what should be on my shopping list

Hi ive just found out about the arduino through hackzine and im interested in getting some kit. Im a newb to electronics but not to programming. Ive had an electronics project on my todo list for ages but never got round to it. Im not sure what stuff ill need but after some research i have a rough idea. can anyone help confirm or correct me.

I want to be able to build two seperate units that have timer functionality but also can inform one another when their timer has reached 0. This needs to be done wirelessly and a range of 10-25m would be ideal. Also the transmission needs to be strong enough to operate even when one unit may be in a desk drawer or under a pile of clothes etc. The units wont be transmitting anything else but this.

I thought of getting two arduino bases units and 2 xbee shields. Im wondering if theres are any alternatives that are better suited. Im presming im right in choosing the xbees or are they overkill?.

Any tips/pointers etc will help out loads!

Hi geezer3

There are a lot of cool projects you can do with an Arduino!!

your xbee idea sounds cool. (Arduino XBee Shield - DEV-08471 - SparkFun Electronics).
There are 2 types of xbees... libelium's manual might help http://www.libelium.com/tienda/catalog/images/arduino/series2-digi.pdf, I think the xbee will be the best arduino accessory for your project.

You might also like some of the adafruit shields Arduino, Shields Products Category on Adafruit Industries

I've done a couple cool projects, you might also like, Antipasto Hardware Blog: Processing ported to an Arduino + TouchShield ported from Processing