How much money do you spend on shalach manos?

momtomany

Mon, Feb 26 2007, 9:50 pm

How much money do you spend on shalach manos?
I try to get the best deals on stuff, and keep my budget to 3-4 dollars per one. some of my friends send foods that I know costed much more than that. so now I wonder if I'm being too cheap. a bottle of wine or grape juice, the med-big kind, can be at least a couple of dollars for just it! let alone, the wrapping and basket, and other foods.

if you make some cheap and some expensive, please vote for how much you'd spend for a regular good friend. and not for someone you are grateful too, and would therefore spend more than usual.

southernbubby

Mon, Feb 26 2007, 10:06 pm

In Detroit the majority of shaloch manos is given through the Woman's Orthodox League that finances the mikveh. You pay $1 per name and the recipient receives a generous package (probably of donated food) with all the names who sent to that home. In other words, one package may come from 30 or 40 people and you only receive one package no matter how many people include your name. In some classes or in some schools, parents pitch in for one nice basket for the teachers. Unless there is someone special to give a larger basket to, most people give small gifts to the kids who come to the door. Those who depend on donors for their causes usually give a nice shalach manos. I see many packages, probably the majority that are $2 and under. People use small tinfoil containers or goodie bags. I don't see very many people spending large amounts of money on shalach monas here in Detroit. Personally, I don't need the junk food and would rather see it go somewhere else.

amother

Mon, Feb 26 2007, 10:30 pm

I don't spend much on them but we make a ton because my DH is a shul rav and so many people come by our house with shaloch manos that we make for all of them so while each one is pretty cheap I am making them in bulk- so far have made 100!

baseballmom

Mon, Feb 26 2007, 10:49 pm

teneleven wrote:

OMG!
Am I the only crazy one here?
I ordered all of them at Yossi's sweet house and its going to cost me more than $2000!
Gevald!

Wow!

cindy324

Mon, Feb 26 2007, 10:52 pm

Quote:

OMG!
Am I the only crazy one here?
I ordered all of them at Yossi's sweet house and its going to cost me more than $2000!
Gevald!

You have got to be kidding shock

How much does Pesach cost you then???

batya_d

Mon, Feb 26 2007, 11:50 pm

teneleven wrote:

OMG!
Am I the only crazy one here?
I ordered all of them at Yossi's sweet house and its going to cost me more than $2000!
Gevald!

Uh, what? You must have a lot of disposable income. Confused

hila

Tue, Feb 27 2007, 2:18 am

I dont think it matters how much you spend on shlach manot if you can afford it (though $2000 seems a fortune to me personally) but I learned that you should spend AT LEAST as much on matanot le'evyonim as you do on SM - preferably more.

So so not forget the people wo really need the food. Most of what is given as SM is junk. I would raher keep it simple and give where it will help most. Anyone in Israel is welcome to PM me to find out where they an give if they want to
Purim Sameach

shalhevet

Tue, Feb 27 2007, 3:04 am

teneleven wrote:

OMG!
Am I the only crazy one here?
I ordered all of them at Yossi's sweet house and its going to cost me more than $2000!
Gevald!

I hope you are going to give at least as much for matanos la'evyonim. Very Happy

lotte

Tue, Feb 27 2007, 8:24 am

Since some of you are really concern about our matanot laevyonim-please relax-B"H we do give more than that!(some of those baskets in fact ( that are included in the $2000) are going to families we don't even know that well ,we just know they are poor,lost a mother nebech etc!
The reason it is costing us so much is because the cheapest "normal "looking baskets were $39-we needed many of those-for clients freinds neighbours.And where do you find for a $1-$2?
Even for my dd's freinds we paid $3.99 each.
And do you think my dh can give his Rosh-Yeshivah a $2 one?maybe in your books!

shabbatiscoming

Tue, Feb 27 2007, 9:34 am

wow, that is a looooot of money. I think that many ppl spend a LOOOT less also by not buying ready made mishloach manot but by making their own.
the ready made ones are going to be more than ingredients that you yourself put in, for sure.

I know that this year my husband and I went through a tzedakah org and so all of the money that we spent (about 75 dollars) goes to matanot laevyonim anyway.

chocolate moose

Tue, Feb 27 2007, 10:06 am

I try to keep them small each year. Most of my friends are pretty busy with their kids and the seudah anyway, so if they don't care, why shoudl I bother?

sarahd

Tue, Feb 27 2007, 11:05 am

amother wrote:

conspicuous consumption.
the number one route to one heck of an ayen hara.
at least you could have spent that money through a tzedaka for their MM.

You're a horrible person, you know? To say such a thing in public, anonymously.

Younger Me

Tue, Feb 27 2007, 11:13 am

Teneleven, I think there's nothing wrong with spending so much if you can afford it....and you are not the only one I know who does it. my sister for one, spends a lot on MM. her husband has a lot of customers and suppliers he needs to give to, and it adds up real quick.

I really don't know how people can find anything for 1or 2$ ??!!

I take my MM very seriously, in a sense that I really get into it, and try to make it nice and cute and all. sometimes I spend a lot on rubans and dishes and things like that. presentation is everything....

now, for my kids' MM, I try to keep it cheap, but I still use cute "handbags" and cute props, like original graggers and things like that. but I'm sure they come out to more than 2$ each. I didn't figure it out yet this year how much they're costing me....

amother

Tue, Feb 27 2007, 12:08 pm

Now, I know this is not an option for some people (with clients etc who are "expecting" the MM) but this year we are just preparing TWO to be yotzei the mitzva, what a concept no?

amother

Tue, Feb 27 2007, 12:15 pm

amother wrote:

Now, I know this is not an option for some people (with clients etc who are "expecting" the MM) but this year we are just preparing TWO to be yotzei the mitzva, what a concept no?

us too!!! we are also making just three (for a sister, a good friend and the family where we are having the seuda - just being yotzeh) and that is it.

it becomes a crazy "oh, im insulted, I did not get from this family" and "how many can we make this year to give to how many ppl"? where does it say that one has to give to everyone they know or ever met?

sorry this is something that drives me insane.