tehlilone

My favorite tradition for Black Friday was having my dad go out at like 4 or 5 AM on Thanksgiving morning and buying newspapers from one of the newspaper guys standing on the center divider at the stoplight. My mom would put the turkey in the oven and we'd help peel potatoes and other things. While everything was cooking and cooling, we'd go through the ads and figure out which opening freebies were the best. My mom would drop my sister and me in front of JCPenney to line up for the snow globe and go to McDonald's. We'd have a hot breakfast while waiting for the store to open. My mom would walk to Robinson's May if they had something since they usually opened around the same time then rejoin us at JCP. After we all got the snow globe, we'd get back in the car (no shopping yet). My mom would drop my sister at Mervyn's and go with me to Toys 'R US. My sister would get the giveaway from Mervyn's (sometimes an item and usually a giftcard). Then she'd met us at TRU a few stores down and after we put things in the car we'd walk next door to big lots for their opening and freebie. They liked giving away cheap headphones and am/fm radios. We might pass by Mervyn's again to see if they had giftcards left. After that, we'd go back to the mall and get the gift card from Sears. Then we'd head back to JCP, maybe get a second snow globe, and actually shop the deals. KB Toys was usually a stop later in the day unless they had something we really wanted. Same with Macy's. Mervyn's and Sears shopping was usually when the giftcard started. This was back in the late 90s/ early 2000s when the BF line was maybe 10-20 people deep at opening.

I was 6 or 7 when we started black friday shopping. This was back in the 90s though so it was always around 5-6 AM and there was maaaaybe a line of 10 people at most. The chaos was always fun. I plan on bringing my daughter with me for her first Black Friday this year. She's only 9 months. We're a babywearing family though so either my husband or I will be wearing my daughter. She sleeps fine in her carrier so I'm not worried about her rest or being tired. She has already gone with me to Force Friday and a few midnight releases for things. She's also been to a few comic conventions so she's used to being in crowded places. I usually have my arms up to protect her head when I walk around and I'm prepared to create a good space bubble if anyone comes near. I will say, I do hate unattentive parents on Black Friday. Unsupervised tweens and teenagers at the mall bug the crap out of me. They're always in the way and parents treat black friday extended hours as a baby sitting service The first year malls decided to be open on Thanksgiving night at 9 PM was horrible. I had kids run into me and my bags several times while I was shopping because they were horsing around and running through the mall. I also hate when parents don't care that they're kids are hungry, tired, and crying their eyes out. I've seen so much of that it's sad.

YAY! Sent my info Thanks for the contest and congrats to the other winners too! It's teh lil one! Sent while on the move!!

Yes... Always

No... I do maybe 80% of it It's teh lil one! Sent while on the move!!

I'm happy with best buy and Walmart. Those are my two must visit stores. I'm kind of curious how early people will line up this year considering they have a shorter wait until the store opens compared to past years. It's teh lil one! Sent while on the move!!

It's a little different since they're starting to separate the two stores in more malls. Other malls have it as one store. In my opinion, Pink is actually what a lot of people usually line up for since they have the $25 pants and $25 shirt. Those tend to go fast. I think they've done it the past 2 or 3 years? VS has bras BOGO 50% off, PJs, and Robes for discounted prices. They also have the gift bag.

1. 500-800 maybe 2. At least 6, probably more than that. 3. About the same. I usually get what I can online then go to the store if I missed anything or have time to peruse in-store. I end up spending more that way though.

Current pet peeves... 1. People making a big deal about K-Mart being open on Thanksgiving... When it has been that way for the past 20 years or so...

We'd do a round table sort of thing. Go to JC Penny and get a snow globe. In maybe get a few must have things then out quickly to Toys 'R Us and get essentials (don't remember if they had freebies) walk to Mervyns and get the free $10-50 gift card and usually a bobble head or figure. No actual shopping, just in one door then out another. Go to Sears and get their free gift card and whatever. I believe those were our main stops/freebies. My mom loved the gift cards and us kids loved the figures. I enjoyed the old navy camera giveaway a few years ago. That was awesome! It's teh lil one! Sent while on the move!!

I started when I was in elementary school. So about 20+ years? It's teh lil one! Sent while on the move!!

