The Hip Housewife talks holiday shopping

I did go out shopping the day after Thanksgiving, but not early and not to really buy anything.  I went to see what Santa might think about spending for my kids.  Lots and lots of possibilities for the fat man in the red suit to ponder.

Did you know there's a Nerf dart gun that comes with a bandoleer foam dart holder for quick reloading?  The Monster High dolls were gone at eleven in the morning.  There were a bunch of clothing racks pushed back to make room for piles of inexpensive goods. 

I stopped in front of a big cube made from EZ Bake Ovens.  Those suckers were only twenty bucks!  That'd be a good one for Zoe. She likes to bake and this would give her an over of her own. 

Then I thought, wait, I have an oven.  I have a real, working oven, why would we need a light bulb in a box?  Shoot we could make a box oven, we have a box, we have aluminum foil, we can get the stuff to make a light bulb on a cord and we have a utility knife to cut a hole in the box for the light bulb on a cord.  As a matter of fact, that's something Scott could do with the kids over the winter break. 

I decided that Santa would be delivering Zoe a basket of small cake pans, cake mixes and kitchen gear that would be just hers.  Then we could make a cake together and share the sweets.  That would make her very happy. 

Once that plan was made, I wandered around and ended up giggling at the intensity of the people in the store with me.  Almost everyone was on a cell phone. 

It was too early to call my sister and now her line is going to voice mail, can you walk over and ask her if she wants me to get these for her?  I'm going to put them in my cart and wait for you to call me back.

Yeah, they have pajamas but no nightgowns, what do you want me to do?

What do you think about getting a vacuum for mom?  No, I'm not kidding. 

Toy section, jammed.  Electronics, jammed.  Aisles around the inexpensive piles on the aisles, jammed.  Endcaps with little gifty sets had a bunch of people crowded around them. 

I've always liked shopping at the busiest times.  I like wading through the crowds, humming Christmas music and dragging my bags around.  It's why I like to go out on Black Friday, even if I don't buy anything.

And funny things happen, I was once in Barnes and Noble, waiting in a huge line to buy a book for my dad.  One of the managers came over the loudspeaker "Barnes and Noble customers, we are aware that the lines are very long, but it is Christmas time." 

The guy in front of me and I looked at each other and burst out laughing.  It was so ridiculous for anyone to even complain about how long the line was on the 22nd of December at 6:30 p.m., then the silly announcement, it was all hilarious. 

One year when I was working at B&N, a woman in her eighties with a walker came around the wrong way towards the registers.  One of the employees looked towards the other people waiting with her eyebrows up, the majority of whom nodded that it was okay for her to help this elderly woman out of turn. 

As she hobbled up, the man who was next shouted "Hey!  There is a line here!" And every customer at the counter turned and looked at him before turning back to the register to ask to see books behind the counter, make chit-chat, buy gift certificates, ask for change and make this jerk wait longer.  Everyone who was witnessing this spectacle was stifling giggles and laughed out loud when he got pissed and stormed out. 

Working in the housewares department at a department store, I sold three breadmakers in 2 hours to men wandering in between 6 and 8 a.m. on the 24th looking for something for their wives.  I pointed to pre-gift wrapped breadmakers, on sale for $95.  Sold! 

I have witnessed people meandering around stores saying "uh.... uh..... uh.....Oh!  Oh, no.  Uh.... uhh.."

We're going to go out this weekend to get a new artificial tree, a small one.  We'll get a big one on clearance after the 25th. But, it's going to be fun walking around watching people be confused and make phone calls. 

I should find instructions on how to make an oven in a box to make sure I have all the supplies for later this month.

Amanda's beauty tip of the day:  Those at-home peels?  Just say no!