black friday

We had a fabulous Thanksgiving with lots of yummy everything...especially the stuffing my favorite! I made green bean casserole which is very American and very delicious! We had a time of prayer in the morning and then we did some worship in the afternoon after lunch and I'm so thankful for my family here in the States and how welcoming and loving they have always been to me.

The next morning was Black Friday. I had never heard of black friday until i moved to the States. All i knew of was Boxing Day sales the day after Christmas. Black Friday is kind of similar, but has way more deals, doorbusters, early hours and crazy shoppers. Plus, looking back, who wants to buy stuff after Christmas is over?

For the last few years i have gone black friday shopping with my mother-in-law around 8am. This year I decided to try and get up early and go to walmart around 6am after the rush, but i was awake at 4:50 so i decided to take the trek and see how fabulous this early morning shopping was. This was the item that motivated me:

Fisher Price T-rex MountainIt was on sale for $18 which was a pretty awesome deal. I made it there right at 5am (since we live close) and people were already coming out with their purchases, it was crazzzy! I did manage to find a parking spot and as i went in i made the first "rookie" mistake of grabbing a cart. That thing slowed me down big time, and i eventually ditched it. So my story of the dinosaur mountain... i went to the toy section right to where the Fisher Price/Imaginex stuff is, but of course on Black Friday, all the deals are down ONE INSANE AISLE...this was one of the worst ideas possible and had i not been in early morning delirium i may actually have feared for my life. My favorite line that i overheard was "Take a chill pill!" ahhh that made me laugh...

Anyways, back to the aisle, i was getting closer down the crazy aisle (still with my cart) and was almost to the toy i wanted for Zeke, when the guy behind me, squeezed by my cart, went in front of me, grabbed the last Super awesome Dino Mountain and shouted "I got the last one!"

I was bummed big time, but went on my way down the aisle and did managed to grab 2 sets of fleece p.j's for Zeke (one for this year and one for next) for $3 each. I also managed to grab a Candyland game for $5 and a 2 Qt crock pot for $4. While these were all great deals, the 40 minute wait in checkout definitely was not worth it, but it was something i needed to experience firsthand.

The rest of the day went very well, as i went out around 8am with my mother-in-law and sister-in-law. I managed to find many other deals and i have almost finished my Christmas shopping! My best deal was the comforter i got for Zeke for $15 at Sears and it matches perfectly in his room and was something he really needed (mid-west winds are cold through his window!)

As fun as black friday is, I'm glad it is only once per year and i will continue to enjoy it, but maybe not at walmart at 5am next year...