Using The Computer To Make "The" Christmas List

As Christmas looms in the very near future for those of us parents who cringe at the thought of fighting crowds and looking at toys for mind-numbing hours, there is hope. I'm not like some of the other Moms I know who have all their Christmas shopping done by June. I usually start somewhere around Thanksgiving and I'm done by the time school lets out for Winter Break. I'm not an idle shopper. I make my lists and make some decisions before I even start my car.

Actually the first thing I start is my computer. I have each of the kids take time to browse through the toy estore's online. This way they can check out the toys and read reviews of them to find out if it really is something they might like.

They open the Word program at the same time they are browsing the toy estores and they make a Christmas List as they look around. They have a lot of fun making the titles in fancy letters and colors. Sometimes they add bold type or underline too. They usually change it at least once each time they access it.

They must number the items or use bullets. This makes it easier for me to read. (My brain is old and tired.) It also enables them to add notes about items. If they find a particular sweater at Target.com they can tell me in their notes what color they prefer. They can even add a URL so that I can go online at my convenience and check the item out beforehand. For any music CD this an absolute must. If there is any profanity or if the lyrics are just not something I want my kid listening too, I can usually get that information online.

Some of the great places my kids go to for Christmas searching are: K B Toys.com e toys.com Toys R Us.com Target.com Wal-Mart.com Fisher~Price.com Hot Wheels.com

These toy sites are great for parents because it helps kids get a peek at what's available but more importantly it gives them practice using the computer and surfing the Internet. (It's great for Mom too because it keeps them occupied usually long enough to get dinner cooked.)

If you start to notice the list is a mile long just put a limit on the number of items they can put on their list. You might also want to be sure and have a discussion about the fact that they may not get every single item on the list.

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