fluffkin79

Pillow pets, Zooble playhouses, basic DVD player. I'm trying to not buy for DH or myself this year, but if there is a truely great deal on a decent BluRay player I might give in.

18-20 gifts? That sounds like a lot to me! My kids' toy pile has gotten out of control, but I still keep seeing things I would like to give them. I just have to clean their room and I remember not to go crazy with the buying. For the last couple years I gave each kid 3 "real gifts" - one from mom and dad and one from each sibling. Then I also give them a few needed things: clothes, coats, gloves, shoes, bedding, books, art supplies, etc. It has been hard to stick to just 3 gifts per kid, but they get plenty from other places. Santa has given them a big toy, game, and loads of stocking stuffers the last few years. Plus they each got gifts from 2 aunts and 5 grandparents. (This year they lost a Grandma and another Grandma won't be able to buy. I am tempted to fill in for them, but not sure if they need more...)

Last year Walmart and Amazon had a price war on books and movies. I think Target got involved, too. Are you looking for a new release or an older book?

Target Home Demask Sheet sets marked down to 12.48(75%). 450 thread count. So glad I caught these!

They already did it. Our family drew the names for the family gift exchange a couple weeks ago. We need to give ideas for the exchange, so I took the kids to Toys R Us for Geoffery's Birthday Party and let the kids look around. We made their lists then. We told them that we weren't buying anything, we just wanted to look around for ideas of things they would like so we can tell Grandma and the family "Secret Santa". Then I dropped off the kids and DH off at home and went back to TRU to take advantage of the B2G1 sale and the $5/$25 coupon. I've never had them make lists this early before. I have always just gotten whatever I think is good, then shown them those items in the stores or ads closer to Christmas time - right before I had them make their lists. It usually works, they add whatever I point out to them to their lists. That will still probably work for the younger 2, but now my DD7 is starting to get ideas from her classmates and commercial TV about what she has to have. Hopefully it doesn't change too much between now and then. I don't have the extra cash to run out and buy more stuff, and the kids just don't need it. If they really change their minds I will have to return what I already have.

I was thinking something similar - gift cards or passes to a movie theather, skating/iceskating rink, ski/sled hill, whatever you have near you that she likes. I'm getting my 12 year old nieces a new bedding set and a small digital frame to go with the cameras they got for their birthday. And maybe some other stuff to decorated their room with if I can find anything great before Christmas.

Don't give up! There were a couple years were Walmart's cheapy PJs were terrible - way undersized and uselessly thin. Last year they offered much better quality. DS is still wearing the ones he got last year, they were a great buy. I don't know what they will offer this year, but they are at least worth a look. My biggest disappointment was the digital picture frames I ordered from Walmart.com. They came in a plain white box, no brand on the box or item. One had a loose part rolling around inside it and a loop of wire sticking out of the side; the other was missing several pixels. I was able to return them without a problem, but by then BF was over and I ended up paying more to replace them.

Are there stores where you are not allowed to bring shopping bags in with you? Have people been pulled aside and questioned for putting merchandise in them? I can see where putting merchandise in a purse or pocket would earn you attention from security, but using an open-toped shopping bag for carring things seems resonable enough to me.

But that would mean *GASP* browsing on BF! This is not allowed! Who has time or trunk space for non-doorbusters?

My 7 year old DD wants her own cell phone, too. That's not happening. Forget the pony - 2 years ago my DD (then 5) wanted a polar bear. Well, either a polar bear or a hippo. She got a stuffed polar bear, 2 polar bear movies (All About Polar Bears and The Little Polar Bear) and a Hungry, Hungry Hippos game. Yet another example of Santa bringing what he wants to bring instead of exactly what you ask for.

