Thanks all who posted with their advice and suggestions.
I did go to the GC sale yesterday to look for an amp. I was driving by the night before and stopped by just to check; they told me they wouldn't know anything about prices until Monday morning (sure :rolleyes: ) They had a few really good deals on guitars, amps and accessories, but it didn't seem like it was a "can't miss this sale" sort of sale.
Anyhow, I went in armed with the suggestions I received here in the form of a list to check out. The one thing that really stuck was the consistent advice of just having a listen and really going with what sounds the best.
Long story short, I listened to all the budget, sub $100 practice amps to get a feel for what they had there. Not all that are listed on their site where in store. I listened to Crate, Vox, Fender and Peavey practice amps. All sounded about the same, so it was not easy to pick one over the others.
I then plugged into a couple of amps that were above the $100 range I had set. The difference was quite noticeable. Being a newb, I'll just describe it as richer and clearer sound - my untrained ear was able to detect more of the individual notes when hitting a few chords. Simply, it was just more pleasant.
So, I ended up not buying an amp. I'd rather spend the money and get something a little nicer. We're not talking about a lot, may be an additional $150.
I made a deal with myself - get better (I've only been at it for a month or so) and I'll reward myself with a nice amp. :D