But not this year.

This year, Santa’s going to need a bigger sleigh to fill his orders.

* A $100,000 backyard water park.

* A sports celebrity package that includes a meal with Dallas Cowboy legend Troy Aikman at the Super Bowl.

* A trip to space.

* Richie Rich’s list of Christmas presents?

Actually these are just a few of the items from the 2006 holiday catalog put out on Tuesday by Neiman Marcus.The sports package is being auctioned off to benefit the Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation and has a suggested minimum starting bid of $250,000.

The space trip? A mere $1.76 million for a ride on the Virgin Galactic spaceship. But, hey, that is for a party of 6! But all three items are a bargain compared to the most expensive gift: membership at a wine estate/turned luxury resort in Tuscany, for a mere $3.8 million. But at least the membership is perpetual and can be passed from generation to generation.

A survey commissioned by the Toy Industry Association found that 81 percent of kids ages 5 to 12 play with toys every week.

So what will those lucky 81 percent be unwrapping this Christmas? Well, if their parents couldn’t score a T.M.X. Elmo, it might be the Biggest Littlest Pet Shop, which topped FamilyFun Magazine’s 15th annual Toy of the Year top 10 list, based on thousands of hours of play by more than 1,300 kid testers.

Instead of getting fresh air and exercise walking the real family pooch, kids can put a plastic dog on an exercise wheel or in a tower that spins the pets around. Fortunately, a toy bathtub is included in case Fido gets a bit too dizzy….

The magazine conducted its kid surveys in July and August, before T.M.X. Elmo was released in September, so the popular toy didn’t make the list. Judging from the eBay bids for an unopened Elmo toy, it may be the parents who are getting played.

Gap CEO Paul Pressler, welcome to the 2006 Holiday Hotseat.

Marvin Girouard, you would be too if Pier 1 hadn’t just announced you will retire in February. Julian Day, you may have just taken over at RadioShack in July, but analysts and investors are looking if you can turn around the struggling consumer electronics retailer.

As retailers gear up for the holiday shopping season (there are already ornaments, holiday plates and other items in some stores), analysts and investors will be watching some more closely than others.

Pier 1 has lost money for the past six quarters and has been under recent pressure from the cooling U.S. housing market.

RadioShack has been hurt by slumping sales of mobile phones, which had been a a big profit driver, and is closing hundreds of stores while also trying to replace slow-moving merchandise with quick-selling items like MP3 players and flat-panel TVs.

And Gap is looking to overcome a sales slump with an overhaul of it denim and women’s offerings. That stock has been upgraded in recent days by Lehman Brothers and Morgan Stanley, though Lehman analyst Jeff Black warned that if sales do not pick up in the fourth quarter, Gap could change leaders in 2007.

The company is also hoping new advertising featuring old footage of Audrey Hepburn will help drive customers to the stores in search of skinny black pants. But that campaign has not been a universal hit. Witness a recent posting on popwatch.