thanks for the info/website for the mags. ill def check it out. its good that your brother is able to stay busy withclasses & such! maybe its bcmy fiance is in state, I dont know, but they offer almost nothing. at one point he was able to enroll in a "culinary class"...however, after 3 months of the class, all they had himdoing was cleaning floors in the kitchen, scrubbing pots, etc. :( oh. they do offer a plumbing course but he isnt interested in that at all. it seems insane to me that they wpuld rather these guys rot in there instead of rehabilitating,educating them, & preparing them for reentry into the wirld. we were just recently able to get him out of the class so thst they could reasign him to atleast a job again. (the class wasnt free..it was something we were paying for) anyway, ive also been able to send him puzzle books like sudoku, crossords,etc. so thats an idea for u too :) sorry to ramble! ill check out that website! thx again!

Mine gets to have a job. And they all seem to be into crafting. He is making a semi truck that is a piggy bank. They buy craft supplies from Dick Blick Art Co. They use plastic mesh, and somehow form the truck, then weave yarn into the mesh, to make the body. They are really nice.

Kinda funny, but the guys also crochet blankets for their families. HAHA I laughed at that one.

Mine also has a job which really makes him feel he is accomplishing something and makes time go faster. He resurfaces floors, does maintenance in the prison, and electrical work. They are smart and use their talents. For cheap labor. Sometimes I think time is going faster for him than me.

I send my man his magzines they wont let us do that down hear that is send him the subscrpitons.
Mime did a computers crose and is now working doing number plates kinda a funny coz he tells me what ones his done and then i sometimes see them! Lol. He also reackons that working makes the time go faster and they all hate the weekends coz they have nothing to do.
I also send him in books lots of photos of anything that i think he might like.

We can't send anything. We have to order subscriptions. Sometimes I can't afford a whole subscription, could afford one magazine at a time, but NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO... they are fools. They love to make everything hard for us.

Yep and they love chaning there minds as well!

they do seem to forget how many single parents are left on the side to maintain things that were taken care of by 2 incomes. that is why i use these websites, because i too can sometimes only afford a magazine not a subscription. Coupon websites are great for this and you will be surprised at how much you can save. I do it and i have started a bank acct for my brother for when he gets out so life will be easier for him. It is a goal of mine to save on things i need and put the savings away for him. keeps me busy too!

Thats a awsome idea with the bank acct! I might have to try and do that for my D :)

www.magazines.com

Thanks for the websites info. I will check them out.

Stacy, I have started a savings account for my husband when he gets out. I have $25 per check put into the account. I can access if I have a true emergency, but so far, it just keeps adding up. He will need things when he gets out at at $600/year, he will have about $2500 when he gets out. Not much, but work clothes, cell phone, and money towards a car will definitely help.

I will definitely look into this website as he loves to get magazines of all kinds. Wish I could find a way to save money on gas and groceries!! :)

The savings account is a good idea. Right now with no job, couldn't do it, but it is smart.

I am thinking maybe doing it for when he gets out, but for a different purpose. We always go on a 2 week vacation after he gets out, sees his P.O. then relaxes for a day. He loves to just go sit on a lake in a boat, feel the freedom all around him. We get to re connect in every way. But it is expensive, so that's a good idea.

yay! that is so great about the savings acct. I figure the one thing that is on our side is time so anything put away will grow to do some good for them:) the coupon thing may sound crazy but it is amazing how much you can really save. my groceries went from at least $100 a week down to around $30 a week. coupondivas.com is a great website to show you how to start. it will occupy alot of your time which is also good.

thank you so much for info. we are on a really, really tight budget and my husband is desperate for magazines.

My son hasnt been sentenced yet but he told me the other day, when he is, he wants me to clean out his checking acct and put that money in a long term CD...it can sit and draw interest while he is away. When he gets out, he will have a little nest egg.

fyi...i ordered 4 magazine subscriptions yesterday for my love for 20$! I got him esquire, mens journal, mens health & fitness (since hes all into working out again. hes so cute, I love it!) and another one called the atlantic. all were 10 - 12 mth.subscriptions. I went to magazinedeals.com. they had a bunch for under $5 :)