Teacher Appreciation Week on the Cheap

This year Teacher Appreciation week was not appreciated by me!  Don't get me wrong, I love my children's teachers.  Captain E has the nicest, most fun, bubbly teacher ever.  The moment you see her smile, you smile.  She is so great and has been an answer to prayers for us.  She keeps a great eye on Captain E and is always working with me to help him do his best.  Gigi's teacher this year is sort of the opposite.  On more than one occasion I've thought, "man she is not friendly."  She isn't.  She doesn't really do small talk.  She is very strict.  At the Thanksgiving Party I saw her call her brother out for falling asleep in the reading zone after serving turkey for an hour.  That being said she is a great teacher!  She has done wonders for G bear especially when it comes to encouraging her love of reading.  She has really opened G up to learning and while I don't necessarily want to be besties with her, G loves her and thinks she is the nicest teacher ever.  What matters more, me liking her or G liking her.  Peach has two teachers this year and they are both super fun.  They do amazing crafts, are great teachers, and are doing a great job getting her ready for kindergarten.  So I really do appreciate these ladies but Teacher Appreciation has gotten to be a really big thing.  It is a week long celebration.  The school sends home lists of things the teachers like and ideas of things to bring for each day.  The room moms might try to schedule something special for each day or may ask for donations for a bigger gift.  This year I'm strapped for both time and money.  I've spent over $16,000 in the last month for our trip.  To say we are broke would be an understatement.  I'm also stressed to the max as my time before the trip is quickly leaving.  I just didn't know what to do.  Finally I was standing in Meijer and it hit me.  How about a little drink/cookie treat with a thank you note.  I bought a four pack of  Starbuck's Frappucinos.  They were four for five dollars, 1.25 a piece.  Then I grabbed four 3 packs of Milano cookies.  They were a dollar a piece.  I had these bags at home.  When I got home I had the kids put the cookies and drinks in the bag and then I had them write a personal note to each teacher.  E did his in cartoon form.  Peach drew pictures.  Gigi wrote a story.  I wrote each teacher a sincere note about what they've meant to me this year and we sealed them up.  I sent them in and to be honest felt pretty good about the whole thing.  I do really appreciate all that these woman do for our family and I wanted to let them know it, even if I couldn't afford to do it in the way I really would have liked to!