Originally posted by GoalPoster
So, how many of you are heading out on Black Friday to snoop out some deals?

Better yet, how many of you will hold out for yet even lower prices . . .

I have a kid who still believes in Santa, so we're shopping this year.

(as an aside, she's aware in a general sense of the economic mess, and she told us with all seriousness "I know we're spending less, so all I want from you and Daddy is (insert 2 or 3 toys under $20 here). I'll ask Santa for the expensive stuff." *doh*)

Anyways, the adults aren't getting gifts this year, but we are definitely in the position of watching for deals. My email inbox has been flooded with sale ads over the last week; instead of "Black Friday" only sales, a whole lot of retailers seem to be doing 3- and 4-day sales.

Am I going shopping on Friday? Not unless someone has the Fur Real "Biscuit" toy on sale for $30! I never do the Black Friday thing to begin with; we pick up things here and there starting in late summer (back to school sales) and flesh that out the first couple weeks of December when the sales are even better. This year will be no different. Amazon starts marking toys down 70% towards the beginning of December and I expect them to really pull out the stops this year. Free shipping, no crowds, and rock bottom prices? Count me in.

I'm not going shopping on Black Friday. I can't remember a time I ever did. We've already told our kids that they will have whatever Santa brings them (one or two things under the tree) and that Dad and I will give them gift cards to spend after Christmas. Lots of deals to be had after Christmas.

I don't look forward to the crowds though. I figured they could get more for less after Christmas with the added bonus of shopping for themselves.

I'll probably do the Amazon thing for the presents from Santa. It beats being trampled by hordes of desperate shoppers!

I have 3 children and the youngest is only 9 and still believes in Santa. We're in pretty dire straits at the moment with 3 jobs put back till January so I've explained to all that some people have said that because of the credit crunch they've written to Santa to see if he'll do a 2nd delivery in January.

I feel like the worst mum in the world but it's a toss up between the mortgage or Christmas presents and we obviously need to hang on to the roof over our heads. I don't feel comforted that others are in the same position because it's just awful to feel I'm ruining the magic of Santa and Christmas.

They'll just be getting a couple of gifts on Christmas day and I'll be ordering from Amazon - I'm holding on in the hope that at least one more job might come in but I have to order next week to ensure delivery to Spain.

My middle son suggested waiting for the 3 Kings to deliver on Epiphany which is when their Spanish friends get their gifts. Doesn't help much as those jobs that were put off won't be paying until at least mid January and more than likely will string it out to the end of the month.

We won't be buying too much this year just for the little ones. We never believed in getting in debt over Christmas.

We bought the more expensive items the kids wanted on their birthdays as opposed to Christmas. Winters have always been a tightly budgeted time for us.

Instead I made Christmas stockings full of all kinds of inexpensive things. I would wrap each item so the kids felt like they really got something in addition they would get 1 or 2 main gifts.

After they went off to college I thought they wouldn't want the silly gifts in the stockings. No way to this day they still love the stockings and prefer them. So I have grown men in my house on Christmas playing with balsa wood planes and silly putty! Oh and reading Mad magazines another family tradition they were fairly cheap and brought lots of laughs.

This is the time to make a family tradition. As long as you are all together just try to do something fun if you repeat it every year it becomes a welcomed tradition with fond memories.

Don't beat yourselves up if you can't do the big Christmas thing. Kids are smarter than we give them credit for they see what's going on and they do worry for their parents. Your children love you more than any expensive gift.

Just do something special together laugh and have fun, be silly kids love silly. Go sledding, ice skating, pack hot coco, "Christmas egg hunting" in the snow.

Time to reinvent the holidays. Maybe we should break away from that materialistic, "in the name of retail sales" version we have been hypnotized into believing.

From my own experience if you are having a tough time this holiday season the sounds of laughter can be the greatest gift for all. It will probably be the most memorable. Just give of yourself!

Warmest Holiday wishes to all!

Originally posted by Morningglory
We won't be buying too much this year just for the little ones. We never believed in getting in debt over Christmas.

We bought the more expensive items the kids wanted on their birthdays as opposed to Christmas. Winters have always been a tightly budgeted time for us.

Instead I made Christmas stockings full of all kinds of inexpensive things. I would wrap each item so the kids felt like they really got something in addition they would get 1 or 2 main gifts.

After they went off to college I thought they wouldn't want the silly gifts in the stockings. No way to this day they still love the stockings and prefer them. So I have grown men in my house on Christmas playing with balsa wood planes and silly putty! Oh and reading Mad magazines another family tradition they were fairly cheap and brought lots of laughs.

This is the time to make a family tradition. As long as you are all together just try to do something fun if you repeat it every year it becomes a welcomed tradition with fond memories.

Don't beat yourselves up if you can't do the big Christmas thing. Kids are smarter than we give them credit for they see what's going on and they do worry for their parents. Your children love you more than any expensive gift.

Just do something special together laugh and have fun, be silly kids love silly. Go sledding, ice skating, pack hot coco, "Christmas egg hunting" in the snow.

Time to reinvent the holidays. Maybe we should break away from that materialistic, "in the name of retail sales" version we have been hypnotized into believing.

From my own experience if you are having a tough time this holiday season the sounds of laughter can be the greatest gift for all. It will probably be the most memorable. Just give of yourself!

Warmest Holiday wishes to all!

Dude . . . you ROCK.

That post put this venerable curmudgeon-in-the-making a bit in the Christmas spirit . . . its either that or gas . . .

But I’m suspecting the former.

I always got MAD magazines in my stocking lol .. we also got silly putty until I was like 7 and one memorable Christmas that resulted in a fight with my lil bro and silly putty smashed into several pairs of clothes....

Kids don't "need" that brand new $800 gaming system or designer clothes.. and Materialism is not something we should pass down to our next generation.

Morningglory

Great post.

We're not doing any shopping tomorrow, but then again, we never have gone shopping on "Black Friday."

I did my holiday shopping at my parents' home. I bought several baskets that my mother made to give as gifts for a few of our friends. One basket will hold a bottle of wine that I still need to purchase, and I'll also include a loaf of homemade French bread that will go in the basket with the wine. The other baskets will hold some homemade candy (chocolate covered raisins) and cookies that I will make to put in them.

Homemade gifts are definitely the best. My birthday is tomorrow, and my mother gave me a bread basket and a beautiful handmade quilt...that she made just for me.

I still have a bean-toss game that my parents made for me when I was six years old. It was made out of a piece of scrap wood that my parents painted in primary colors. They cut out the holes for the beanbags to go through, and mom made the beanbags herself. I don't have the beanbags anymore, but I do have the wooden game.

Homemade gifts are very special, and with the economy the way it is, maybe more people will decide to give those types of gifts instead of going out and buying things.

Originally posted by GoalPoster

Better yet, how many of you will hold out for yet even lower prices . . .

Wait for the bankruptcy clearance sales after New Years.