Budget? What's that? I did try to set a budget last year, but it didn't work very well. Practice makes perfect so maybe I'll do better this year. Last year's budget was really more about me trying to guess how much I spend on the holidays, then keeping track to see how far off I was. It was actually pretty close to the total number, but I wasn't able to stay at a certain dollar amount for any 1 person. One side of our family has a drawing with a $20 limit per gift. I have a family of 5 so we draw 5 names, that's $100 and the only place I really stick to a budget. That covers the extended family on one side. Mom, Dad, Sis, and Grandma on that side are usually around $20, too. On the other side of the family I try to stick to $20 per person, but that is where I run into trouble. I like to give the 3 nieces/nephews something nice - they don't usually get much for Christmas. It used to be $20 for them, but that doesn't work as well now that they are getting older. It will have to be under $50 this year because we don't have much to spare. Cousins/cousins kids I go as cheap as possible. I have a toy stash from clearance, rummage (NIB), or freebies I find througout the year where I "shop" for these kids. All great stuff (really. my kids' gifts come from there, too) but I generally pay 25% of retail or less for these goodies, so I usually spend less than $5 each for cousins. Last year I gave my friends' kids a book ($1) with a candy cane and a homemade card from my kids. So, how much do I spend on other people kids? Somewhere between $1 and $50. My parents, sis, adult cousins and aunts/uncles usually get a box full of goodies from my stockpile: Soaps, shampoos, lotions, candles, treats, whatever I have. If I can think of anything else to give them I do, but adult gift giving is optional on that side of the family. When I figure my personal budget I count how much I actually spend. I do try to get great deals, of course, and give something better than my budget would normally allow. Sometimes that means that for the $20 family gift exchange the people who give more suggestions of things they would like (or are easier for me to guess on) get lots of stuff while the people who want something specific get exactly what they ask for and nothing else.

Nope. I usually don't wrap anything until I am at least 90% finished shopping. I like to lay it all out and make sure it is all even between the kids before I start to wrap. My kids don't really care about price yet, but I do try to make things as even as possible and will combine or seperate items to make sure everyone has the same number of gifts. It's easier for me to compare when it is all in front of me. And for the last few years I have made baskets/boxes of miscellanious goodies for at least one person and I'm not finished collecting that stuff until the day I give the basket away (there's always another little freebie to toss in there!). I usually just pull an all-nighter about a week before Christmas and wrap it all at once.

There is a LOT of toy chatter on the Target thread when they do the big toy clearances in January and July. I don't know of any major toy clearance in October. However, those are just the times when there is a larger selection of items being marked down about the same time. Target, like most stores, clearances items throughout the store all year long. I just picked up a couple games - and a whole bunch of Dollar Spot goodies - from Target at 75% off last week. Go check your local store's endcaps and look for some surprises! Keep up to date on what's getting marked down at the Peremiter Perusing/Target Clearance thread here: http://forums.gottadeal.com/showthread.php?177291-Perimeter-Perusing-at-Target-(Target-Clearance-Deals)-Q3-2010&p=1748803#post1748803

These are so insanely out of my budget that I haven't even heard of them before! Apperently I don't even have a friend of a friend of a friend of a friend who "needs" to have these.

We made these last year, everyone seemed to like them. I had my kids make some for aunts, teachers, and me. I borrowed my friend's boys and helped them make some for their mom. Paint a child's hand with white paint and make a handprint on a round ornament. The fingers leave a mark that look like snowmen. When the paint dries add decorations to your snowmen. Don't forget to put the child's name and date on the bottom.

Another day, another Target. I got lots of stocking/basket/gift fillers from 75% off $ spot and some new curtains 75% off.

Had my fun yesterday - at this rate I may scratch off my whole shopping list before Black Friday! Some shoes and all school supplies, including backpacks, were 75% off Lots of clothes in all depts 30-75% ###087100003 Topple game 2.50 ###087101892 Liar's Dice game 2.48 ###091110882 Water Wobblers pool/bath toy 1.48 ###060000434 Xhilaration Bed-in-a-bag set, twin size 14.98 http://www.target.com/Xhilaration-Damask-Bed-Bag-Pink/dp/B0023VU8NI/ref=br_1_11?ie=UTF8&id=Xhilaration%20Damask%20Bed%20Bag%20Pink&node=385058011&searchSize=30&searchView=grid5&searchPage=1&sr=1-11&qid=1284814842&rh=&searchBinNameList=target_com_category-bin%2Ctarget_com_gender-bin%2Ctarget_com_size-bin%2Ctarget_com_primary_color-bin%2Cprice%2Cnumber_of_pieces&searchRank=pmrank&frombrowse=1

We have many things, but are short on cash and space. I really don't know what to hope for, but I am sure the ads will tell me!

