Christmas gets a little more expensive each year, but the mad rush to give and receive goes on, regardless.

Here’s what’s hot this year by age group:

Young children

For the little ones, a 1996 craze made a comeback this year, leaving parents hunting for Tickle Me Elmo all over again.

The doll is selling for $80 to $100 online, and can’t easily be found in stores anymore.

“By the time I got them on the counter, they were gone and we haven’t been able to get anymore in,” said Lottie Scott, who stocks shelves at K-Mart in Natchez.

For the children that won’t be getting Elmo, there are still plenty of hot gifts out there, Scott said, including Baby Alive for girls.

“It’s a new doll that supposedly does everything,” she said.

And Bratz dolls — a doll line created in 2001 featuring modern-looking characters — are still popular.

Other TV characters and action figures are highly requested by children.

“I have 3-year-old twins,” Michelle Hillebrandt said. “I bought my little girl a Dora (the Exporer) backpack and doll. I bought my boy a Spiderman action figure and one of those big bouncy balls.”

Grandmother Rhonda Dean said her grandchildren were into Backyardigans.

“It’s a show on Nickelodeon,” she said. “They’re six friends who live in a backyard and get into all sorts of adventures. I’m buying my 2-year-old grandson one of these (dolls).”

Tweens (9-13)

This generation has known nothing but the techno world, and their list to Santa shows it.

PlayStations, MP3 players, laptops, video cameras and 4-wheelers top nearly every tween’s list.

“I want either a Dell or an Apple laptop,” 12-year-old Hunter Marks said. “My daddy has a laptop and my momma has a laptop, so I need a laptop, too.”

Marks’ Vidalia Junior High School classmate Tori Cothern knows she’s getting an MP3 player, because she was with her mom when she bought it.

And Gabriel Williams, 12, has assured himself he’ll get his wish.

“I know I’m going to get a PSP (PlayStation Portable),” he said. “It’s like the PlayStation, but it’s better.”

Better means slightly more expensive for mom, dad or Santa — about $200. The PSP lets the most techno-savvy pre-teen take their video games, music, movies, photos and Internet on the go with them.

Other pre-teen gifts making the list included cell phones, an electric guitar and digital cameras.

Teens (13-18)

This age group is nearly grown, they’ll tell you, and they need adult gifts.

Fifteen- and 16-year-olds have their minds on the driver’s license milestone, and there’s one important gift that must come along with it, they say.

“And a car would be pretty good because I’m 15,” Rob Hash said, looking forward to his next birthday.

And 18-year-old Kevin Causey needs a new ride.

“I want a new car, a Pontiac GT, black,” he said.

Toni Johnson, 16, is ready to accessorize her car, saying she wanted a CD player for the vehicle.

“I already got a camera” as an early Christmas gift, she said.

Her friend, Leia Helms, 17, said she already got what she wanted for Christmas, an MP3 player — “an iPod Nano in pink,” she said.

And there’s the other big request — money.

“I want money — that’s all,” said Jerrika Berry, 19.

Yashemia Foust, 17, said money was on her Christmas list, too.

“I want a million dollars,” she said, jokingly. “And a PlayStation 3. I have everything else.”

Adults

For men in the South, head to the local outdoors shop and take your checkbook.

If you are aiming to find the hottest gift for the hunter on your list, then set you sights on the .4570 caliber rifle.

According to Wade Craig, SportsCenter president, the rifle is the hottest seller in his store.

“There is not a day that goes by that we don’t sell one,” Craig said. “These rifles are the big thing this Christmas.”

Since regulations have recently changed to allow the use of the .4570 rifle during muzzle loader season, hunters have been snatching up the gun.

“It is a top quality, long barrel, single shot rifle that now qualifies,” Craig said.

From some of the newest global positioning systems to cameras that attach to trees used to film deer in the woods, technology is also a big seller, Craig said.

And for men and women, clothes top many lists.

Whether it is the current style jean or a simple pair of gloves, clothing is always a big Christmas gift for adults, Craig said.

At the SportsCenter, the biggest clothing brand is North Face.

“This brand is new to Natchez and people keep coming in to buy them,” Craig said. “Jackets, T-shirts and caps — North Face is the hot line in fashion today.”