We pay for pretty much every movie channel ever--HBO, Starz. Cinemax and all of their various incarnations. So can someone tell me why there have been as many as four Christmas movies on at the same time? In July?

I know it's drawing near, but still.

I didn't realize Sears offered layaway. I heard Kmart does. My poor credit cards have seen too much action lately but I thinking about putting a small 19 inch new tv on lay away for my mom. I am going to go look at them soon.

My IPod just shuffled to 2 Christmas songs, too.

Best Buy is offering christmas prices in july?

I bought this for my brother. It was on sale last week (thanks mixed!).

I still haven't looked at tv's for my mom but I am for sure picking up a comforter she's been looking at. Just a simple plush blue foral pattern but it will go great with her white wicker headboard she just put on her bed.

My iPod is randomly selecting Christmas music again.

Let's see....only 102 days to go!

Egads. I think it's time for a new iPod.

I take any seasonal stuff off my iPod for just that reason. It isn't even half past September yet, and people are starting to think about Xmas.

Scary.

Three months to go! I'm a little excited about this year with a new baby in the family. This also means I should start saving because I think I will go overboard this year!

I have a little nephew who will be old enough to really enjoy Christmas this year. I keep telling myself to wait everytime I see something I think he would like for Christmas.

Our local Target has already has some Christmas items out. I saw a nutcracker display and they were putting out lights and ornaments when I was shopping earlier this week.

I listened to christmas music this morning and loved it

2009 Winter Holiday Stamps

2009 Religious Christmas Stamps

2009 Hanukkah Stamps

I wish the Hanukkah stamps didn't look so..well...ugly. Hanukkah stamps and Hanukkah cards never seem to be the most attractive to me.

I'm nearly done shopping for my three kids. I'm so behind this year! Normally I'm done shopping by the end of September, but things have just been too hectic to even think about the holidays yet. My middle child's birthday is Decemeber 9th, so I still have a couple more things to get for that, too.

The grandparents/great grandparents on both sides of the family will be getting stepping stones this year made by the kids. I need to get the supplies for that this weekend and get started with the first batch. (There are six sets of grandparents/great grandparents since my parents are divorced.) I'm not looking forward to how much work that's going to be, but I know the grandparents will love them.

Target is already mixing their Halloween stuff w/ Christmas decor. I wasn't sure how to feel about that.

Just bought my first two Christmas gifts. SpongeBob season 4 parts 1 & 2 are $14.99 each at Amazon. Considering one was $24.99 and the other $22.99, I had to do it!

So, I bought K a Hello Kitty bag at Toys R Us on 10/3. My goddaughter was at the party and loved it, so I went back today to buy her one for Christmas. It was $2.49 more 17 days later.

Hellooooooo Christmas pricing. I was so annoyed.

It was very "Nightmare Before Christmas" in my local Target store the last time I was there. Not sure how I feel about that either.

So, Hallmark has a Keepsake ornament for all of us flans. The World's Best Boss ornament just may be required on my office Christmas tree.

I must have that!! Their Christmas open house is coming up,maybe just maybe I'll be able to get it.

No way!

So, my husband and I were having an interesting discussion yesterday about the holidays. I typically rarely don't buy many impulse buys for myself. If I make a large or small purchase--I save, save, save. I am the person that saves all my holiday money that we get for weeks. I always have. I tutor a child on the side--so if I buy anything for myself, I don't use money from my regular job or Rich's job--I use what I get paid tutoring.

I am kinda cheap.

Anyway, so Rich as a kid got the nickname "Greedy Rich"-- So, I guess he is trying to get away from that stigma. So, he mentioned that from our families for the holidays (because they always ask) he wants to get something useful. For the house. Blech. I squashed that idea like a bug. For me, I don't buy myself or get myself many things throughout the year--and I like being slightly selfish and asking for something I want for the holidays--which I do want the Nook (Barnes and Nobles new e-reader) We are going on a trip during that week to London and Israel, and it would be great to have for the plane.

Plus, in November we saved up and already getting hardwood floors and a new door in our house. I want something for me. Just for me. The last time I impulse bought something was a few weeks ago; and it was Snow White on Blu Ray--I got it for 9.99 on Amazon with a $10 off coupon. I bring my lunch to work. I make coffee typically at home. I don't drink. I buy books and things with gift cards. I am waiting to get paid for tutoring so I can get the Office 5 on DVD and the Proposal.

Once a year, I like to have my selfish whims. And I do want an e-reader.

Rant over.

Toys R Us has the Crayola Color Wonder sets buy one/get one free this week so I am heading over there tonight. Those things are like $9 each, so with six kids to buy for, that's a $30 savings.

Our radio station is going to start playing Christmas music on Halloween.I don't mind it.

Toys R Us Big Book came out on Sunday. If you spend $75, you get a $10 gift card to be used by the end of the year--if you have the coupon that was in the back of the toy book. I usually make two separate trips, get my $20 and then go back for the rest of it. We have 7 kids to buy for, so every cent counts.
I'm headed there tonight to start Round 1 of the shopping.

Someone in my neighborhood already has their tree up.

I dont believe you.
Continue.

I saw someone putting up their Christmas lights on Sunday afternoon.

It's still way to early for decorations.

Just did some more online Christmas shopping for the kids--Amazon books from the 4 for 3 promotion. I am starting to be a Scrooge with them. It's not going to be all fun and games this year.

^^^That sounded mean. I just mean that they have so much crap and I want to try to get away from that. I'm buying more arts and crafts stuff and books and things like that.

My kids also have way too much stuff but unfortunately that doesn't stop my mother from going overboard every Christmas. I asked her this year to give me a present by not buying them so much. She didn't get it.

