Claire’s is a mall shop specializing in fashion accessories, and they also do ear piercing. Two of the most painful moments of my life happened at Claire’s, when my daughters got their ears pierced.

Anyway, Claire’s is having a 10 items for $10 sale from 3/13 to 3/17. Also, if you spend $45 or more, you get free shipping. If you are a dad of girls, buy them something from Claire’s now and then. It’s fun to watch them go crazy in the store, plus you’ll get lots of extra hugs!  Enjoy!

Click here to go to Claire’s 10 for $10 Sale! No Coupon Needed!

The site has a live auction model where if you bid in the last 15 seconds, the counter resets back to 15 seconds until nobody bids for the entire 15 seconds. I recommend not bidding much higher than 10% of the posted “retail” price. Do not get emotional and bid too high! Most items will come around again. Just be patient. Another thing to do is if you “sort of” want something, bid on it when it is very low and not likely to sell at that price. If it ends without selling, they will send you an email offering the item for a low price. If it sells and you bid lower than the buyer, they may also offer you the item at your last unsuccessful bid amount.

Bidz.com is offering a special deal during the month of March: Save $25 on any purchase over $250 at Bidz using code: CJSPRING

In my opinion of the hottest Christmas toys this year seems to be the LeapFrog LeapPad. This thing came out a few months ago and has been on a big push for this Christmas. Keep up with changing prices by clicking LeapFrog LeapPad.

Here is a list of some of the top hottest Christmas toys this year, as well as few old favorites mixed in. This list is not in any particular order, since it is essentially a composite of many lists found during my research of the hottest Christmas toys. Click on each link to go to an updated page for that toy.

FIJIT Friends
Air Swimmers
Let’s Rock Elmo
Skylanders
Barbie Holiday Doll
LEGO Harry Potter
Rock Star Mickey
Angry Birds
Scrabble Alphabet Scoop
Lalaloopsy Dolls
iPod
iPad
iPhone
Pokemon
Webkinz
Wii
Xbox 360
Playstation 3
Spongebob
Neopets
Bratz
ProTunes I Am T-Pain Mic
LeapFrog LeapPad

For continually changing availability and prices, go check out the hottest Christmas toys for 2011. Note that the “home link” is the same as the LeapFrog LeapPad link.

Here is a great deal I got from Julia over at Frugal Find. You can get $25 worth of meals at any participating restaurant on Restaurant.com for only $2.

Remember to read the fine print for each restaurant, ie. some can only be used on certain days or your total has to reach a certain amount before you use the certificate. Even with the different restrictions this deal can’t be beat!  These certificates make great gifts as well!  Right now you can get a $25 certificate (normally $10) for only $2!

Use code SAVE at checkout.  Offer ends 7/31/2011

It’s very simple to buy and use these certificates.  Once you’ve purchased a certificate all you have to do is print it out and you’re ready to go! Click here to check it out!

Click here to view the embedded video.

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Nothing to buy here, but you have to see this video. My wife says she likes Lady GaGa. I say “lady what?” I hear a few songs on the radio, whatever. But then I come across this video. This woman is a huge talent. It’s time for the old school divas like Cher to step down and let Lady GaGa take the throne.

Before this, I’ve only heard Just Dance and Poker Face. Bad Romance is a phenomenal song. It has some great changes in it that really hook you. I can’t hear it enough.

This is hands down the best music video I have ever seen. Brilliant production, choreography, direction, editing and characters. It’s not for everyone, but that’s part of the appeal for me. I have become a huge Lady Gaga fan on just seeing this video. I am floored by her talent.

I only hope that most of the songs of Lady GaGa‘s that I have not yet heard can come close to the greatness of Bad Romance.

Scott

It’s been a long time since I’ve done anything here. I have spent the last year buying a bank owned fixer-upper home and selling our previous house at the worst point in the real estate downturn, and in so doing we lost over $70,000. The good part is that we moved to a far better area, we downsized and now our housing and almost every other living expense costs less, including car insurance. I have spent almost every minute of my time working on our 1956 ranch style fixer-upper.

I got the Bendaroos for my six year old daughter that were featured in my last post way back in February. They were a huge hit. They promote lots of creativity and keep her busy for a long time.

I hope to be more active here this holiday season and post some good buys and recommendations.

Happy Holidays!

Bendaroos includes

* 250 Rainbow Colored Bendaroos®
* Plus 250 More Bendaroos® in Neon Colors
* Bendaroos® Fun Guide

Click go get Bendaroos now!

Included as a bonus is another eBook called “The Vintage Christmas Countdown.” This is a fascinating and beautifully illustrated book that has a series of articles about the history and origins of Christmas. Includes recipes, vintage art and wonderful vintage Christmas desktop wallpaper downloads. Each day features vintage artwork and illustrations from the turn of the 20th century and earlier.

Note that these are electronic books in Adobe PDF format that you download to your computer. Go check out “Home Made Christmas.“

One of the hottest Christmas toys this year has to be Elmo Live. My wife and I saw this in a store the other day and I thought it was totally cute. My two year old would go crazy for it. It can be a bit pricey though. Keep up with changing prices by clicking Elmo Live.

Here is a list of the top 25 hottest Christmas toys this year. This list is not in any particular order, since it is essentially a composite of many lists found during my research of the hottest Christmas toys. Click on each link to go to an updated page for that toy.

IPod
Ben 10
Naruto
Pokemon
Dragonball
Barbie
Inuyasha
Webkinz
Wii
Harry Potter
Xbox 360
Playstation 3
Spongebob
KOTA The Triceratops
Gundam
Monopoly
Neopets
Bratz
Disney Princess Movie Maker
Scrabble
Rubik’s Cube
Bakugan
Cranium Game
Elmo Live

For continually changing availability and prices, go check out the hottest Christmas toys for 2008. Note that the “home link” is the same as the Elmo Live link.

At only $5, it’s not a bad deal for this much fun. Check out these Halloween Fun Activities for Kids!