from summer sausage to wrapping paper! I've noticed there are certain individuals that buy from every kid no matter what and I think - wow that is so nice! I'm usually a Scrooge when it comes to this stuff and surprisingly Mr. Cheapo Phillipo, aka the man I married, is not! I cannot even tell you how many magazines, chocolate bars and terrible home decorating items we've ended up with over the years because he says YES to every kid who comes to the door.
Maybe I'm a Scrooge because I was painfully shy and loathed fundraising as a kid. I remember begging my Dad to take my forms to work like all the other parents did, but he wouldn't do it. He told me if I wanted to make the sell I had to come to his office and ask people in person. Of course that did not happen and as a result I did not sell anything to anyone other than my parents but guess what? My school didn't collapse! We still had an abundant amount of Kleenex to go around, we didn't have to prick our fingers for ink alternatives and we didn't have to eat peanut butter and jelly in the parking lot for prom as my history teacher, Mr. Wallace, predicted!
So this year seeing all those forms every time time I get a cup of coffee and wondering what it is my tax dollars pay for, the guilt got to me and I decided to be a little more giving on the fundraiser front. I sponsored a walkathon and bought something out of a magazine. Of course I immediately felt bad because there were two kids selling from the same magazine but truly only one thing interested me out of that entire thing so I had to choose one kid over the other ug! (I honestly chose without looking at the name on the form to be fair). The same week I was home studying my little heart out when the door bell rang and surprise! there was a kid on the other side selling stuff for school. I don't know what came over me but my new giving ways just flew out the window and I told him to beat it because I just bought a bunch of junk at work. Actually I was much nicer than that but ug again! Telling that kid no haunted me for the rest of the evening and I'll tell you why. That kid didn't just have his parents do his dirty work for him by taking his forms up to their office and leaving them out in the break room. He was going door to door to perfect strangers which not only takes courage but determination and I just shot him down! I know he's got to face rejection at some point in his life but I could have spared the $10 - what is wrong with me? I've always been shocked that AB says yes to every kid that comes to the door but now I get it! AB is an extremely hard worker and in turn he appreciates hard workers no matter what type of work they are doing and let me tell you something, selling stuff door to door is hard work!
All of this has brought me to my new school fundraising policy. I plan to go back to my old ways with the forms in the kitchen, unless there is something I absolutely can't live without, but if you come to my door I'll definitely say yes! I hope none of my neighbors read this blog. I look forward to a lifetime supply of gift labels ;)
**Side note - Edison Middle School be on the lookout for a gentleman of large stature looking for the summer sausage we ordered a month ago to support the music program but never received. He will find you kid in the black shirt and glasses who plays the clarinet, he will find you!
Last month my Dad hit a milestone birthday - the big six-0! We helped him celebrate by having an intimate get together at my parent's house that included our immediate family and some close family friends. 
