Rayny

We went shopping on Saturday and we were just exhausted by the time we got to Penney's. I was able to pick hubby up 2 St. John Bay flannels (originally $40, marked to $6.97). We're going back up tonight.

Thanks from me, too. I printed a bunch up and am heading there now. I doubt I'll pick up 25 of them, LOL, but that's how many coupons I printed. I'll just leave the ones I don't use sitting there for someone else. That's if they have them at all.

I have no experience with Costco, so I can't comment. I wish one would come to our area. I have to agree with you about this post though (at least where Sam's is concerned). Lots of their food items come in bulk which wouldn't be cost effective for a huge family, let alone a family of 3. Many however come in family size packages. If you'd buy their meat (I wouldn't due to the dye), you can separate it into meals for your own family if one package it too much. I've found that milk is normally cheaper here, but there are TONS of items (especially food items) that are way overpriced, IMO. I can get mostly all that at my local grocery store on sale for much less. For us, we have a membership to take advantage of the non food items (for the most part). All video games for example start at $5.00 less than you can get them at other stores (talking new release only, as you can get deals everywhere, including Sam's on older games). Their prices (with rebates) on computer software can't be beat. Movies are sometimes less, but this isn't always true either. Books are reasonable (again, you may or may not find it for less elsewhere). We once bought a computer at Sam's for $2000. This same computer was at Circuit City, ON SALE, for $300 more. Then again, you'll pay top dollar for something as simple as a case of soda at Sam's. To the OP. I highly suggest you try before you buy no matter which you decide on.

I heard Walmart injects their meat with dye to make it more attactive. I've always wondered if Sam's did the same thing? I never buy meat from either place.

I think it will depend on the ages that you're buying for, but I can SO relate to wasting money on games that get played for 5 minutes or less. Here are 2 websites that might be able to help you out. The first is Game Rankings. You can see how games stack up here, but keep in mind, all reviews are from professional sites. The 2nd is Game Spot's message board where you can read how the consumer (mostly young guys) feel about certain games, and you can post questions about what they feel might be the best fit for your family. I say it depends on the ages involved because if you're buying for really young kids, their opinions will vastly differ from the norm. Feel free to ask for help though as many of posters have younger siblings and/or children and they can perhaps guide you a bit. Since I've been visiting these 2 sites (years now, and we buy every video game system that comes along) I haven't bought any games that I'd consider clunkers yet. It's been a life saver for us. http://www.gamerankings.com/itemrankings/simpleratings.asp?rankings=y Here, on the pull down menus, make sure you click the WII under platform, and set the "limit results to" to 200, so you get a wide variety. http://www.gamespot.com/pages/forums/index.php This is the link to all forums, from here, you'll want to go to the Nintendo WII board.

We don't have a Costco's in our area, so it's a non-issue for us, but don't get held up on those cupcakes. I bought them and sent them to school for my son's birthday one year and all the kids said they were the worst cupcakes they'd ever had. Now, I didn't try them, but after that, I really had no desire to do so. I could be wrong, but doesn't Martha Stewart say she buys meats at Costco's?

This is my thoughts too. I don't want their stupid brands, I want better known and made brands. I took my son school shopping (Kaufmann's has always been our favorite store for boys). Well, we had, Levi, Levi, Levi, and more Levi (plus their brand which I would never buy anyway) to choose from. Don't get me wrong, I like Levi, but I also like variety.

Luckily for us, a brand new Boscov's just opened in our area. It's replaced Kaufmann's for me (though I'd love to have had both). They seem to have a nice petite section (though I'm not short, so I didn't spend much time there). If you have one in your area, it might be worth the trip. The sales right now are really great, too. They carry a lot of better name brands that Kaufmann's used to have.

I so miss Kaufmann's. It used to be my favorite store. IMO, Macy's doesn't even slightly compare.

It worked for me, but $9.99 shipping on an item that's about the same price after discount?

Wow, Xbox is charging more than $100 this generation? It was about half that for the prior system (you did have to argue a bit to get that though). They'd mail you a shipping container (they'd pay that) and you'd have your system back in less than a week from start to finish. Plus, they also kept you updated every stage of the way via email. Thanks to the OP, we picked up another Xbox because of this deal. :)

Well, if this isn't an oxymoron, I don't know what is. I'm just kidding, it did make me smile, but I do realize what a paragraph break means. Thanks for the info, I'm heading there today.

