Ho, Ho, Whoa...What Do You Mean You're Already Out of Stock?

I've been bitten by the Christmas bug. Usually the holiday cheer really has to sneak up on me in between list making and decorating and wrapping and yelling at my husband because he is not pulling is Yuletide weight.

For some reason, this year is different. I have only quietly grumbled about the holiday decorations being on display in the stores so soon and I didn't even bat an eye when I saw a family decorating their Christmas tree on Sunday. We won't be seeing many of our relatives this season. Not seeing our moms on Christmas makes me sad. Then I remember that we will see them at the end of January in Orlando, when we are past the holiday chaos and the fervor of the kids birthdays. I think we will enjoy our visit more if I'm not anxious about lugging extra suitcases just to bring toys home in and we aren't trying to entertain for the holidays in the shoebox we call home.

It'll be just the four of us this Thanksgiving. Since fifty percent of this household refuses to eat most of a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, I won't make a production out of it. I have a boneless turkey breast in the freezer, which takes maybe three hours to cook. That will leave us plenty of time to take the kids to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade in the morning.

The kids have been adding toys to their wishlists, usually as a procrastination tactic to going to bed. "And you know what else I want?" they ask. And then I say "Wait, let me guess! World peace? Achievable energy reduction in the next ten years?" And they say "No!"as if to say "woman, are you crazy? You can't fit world peace under the tree!" Then they tell me what they're wishing for and I jot it down in my Palm Pilot. Sorry world peace, maybe next year.

Harry is slowing getting into the action figure stage of his boyhood and now playtime involves building elaborate track systems which are defended by cybertronic/robomatic/hydromotive creatures who engage in fierce battles. Then Lightning McQueen comes to fix the roads and the earth lives another day.

Last week Harry's couldn't stop talking about Bakugans. It took us a week to figure out Harry wasn't saying "battle guns" and that's only because Google, in all its googly goodness has that neat feature which asks if you meant something else when you phonetically enter a search term dictated by a three year old.

Anyway, Bakugans are supposed to be one of the "hot" toys of the season, along with the new Tickle Me Elmo doll. They're little spheres that pop open to become battle warriors. Last Friday it seemed was the day to buy these little spheres. I procrastinated and today, all the places I've checked online are "out of stock" or will let me click there to be "alerted via email when this item becomes available". I ask you, retailers, how can Harry avenge evil on the Island of Sodor if he doesn't have a ball that pops open to become a battle brawler if they're out of stock?

I sent John to hell the Times Square Toys R Us to see if there were any on the shelves. The associate laughed and said "come back Friday or over the weekend. We might have some more in stock then."

It's going to be a long holiday season.