wittenlover

Yes! To the elf that was worried, I got my box and the kitties have already claimed the beautiful sherpa throw for themselves, with Hodges immediately crawling under it for his afternoon nap and Mew joining him but on the top side yesterday afternoon. I did manage to keep the peppermint bark out of their furry paws for myself, though. Ha! Thank you! As for the Wolverine pillow pet I received earlier, he'll be watching the game with me when the Wolverines take to the field in about 40 minutes! Happy "sweet" '16, y'all! :-)

Thank you once again for running the exchanges pogiporkchop! I know it must be a lot of work and I want you to know we really appreciate you (and the ShiShis!!!) being willing to run it. Many thanks to the elves that took care of me. I received one package before I left for my dad's that I opened this morning.... A Michigan Wolverine plush - a big one! I think he might be useful as a pillow, too. Not sure, but he looks the part. Ha! Looking forward to my return home tonight and (hopefully) another package waiting. If it's in my apartment office, I won't be able to pick it up until tomorrow, as they're closed for Christmas (and would be closed even if it was a normal day by the time I arrive this evening). Merry Christmas all!

Got a rather interesting gift-wrapped item from Amazon... Hmmmm... Saving for Christmas.

Actually just heard on my news this morning there is a local small business that is actually touting a Christmas Day sale here. Ugh. No.

Almost too quiet in here... Everybody ready for Christmas? I've got my Santa hat ready to go play Santa to my Dad (and a few of my friends) later this week. Looking forward to seeing more SS pictures once those holding out open them up Christmas morning!

Doh! Sorry we had to turn to the elves once again, but very glad there are willing elves to step in. Looking forward to the lists!

According to the tracking info, my SS box has made it to its destination. Hope they enjoy what's inside!

No. Like others have mentioned, the only time I've "shopped" on Christmas was for meds and, one year I road tripped to a friend's place that was farther away than one tank of fuel would carry me, so I stopped for gas. That's it.

SS package is SHIPPED! Tracking number is in your inbox, Chief Elf! :-)

Not me, thankfully. Just actually have to pack everything into the box. Unfortunately, got to work this morning and realized I left part of the SS stuff at home (*facepalm*), so I'll be shipping tomorrow instead of today.

Had the normal 50+ dozen cookies that needed baking this weekend for my pit crew guys. Major shopping is done, just will pick up a couple small items this evening. Hoping to pack & ship by tomorrow night.

Agreed!

Gonna go browse the Kohl's site today and see what I can grab with my KC and Y2U rewards for in-store pickup. Much as I don't mind waiting for shipments, it can be a pain for me to get to my apt office while they're open sometimes. Thanks for the reminder on the 25% off code - it might just come in handy!

I was pleased with my BF week shopping this year. Kohl's: 4 "Big One" pillows 3 "Big One" throws Cookie sheet set Stacked cooling rack set Bissell compact upright pet vacuum (already used this once and WOW I totally needed a new vacuum, apparently! Ha!) 1 NFL throw (gift) Best Buy (online): Nikon L840 camera bundle + extra 32GB SD card Samsung Blu-Ray player (the $87.99 one - was a request from family member) 2 Sony Blu-Ray players (the $50 ones for me and my best friend - yes we're finally upgrading! lol) Several cheap Blu-Rays 4 inexpensive HDMI cables (not on sale, just necessary for the B-R player hookups & such) Meijer (in store): 9 35-lb pails Tidy Cats litter 40 cans Fancy Feast Couple small gift items Walmart (in store): 2 32GB micro SD cards Several cheap Blu-Rays 2 cheap bath towels 2 sets of cheap hand towels 1 bundle cheap washcloths 1 memory foam bath rug Bath & Body Works (in store): 3 Twisted Peppermint body cream 3 Twisted Peppermint body wash 2 Twisted Peppermint hand cream 1 Twisted Peppermint hand soap 1 VIP tote Home Depot (in store): 3 24-pack AA batteries 2 300-ct mini Christmas light reels Torrid (in store): 1 pair jeans 1 new blouse A few accessories PetSmart (in store): Holiday cat collar (Hodges will hate me soon. Ha!) Holiday cat toys Dog toys/treats for Dad's labs Best Buy (in store): Lifeproof case Few more cheap Blu-Rays Experience-wise: - My online shopping was smooth (with all items ordered online now delivered, save for one that will arrive tomorrow). - In store Thursday night, employees and shoppers were polite and helpful, with several of us shoppers helping each other find various things. - In store Friday morning started out well with Home Depot employees letting us in out of the rain and offering us free Tim Horton's doughnuts, coffee, and hot cocoa while handing us maps and answering any questions we had about specific items before they turned us loose at 6. Torrid was quiet and I shopped leisurely, as I was there more to keep a friend company who had pulled the overnight shift than to actually do any major shopping. PetSmart was an easy in and out, though it was interesting to see the pallets of Tidy Cats almost untouched for a change. Proof that Meijer won that battle in our town at least (price comp: TC was $7.99 at PS, $6.29 at Meijer). Best Buy was more like a normal Saturday crowd than a BF crowd by the time we got there. It was busy but not overly so. We found the Lifeproof case my buddy wanted to pick up and then browsed through the Blu-Rays. Went home and relaxed after that.

Julep was doing 50% off site wide, so I grabbed a couple of my faves I'm running low on and picked up a small gift set for one of my best friends that I know she'll love.

I did pick up the Nikon L840. Looking forward to playing with it a bit at my company Christmas (oh sorry *holiday*) party this weekend to see how it fares. The bundle came with an 8GB card, but I picked up a 32GB for $10 to go with it. Hope everyone's happy with their new cameras, no matter which one you chose!

Dang! I was fifth??? I talk too much. lol Congrats to both winners!

I was referring to the large sodas that someone else had mentioned, not the boards.

Only takes one entry to win. Very nice runner-up prize, Brad! You rock!

Got my first items from Best Buy today. One came USPS, other UPS. USPS was two Blu-Rays. UPS box had my Nikon L840 bundle and the extra memory card I ordered. According to tracking info, the rest should be delivered tomorrow and Wednesday.

Where I wound up: Online Wednesday night/Thurs morning (or prior): Kohl's Best Buy In store Thursday: Meijer (morning) Walmart (late aft/early evening) Bath & Body Works (evening) In store Friday: Home Depot Torrid PetSmart (cat toys & such) Best Buy (picked up a few more cheap BR's)

Have received all but one thing from my Kohl's order. The last item is on its way from CA to me, so it's taking another couple days, but I am thus far pleased with Kohl's this year as a first-timer. Will be using up my Kohl's cash this week, though not entirely sure on what just yet... lol

Got in all the ordered stuff for my SS box. Now I just have to pick up a few small things to finish it off. Can't wait to pack it up and ship it out!

Went to Home Depot in Novi, MI this morning for batteries, Christmas lights, a couple other small things. Got there around 5 am, there were maybe 10 folks already there. It started raining harder while folks were waiting, so they let us into the entryway. Inside, much to our surprise, they had doughnuts, coffee, and hot cocoa from the local Tim Horton's they were handing out to all of us early birds. Awesome. The staff handed out maps for all the popular items and answered any questions we had. At 6, the crowd had grown to a few dozen at least. They moved the gates and let us loose. Cruised through the store, collected the items I was looking for, and walked right up to a register to checkout. Well done, Home Depot.

I was near my local Target (shopping in another store nearby) with about 30 minutes left before Target opened their doors tonight. Looked like no more than 20 people in line over there. Far, FAR cry from the hundreds of folks that used to line up outside that one.