Routine? That suggests some sort of plan. I don't even know what city we will be in this year! For the most part it kinds goes like this: Check, then recheck ads. Then get the paper copies and check them again. Make T-Day dinner, sneak out to Kmart, hang out with family, watch football. Finalize plan. Snooze, order online, doze, order online, take a quick nap, then head out the door too early. Shop, shop, shop. Drop - at least for an hour or so. Put up the tree, let the kids decorate. Gather up the kiddos and DH and head out to a holiday parade or tree lighting ceremony. Sleep. Sat or Sun: unload trunk and begin wrapping If we go out of town this year we will probably head out to the apple orchard gift shop instead of putting up the tree. Otherwise same thing, different place.

I've gotten everything I ordered online. My only real problem has been the items I got from Walmart being lower quality than I expected. I did order my sister's washer and dryer from Sears and we got it, but it took a week or two for them to get delivered to the store. Of course, if it was a must-have item I would rather pick it up in store, just to be sure.

You're right, and I might have just gotten lucky. There were also some full priced 6+ lb bonus bags on the opposite endcap, so this might be a bag change. If so, maybe someone else will get lucky too.

Iams cat food, 6lb orange bag (chicken and rice, I think) was on clearance for $5.xx, 50% off. I wish I had room to store more of these! Back to school was still 30%, 50% for backpacks at my store yesterday.

LOL, sorry about the novel! Hint: if you do go out this year, bring some snacks along.

I usually enjoy going for the tradition of it. I like getting out in the crowd. The attitude out there is totally different from other days and It helps me get into the holiday mood. I do find some good deals, but for me it is usually small stuff - movies, PJs, clothes, small toys, games, etc. I used to depend more on BF sales, but now I have gotten good at finding better deals on my bigger stuff at other sales/clearances throughout the year. It seems that the stores have been offering more and more items in their online sales, too. For the last couple years I spent almost the whole night up checking for BF sales to start online and have gotten almost everything I wanted that way. By the time the stores opened, my shopping list gets pretty short. Its nice for me because I can wander into a store a couple hours after they open and still get most of the things on my list. But shopping is just part of it. I cook T-Day dinner, hang out with family, finalize my list, stay on GD almost all night ordering whatever I can (and feeding off all the excitement!), head out for a shopping spree, come home to rest a while, put up the tree, then gather up the family for a holiday parade or tree lighting ceremony. It's a crazy whirlwind weekend, but by the end I am really in the holiday mood. I don't know your situation, but if anyone is available to watch the kids beg, plead, or work out some deal with them. I have never had to take more one kid with me on BF, at least in the early morning. I have taken a baby with me twice, which worked out fine - the baby stayed comfortable in a cart or stroller and I had a good old time shopping feeling good that baby was safe. Personally I would not be willing to take all 3 of my kids shopping on BF. For me it would be too nerveracking, constantly making sure that everyone was still together. And it is hard to get stuff for the kids when they are shopping with you. Last year I dropped my kids off with a friend. She couldn't take them until 7am, so I waited till then and went out a little later than normal. For me it was totally worth the wait because it was so much more relaxed to not have to worry about the kids in the store. The time came for me to pick them up and there was one more store I wanted to go to. Things were dying down so I picked up my kids (3, 4, and 6 years old) and took them to Boston Store with me. We got what we wanted and every one survived, but it wasn't much fun shopping with my kids. Of course, you are the best judge of you and your kids. If you think you could all handle BF shopping together, more power to you. If you would rather sit it out, many of the deals I've found on BF can be found other places and times, especially online on BF and throughout the year.

BTS 30-50% off here. I picked up 1 backpack at 50% because there really weren't that many girl styles left at the store I was at. There were plently of boy backpacks, so if I was looking for a boy I would have held out for 75%. BTW, I was shocked by the original prices. Many of them were originally $30? I guess I don't pay retail very often, because that seems crazy to me! Have I missed any good bedding clearance? Moving has kept me out of the stores for a few weeks. I was hoping to find some Back to College clearance bedding, but I didn't see any at my store. Have they already clearanced that stuff out, or did they not have it this year? Does anyone know how long the Shut the Box or Liar's Dice games have been at 30%? I'd love to pick them up at 75%, but Target is too far for daily trips so I want to make an educated guess when I should head back. TIA.