WILL THERE BE ELMO'S IN TIME FOR XMAS, IS HE WORTH IT, AND HOW CAN YOU GET ONE???

This is my first guide so I thought I would bring up some very great and popular questions!

I will first start by saying that YES he is worth it! Even at my age he makes me laugh over, and over! My kids seem to love him too! There is a question that has gone around " is it the parent that wants the elmo, or is it the child?" Well, this is a good question, at my home I knew about the Elmo and bought him for my kids, so I guess I really wanted him but at the same time he has brought lots of joy to the home as well! So parents I would have to say if your kids are asking for the Elmo he is worth it, and I happen to think it is OK if you buy him for your kids because you want him for them as well!

Next... Elmo's in time for Xmas??? I would have to say NO. But I am not Fisher Price, so I do not think that anyone has the "inside" scoop to know the correct answer to that... here are some good things to think about....

Fisher Price has got HUGE publicity over this doll since he was a "secret" and is sold out! Does anyone really talk about any of the other Elmo's on TV or in the news? Not really, they just offer the other Elmo's as a substitute for the TMX Elmo. So think about that one.

If TMX Elmo was just sitting on every shelf, in every toy store in the USA would there be so much coverage about him? I would have to say NOT.

I read up on him every day and that is too another reason as to why I have decided to write about this... I read a few weeks ago that a marketing company has estimated that Fisher Price has got over 20 million in free advertisement over the "craze" of this doll. Numbers may not be exact and saw it online... so not sure if it is true, but lets really think about it... he was on CNN, MSNBC, Good Morning America just to name a few... so on and so on..... 

So, LONG story short I do not think he will be just sitting around the shelves this Christmas begging people to buy him!

Next... Do not waste your money on the "secret to finding TMX Elmos" ... let me help you save your money and give you some great tips...

1.Talk to the toy people at your local stores that would carry him... time to make friends :)

2. Do not be scared to ASK QUESTIONS! Do you know when you will get him in? Will you form a line and give tickets or just put him out? (just a tip... the tickets is the best way if you ask me... getting a black eye over him may spoil the surprise if your kids want to know what happened? :)

3. Call stores everyday.. I got lucky one day... I called ONE of my local Wal Mart's and the district MGR was in, she laughed about me asking for him, and told me " if I knew that I would be tickled as well".. but she did say that the 24 hr Wal Marts are the best, the stockers start on the shelves at about 1 A.M. so if you happen to be out and about at this time, stop and and see!

4. Bigger stores like "Super Stores" will have him first... just the way it goes.

5. Check the online stores like Toys R Us KBToys and so on... I have heard of people getting lucky and finding him... sometimes he is available I have heard, just have to keep trying...

6.  Yes, I would assume "Black Friday" would be a day he MAY pop up! Come on now, everyone knows this is the day for shopping, but there will only be a few of him... my local Toys R Us says they will get " a few" for that day ( I am in the southwest) So if you are planning to go out on that day to get deals... maybe line up a bit earlier and you may get lucky... I would say to call around and see who knows they ARE getting him for Black Friday.

7. I am going to give you a short list of stores that you can call who carry Elmo's to start your search!

Wal Mart, Toys R Us, KBToys, Macy's, K-Mart ( who in my area to avoid the craze are giving rainchecks and will call you when they come in, Target... just names who would be the ones to get them if anyone would!

As of now on eBay... 11/12/06 he seems to be a little less $$$ than when I bought him on here... I would say parents... if you don't have the time to do what I have listed... get him now before he is $200+ on here... just an idea!

LAST: I remember the last Tickle Me Elmo craze and he went for BIG $$$, and I would have to say he will this year at Christmas since the demand is too high for the supply. Fisher Price's website even says "not till Jan 07" Everyone in the media that covers the TMX Elmo says they too think there will not be enough of him to go around! Please check "YES" if you found this helpful! And check back as I will update any news on the little furry monster!

