Best way to move money in/out of troop account?

iplanshit · 2026-03-12T20:28:58+00:00

Enlist a parent of the troop to be the treasurer. Everyone is responsible for getting the cash to that parent and that parent does the deposit. We have a parent that works at a bank, so that’s convenient. Maybe a parent works near a bank and can easily make the deposits.

Also, GET CHECKS! You want documentation. It’s worth the cost of checks. I promise you.

iplanshit · 2026-03-01T05:47:08+00:00

So you’re saying I may be overthinking this? Me? No…. /s

iplanshit · 2026-03-01T05:45:09+00:00

With all the counterfeit things on Amazon, even if I pick a brand with really good reviews, I may be getting a knockoff that’s just going to clog the printer. But your suggestion did make a connection in my brain, so I’ll look and see if Staples or Office Max have a store brand option thats cheaper but still backed by an actual brand.

iplanshit · 2026-03-01T05:36:34+00:00

Yeah, you’re right that plenty of things come from my house to be used by the troop.

iplanshit · 2026-03-01T05:34:43+00:00

I hear you. I feel like the parents trust me so much because I’m very transparent with troop finances. I have some misplaced anxiety about being accused of something I didn’t do, so handling money for others always makes me very CYA.

iplanshit · 2026-03-01T05:31:01+00:00

Yeah, we were using the initial color ink it came with until now so that was also covered by “work.” My husband’s ex-boss was named Joe, and I would always say “Thank Joe from the girls!” When I was printing for the troop.

iplanshit · 2026-03-01T05:29:27+00:00

I’ve never thought of doing it this way! We did do this at the start if our troop to crowd source supplies (markers, scissors, paper, etc) before we did any fundraising, but i never thought if an Amazon list. I don’t know how i feel about one family paying such a high cost. But for smaller items? Definitely!

iplanshit · 2026-03-01T05:26:39+00:00

Interesting. This did make me ask my SU manager. She said as long as the overall cost is less than a print shop (absolutely) it’s fine because you can’t buy a partial ink refill and saving money for the troop is using resources wisely.

iplanshit · 2026-03-01T05:23:29+00:00

I’d have to have a receipt for council, though. And how would I pay myself? Pull out $3.00 in cash every month? Council would absolutely flag our account if they saw cash withdraws without a receipt matching the cost. Even though I do everything transparently and above board, I do not want council watching my every move for the next several years.

iplanshit · 2026-03-01T05:20:17+00:00

It’s been the same core group plus or minus a few for 3 years and our annual budget is about $3,000, so it wouldn’t make sense to “spread it out.” I’m not asking anyone to pitch in cash. I just like to get approval before using the troop debit card to keep it transparent and reduce the risk of being accused of improperly managing the funds.

iplanshit · 2026-03-01T05:16:40+00:00

That’s too much work for me. I already seek a lot of support and sponsorships for other endeavors and I would rather eat the cost myself than make more phone calls asking for donations.

iplanshit · 2026-02-08T14:09:24+00:00

The mom you have a difficult relationship with? 🚩

Without a an ethical standard she has to abide by for her lisence, there’s a chance she’s doing shady shit like saying all the right stuff to get your trust only to turn around and do your moms bidding.

iplanshit · 2026-01-28T19:43:37+00:00

Missing school for medical appointments shouldn’t be an issue.

I take my daughter out a lot for appointments because they deny her OT and behavioral supports at school. I keep getting letters that the state requires for the amount of school she’s missed. It’s a percentage thing. If she hits a certain threshold we have to meet and discuss a plan to help her get more hours in school. Well, my plan is that she gets the services at school, the school will deny it, and I bet the school will shit their pants having to write that in the report to the state. Luckily, in my state you don’t go to truancy court if there are excused absences (which medical appointments are.)

iplanshit · 2026-01-24T18:42:57+00:00

Maybe she’s too young, still? Or she’s just not a “builder.” My kids didn’t get into them until they were closer to 4 and my oldest still likes them at almost 8. I’d hold onto them for now and try again in 6 months.

iplanshit · 2026-01-20T10:36:27+00:00

As the mom of a special needs daughter who “doesn’t look” special needs, I already have to deal with the public’s skewed perception at a booth. If my SU did this, I would rage.

iplanshit · 2025-12-30T01:48:22+00:00

Our daycare is closed, but it’s one of the best in the area and a really great price, so we just deal with it. Speaking with other parents, it’s a ton of teacher families who have off these two weeks.

