Zhu Zhu Pet Hamsters

Aren't they adorable. I wouldn't care, but everytime a commercial comes on my daughter screams for me to come and see. She needs to know that I have understood exactly what she wants for Christmas. She really would like a labradoodle puppy or a real kitten... A robotic pet seems wonderful to me. It never dies... well, if it does you can send it back. I'm wondering... how hard can it be to find a tiny Zhu Zhu Pet Hamster in the stores this season? Well, I just checked ebay and it seems that Num Nums and Mr. Squiggles are getting bids from $30 - $35. The Mr. Squiggles for $29 has 9 bids on it right now. Well, they are priced at $8 on Walmart's website. Of course, they're out of stock. Who knows if I'll find one tomorrow?

Black Friday test drive

Good Morning and Happy Thanksgiving. I took my daughter to ToyRUs yesterday to preview some of the things that will be on their Black Friday Sale. I did see that ToysRUs will be giving vouchers to the first 100 people in line at the Black Friday ToysRUs sale. The world is about to be invaded by robotic hamsters that our little girls must have for Christmas but we'll have to stand in line for them to pay only $9.99 instead of $40 on ebay to someone who somehow got their hands on a few? It's always something....
Oh, I forgot, I was going to tell you about our trip to ToysRUs. I turned her loose and watched her play with the v-motion, the nitro notebooks. She showed me all of the Leapster 2 games she feels she must have. She didn't say much about the Didj and passed by the ds (Thank you Lord!). I was really hoping to get another year out of the Leapster 2. In fact, after we got home she told me it would be alright if I just bought games for her Leapster 2. Thanks to the folks at Leapster for making the games so good she doesn't want to part with it. See, I know that some of you would shy away from taking your kid into a store and saying "Ok... tell me what you want," but sometimes it works out so well.
I followed her with pen and paper and she examined the paper now and then to make sure I had written everything she said. Now, it's the day before Black Friday and I have scratched off several things that I would have bought just because they're going to be on sale -- but she doesn't really want them. She doesn't want the hotwheels track my husband thought she had to have. (Duh!). She doesn't want anything Barbie or Baby. It's electronic and high action all the way.
She warned me sternly to not buy a bunch of clothes and shoes like I did last year.... But at Meijer today they are Buy one pair, get the second for a dollar! I think I'll just go and have a look. I don't have to be to dinner until 3 pm.

One Stop Source for BLACK FRIDAY ADS

You'll never guess what I just found. One web page with pdf downloads of Black Friday Ads from almost every store you can think of. All in one place... Yea!

TOP TEN BLACK FRIDAY SALES: WALMART

THIS IS A PARTIAL LIST OF Doorbusters. I chose to list the items that might tempt me to get out early and wade through the crowds. Thanks to http://bfads.net/ for their research and lists

WALMART DOORBUSTERS BLACK FRIDAY 2009:
Cricut Expression Cutter $188
Mainstay True Colors Bath Towel $2
Faded Glory 4-in-1 jackets $15 (normally $35) (boys, girls, men, women)
Boys, Girls, Toddler Track Suits $3 (normally $9-$14)
Boys, Girls, Women Fleece lined winter boots $7 (normally $15)
Boys, Girls graphic hoodies $3
LAPTOP eMachines 15.6” 2GB, 160GB HD (EME627) $198
LAPTOP HP 15.6”, 3GB, 250GB HD, Intel (G60-519WM) $298
DESKTOP HP, 20” Monitor, 3BG, 320GB HD $398
BLU RAY. Magnavox Blu-ray Disc Player $78 (normally $128)
PORTABLE DVD Player. Phillips 7” $49 (normally $79)
MOVIES for $5: Horton Hears a Who, Hotel for Dogs, Kung Fu Panda, Madagascar 2, Mall Cop, Nim’s Island, Surf’s Up, Despereaux
MOVIES for $9-$10. 17 Again, Fireproof, GI Joe, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, Monsters vs Aliens, Terminator 3
TELEVISIONS: 32” Emerson HDTV $248 (normally $348)
42” Emerson Plasma HDTV $448
46” Sony Bravia HDTV $798
ELECTRONIC GAMES: Nintendo DS Lite $98 (normally $129)

TOP TEN BLACK FRIDAY SALE STRATEGIES

1. Let Your Fingers do the Shopping. Many stores will offer some of the same deals to online shoppers. Do your homework online to make sure you really need to get out in the crowd. It's going to be crazy out there. Wouldn't you rather stay home in your jammies and slippers?

2. Buy the Thanksgiving newspaper. Online sources will provide more detailed information as Friday approaches but I like to mark up a copy of the sale flyer and have it with me in the store.

3. Go with a buddy. Not just for fun, but you can divide and conquer. One of you go after the hoodies and boots while the other tracks down the must have movies or electronics.

4. Plan Your Itinerary. Make your list and prioritize. Even if it might be out of your way, go for the big ticket item first that might be out of stock later in the day. Also keep in mind some sales are timed.

5. Don't buy things you don't want. Don't buy things they don't want. 'nuf said.

6. Don't spend all of your money because new ads will come out after Thanksgiving, making your kids crazy to get things you haven't even thought of yet.

