I don’t usually focus on one particular shop like this, but Lands’ End is where I happened to be browsing when I saw that there was a deal for $40 off purchases of $100 or more, plus free shipping over $50 (code ILOVELE with pin 3316, through tomorrow night). So I scrambled to make a list of the deals I found, in case you want to get them too. (Lands’ End didn’t ask me to do this, and they’re not giving me anything for it.) (Well, except the order I ordered, which I paid for with money so they will give it to me as per the usual store/customer relationship. But you know what I mean.)

Boys’ 5-pocket corduroy pants (photo from LandsEnd.com): $14.97 down from $29.50; sizes 8, 14, 16, and 16 slim; colors khaki and brown. This whole thing started as a quest for size 16 boy pants, and this is where I found some. Rob already has a pair of these and they look great, so I ordered a couple more pairs.

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I think of October as long-sleeved-shirt weather, whether or not the weather cooperates, and so this is when I’m digging out boxes of handmedowns and sale set-asides, seeing what we have enough of and what we might need to buy.

Penguin Heart tee (photo from TheChildrensPlace.com). I bought this for Elizabeth this year. She loves penguins, she loves purple, she loves cuteness—it was pretty clear it was going home with us.

Long sleeve penguin graphic t-shirt (photo from LandsEnd.com). I think we might need this one as well. (She’d prefer it in the pale pink version, but I like the green even more.)
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For the last year or so I’ve been wearing a men’s watch. I’d needed a watch, but hadn’t found any watches I liked; the men’s one was 75% off and it had three programmable timers, which is perfect for making sure I don’t forget my choice of three important daily schedule things. I bought it as something to fill the “Until I Find My Perfect Watch” gap, but then I kept wearing it and stopped looking for another one.

I’d imagined that this large men’s watch made my wrist look small and delicate in comparison. Then I saw a picture of myself wearing it, and realized that instead I look like a woman wearing a bulky and kind of ugly men’s watch. The quest is BACK ON.

Geneva Platinum Polished Swirl Cuff Watch (photo from Target.com), $19.99. This claims to be platinum, so I assumed that meant it looks silver, so I thought the picture must be a little off—until I found the one that really does look like silver, so I assume this one is more gold-like (which I’d prefer, as long as it’s light/realistic rather than the more usual hard bright brassy fake-gold color). I’m not sure if this style would bug me or not: I’m accustomed to a strap-style instead of a bracelet-style. And it’s only available online, so I can’t go try it on.

Women’s Croton Gold Bracelet Watch With Flower Dial and Tiger Eye (photo from Target.com), $79.99. This one is my style (I like gold, I like brown, I like flowers), but it’s more than I want to spend, and it looks completely decorative: no timers to alert me that oops, a child is still eating breakfast and the bus is coming in 2 minutes.
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My nephew was born yesterday, which puts me in the mood to discuss baby stuff. I was mooning over baby clothes and noticed that all the cute HATS are coming in.

Raccoon hat (photo from TheChildrensPlace.com), $7.95. When it came down to the final decision I’d almost certainly get the bear, but it’s nice to have a novel choice!

Owl hat (photo from TheChildrensPlace.com), $8.95. This time I’d choose the owl over the bear.
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William, Robert, and Elizabeth have all been invited to a birthday party this weekend, so I need to come up with three presents for a 10-year-old girl. I could use a hand, if you have a minute—and then we’ll have this later as a reference for the next time we need it!

She likes cats, and she likes anything cute or fuzzy. She likes Phineas & Ferb, and SpongeBob Squarepants. She likes crafts. She plays soccer. She’s William’s age and grade and is mostly William’s friend, but she plays with everyone when she’s here.

Normally I aim for about $10 for a party gift (in this case, from each of the three children), but I’d be willing to go a little higher.

First candidate: Aurora Plush Fluffee Fluffy Tails (photo from Amazon.com), about $9.00. Most households already have more stuffed animals than they can handle—and yet, the sight of this cat reduced our household to “OHHHHhhhhhhhhhh!!!”s of cuteness.
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One reason I love “saved items” area of online shopping carts is that it takes me a long time to decide to spring for something. Well, or else it doesn’t, like when someone mentions something and I have it on its way within 2 minutes. But MOSTLY I have to think for awhile. Here are the things I’m currently thinking about:

I am on a bit of a break with Postcrossing, but I suspect I’ll be going back to it. I already have way more postcards than I can possibly send—but Pantone color-chip postcards (photo from Amazon.com) are making me very tempted.

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My mother needs to choose a gift for a 15-year-old girl who likes lip gloss, jewelry, her pet beagle, and Harry Potter. My mom is not fond of choosing gifts and I am, so I’m helping. And I’m posting, because if I’m doing the legwork anyway, it might be something you can use if you have a similar mission and would like to save the research time for something else.

Harry Potter Charm Bracelet by Islandgirlzjewelry on Etsy. I like the way it’s pretty and colorful even when you’re too far away to tell that it’s Harry-Potter-themed.
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Easter dresses make me happy to have a daughter. (Easter sweater vests over short-sleeved t-shirts make me happy to have sons.)

Floral Ribbon Dress (photo from TheChildrensPlace.com), sizes 4-14 (similar dress in 6m-4T). The Children’s Place always has nice “coordinated sibling dresses”—although if I had two girls, I think I’d want to use the opportunity to choose TWO of my favorite dresses instead of just one.

Tulle-Layered Dress (photo from OldNavy.com), sizes 6m-5T. I was surprised at how few DRESSY-dresses Old Navy had.
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I was considering this digital camera, and I was getting confused because of stuff like this:

and this:

Is the camera’s ability to fit into a small handbag really a…technical detail, to be at the TOP of a list that includes such things as static sensors and sonic speed? And why do they compare it to a fashion accessory?  Are either of these details meant for men? What are they trying to tell me?  Aw geez, is this a Young Female Celebrity camera, the kind I take out to snap cute pics of me and my friends drunk at clubs, thinking we’re SO CUTE and pretending to eat each other’s tiny expensive dogs like hors d’oeuvres?

Anyway.  The camera description annoyed me, but the idea of a “small handbag” captured my imagination.  This is MY purse:
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I’ve found it fun to shop for ALL the kids, but for Elizabeth way more than for the boys. This makes me feel especially sheepish because she’s a twin, and her twin brother Edward’s wardrobe is about 1/5th the size of hers. And because she’s opinionated and enjoys choosing, she does a lot of sitting with me at the computer while I order things for her, while Edward gets left out. Not that he seems to mind.

But this summer I made a happy discovery: Edward loves Threadless t-shirts. He and I spent a couple of happy sessions sitting at the computer together ordering his “new kindergarten t-shirts,” and for the first time he’s enjoying choosing his clothes each morning—fun for both of us.

Threadless is having a sale right now, with a lot of t-shirts at $5, $9, or $12—and if you spend more than $50 by September 5th, you can use code SEEUINSEPT to get $15 off. (Threadless didn’t ask me to talk about the sale, and they’re not compensating me in any way. I like to shop, and Threadless is more than I would usually spend, and I have a shopping post due and a child who wants more kindergarten shirts, so the sale is timely.)

I’m only considering sale tees, and I’m only considering the designs printed on American Apparel shirts because the Threadless shirts practically turn into crop tops when washed. Even the American Apparel ones are pretty small: Edward, who wears a size 4-5 childrens or even a size 5T in other brands wears a size 8 in the American Apparel t-shirts, and my 9-year-old wears a men’s XS. Anyway, here’s what Edward and I are looking at:

Arr Let O’ Me Nuts (photo from Threadless.com), $9 for kids’ sizes.
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