I don't usually do a lot of shopping on Black Friday. A couple of years ago, I went to one of the late-night sales with a friend, and it was
an oppressive, claustrophobic experience that I have no desire to repeat. What to do, then, when I've got a lot of shopping to do
and have a small budget? So Black Friday it would be!
However, I decided to do this Black Friday on my own terms; even though I'd be missing the biggest deals, I still decided to go out shopping "when I felt like it," not before! That meant I rolled out of bed around 7:30 in the morning, and made it to the first store by about 8:15 or so. I still ended up shopping for close to seven hours, and I still got pretty tired out, but I feel my time was better spent and my stress level was much more manageable!
I went here, there, and everywhere this Black Friday; athletic shoes in one store; pajama bottoms in another; stocking stuffers in the dollar store; puzzles and crafts from the nearby craft store; and so on. I ended up buying a little of everything; hopefully my bank account will forgive me someday.
I have since had to go back and buy a few smallish items to finish up the holiday shopping; however, I would say that three-fourths of my Christmas shopping was finished on Black Friday. It was a great feeling! And while I didn't get all the
best deals (the cheap pajamas were all gone, as were the cheap children's scooters), I still managed to score some pretty good deals and get lucky a few times.
Probably our biggest purchase this Black Friday were some new family members...of the small, furry variety, that is.
We finally took the plunge and got some guinea pigs.We had been talking about doing it for months...ever since our pet hamster Tuck died last May. The girls have been begging us for a dog for years now, but we don't feel like we're ready to take that plunge just yet. We thought a smaller pet like a guinea pig would give the kids some good experience in caring for animals, while not being quite the time and budget drain that a dog might be for us at this time. In other words, these guinea pigs will be our "gateway" pets that will warm us up for bigger purchases later.
We were going to wait until Christmas (or just after) to actually buy the guinea pigs, but while I was out and about on Black Friday, I noticed that the guinea pigs were 50% off for Friday only! So my desire for a good deal won out, and Nathan and I decided to "pull the trigger" on this particular Christmas gift a little early. Still, Nathan drove the girls up and we bought the guinea pigs, their cage, and all their supplies together as a family.
The girls got to name the guinea pigs (both are boys). The brown-and-white one is named Cucumber, and the black one is named Midnight. I think Lorelai came up with both those names and strong-armed the other girls into accepting them, but that's life when you're the oldest kid. The other girls seemed happy with the names, at any rate.
We've only had our new furry "brothers" for about a week so far, but they're already a little more interesting than our hamster was. They are definitely more cuddly; they are often content to sit on your lap and be petted. They sometimes get a little restless and try to go "exploring," though; and once Cucumber peed on my lap...yuck! Oh well, it's just like having a human baby again.
Hopefully Midnight and Cucumber are getting more used to us and will get more comfortable around the girls in time. Right now, the girls are
so excited to have new pets that their enthusiasm and energy can frighten the guinea pigs somewhat. I suspect that time, age, and tender loving care will mellow them out.
So, Christmas started a little early for our family this year. But on the plus side, all of us will be together when we open up presents for each other on Christmas Day! Now to survive the rest of December...
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