On Sunday, I went to the outlet mall with my daughter and her teenage son to buy his Christmas presents. Now that he’s a teen, he wants clothes for Christmas – and he wants to pick them out.
We went to Adidas. He bought a pair of sweats and we picked out a t-shirt for him also because the Black Friday deal was 25 percent off on the second, less costly item.
Next, we went to Nike. He picked out a pair of running shoes and a sweatshirt. My daughter was excited to find a rain jacket she could wear when running. And, she found a sweatshirt she liked. The deals were better Adidas. Thirty percent off on everything.
The third stop was at the store for my grandson’s sports team. He bought a coral-colored hoodie there.
It was a boring shopping trip. The shops were filled mostly with gray, black, and navy blue clothes. I looked longingly at the pretty patterns and bright colors when we passed by the women’s stores. Later, my daughter said.
My favorite stores for holiday shopping are:
Amazon. My family members live far away, so it’s easy to get their request lists and have presents sent to their homes.
REI. My daughter likes items from REI, so I order presents for her and her family from there.
Walgreens. I order photos for the holidays there to give to family members. I want to order cups with some of my best photos on them, but I haven’t gotten it done early enough yet.
Costco. For the last couple of years, I’ve ordered my Christmas cards from Costco. It has a better selection than Walgreens. Be careful, however, if you get your cards there. This year, I didn’t read the fine print and accidentally checked the card stock box. Those cards are more expensive and it takes a week to get them. Fortunately, the cards hadn’t been printed yet, so the $30 was refunded. My cards on photo paper cost $13, and I was able to get them later that evening.
Michaels Stores. One year I made gift baskets for my friends. I was able to find huge sheets of cellophane to put over them.
Joann. Frames for photos are often on sale there. I also buy card stock for the greeting cards I sell featuring my photos.
Barnes and Noble. I sometimes buy discounted books for holiday gifts.
The Library. It has used books for sale that occasionally make good presents.
Safeway. I get my wrapping paper and gift tags there.
Wagner’s Bakery. I buy fruitcake there because I like it and I don’t make it anymore. I usually wait until after Christmas when the price goes down. Unfortunately, the workers were rude to a friend and me when we went there for a birthday celebration in May. I was never able to reach the manager about it. Every time I called, the staff said he wasn’t in. However, I did do an online review or email, which the staff saw. Hopefully, I can get in and out with a fruitcake and avoid the rude people.
What are your favorite stores for holiday shopping? Let me know in the Comment section below.