I hope you're speaking for yourself and not your children. Your child would never win a popularity contest with these brands, as they're all way beyond out. Levi is the only brand on the list that might be a tad in style (for men, as they do little to stay up to date for woman), but a few years back, they pulled out of the states and went overseas. You can now buy the brand in the various Mart stores (granted the mall still carries them too- especially Macy's). IMO, they deserve what they get and I no longer have any loyalty to them at all. Levi is supposed to be an American tradition.

I thought the same about the DS being backward compatible, but I figured the OP knew what he/she was talking about. As for the Wii getting the 3rd party support. That may be true of this generation, but take a look back at the Cube. Many wouldn't develop for them because it wasn't profitable to do so. Many did make for them in the beginning, but pulled out later on. They took a huge hit in the sports genre. We'll see how it goes this generation and who knows, it might change, but I won't hold my breath. The sad fact is, most who buy Nintendo buy it for the kiddie quality games (though I'm not suggesting Nintendo doesn't put out some of the best and most fun games on the market). Look at this thread alone. Everyone loves the kiddie games on the DS and recommend it because they don't want their kids playing other types. I'm not faulting anyone. Just pointing out facts. How much money do you think Rockstar would make from the Wii? Sure, they'd sell some, but enough to make it profitable for them? We'll see I guess. Yes too, to the fact that Rockstar will be on the Xbox (which is our number 1 system btw), but you'll wait because they'll go to Sony first. They will then simply be ported over. We'll see what that means this generation too. The last generation, the PS2 was quite a ways behind the Xbox, so ports weren't anything great. There was no reason to not buy it for the PS2 MONTHS (years at times) before it would be released on the Xbox because you certainly weren't going to get a better game once it crossed platforms. If you like the Japanese style RPGs (we don't) a PS3 will likely be your best bet this generation too. Microsoft will never take this genre. American RPGs maybe, but not Japanese. There are too many reasons not to own them all, but ultimately for many, it comes down to what one can afford. There are no real winners or losers here. You should always consider your own preferences and buy what suits your needs the best. The fact that my son's favorite genre is 1st person shooters, with 3rd coming in slightly behind, the Xbox 360 will likely be the best system for our family this generation too. For me personally, it'll probably be the Wii, as Animal Crossing 2 (or whatever it's called) is the game that will make it a must own for me.

I didn't realize weather.com was the same as weatherchannel.com, but I went to see if they said differently for my area. LOL Turns out, they are one in the same. I've never had a problem with them either and while the weatherbug may put spyware and adware on my computer, they're backing up what weather.com is reporting. I did check wunderground.com though and it's confirming what the Weather Channel, and my Weatherbug stated.

I think all the systems offer something that's unique to only that system. They all have their advantages and they all have their disadvantages. I have no doubt that the Wii will be as great as the NES, SNES, N64, and the Cube, which each had their day in the sun. The same could be said about all the handhelds, the Playstations, Sega's consoles, and the Xboxes. One thing I will say though is, the DS will in no way be compatible with the Wii. The PSP will definitely outperform the DS as far as compatibility is concerned. Sony has bent over backward to make them compatible. You'll even be able to download older games to the PS3 (this feature is available in Japan now, and the games are under $5.00) and then transfer the game and play it on the PSP. I just feel many here are recommending a system to the OP based on what they prefer. His/her child is asking for the PSP. His/her child already has the ability to play the games for the DS. If this child wants the system for games she's interested in, I think it's a bit disingenuous for everyone to say, forget what she wants, get what I think she should have. Now, if you want to compare features/games, that's a different story, but that's not what I'm seeing here. This is why I feel the OP needs to find out why the child wants this system. The DS is definitely the better option if you like the RPG games, but the PSP is top notch in other genres where the DS doesn't compare. It's all about the games. Find out what type of games you're interested in, then choose the system that supports your likes the most. The Wii is going to be a must own for my family because of the 1st party exclusives that Nintendo will put out. It's certainly not going to out perform the PS3 though. Sony pretty much has Rockstar in their pocket too. IMO, that's a HUGE reason right there to buy the PS3. Rare left Nintendo and now belongs to Microsoft, so all those great games will only be available on the Xbox too. I can't believe Nintendo let them go.

