Why I Oughta...

The packaging on this guy at Costco says indoor/outdoor.  Being an outdoor-ready decoration is likely the only way I can get this past Nat.  We don't have a huge house and it already is busting at the seams with Christmas decorations.  So a life-size Santa Ho-Ho (as we call him) isn't going to be workable. But he would look really good in the backyard, wouldn't he?

This is what Costco looked like this week:  Christmas wrapping paper, gift tags and lights.   That's a full week ahead of when I spotted the Christmas stuff set up last year . So much for fall, I guess?

9 bucks for 3 cans?  Seems cheap to me.  They are stamped D.O.P but are they really from San Marzano?

Last week, I posted a photo and description of the Suncast Wood and Resin Playset from our local Costco in Oak Brook Illinois and commented that I was pleased that we purchased the Cedar Summit version last year because I preferred the looks of all-wood version over this year's edition that has a lot of plastic panels and elements.  I was surprised that Costco eliminated the Cedar Summit folks in favor of Suncast - it seemed odd to me that they'd take out a nice (seemingly) higher-end product and replace it with something that I perceived as being lower-end with increased pricing. A few days later, I received a nice note from the folks at Cedar Summit that set me straight and provided some good news for Costco Playset/Swingset shoppers around the country.  They, indeed, are selling this year's Cedar Summit edition and it is called the " Mountainview Resort '.  He also laid out the facts: The Suncast plastic/wood playset is ONLY available in the Midwest an

Over the weekend, we hit up the Oak Brook Costco and came across this behemoth.  This is the Suncast Wood and Resin Playcenter - Costco Part #588674.  It is priced at $1299.99 (see the bottom photo for pricing details). This is the 2012 version of the VERY popular Costco backyard playground/playset series.  Last year, they featured the Cedar Summit Panorama - which we brought home.  This year, they've gone with the Suncast Wood and Resin Playcenter which has many of the same features as years pasts. ***Update on 2/28/12 - If you are looking for the Cedar Summit Mountainview Resort Playset you can find the details here .  Turns out Costco is indeed selling a Cedar Summit swingset, but just not in Texas or the Midwest.  *** The 2012 Suncast structure is made up of both wood and a lot of plastic parts - unlike the Cedar Summit.  There are certainly plastic elements in the Cedar Summit version, but they're mostly highlight/enhancement pieces like window frames.  The Sunca

Move over vegetable garden and garage pavillion, there's potentially a new entrant into the currently crowded backyard at the Parrillo household.  Behold:  this beauty.  The Cedar Summit Panorama Playset from Costco.   Comes with 3 swings and a tube slide.  Nat spotted this behemoth at Costco and after doing a bit of comparison shopping at a place like Menards (more expensive, I think) and Wannemaker's (don't sell these type of things any more), it appears to be a fair deal. It is a kit - so I'd be putting it together myself, but I'm up for that challenge.  The real issue is getting it home.  I'm going to head back to Costco to take a look to see if it will fit in Nat's car with the back seats folded down.  If not, it seems like I'll be renting a truck from Home Depot.  Yes, the Babe is likely too small for a lot of this, but certainly NOT the swings.  We take her to the park on a regular basis and she gets a kick out of the swings.  The whole fort t