Well, it's no XBox....

A few weeks ago, I was seriously debating getting a gaming system. I wound up not, because I know that summer is a costly time for me. My kids are suddenly not in (free) school, so my childcare expenses get about 4 times as costly. Not fun, and more to the point I just couldn't see spending the $700 that I knew I'd spend before all was said and done on a gaming system right at the beginning of the summer.

What a nice, responsible, grown-up decision. I should've been guaranteed an easy summer because of it, right?

Wrong.

A week ago, my dryer starting showing signs of dying (won't fully dry a load, breaker switch in the fuse box gets really warm). Now, it's probably in the 10-12 year old range, so he's had a nice long life. But I don't WANT to buy a new dryer! Moreover, because the washer is also old, also shows sign of nearing the end of it's life, and because I like things to match, I knew when I bought a dryer I'd buy a washer, too, and I REALLY didn't want to buy both!

But, sadly, clean clothes are kinda a must. And, yes, I know you can hang clothes to dry, but 9 times out of 10 my laundry routine runs something like this: throw a load of clothes in when I get out of the shower; let them sit in the washer all day, throw them in the dryer when I get home at night and throw another in the washer, put the dry clothes into a laundry basket and put the last load in the dryer before bed. I don't have TIME to hang laundry!

So, yeah, I've spent the last several days looking at Consumer Reports reccomendations, going from Lowe's to Home Depot, to Best Buy, to Sears, and back to Lowes, talking to people at work, and agonizing over this (Oh, and I've always gotten my W/D included in the houses I bought, so this is the FIRST time I've ever bought one!).

Well, finally tonight I bit the bullet and bought my new washer and dryer. I got a Maytag Epic 4.0 cubic foot washer, and the matching dryer. They got decent ratings from Consumer Reports, and I wound up getting a great deal on them: They were already $100 off because of a sale, then I got an additional 10% off the washer because it was an Energy Star appliance, and an additional 10% off the entire order because I used my new Lowe's card, AND they got me 12 months no-interest financing! So, all in all I saved about $400 or $500. Not too shabby.

But it's no XBox....