I'm in PA, which is definitely a mid Atlantic state and they're calling for clouds, but luckily, I'm not seeing rain till Tuesday, the 28th. This was from the Weather Channel. My Weather Bug is saying mostly sunny Friday and no rain in the forecast till Monday night, the 27th. Hopefully, Mother Nature will take it easy on us.

My daughter is 14 and my son just turned 16, so they're a bit older. I'd still think it's your best bet. If your daughter already can play the games on her GBA, why not go for the other? It sounds like what she's asking for, too. It is more. I can't argue that point, but it's more because it's more popular and Sony doesn't have to lower the price. My son says the graphics are better on the PSP than they are on the PS2. My kids do like Nintendo too, and are dying to get the Wii. They also are hoping Santa brings them a PS3 too though. Nintendo never forgets the fun factor in a game, IMO, and so, we'll have to buy it, but if I could only get 1 system, the Wii would come in dead last. Just for the simple fact that in the past, they've not gotten the support that the other systems (Xbox, Sony) gets. They do have a lot of great 1st party games though and you'll never get them on the other systems. Why don't you sit down with your daughter and ask her exactly why she's wanting the PSP. If she mentions the games at all, IMO, that's what you should get. If she starts talking about the extras, perhaps you'd do better with an Ipod (just kidding), but I think you see what I'm saying.

I'm just the opposite of the poster above me. My kids used to get the Gameboy every time a new one was released, but when the PSP came out, they've not looked back. None of the kids around here have the DS. Every single one that comes around my kids has the PSP.

Sorry, I never meant to imply that you shouldn't post the sale. I say put them all out there and let everyone decide for themselves where they want to shop. When school started, I had one of those coupons for $10.00 off. My daughter bought a shirt $20, a skirt, and 2 other shirts (I think all but the $20 shirt was on clearance) and the lady said, $7 something. I about flipped! I expected it to be well over $30. I don't know if she made a mistake, but I did ask her to recheck it, and she just repeated that it was $7 something. I know the quality isn't as great as some other stores (says a friend of mine who won't shop there, though I don't see it personally), but for the price, who cares? If they get damaged in the wash or they don't hold up well, who cares for that price?

Fashion Bug is one of the few stores that I don't have to drive an hour to get to, so we're in there pretty regularly. In all honesty, they run better sales at other times of the year. One thing I would highly suggest if anyone does shop there though is, go to their website and sign up for sales and promotions that they offer. About 10 times a year they send out cards of, get $10 off a $10 or more purchase. You also get other mailers, with some offering coupons that those who aren't on the mailing list never receive. Sometimes we buy nothing more than $10 in socks and IMO, it's so worth it. As a matter of fact, I have 1 right now and it's good for Nov. 22, 24, & 25th. It does exclude bonus buys, coats, & boots though.

Old Navy has a VERY cheap line of clothes, so if you're only in there buying the shirts that are around $5.00 (maybe a bit more), I can believe it. If you buy the more expensive stuff, you'll do better, quality wise. Their men's hoodies are pretty well made and my kids are still wearing them years later (I am funny about laundry now and never place zippered sweatshirts in a dryer with heat, actually, I never place any of their shirts in a dryer with heat - I do fluff without heat though). You'll pay a little more for the better made items, but they're still less than Pac Sun, Hollister, and American Eagle. IMO, they fall about head to head (price wise) with Aero. These are the stores my kids shop in and I've found, the Old Navy hold up as well as the $50 and $60 ones from the other stores mentioned. I highly suggest everyone stay away from their low line though. It's pure JUNK!

I saw that Pac Sun was having a spend $100 get $50 off your next $100 shopping trip. It's not great, but it's good for a store that rarely does anything.

I just checked out mall, but they don't say what each store's sales will be. They did say they'd be drawing 1 winner who will win a $500 PER month shopping spree (doesn't say how many months) and that they'll be giving goody bags to the first 1000 shoppers.

I love Aero, but 50% off isn't worth running there for the sale as they run 50% off mostly till Christmas. If you're there, by all means, shop there. If you're making a special trip, I'd say it's a sale you can get almost anytime in December. Edit: At least in the store in our mall, this is the way it is.