I love our Tamron AF 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC
The reviews it gets are on par with Canon, photo quality wise and it costs half the price. I wanted a nice range, without breaking the bank.
http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews/...p5-6p3_vc_n15/
Did you pick up the EF-50mm f/1.8 II?