After trying out tons of mattresses in the store (many different foam, coil, and a couple of latex mattresses), I have decided that I am really picky about them and don't want to buy a mattress without trying it out in the store. I am not sure trying one out in the store will be as useful as sleeping on one in real life but there were a LOT of mattresses that I just didn't even find comfortable for a short amount of time. I also realized that I don't want a mattress that was super firm (especially after staying on one last week). I just don't it will give me the support I want (and it hurts to sleep on my side when I do).
There were two mattresses I really liked
1) Simmons Beautyrest Recharge World Class Luxury Firm (the one with 1000 coils, we haven't been able to find the one to try out with the extra small 1000 coils yets). We have Simmons right now with the pocket coils we have really liked it.
2) Tempur-pedic Rhapsody Luxe. I don't mind paying the price for this one if I *knew* that it would bring me 10+ years of great sleep. I am just not sure that a foam mattress is what I want.
There were a lot of foam mattresses (Tempur-Pedic and other brands) that I didn't really like. This makes me worried about getting a mattress without trying it (I don't want to have to ship the thing back).
Now, we just have to try a few more beds and make a decision. The two mattresses we like are really very different so it is a difficult choice. Also I am trying to decide if it would be worth going from a Queen to a King size mattress.