Real Christmas

Sears Christmas Wishbook was part of the Christmases of my childhood. Every autumn the Wishbook would come out and with it came my dreams of Christmas. I literally once had a dream where I won a Sears contest that gave the winner one item from every page in the Wishbook. I dreamt that I had to go page to page to find a whole truckload of items of that would be delivered to my house.

Sears killed their Wishbook — and seemingly, my childhood — more than 14 years ago. At that time catalogues in general were in demise. The truth of it was really that Sears was in demise and as a company it has fought for retail relevance ever since.  

The 100+ year old company now turns to the nostalgia of the Wishbook in hopes that it can spur sales in it’s old and tired format. But something tells they’re going to mess it up. After all, this is the company who merged with Kmart to improve their image and market share.

The Wishbook was a popular Christmas tradition for one reason: it felt like Christmas. When we would go to Sears to get one — or, going way back — would simply get one in the mail we never actually thought of buying anything. That wasn’t what it was all about. That is probably why they deep sixed it in the first place. The Wishbook was just that — a book for wishing.

Now Sears is the one doing the wishing and I have my doubts.

The 2007 Sears Wish Book Catalog is already available, but the retailer will unveil a “larger than life” version of the 188-page catalog in Times Square in mid-November, hosted by Ty Pennington, host of ABC’s “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” and a Sears spokesman.

That’s sounds anything but Christmasy. In those days of my childhood we didn’t have Monte Hall hawking the Wishbook. We just had the Wishbook and it generated magic all on its own.

Those days are gone. And, sadly, so too is the traditional Wishbook — no matter how hard Sears tries to bring it back.

With its annual list of the “Top 12 Toys of Christmas,” Wal-Mart announced today an added incentive for early holiday shopping — numerous, deep rollbacks on what the retailer considers to be the items on wish lists this year. Starting this week, Wal-Mart will announce rollbacks each week in this aggressive move to lead the market on holiday savings.

“Fulfilling her child’s wish list is always first in Mom’s mind, and right now she’s scouting the aisles to see what’s interesting, and what’s affordable,” said Chief Toy Officer Laura Phillips, Wal-Mart. “So we’re starting early and aggressively with unbeatable prices on the items we know are on those lists.”

This week, customers will begin to see price reductions from 10 to 50 percent on select toys. Select rollbacks to start include*:

New Savings Now:
— Tonka Trucks (choice in assortment) — was $27.44, now $19.76
— Kid Tough Digital Camera (Fisher Price) — was $64.88, now $54.88
— Spider-Man Ride-on — was $64.64, now $59.64
— Barbie Island Princess Styling Head — was $39.83, now $36.94

More Savings This Week:
— Littlest Pet Shop Digital Pets — was $12.84, now $9.97
— Razor Ripstik — was $93.93, now $77.77
— Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader game — was $18.96, now $12.88
— Fur Real Squawkers Parrot — was $69.96, now $54.88
— NASCAR Ride-on — was $199.97, now $177.72

“These items and our top 12 have our vote for the most interest, because we believe they meet all the right trends in activity, brand, play interaction, and technology which both parents and kids are after today,” said Phillips. “It’s now our turn to bring out their value, adding a great price to the hottest trends.”

Wal-Mart’s Top 12 Toys of Christmas

— Kid Tough Digital Camera from Fisher Price (Ages 3 & up) A real
digital camera that’s tough enough — and easy enough-for kids to use.

— Smart Cycle from Fisher Price (Ages 3-6) It’s a stationary bike, a
learning center, and an arcade game system — all rolled into one!

— Air Hogs Havoc Heli by Spinmaster (Ages 8 & up) An amazingly small,
infrared, remote control helicopter, the Air Hogs Havoc features a
durable, EPP foam body and a flashing Blue LED for night flying.

— Spider-Man 3 Movie Action Figure from Hasbro (Ages 3-7) Both in his
classic red and blue gear and now new black costume, Spider-Man will
continue to be a hero that saves the day, specially with his new web
accessories.

— Little Mommy Real Loving Baby Doll from Mattel (Ages 18 months & up)
Girls will love playing mommy with this sweet baby doll — she’s
perfect for your child’s first doll.

— New Elmo from Fisher Price (Ages 18 months & up) He’s back on the list
to tickle your funny bone. Find out why and what’s new in November!

— Littlest Pet Shop Paws Off Electronic Diary from Hasbro (Ages 6 & up)
Keep all your written secrets locked inside this voice-activated,
electronic diary!

— Razor Ripstik Caster Board (Ages 6 & up) A cross between a skateboard
and a snowboard, this high-action new sport is taking the streets by
storm!

— Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader game from Hasbro (Ages 8 & up) Based
on the popular game show, this enjoyable diversion features Jeff
Foxworthy and five students putting ordinary adults to the test by
having them answer real questions from the 5th-grade curriculum.

— Aqua Dots Super Studio from Spin Master (Ages 6 & up) Aqua Dots
combine creativity and crafting to create multiple designs — just add
water!

— Power Tour Electric Guitar by Hasbro (Ages 10 & up) Be the rock star
and learn to play six different rock classics. Connect to your MP3
player and strum along, or rock out solo and compose your own anthem.

— FurReal Squawkers Parrot from Hasbro — (Ages 5-7) Talk about cool!
Squawkers McCaw is a talkin’, squawkin’ and totally unpredictable play
pal.

“You really can’t go wrong with any of these toys,” said Phillips. “We have re-arranged our selection in the aisles to make shopping a little easier, with identification on popular brands and top toys. As a constant Mom wants price, convenience and safety, and with our Toy Safety Net program underway, we feel confident delivering on all three this upcoming holiday season.”

There’s room at this inn: The Inn at Christmas Place, an entirely Christmas themed hotel, claims to be four-star and full of old world charm.  

Draped with red bows and garland, The Inn at Christmas Place  puts you in the holiday mood the moment you arrive. The lobby features a gigantic Christmas Tree, a life-sized Nativity Scene, trinkets of Yule Tide decor and the sounds and smells of the season.

The Inn offers guests 119 standard rooms, 28 semi-suites and five two-room suites. Each room features custom made furniture, a flat screen TV and Christmas charm complete with a view. However, the grand attraction is a 25 foot cuckoo clock that chimes out Christmas charols in the Inn’s lobby every hour, on the hour.

The Inn at Christmas Place is conveniently located on Christmas Tree Lane right across from the Christmas Place, a row of seasonal shops that have been a fixture in Pigeon Forge for 20 years.

I have six daughters ranging in age from 5 to 21.

Unlike the dark ages when I was growing up with my sisters, today’s girls live in a world of toys, gadgets and games that are vastly unlike the Barbies and Easy Bake ovens of yesterday. A girl today still has the feminine flair that makes them distinct from boys but most must and do possess of bit a tech savviness — a trait that in my day was almost exclusively masculine.

I’m not the first father to sweat Christmas eve bike assembly (a timeless Christmas tradition that remains, joyfully, unisex) but I start to worry when my kids are getting toys I don’t understand anymore and that makes Christmas eve a little more daunting. Take for example the Tamagotchi.

The idea behind this toy is that it is an electronic pet — kind of like Dolls 2.0. In the old days, girls played with dolls that were at first made exclusively of cloth. Over time, technology was improved that introduced plastics, ceramics and even glass to the child’s play thing. Later, dolls were made to wet, cry, talk, move and even poop. The Tamogotchi takes it all to a new level by making the doll virtual, interactive and portable in a way even my boy-imagination with my GI Joe never could.

Through some non-sensical series of beeps and button-pressings a kid can now manage the upkeep, care and progression of their doll — reincarnated as the Tamagotchi. They have to be nurtured — the more the kid plays the better their “doll” or ”pet” progresses. They can be put to sleep, fed, encouraged, made to laugh or cry. There are nefarious elements that enter in to play — robbers and bad guys who steal vital points or who make the Tamagotchi mad or sad.  

Some think Tamagotchis are a passed fad. This article, for example, calls this year’s Christmas offering of Tamagotchis a “comeback”. I must have missed them the first time around.

But they are hot for Christmas 2007. My four youngest daughters each have one (completely accessorized, of course). Even my five year old, a beginning reader, goes everywhere with this little thing hanging from her neck, beeping now and then for her attention and drawing unexpected and vociferious reactions from her as it gets into various types of trouble. My 7 year old, 9 year old and 11 year old all have online Tamagotchi buddies that they have found on forums and sites dedicated to this little world of virtual reality.

I recall back in the day I could blow away my kids with the techno-wizardry once reserved just for the old man. I remember having my first mobile phone — a “car phone” we called it. It was so big it was housed in it’s own purse-like carrier. But it was cool because I could talk and drive at the same time. I remember taking my little girls then on drives just so they could call their mother from the car phone.

Today I have a Blackberry that gives me not only a phone but also email and Internet instantly wherever I want it. But my girls are no longer impressed. If it can’t “link up” to their Tamagotchi, it’s just not cool.

I’m not sure how many Tamagotchis Santa will be stuffing in the stockings this Christmas. Maybe I’ll find a good magazine to read or something for after we put them down on Christmas Eve.