7. Relax, this is supposed to be fun. If you don't enjoy shopping you should probably stay home.

8. Go early if you want to park your car anywhere, even in the farthest row out.

9. Take a hot cup of Coffee or some steaming tea to sip while you wait for the clock to roll since you arrived early.

10. Always make a 24 hour store your first stop on Black Friday Sale day. I always being at a store that's open 24 hours so I don't have to wait outside. If the doors aren't closed you won't wait in the cold and there won't be a stampede. (Now that, I will not do!)

Target wins "Best Black Friday Ad of 2009"

Target's new Black Friday ads look like Target Black Friday is going to be a good one. Wait a minute, I just realized that I know who's going to be there -- that blonde lady who's climbing the ladder... but I have no idea what's on sale. Okay, they were successful. The mini-drama of the two sisters trash talking each other that they are going to outdo one another at the Target black friday sale is totally effective. I was actually wanting to be there even though I have no idea what will be on sale. Kudos to target's advertising team. I'm not there yet... but I wanted to be. I won't plan my itinerary until I've seen all of the Black Friday ads and have decided what we can't live without.

Black Friday Chronicles

For two year now I have gotten up in the dark of night as my family slept the day after Thanksgiving and driven to Walmart, lured by their black friday ads. (To those of you who are pro-union... I’m sorry. I have a brother who will not walk through the doors of a Walmart. I really don’t shop there often.) But last Thanksgiving the ad featuring the Hannah Montana sweat shirts and Hannah Montana t-shirts and Hannah Montana outfits. Well, I have a little girl and you try to get them what they want. Anyway, I drove in the darkness of night and arrived at Walmart at 5 am. I had to park in front of Sally’s Beauty in a nearby strip mall because Walmart was already full. It was snowing outside and the beauty of it brought me to tears. The realization that Christmas was near, the snow... I had just begun to sip my coffee. Seriously, what’s wrong with me? I stood with dozens of other moms and dads, along with a few grandmas, around a skid piled high with sweatshirts that we were not permitted to touch until 5:30 am. At 5 am the Hannah Montana stuff was already surrounded but I managed to elbow my way in and stake out a spot near the bright pink and gray, size 8. We all behaved ourselves and waited until the announcer said “go.” The skid was empty at 5:31 am. I took my two sweatshirts and stepped three feet away to find her an outfit. That skid was empty except for two little size 6 outfits. What do you think? Should I try it again? If Black Friday shopping interests you be sure to study the ads first and start early at the items most important to you. Search black friday ads, target black friday, black friday deals, black friday sales and day after thanksgiving sales. Some places have online black friday sales so you can stay in your jammies and avoid the crowds.

ipod, it seems, has become the “kleenex” of mp3 players. It’s a word that everyone loves to say. They run with their ipod. They walk with their ipod. Now it has a pedometer. You need a car ipod, a an ipod car charger, an ipod car adapter... They download, upload and it’s the ipod. You would never say mp3 player when you can say “ipod.” So, those of us who don’t have one yet must buy one--or convince someone to buy it for us. Christmas is coming!

Purses. Make it or Break the bank

Sure, a purse could be a great Christmas gift, but it better be good. Either handmade and one of a kind or designer would be nice please. My mom has been working on making purses since last summer... Oops. I hope none of my cousins read this. I think it might be a surprise. I already grabbed one that’s a cute little backpack but I’m still expecting another for Christmas. I like TJ Maxx for purses but I have to confess that I discovered my all time favorite purse at a garage sale last summer. A little black bag with a familiar triangle that said “prada.” I bought it for $5 and thought about selling it on e-bay, but it was so cute... and that little triangle that said “prada” was so nice. I was always careful to carry it with the logo facing outwards. Thank you for noticing my expensive taste in purses. Then I discovered, as you probably already know, that it was a knock off. My cute little black purse is against the law. :o( Oh, well. There are plenty of online stores that sell handbags purses, shoes purses and designer purses if you don’t want to compete with all of the Christmas traffic out there.

to ds or not to ds

Last Christmas we gave my daughter the Leapster 2. Actually, I had bought her the Didj. It was the package from Target that came with a special Star Wars game. She opened it when we tried to start it up something was wrong. I can’t even remember now. Anyway, we took it back to Target to exchange it. In the toy aisle my daughter found the Leapster 2 and it also came with a Star Wars game and she chose that instead. I did like the math games but she’s always been slightly annoyed at having her Star Wars laser fights interrupted by math questions. I really thought we would get more than a year’s worth of play out of that toy but a couple of months ago the touch screen stopped working and I couldn’t figure it out. Finally, last week, I discovered a blog that shows me how to recalibrate the Leapster 2 touchscreen and viola! It works again. Too bad, she’s already lost interest. Now I have to decide... do I buy a new game for the Leapster 2 or do I give in and get her a nintendods this Christmas? Then I would get the ds games, super mario, ds lite... There’s no end, is there?

from Baby dolls to Microscopes

My daughter is six. Her list includes everything from baby dolls, to a mircoscope, a Wii and she wants to trader in her Leapster 2 for a DS. Every commercial gives her new ideas and she scours the catalogs that find our mailbox. It's almost too much to sort through to figure out what she really can't live without.