UPDATE!!!!

11/13/06

Around 11 this morning Toys R Us dot com had TMX Elmo english for in stock for a VERY quick minute!  But when I looked back 5 min later he was not available! Keep trying!!

UPDATE!!!!

I went to Wal Mart tonight to get in some of my Christmas shopping... I went at 10:30 P.M. and FYI they were bringing the pallets out for the toy dept and every where else! They were restocking the shelves with a few of the top 10 items for Christmas... NO Elmo but some hot top 10 items that are starting to sell out! So Wal Mart begins to stock at this time... great time to check for Elmo!

UPDATE!!!

11/27/06

I have not updated this guide in a while, because there has not been too much to report! Like many of you I went out this "Black Friday" to my local Target. I figured that was the best place to hit... ( my local Wal Mart is open 24 hours, so who would know what time to be there for the furry little monster!) NO SIGN OF TMX ELMO!!! I went to the Toys R Us as well, they said they got 12 dolls in, they are a HUGE store and only got the 12 dolls! Then headed to Wal Mart, the toy dept mgr said they were hoping to get some in... (on of the largest distributing warehouses for Wal Mart is about 1 hour south of where I live) the toy dept mgr said NONE came in! K-Mart laughed at me and directed me to Wal Mart! But here is a tip: KOHL"S dept store... I went there for this Grinch doll they have out that I wanted since I collect him... the girl at the cash register said they DID have " a few" dolls here and there during this shopping season. So maybe try looking there!

FISHER PRICE SAID: Fisher price just said they have "ordered more of the red fur that Elmo has, and has added production lines on top of that they say they are flying the Elmo in from the overseas factory!" But who knows this may just be a way to keep the "heat" off them. Think about it, they I am sure are being flooded with calls, emails, as well as their "buyers" asking where the doll is?

 I have decided to add a few toys to this "journal" I am keeping. I have found there are a few more items this year besides TMX Elmo store are running out of! I hope this too helps you!... As for Elmo I will keep you updated for but I think eBay is where you will need to get him. Act fast as prices will only go up!

FURREAL FRIENDS BUTTERSCOTCH PONY:

Now, this toy I have bought for my little girl! Why??? Because I hear the age old question that I too asked my Father for " Can I have a pony?, I want a pony" So, this under my tree this year will be something I think my daughter is going to LOVE. And yes, she has asked for her! Now, I have been looking for this toy at my local stores, as well as checking my online store everyday for this toy...Back in Oct Wal Mart had this doll on their website, then about Halloween it became " OUT OF STOCK" Now today it pops up on Wal Marts website again as "IN STOCK" be here is the deal... you click on the "estimated time for delivery" this says between the the 5th of December  and the 19th of December, with a 24-48 hour processing time. Also, the box for this item is HUGE so Wal Mart will ONLY ship this by Freight so this takes longer. When mine came, it was a private carrier, they called me on a friday and said my pony was in, then didn't deliver it until the following Thursday..(yes this was the soonest they could bring the item) so this is something to think about parents! What if it gets to you by the 19th, then the shipping company calls to set up a delivery time, then you MUST put her together... (this is a side note for you) put the pony together and allow some time for this! You also will need to buy AT LEAST 6 D size batteries as they are not included! I would have a few on hand, no little girl wants a pony that will not move! So, back to where you can get this pony! My local Wal Marts: I have a HUGE SUPER Wal Mart that only got 6 of them in! Another Wal Mart that is a Super Wal Mart as well said they only got 4 in, and said I should not expect many Wal Marts to get them in before Christmas since they are so big for shipping. This is what the toy dept mgr who seemed to know what she was talking about said.

Also, if you see the pony display in the store but no box with the pony, don't give up there... check these places for the pony since the big is HUGE... check in the drink area of the store I have seen lots of them there... they put the box there b/c of how huge it is, they have no room in toys for it, also check where the motorized kids cars are, they put them there too...ASK they keep them in back as well since the box is SO big!

