What's to stop her from turning around and selling the GCs on fleaBay where they can fetch 95-98% of the GC value?

kevinkevinkevin said:If she has a history of spending inappropriately, I'd let her learn from the school of hard knocks and have her pay for her own groceries. You know the saying - fool me once, shame on me...fool me...you can't get fooled again.
We did that for 4 years and now it's gotten to the point where more desperate measures may need to be taken. The gift card thing is supposed to be a birthday gift, but I know it will never stop . . . She's disabled, so she can't really go work at a conventional job and my husband is an only child who feels that he needs to take care of her to a certain extent. I can't imagine that her lifelong poor spending habits will ever be broken, especially if they have not at this point - she's all but flunked out of the school of hard knocks. DH and I have talked about bribing her to let us do her finances and give her an allowance. Not sure how that will go over, but at some point soon, she will not have any other options. Be homeless or let us manage her money or lack of it.

alpharaye said:I work at a Kroger's and I have recharged a card that was in another city.
All you would need to do is buy a giftcard, charge it and then record the number and take it with you to the store when you wanted to recharge it. That away you'd save yourself some postage.
Granted it person behind the counter might look at you funny, but trust me, all they have to do is scan a "new" giftcard, key in your number you have and then override the manual transaction and you can use the same card over and over!
I've seen several moms help kids at college like so.
Hope it helps.
Really!? That's good to know, we'll have to give it a try because last month it got lost in the mail for a few days.

Heatherdawn said:My husband and I send my mother-in-law a gift card once a month to help with her groceries & prescriptions. I'm looking for ways to make the most of our monthly gift card purchases - Cash Back, discounts, charitable donations, etc (we currently purchase using a 1-2% Cash Back credit card). She has a long history of spending money inappropriately, so we like to give her gift cards to specific stores rather than credit card branded gift cards that can be spent anywhere on anything she wants. We've been sending Ralph's (Kroger) gift cards because it seams the most logical (less likely to spend the money on unnecessary items), but she also has easy access to Wal-Mart and Costco. We've been buying the cards at our local Ralph's store and mailing them to her each month as there is no way for us to recharge the card with out physically taking it to a store. I've noticed today that Kroger sells gift cards online, but I'm not sure that helps us - shipping seams to be the same amount that we currently pay.

Anyone have any suggestions?

So that is why there are 15 Kroger gift cards on eBay right now

Woodchuck312 said:
Well you could always have her move in with you guys. You could closely monitor her spending and since she is disabled care for her better if she is in the same home. BUt most folks these days would rather send gift cards to their parents in need(you know the one's that raised them for 18 years) instead of taking them in their home. You know the whole "ME" generation thing.Taking an in-law in is a big step and could wreck a marriage.

The fact people were not divorcing 50 years ago does not mean the marriage wasn't wrecked.

Woodchuck312 said:ClaimsGuy said:The fact people were not divorcing 50 years ago does not mean the marriage wasn't wrecked.
well please show me proof of this and also proof that having extended family live with you will cause a wrecked marriage as Lost Dude claims.

Sorry but baby boomers and every generation since in this country has gotten more selfish and materialistic. They throw their parents in nursing homes, and send gift carrds to help with the guilt. And then go out and buy McMansions and 2 Hummers. Sorry but i really don't think family is the cause of divorce in this country. Its self centered A*****s who only think of themselves.Dude, please don't bring your own issue into this discussion and I never claim that.

Woodchuck312 said:Sorry but baby boomers... Sorry but i really don't think...Sorry, but I think you should change your name to sorrybutsorrybut, and go hang with brian^3....

Woodchuck312 said:Heatherdawn said:kevinkevinkevin said:If she has a history of spending inappropriately, I'd let her learn from the school of hard knocks and have her pay for her own groceries. You know the saying - fool me once, shame on me...fool me...you can't get fooled again.
We did that for 4 years and now it's gotten to the point where more desperate measures may need to be taken. The gift card thing is supposed to be a birthday gift, but I know it will never stop . . . She's disabled, so she can't really go work at a conventional job and my husband is an only child who feels that he needs to take care of her to a certain extent. I can't imagine that her lifelong poor spending habits will ever be broken, especially if they have not at this point - she's all but flunked out of the school of hard knocks. DH and I have talked about bribing her to let us do her finances and give her an allowance. Not sure how that will go over, but at some point soon, she will not have any other options. Be homeless or let us manage her money or lack of it.

Well you could always have her move in with you guys. You could closely monitor her spending and since she is disabled care for her better if she is in the same home. BUt most folks these days would rather send gift cards to their parents in need(you know the one's that raised them for 18 years) instead of taking them in their home. You know the whole "ME" generation thing.

Believe me, I can appreciate that, but 1) we don't have a room for her (small place and if we gave her our master bedroom, she can't get up the stairs anyway) and 2) she wasn't that kind of mother, my husband is just trying to care for her without letting her tromp all over us.