Got most of my things online and price matched elsewhere on Friday. Wal-Mart was alright but some lady punched another lady in the aisle I was leaving. First time I've seen that happen. Met some of the jerky people in the parking lots. My husband was waiting for a space and left room for the car to back up so another car went around him and squished in front to take the space. The other time, a fellow shopper offered to give his space to my husband so he followed him and there was a car blocking his car. When they asked him to move, that car backed up even more and refused to let the guy leave if ny husband got the space. Earlier hours bring out the low-lives. Once again, tons of unsupervised teenagers and poor crying babies and toddlers that wanted to go to sleep. I miss the old fun Black Friday. Not the Gray Thursday filed with a**holes. Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

"A group of mostly teenagers" didn't surprise me. SOOOO many teens at Victoria's Secret where I lived today. We had bouncers at ours haha... they were really good with lines. Early hours are to blame for the amount of people. These kids wouldn't come out if it was a 4 AM opening.

Mine had none. No Brave and no Madagascar. Luckily, I got it on Amazon. If it didn't have a promo sticker and it rang up normal then it wasn't the right one. It's good if you got a price adjustment but they're not supposed to do that.

My purchases so far... and I'll update throughout the day/weekend Last Updated: 8:55 PM PST Best Buy @ 11 PM PST on 11/21/12 - Killzone Trilogy with Controller ($39.99) - Supernatural Season 7 ($9.99) - Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows Blu-ray ($3.99) Plus we had reward zone certificates that we used Check out was fast and easy and I got my confirmation e-mails & checked the status recently. They're getting them ready to ship. Just waiting on those shipping confirmation e-mails now. Amazon @ 12:20 PM PST on 11/22/12 - Brave Blu-ray 3-Disc set ($8.96) Apparently, I had a fast connection because it sold out REALLY fast. Glad I won't have to hunt this down at Wal-Mart Wal-Mart @ 12:37 PM PST on 11/22/12 - LG 3D Blu-Ray Player w/ WiFi ($68.00) They have special "insider" event you got to by clicking a link in their email that let you buy certain in-store doorbusters online. Free shipping to your home with orders over $45 also The only thing that sucked about WM is the amount of "in-store only" products they have this year @the store on 11/22/12 I got to the store at about 7:15 PM. Parking was okay. Inside, it was crowded and people were walking everywhere trying to find what they were looking for. I asked an associate where the Blu-Rays and DVDs were since they didn't have it listed on the map but she didn't know where. She mentioned probably by electronics. Electronics said probably by auto. Auto said probably by electronics. Finally found another customer that had seen the pallets which were between the clothes and jewelry area. People started tearing into the DVDs about 15 min early and while some of us had reservations of opening the pallets without the employee's okay someone (not sure who) screamed to open them and everyone did. So I grabbed when I needed (really easily) and headed to the guy clothes nearby then the game line. They opened the area to everyone before I got to the front of the line but I was still able to nab all but one game I needed. I hate that I couldn't find a single basket in the store. They only had carts available (I think they stored all baskets away or something). After that I swung by the DVDs and Blu-Rays again and checked out. - (Blu-Ray) Battleship ($8.96) - (Blu-Ray) Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter ($8.96) - (Blu-Ray) Rise of the Apes ($3.96) - (Blu-Ray) Battle: LA ($3.96) - (Blu-Ray) Anastasia ($3.96) - (DVD) Taken ($1.96) - (PS3) Batman: Arkham Asylum ($10.00) - (PS3) SOCOM 4 ($10.00) - (PS3) Call of Duty: World at War ($10.00) - Skylanders Giants GID ($9.96) - Men's clothes ($8.00 each) @the store on 11/23/12 Went back in the afternoon (around 4:30 PM) on Black Friday. There was still a considerable amount of Blu-Rays and DVDs left. Not much of anything else though. I ended up finding a few Triple Feature Blu-Rays I didn't see earlier. - (Blu-Ray) Triple Feature: Hangover, Hangover 2, Over Due ($9.00) - (Blu-Ray) Triple Feature: Goonies, Gremlins, Gremlins 2 ($9.00) I headed to our local mall after Wal-Mart. Thanks to the earlier Black Friday times, TONS of people were at the mall. And when I say tons of people, I mean a bunch of adolescent kids running around in groups being rowdy and annoying. Victoria's Secret The wait time was horrendous. I stood in line to get in the store starting at 11:30 PM. Got into the store at 12:40 AM (they opened at 12 AM). Got what I wanted and stood in line (about 20 min) to get into the room where you can get in line for one of the registers (another 30 min wait). It was ridiculous. - 2 Bras (BOGO 1/2 off) - Free Tote Bag Bath & Body Works - Wallflowers refill sets for $5 each (x4) - Anti-Bacterial Soap (6 for $20) - VIP Tote bag ($20) My mom was tired (I told her not to come if she was too tired but she still wanted to) So I didn't end up going anywhere else. Went home and slept. Went out to JCPenney around 1:30 PM to get some pins. So far, I've gotten a $5 off $5 purchase.

