Down the School Supply Rabbit Hole, and Back Again - Without Spending ANYTHING...(Well, Not Yet, Anyway...)

This morning, I awoke to find an email from one of my favorite companies to get stuff from (Oriental Trading Company) offering Teacher Supply Clearance Sales!! Oh, this is my kryptonite - stuff on "sale" and teacher supplies and school stuff and all that. I dove into the site, adding things to my shopping cart as I saw fit.

(Just some information here - I am not sponsored to write about any type of product, company, or material in any way. If you decide to check out Oriental Trading Company from the link here on my post, I do not get any sort of financial benefit. I recommend things that I like and love so that you will know that they are out there as well - not for any sort of financial gain. If that ever changes, I will let you know. The only exceptions to this rule are when I share links to my own products, of course. I do get a small financial benefit from others purchasing my own products, but I try to keep the expenses very small for you.)

School supplies are something that I just cannot seem to resist. Every year at this time, I am lured into spending money on cute bulletin board pieces and getting new notebooks (that I do NOT need) and finding new Bic pens and folders and nifty gadgets to go along with my new things. I was able to resist almost everything last year, and I am hoping to make it out of this very challenging season this year without spending anything on school supplies - even if I can find a music therapy reason for getting them. I want to make things instead of buying them, but I get lured into looking at sites that offer such good deals that I tend to fall headfirst into getting more and more. Hence, my foray into the world of teacher supplies this morning...

I found some bulletin board cut-outs that go with some of the theme ideas that I have sitting in my brain and my journals. I found some music symbols that I could use in a variety of ways, and, my own personal downfall, I found LOTS of cute stickers that I could make into board games, use as cards to inspire lyric writing and also use for all the other ideas that are rattling around in my brain. I had eleven things sitting in my cart, just waiting for me to reach for my credit card and finish the purchase.

I then pulled myself up abruptly and thought, "why am I buying MORE stuff when I have PLENTY of stuff already?"

I cancelled all the items and moved on.

This is HUGE for me, you all! I stopped BEFORE I bought and then got rid of all the stuff that was out there tempting me. I have no need for more stickers. I have tons right now that I need to use up before I bring anything else into this mess of a house. In fact, there is a piano sitting outside my home right now on the street waiting to be picked up by the trash folks, and I am RESISTING because I have no space for a piano that is being exposed to the elements and sounds really tinny and does not have any redeeming quality EXCEPT that it is a piano!

So, I have experienced some personal growth today. I have also inspired myself to go into my craft room and use some of the things that I already have in there to make something new for a music therapist out there. I don't know what it will be, but I'm going to make something file folder and game based. I think I'll send a happy mail something out into the world in a bit - stay tuned if you are interested in getting some of my creations!

I enjoy a day where I can putter around in my craft room making therapy things. I often start with no idea at all about what I want to make, and then I just start sorting through the stuff that I already have in my room. I want to make some board games today, so I will start with my file folders and my stickers to help me come up with specific therapeutic music experiences or strategies for the games. I especially like games that can be shifted to challenge all sorts of learners, so I try to design things that can be made more simple or more complex depending on the client that is using the material.

Once I have an idea started, I start writing things down so I can remember and make stuff later. The unfortunate part of creating in this way is that I have so many ideas that I miss good things if I don't write stuff down. So, my idea book goes into the craft room with me. If I am pleased with how something turns out the first time (the first folder is ALWAYS a practice folder) then I do it again, making it a bit more formal and fancy the second time around. I am toying with the idea of making some videos about how to make music therapy visuals, but I'm not exactly sure how I will fit this into my schedule yet. I started this process last week, but I was interrupted by a printer driver situation which did not allow me to print in color, and that put the kibosh on the entire thought. That problem is fixed now, so I could proceed...and maybe I will after I spend the morning on errands, intern supervision and consultation, and doing some crafting (in reverse order).

Okay - today is a day to celebrate will power, exercise creativity, and work towards something that others can use.

I will NOT spend anything today - not on school supplies, at least.

Stay tuned for a new happy mail offer - coming soon from me to you!!