The Blonde Diaries

Earlier today (or was it yesterday) I mentioned that one of our Christmas gifts went missing or we never brought it home from Toys R Us and we were going to have to face the crowds today.  Well, Mike and I hit up Target around 2:30 today and let me tell you it was starting to turn into a madhouse.  I figured it would be relatively safe with people being at work but it seems like people took the week off like the two of us have.  It was a manageable crowd though so I can’t really complain.  We didn’t leave worn out and needing a nap or tylenol to kill a splitting headache.  We were just cold as the temperature never got above 39 degrees here in Houston today.

So our trip to Target wasn’t too terrible.  We went to replace the “lost” Lily doll from the Hannah Montana tv series that we bought Mike’s youngest niece, Sophie (age 6).  We did not find another Lily but we did manage to find THE LAST Christmas Carolling Singing Hannah Montana doll in the entire store.  This was exciting to us, not because it was the last one, but because it is exactly what she asked Uncle Michael for at Thanksgiving and we had already bought the Lily doll and pink purse for her so we weren’t going to be able to get it for her.  I swear I think her little angel swooped down to misplace that Lily doll and put that Hannah on the store shelf today so that we could make her Christmas.  I was super excited and just told Mike to ignore the $30 price tag when I found it on the shelf and just buy it for her. LOL.  I can’t wait to hear about her reaction this weekend.

While the holiday season is the season to give to others, you do not have to bankrupt yourself by giving extremely expensive gifts. The price of the gift is not what matters. What matters is that you have put some thought into the gift and selected one that reflects the person you are giving the gift to. So with the economy slowing down, layoffs getting larger by the day, what can you do to keep the budget under control both for the holiday season and after?

I recommend paying a visit to either your local Kmart store or to Kmart.com. Right now Kmart is offering over 25,000 gifts for under $25 and these are not crappy, cheap gifts. These are nice gifts such as an 18 piece screwdriver set by Craftsman for $23.99. I would love to receive this as I do not have any tools around the apartment and Mike and I have run into a few times where we wished we had an XYZ tool. I might order it for Mike to get his “tool shed” started. I also have a few single friends who could probably use a set like this as well. There are also these oversized fleece throws on sale for $8.99 each. Mike’s sister gave me one of these last year and I use it practically every day because I am so cold natured. I wouldn’t mind having one for the office and I know a few of my friends love mine as well and wouldn’t mind having one of their own if they only knew where to shop for one. They also have these fleece robes that look very comfortable for under $20. My mom and I are robe junkies so to speak and I think she’d really like a nice, warm fuzzy robe for those cold mornings.

Those are just a few things that caught my eye on the first page alone. If you need gift ideas or a place to get your gifts cheaply pay Kmart a visit today.

Did you know that in less than two months we will be celebrating the holidays? There is not a lot of time to prepare and enjoy the season. On top of that did you know that many department stores have done away with layaway programs? I had no idea! Layaway is one of the easiest ways to shop for the holidays because you can shop before the crowds start but pay for items little by little and not have to worry about the mad dash to find the “hot” toy item before it sells out.

I was shopping earlier online while I was sitting at work waiting to hear if we would be filing or not and I happened across the Kmart website. I was looking for items that might be good gift ideas for Christopher, my godson. I noticed a small box on the front of their website advertising Kmart Lay-Away! How awesome is that. I do not have a Kmart in my area but my parents do so when I go home in a few weeks I might consider putting this Little Tikes car on layaway before the mad shopping dash begins so that I can have his gift out of the way and I can make small payments on it up until Christmas.

The layaway program is like many programs of old. You put 10% down on the purchase price and then every two weeks you make a small payment (about 25% of the remaining balance) and then at the end of the period it is yours! No worries about it being out of stock because they actually pull the item from stock and put your name on it. If something comes up and you no longer need or want the item they will refund any payments you made already minus the layaway fee of $5. Not a bad deal! Visit Kmart to help fill your stress free and hassle free holiday needs!

I am so excited. I developed a few pictures from my Disney Photopass session at the Grand Floridian from our last Disney vacation and the pictures turned out just fabulous. I have been going back and forth lately on whether or not I want to send out holiday cards due to the cost involved – buying cards and then postage costs. But after seeing my photos printed, I really want to make Christmas Photo Cards to send to my friends and family. I found a really fun modern design on Vista Print that included lots of red shades and ornament shapes that really blended with the black shirts we wore in our photos as well as the very clean surroundings which were mainly green grass and white paint. The best part is right now Vista Print is running a sale on Christmas Photo Cards right now – buy 10 cards for $2.99 or 20 cards for $5.99. Complementary plain white envelopes are included in the same number amounts as the cards you buy but you can always upgrade to an envelope that matches the theme of your card. I just did a test run since I am at work and I am very happy so far with what I have been able to develop on their site in under 5 minutes. When I get home tonight, I plan on choosing the final picture to use as well as the background I like. If Christmas Photo cards are not your thing, you can also design custom ink pens, note pads, or magnets using various themes on their website or even using your own photo. With Vista Print the possibilities are endless and the price is just right!

So are you done? On a few message boards I belong to and/or read from there are people already done. I can’t believe it. I have only just started shopping and so far I have 2 things bought. My family and I have decided it will be a fairly small Christmas this year and I am grateful for that as I would like to get back on track financially and save a little more especially with the huge sale the Stock Market is having.

I am lucky I at least have an idea of what I need to be looking for and a general idea of the yearly sales and when they occur. Toys R Us should be having 2 good sales for people of any age – the Buy 2 Get 1 Free Video game sale in October and a similar board game sale. Since we are all getting Wii’s and all need to stay home to make it through the current economic situation (and to help lose weight) I think board games and Wii games will work well. So be on the look out if you need some fun gifts as well. The other good sale I am waiting on is the Sephora Friends and Family code that comes out the week of Thanksgiving. The code can be used multiple times by multiple people online so I try to place a couple of orders to get free shipping and for the gift wrapping service which is also free.

And then there is the elusive Wii Fit I am trying to track down. I have one but need another. Oh how I hope I can find one soon so I don’t have to be one of those crazed people in the stores fighting for a gift or getting up at all hours to search online for one.