My 11-year old son: Mom, I have to sell that cookie dough for the
orchestra.
Me: No you don’t.
Him: Yes I do. I won’t get the I-Pod Nano, or ride in the bus with the cool TVs inside….
Me: You mean a chance to win an I-Pod Nano.
Him: I have to do it Mom. Where did you put the forms?
Me: Sweetie, your work load is already so heavy right now, and I don’t like to ask people to spend money on things they don’t really want. We’ll give your orchestra a check instead.
My 9-year old son: I’ll help him do it.
Me: OK. The form is in the garbage can in my office.
My 5-year-old: You can go to my friend T’s house.
Me: Oh yeah, and DT, and make sure you stop at CL’s, and then RCs….But don’t stop at CZ’s, because their daughter is already in the orchestra.
After they leave, I pick up the phone and give some neighbors a heads up.
An hour and half and $140 later, they’re done. I’m impressed. I’m actually beaming with pride that they were brave enough to go out and do it. Many of our neighbors turned them down — and they still kept going. Builds character.
My Mom always sold my Girl Scout Cookies for me at work. (I know. So unethical.) So, in the same tradition, if any of you want some cookie cubes, let me know at sjotest at yahoo dot com.
One mom, Mrs. Lopez, did the same thing. According to a WSJ article, Readers: No More Fund Raising!, March 18, 2007.
“I ended up placing orders for Grandma and aunts and family friends that I pay for.” A co-worker persuaded her to bring the sign-up sheet into the office, since that’s what all parents there did. “I had to find some place to refrigerate the dough (five-pound tubs, which I left overnight in the day-care center’s refrigerator after a long battle with them). I had to go into work late the next morning in order to pick up the dough…then rearrange the refrigerator at work to be able to put the dough in there. The orders were all mixed up as no one remembered what they ordered, and the copies of the order forms were illegible. All in all a horrible experience, and I will not repeat it.”
Flavours? chocolate chunk, white macadamia, mint double chocolate….and more. $10 for 1 3-pound cube.
The biggest seller is the Lavalicious Fudge cake.
My son had to sell cookie dough to raise money for a class trip last year and people actually *wanted* to buy it! We just baked the last of the cookies yesterday.
Beats selling fruitcake. That’s what I had to do for band fundraisers in elementary school.
Yes, I soon realized I was depriving cookie lovers everywhere. (Not like there weren’t other kids all over the neighborhood crawling around doing the same thing.) I just hate the whole “sales” idea. But, hey, they liked doing it. Who am I to stand in their way? Yogamum, if you’re eating the dough (I’m sure it’s full of hydrogenated oils), I’ll buy a tub too. It will be great for the lake house.
I just had one little boy come by asking for money for his school band- just asking for money. Nothing to buy, no cookie dough, wrapping paper. You were just suppose to leave the money in his envelope… I felt bad for the kid. He wasn’t very successful. We live in a hard-working neighborhood and not everyone can spare something. I think these kinds of things put a lot of stress on the kids… yes, it may build character but I felt sorry for this guy.
Yes — I know exactly what you mean. I’m sure that kid was facing pressure from the band director to get out there and pound the pavement. And, he probably didn’t want to do it. I”m glad — relieved — you gave him money. I feel sorry for him just hearing about him.
He’ll probably grow up like me and throw those forms in the garbage can. And then, his kids will pull it out and hit the pavement.
My daughter has had to shill a variety of junk for school WAY too often, and I believe we’ve sold those cookies, too. In the town where I live, WAY too young kids (like, 7 year olds) can be seen going around town by themselves to sell these things, which is worrisome.
I feel the same way! My daughter is trying to raise money for a school trip this spring and I actually bought some pizza tickets this time.
1-they were a good deal
and
2-we would have bought some anyway.
Otherwise I rarely will buy stuff.
My two most hated words of the school year — Sally Foster!