stacya

I SOOOOOOOOOO remember those, too, and I LOVED them!! Wow, guess we're really dating ourselves...

My sister and I usually hit K-Mart, but we do it after we pop the turkey in the oven, before dinner, or if it's something that's a MUST have (like ds' Diego bike last year), we'll be there when they open...otherwise, we save our strength (and our walking shoes) for BF...

It might be worth checking out...I really didn't pay attention to just how much stuff was 50% off the clearance price versus 30% off, but I think everything I ended up getting was 50% off..oh, and I should note, too, that this was at a Children's Place Outlet store, so YMMV...

Thanks for this heads up! I went today, and they had 50% off some of the markdown prices, and some 30% off, but I also had ds' birthday e-mail for an additional 20% off! So, I got 4 pairs of pants and 9 shirts for $35!! Can't beat that!!

Our Target had tons of these today, 75% off, but didn't look at what price that made them...all other bbq stuff was only 30% off...got a few scrapbooking things for 75% off (paints with foam stamps, plastic heart and circle templates)...Our One Spot was FULL, and had tons of cute fall scrapbooking things...still had some of the old Spot stuff at 50% off...our school supplies were at 30% off, and there were tons of them, too...got both boys their OWN packs of RoseArt crayons for 8 cents...probably should've gotten MANY extras at that price, since my 2 yo ds tends to break every crayon he comes in contact with, and of course, that pisses off my 3 1/2 yo ds to no end! Also picked up Crayola stampables or something...they looked cute, and they're washable, so into the cart it went...they were $2.78...not much in toys...Shrek heads and the Spiderman thing someone mentioned...managed to find a bug magnifier thing that was marked 30% off, for $6.98...didn't check my receipt to see if that's what it rang up, but there were only two, and they were mixed in with a bunch of stuff, so maybe they'd been hidden and ended up being cheaper...I'll have to check my receipt anyway...the candles they had on the endcap all summer (cool scents, some combination scents), were 30% off...I'd like one of those diffuser things with the wooden sticks that are in the bottle, but at 30% off, they were still $10.xx, so I'll bide my time and see if they go to 50% off... Was dragging two bored boys, one screaming, so I didn't get to peruse as much as I'd have liked to, but I managed to get a few good things!

I dress my sons the same, but dh would NEVER go for that! If he was dressed like the boys, that would be one thing, but for all FOUR of us to be dressed the same or similarly, no way! I'd be fine with it...when we had one ds, our first Christmas ds and I had VERY similar shirts that we had pics done in, and dh's was similar, too, but not quite the same shade of blue, and he thought I was NUTS!

I had forgotten about the pj's, and I got TONS of different ones for winter and summer at Kohl's last year and the year before...found BRC slippers at Wal-Mart, but I think that was two years ago...

Found a Crayola Color Explosion Spinner for $9.xx, 50% off, and several of the Thomas, Diego, and one Elmo b-day sets at 75% off...pools, sprinklers, etc were 50% off here, but the water toys were only 30%...they had some Pampers wipes boxes of 6 refills for $6.xx, but I need the sensitive skin ones, and they were out. Boxes of Huggies wipes on clearance too, marked $8.xx. Saw lots of summer baby stuff clearanced, but I didn't look to see how much off, since my boys are too big...no discount on school supplies here yet...

Yeah, I'm wondering about the size, too!

We have a fake pre-lit (read: pain in the a$$) that is on its way out the door this year...every year, except for the first year we had it (I think 2001), it has had at least one bough that we can't figure out why it won't light...last year, it was the whole bottom section, every other bough! We will buy a new fake tree, but maybe not this year, as dh has been pushing for a real one for several years, but like all living greenery, I can't keep it alive, so I've been able to keep us from having to have one...now that we have kids and are living back up north again, though, he's wanting to do the whole, "drive into the middle of nowhere, chop down the tree, drag it home" thing...I can't stand to be cold, so I'm just as happy going to Lowe's or somewhere and having them strap it to the car! MUCH faster!! Those of you that have pre-lit trees...I'm wondering if they're better now than they were when we first bought ours, as it was probably the first or second year they had pre-lit trees...do yours come in sections (ours has three), where you have to find several cords and hook them into a main socket in each section of the tree, or are they simpler now? this will be the deciding factor as to whether or not we buy another pre-lit tree...TIA!

As soon as dh will let me! (And as soon as I can get his butt up the ladder to put up the outside lights!)

The lights, the music, the Christmas specials on TV, and I especially love getting together on Christmas Eve with family and all of the awesome food!

The past two years, it's been Kohl's...they've opened at 5, and my next stop is generally Target, which doesn't open til 6...my sister generally gets whatever we need at Wal-Mart at 5, or has someone else get stuff for both of us from there so we can focus on other stores...

TOO MUCH! I don't remember what I spent last year, as it ended up being combined with stuff I picked up for my sister, and vice versa, so I don't remember that part of it...the year before I remember though, and it was $300! I never spend that much in a day (unless it's a big ticket item), so I had to sit and tally it up, because it seemed like I had a million bags! Had a bit of buyer's remorse, since some of the stuff was for me, but I must've gotten over it by last BF, because I STILL bought some stuff for myself!

My older ds was a Wiggles fanatic from the time he was a few months old, it seems, so he's got many tees and stuff (in fact, his room is Wiggles right now), and I got almost every single shirt from JCPenney...I did find a super-cute Wags rugby shirt that I got from ebay, but it ran a little small, so though it was 12 months, it fit more like 9 months, fyi...

My Target told me they will do price adjustments, but NOT if the item has gone on clearance...I thought that was standard for all Targets...

There is nothing that I really want...I'm happy to see that my kids are excited with what they get...since they are only 3 1/2, and almost 2 (on Sunday), it's not hard to please them now, so I guess I'd better enjoy it before they're teenagers, and aren't happy with anything!

I have my boys' pics done for Christmas every year, so I do send cards...last year, I didn't send them out until a couple of days before Christmas, so I only sent them to family and close friends...every year I say I'm going to do it earlier, but I never seem to find the time! I can't stand doing it though, just because it seems to take so long! I need to start doing the ones that are already made up, where I just stick them in an envelope and put the address on there!

Very cool! Thanks! I can't wait to show this to my 3 year old tomorrow, because he's been talking about Santa for a few weeks already!

Same here! If dh had his way though, everything would be wrapped in aluminum foil or newspaper!

Christmas Vacation, Elf, It's a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story, and any of the Rudolph, Charlie Brown, Grinch, and Frosty cartoons (except Frosty Returns...can't stand that one!)

Guess I would make it "fourth that!" Oh, yeah, forgot about Feliz Navidad...that's pretty much tied with Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer, for sure!

For my first stop, since I'm generally in line in the cold, I'm dressed for it, including a hat, scarf, and mittens. Last year, I even stopped off for a coffee first, which I usually don't waste time with, but it was REALLY cold last year, and the night before, I generally don't sleep well, between having a shorter night to sleep, and the natural high that comes from dreaming of all of the good deals I'm going to get!! I have my money/cards, phone, ID, and keys in my pockets. I'm generally not at my first stop for too long, because if I've planned it well, I'm in and out to get what I most want and then I'm off to the next place...as long as the next place is open, I am without outerwear, because I will probably end up standing in longer lines, or fighting more crowds, but I still don't carry a purse! I usually have enough to carry without having to drag that along!

One of my favorites, too!

I think you mean, "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas," which is way I was going to say...such a cute song!