As a kid, I love books and arts 'n crafts stuff for Hanukkah. In fact, those were my main gifts. I got a bunch of board games for my young cousins for Hanukkah last year---because they love playing board games--sometimes visiting them is stepping into a time warp! The kids are 7 and 10 and their favorite game is Yahtzee, Chess and Mancala. They also love Clue.

You very rarely see kids play board games anymore.

I guess it depends on the family. My inlaws are all obsessive board game players, and my husband has passed that on to our kids. We usually spend at least an hour a day playing them, and every get together with his family (Christmas, Easter, summer vacation) involves about three hours a night of board games.

I've always hated them.

It depends on who you are playing them with. My one brother was a notorious board flipper, so I hated playing with him. My friend just told me that K is obsessively playing Candy Land and she begged me to buy a new game so she won't lose her mind. So I'll buy a few games for her.

I grew up with them--not kid board games; my parents rarely had patience for those! I would be so envious of my friends whose houses were stacked with Sorry, Candy Land, and Trouble. My closet was filled with: mastermind, shut the box, parchesi (which is pretty much Sorry--without the bright colors), boggle, scrabble, monopoly, yahtzee and clue. Oh yes Uno was acceptable, along with crazy eights and gin rummy.

My parents had little patience for "mindless" board games.

To this day, since I was Candy Land deprived--I can play that game til the cows come home and never get tired of it

The students I teach very rarely play board games; in fact many of them can't handle losing because they just don't know how too.

OMG, I know how she feels! I always stack the deck- putting the cards that send you back at the bottom, so that we don't get them. There's nothing worse than getting towards the end of the umpienth game, and getting sent back to the Gingerbread Man.

The new editon of Chutes and Ladders is a hundred times worse. There are three chutes on the top row, so it's easy to get stuck in an infinite loop. We've had games last for 45 minutes. If you like this woman, do NOT get her that game!!!

My six year old loves Trouble, Yahtzee, Uno, Sequence, Monopoly, Sorry, Candyland, Chutes and Ladders, and all the Cranium games. Cranium Balloon Lagoon is really cute, and not really a board game.

My near- three year old is into Hungry Hippos and Flyin' Frogs, and he likes to "help" us while I play board games with Christine.

All three of my kids LOVE puzzles! We have dozens of them, and they do them nearly every day. In fact, it's only 8:15 here, and Nicholas has already done two 24-piece puzzles this morning. Target and Toys R Us have tons of cheap boxed puzzles, and you can find them for just about any character. My kids love Sesame Street, Curious George, CARS, etc, so that's mostly what we have. The Melissa and Doug wood puzzle boxes are also great. They come with 4 12-piece puzzles perfect for 2-3 year olds. We have two boxes of those.

My kids (12,13,15) still play board games It is more brutal as they get older.

Emma is our board flipper.

Remember Jay's board game tantrum? That one caused us some trouble.

I was just reading some of my vents around that time. There is so much I have forgotten/blocked out. I may have to go back and reprint all of them

Anyway.....I spent more money on Christmas today. I'm headed to Toys R Us tonight.

Oh, and the reason we overspend each year? I tell Tom when I am going to start shopping and ask him for ideas. He says, go ahead, do what you want. I make piles for each kid and then show him what I bought. Every year he says, oh, I think he/she would love this, let's get that. Well, why didn't you say so when I first asked you? He always adds things on.

Also, we are in disagreement about Jay. I refuse to buy him video games because he is too obsessed with them. It is a total matter of principle with me. I know that MOY and BILL are going to buy them for him anyway, so why am I going to buy something that I am so against? But of course, Tom tells Jay that "maybe" he will get him one. I was like, well, that will be from Tom only. Jay's obsessed with Star Wars and I bought him books to read about it.

not at all, I know exactly what you meant. And that is a very good thing, both for the kids and the parents. Especially books. Some of my kid's most treasured ones were gifts from aunts, who signed the inside with a loving message. We will be keeping those forever.


I thought I was the only one who did that!
what kind of psychotic creates a kid's game that never ends?


My son is spending too much time on video and computer games lately, in my opinion. It's hard to complain, though. He gets straight A's, scores way high on state assessment tests, reads every night and is busy in Scouts. But I'd like to find something else he'd enjoy doing that does not involve a screen. We have tons of board games, but he needs something to do on his own. He used to be big into Legos but is starting to outgrow that.
Any ideas?

I want a tea pot for Christmas...is that weird?

Not unless you are planning to use it to brew a special tea that you plan to pour in your nose to prevent sinus infections.

I think every parent stacks the deck when playing Candyland or they would have to blow their brains out eventually.

Chutes and Ladders and Hungry Hippos are the two most annoying children's games EVER!


Btw I love all the board game ideas, I am planning to buy my girls' a few for Xmas (Boggle, Chinese Checkers) and I needed a few more ideas- thanks!! Any more suggestions would be appreciated.

Haha,that's not what I have planned for it.

I've bought my christmas cards today and I'm sending them out right after thanksgiving. I'm on the ball this year.

Gift cards will get done after thanksgiving as well.

I just want some new clothes this year.

My new hero owns the house on the right.

I actually just snorted when I laughed.

Yeah, I'm gonna have to buy that for myself!


That's not mean - books and crafts are great gifts! Kids have too many toys nowadays.


Oh, I love board games, but no one else in my family really does. We used to play cards occasionally, but mostly my family is the kind that lays around watching tv together.

My friends and I used CandyLand as a drinking game in college.

Me and my mom went to the Hallmark open house today and got our Christmas cards.I also got to mess around w/ The Office ornament,it was fun. They also had refreshments in back and we couldn't keep ourselves out of them because they had peppermint bark.

Yet while at Target yesterday we bought Jay a Star Wars plug and play game. I'm not happy about that.