There are almost 800 ponies on here right now, shipping does look HIGH for this but really it is not! I am NOT kidding you when I say the box is huge and none of the pictures here on eBay really show how big this box is! Easy the shipping can be $55.00 + insurance... in the shipping world size matters, it takes up lots of space in that fedex or UPS truck. Wal Mart charges tax for this item, on top of $75.00 for their shipping, so think about that!

Wal Mart sells the pony for $268.88 plus tax about $22.00 and then $75.00 for the shipping! Thats about $365.00!

Now, Target! They have the pony at $249.99, but a mgr told me MOST Targets only got 1 in! Only 1! Target's website says only in stores.

Toys R US- they didnt even have the 1 pony they had out on the floor! It was in the back! They sell the pony for $299.99 and they do not have it online.

PS3

They say that the online sales of this are going down. Well, this is true but if you ask me it is only b/c of parents who are one of maybe a few things... last minute shoppers, or are holding out to see if they can grab one at retail before Christmas. This one I am REALLY sorry parents you are NOT going to get but online somewhere, Sony only released 400,000 units here to the USA AND Canada! This is worse than the Xbox 360 was last year! If this is on your list I would buy now, while they are not $2000.00 like they were the first few days, as we all know how things go up about the 22nd, 23rd of December. I happen to even think these are going to go for more than retail even after Christmas, since Sony has siad NO MORE till March 2007. I got one of these for a BIG KID in my home guess who that is :) and I must say it IS impressive! The Blue Ray DVD player is out of this world! Now the "big kid" in my home says that he has heard that Sony has lost money on ever unit, since it has the Blue Ray DVD player in it... Which I do believe since the games at about $70.00... and a Blue Ray DVD player is easy $700+... the DVD player is worth the money in its self... you can truly see a difference in the quality, and I NEVER can tell a difference in things like that! So now the thing is you have to buy " blue ray DVD's" this gift is the hottest this year I would think!

Nintendo wii

I read that Toys R Us in NYC got 5000 systems in on Black Friday... that seems rather hard for me to believe! But thats what I read, I must say I loved Zelda on the first Nintendo! I do not have one of these so I can not write about how it performs, but NO WHERE around me has one! I was at Wal Mart on release night, there was about 80 people in line and they only got 25 systems, people were VERY upset, and I thought to myself... " why wouldn a mgr go outside and tell people in line how many will get a system, and just tell the others to go home?"  Black Friday Target I was at only got 10 systems. There were people who were waiting for a PS3 which they didn't get any of in, and went with the nintendo. This is one I can find any where else as well!

BABY ALIVE DOLL:

WHAT DOLL TO BUY?????

Now this should help everyone!.... There are different accessories packs this doll comes in here is what I know....

Toys R Us has a doll that was released with a bonus pack that comes with a diaper bag as well as diapers, food, spoon and bowl. The diaper bag was the seller of this... ALL dolls come with some type of accessory, and with food and diaper!

Wal Mart: They had a bonus pack that came with a "Birthday" pack. It had a birthday hat as well as invitations... this was also when the doll was marked to $39.97 as a special ad and now the regular doll that comes "stock" with no add on's is $49.97

There is also "kits" you can buy... one is a sleep over, and one is a travel. Also you can buy extra food, and diapers!

WHERE CAN YOU GET ONE???

My stores are ALL sold out! The dolls have not been in any stores I have looked for a few weeks...I have only seen a few of the Hispanic dolls, and saw many more caucasian dolls, I have yet to see the African American doll. Every online store says out of stock... but Wal Mart had them online  a few times I saw but only in Hispanic. Around the middle of Nov I was at Wal Mart and a lady was in the toy dept and told me she was buying 2 dolls for her sister in NY, she said they have been sold out there for weeks and her sister asked her to pick 2 up for her kids.

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