I'm going to check back in a few hours... gonna take a nap. I still need to get up to help make Thanksgiving dinner in the morning also

If it's still showing up as coming soon click the link again. I did and it showed the add to cart button

Alright it looks like it went live at 3:00 AM PST http://forums.gottadeal.com/showthread.php?239070-BestBuy-com-Black-Friday-Sale-Sale-Started&p=1897735&viewfull=1#post1897735

lol... going to look for the time it went live last year now

I'm trying to get the Killzone trilogy for my fiance. I think that's one of the only things he REALLY wants this year.

I started going on Black Friday trips with my mom when I was about 7 or 8. But, it was a different world back then.Not sure how I'd feel about bringing a kid with me nowadays. I say go with your gut and I'll reiterate what people have said before me. It depends on the circumstances where you're shopping. Which stores? What department? What's the climate? How was in it in past years? How big is she? I'm 5' and I sometimes get pushed into things/trampled by other people. At the same time, I don't mind because I can reach my hand past people under their arms and wiggle my way through. If you do bring her just remember to give her a family member's cellphone if she doesn't already have one. If you split up, designate a meeting place within the store she can wait for you in case her battery runs out and/or she somehow loses the phone or can't get a hold of you. I've had that happen before where I forgot to charge my phone on Thanksgiving and it died before we were done shopping.

I'm a lurker that appears usually around the holidays every once in a while. If I stayed on here year-round I'd end up spending too much money. I warn you... it's late at night and I can't sleep so I'll be writing my Black Friday life story for you to read I've been going Black Friday shopping probably since I was 7 or 8 years old. I'm 25 now. My mom would wake us up in the early morning hours and bundle us up. We'd pass by McDonalds and then start hitting up the store openings for freebies! Snow globes, gift cards, ornaments, bobble heads, radios, etc. My mom would sometimes drop my older sister off at one store so she could get in line and then we'd run to the other, get the freebie, then run back to my sister. It was only after we hit all the openings that we'd pick a store and start shopping. We got mostly clothes and toys. And there weren't a lot of concerns about supplies running out. We started doing more electronic Black Friday Shopping in the 2000s when I started high school. I got my fiance (then boyfriend) to join me in the maddness during our first year in college. He hadn't done it before. If they went shopping it was usually in the early afternoon after most of the crowds subsided. His dad was a marine so he had access to the MCX and NEx (price match + no tax = win). We started small with DVDs and I think the largest thing they got was a TV. I usually gave him a list and we'd both try to get it and just return if we got doubles. I might have no partner in crime this year though since he'll be stuck in training during Thanksgiving. I've shifted more towards online sales but I still love the rush you get from being in the crowd. I also still go for freebies. Last year we I dragged my mom with me to Old Navy. We got the free waterproof digital camera last year. I hope I get freebies this year. They're fun and free! I used my camera quite a bit this past year, especially at the beach. I live in CA and I plan on shopping mostly for myself. I've gotten pretty good about getting/saving gifts for people when the opportunity presents itself. I'm constantly thinking about birthday/christmas presents when I go shopping so I don't really use Black Friday for others.

It sucks to work those hours but at least that means they have a job in this economy. I personally dislike the hours because of all the teenagers that were loitering in the mall last year and the sleepy, crying babies. So many inconsiderate parents because of the earlier Black Friday hours. If the stores opened at 3 or 4 am like before, parents would leave children at home in their beds.

They told us they're not going to do any coupons while testing out the new system. It's supposedly 30% off or more from MSRP everyday but I wouldn't know since they've removed/ covered up all old MSRP. I also don't like how small the prices are on the tags. Usually you look at the tag and see the price... I felt like I had to do double takes on every tag.

I've been needing to do something like this! So organized