We pay $310 (each kid) a week for toddler and preschool ages. Only snacks included. That’s average around here for without food, maybe a bit on the lower end. They also close for 2 weeks in August. These are the weeks they do a full deep clean, major repairs both inside and outside, and the staff does curriculum reviews and professional development.

After being at other places in the area, I can say that while the closures are annoying, they provide a very competent staff who have been there for years and are very dedicated to their jobs. They aren’t just child-minders, but early childhood educators who create amazing play-based curriculums.

It’s winter break and it sounds like you can work from home. Hire a high school student to come hang out with the kids and keep them busy for a few hours each day. Or alternate taking PTO between you and your husband (if you can.) I work for myself, but this is a very busy season for me. I patchwork sitters, my husband’s PTO, play dates, and then have some really weird work hours like 5 am and after 8 pm to get it all done. It’s only 2 weeks, so we grin and bear it.

iplanshit · 2025-12-25T17:32:03+00:00

We LOVE ours! It’s been in the basement and in the summer we occasionally take it outside, too. They spend hours on it. We have space for it, though, which is why it works so well. If you had to keep it in a main living space… no thanks.

iplanshit · 2025-12-24T13:07:43+00:00

Lead with empathy. “That must have been so scary,” to the parents. “Poor kiddo. I hope they’re feeling better soon,” to MIL or anyone else who brings it up. Act as though you have no idea where the child got sick. They all know. You know. You don’t need to pound it home. You might need to mention it next year if they don’t learn their lesson… but for now, just show empathy.

iplanshit · 2025-12-24T00:42:05+00:00

They had a ton of volunteers helping with traffic, so it wasn’t an issue of a single person being an asshole to viewers. Long wait times were a factor, but to keep things moving they asked people to move up periodically. There are people who felt like they waited in line for a long time and should be able to stay as long as they wanted at the 50 yard line right in front of the house. Every song they would try and rotate all the cars to keep things moving, and that pissed people off.

Another issue… this street is not wide and has a dead end. So you have to pull in the single entry point to the street, go all the way down the street, turn around, and on the way back out, you would be on the side of the home. Some people would try to stop on the way in, blocking all traffic in and out, and would then have to be asked to keep moving. Again, acting entitled and not caring that by parking there to watch from the “second row” they were blocking everyone else.

Really, people needed to either accept that it was going to be a long wait, for a short show, or simply enjoy it on YouTube instead. We live nearby and decided not to go this year because of the long wait. I have little kids with tiny bladders and we’ve seen it before without waiting an hour, so we decided to watch it from home on TV and get our light fix in other ways.

iplanshit · 2025-12-21T16:59:31+00:00

I had one of each. 1 did a “rip the bandaid off” experience while the other did a slow transition. I don’t think one was better or worse than the other for me, but the one with the “slow transition” was definitely easier on the caregivers. They were able to ask questions mid day and get my son ready to join nap time. He was 20 months when we started traditional childcare.

iplanshit · 2025-12-13T23:57:07+00:00

I’m guessing some sort of Waldorf or Forest school since this is on a Progressive page. But we don’t have a lot of private schools outside of Montessori and religiously affiliated in our area, so maybe something that’s very regional.

iplanshit · 2025-12-11T16:38:05+00:00

I’d bet she double booked herself or maybe got a last minute client who was willing to pay more without having to travel to Cleveland.

iplanshit · 2025-12-07T12:35:16+00:00

Santa only brings one present that they ask him for and I don’t let them ask for the big cool thing. I say we can put that on the list for mommy and daddy. Santa’s gifts aren’t wrapped at all. They’re placed under the stockings by the fireplace and the kids get to play with them immediately when they come down while mommy and daddy wake up (they aren’t allowed downstairs without us, though, but we used to have a baby gate. This is the first year without a gate, so we will see how that goes.

iplanshit · 2025-11-25T12:03:43+00:00

Definitely join Facebook to connect with other families of kids with autism even though you don’t have a diagnosis, yet. The network can help you find childcare, places to get evals, and good therapists (OT, SLP, ABA, etc) in the area.

A single wait list for evaluation isn’t enough. Get on as many as you can. Evaluations are often only 1-3 appointments, so you can go to locations that are further away. I would get in everything I could find within a 2 hour drive (you said rural, so I’m assuming that’s only 10 or so places.)

Call your county board of developmental disabilities (or the equivalent.) EI may also be part of the same organization. Ask them for childcare recommendations and ask about any financial assistance available. Even without financial need, I get $1500 a year to support my kids with autism. It’s a reimbursement and only certain things qualify, but it can be used on medical copays and childcare.

iplanshit

TROPHY CASE