For the past few years, I have sworn off Black Friday. However, I may….repeat MAY brave the Black Friday crowds this year for a very special gift. Jealous of her brother’s new computer, my daughter wants her own laptop. A laptop clocks in at way more than what we would budget for a Christmas present, so we made a deal with her. If she pays for half, we would pitch in the rest as her main Christmas gift. If I can find a laptop for a killer price on Black Friday, I could potentially make a run at it. I could wait until Thanksgiving Day to get a paper and look through all the ads, but that’s old school. These days we can get a jump on the newspaper by viewing the very best Black Friday 2013 deals on websites like FatWallet or BFads.net.
Speaking of my son’s computer, the only complaint he has with it is that he wants to upgrade the graphics card. He believes he has enough money saved for it, but he has this idea in his head that he may be able to pick it up for cheap on Cyber Monday. Which brought an interesting thought to mind. Maybe I could find my son’s graphics adapter AND Tori’s laptop online for cheap. While I’m checking out the Black Friday ads, I’ll check out some sites like CyberMonday.com to see what I can find there too. I have to admit, I like the idea of getting both of these items without leaving my office chair.
The good news is that it’s the season of sales, and we have opportunities to find some GREAT deals.
I should also remind you that we’re hosting a kick ass give away here on EOD this week. If you haven’t entered yet, click on over and enter to win $100 Visa Gift Card!
Alright, friends, it’s time to get a little exercise. Stretch out that upper body because it’s time to fist pump. Feel the burn!
Posts That Make Me Fist Pump
- Ignore the Experts, Stop Using Cash! from See Debt Run
- “So, I’m hiding something from my husband….” from Budgets Are Sexy
- Feeling the Power to Change Old Financial Ways from Budget And The Beach
- 21 Motivational Stories of People Who Attacked Their Debt and Won from Adam Hagerman
- The One Tip That Will Help Slash Your Monthly Budget from Celebrating Financial Freedom
- My final fist pump goes to Blair, my current partner in the Bloggers Helping Bloggers Program. Check out her blog, and congratulate her for being Done with Car Payments Forever!! from Life Dollars and Sense
Shameless Self Promotion
- Be a Rock Star Parent, Throw a Gingerbread Man Decorating Party is my post this week in the CareOne Community
Emergency Fund Update
It’s a non paycheck week, so the balance remains the same.
- Total Balance: $200
- Goal Balance: $1000 (by February 28th)
Marathon Training Update
A small decline in weight this week but overall this is not going as well as I had hoped. I’m not giving up though, I feel like I’ve turned a corner. Oh, next week is Thanksgiving? Sounds like a good test of my self control.
- 11/22 Weight : 211.4 (-0.5 lbs)
- Total Weight Loss: (+0.4)
- Goal Weight : 185.0
I think it’s a great deal you made with your daughter. I remember the “old days” when we had one giant apple 2 E computer for the whole darn family. My brother and I would fight over who was going to play Mystery House in DOS commands. Ahhh, times were simpler back then. After we played we’d run outside and hunt down our dinner and try to avoid saber tooth tigers. 🙂 Thanks for mentioning Natalie’s article on my site!
We had the Apple IIe as well, Tonya! I can’t say I was much of a Mystery House player, but I did rack up hours on Taipan and The Oregon Trail. Good thing you were able to avoid those saber tooth tigers, I got too close to one once and the whole family ended up with “the Plague.” 🙂
Thanks for including me this week! I agree that you made a good deal with your daughter. I’m also sure she will take better care of it with skin in the game.
That’s exactly what we thought, Blair. She’s very cautious and deliberate with her funds and I look forward to see how she treats the laptop once she gets it. Great to hear from you…great article!
Thanks for the love!
That post really hit home for me, J – I found some kind of comfort in the fact that I’m not the only one that’s ever done something like that. Not proud of that time in my life – hope other readers can learn from that story!
Thanks for the mention, Travis.
BTW.. I just listened to your podcast from Joe’s show a few months back (I am getting caught up), and I thought your interview was one of the best that he has done. You are a natural behind the mic. Ever thought of having your own podcast?
Thanks, Jefferson – I really enjoyed doing that interview with Joe. I haven’t thought of doing a podcast, but who knows, I’m up for anything. 🙂 Thanks for the support and for stopping by!
That’s an awesome deal you made with your daughter! I definitely stay away from Black Friday; not my cup of tea 🙂
Have a great weekend, Travis!
I don’t think I’d ever spend the night in a parking lot again….but I wouldn’t mind heading to a store when I got up to see if what I wanted was still available. I’ve had that happen to me many times – I get up at 3:00am and rush to the store pick up an item….only to go back to the store hours later and see a pallet full of the same item still sitting there!
Thanks for listing the Black Friday ad websites. I am not planning on going out on Black Friday at this point, but I like to compare BF deals vs Cyber Monday!
I’m looking at both to see what I can find for Tori’s laptop…..I sense another post coming. LOL. thanks for reading, Dee!
Nice job making deal with your daughter on the laptop. I remember doing similar deals with my parents when I was younger because so many of the things I wanted were more expensive electronics versus something within a Christmas budget. Gift cards can be nice too, but I’m sure she will love opening up that new laptop on Christmas Day!
She’s gonna love it I’m sure….she’s talking non stop about how she wants her room to be. Two weekends ago she and I spent hours reorganizing and purging her room. All “little girl” things are gone, and she’s got a space where she wants a fuzzy chair, a place where she wants a mirror on her wall, and oh, her laptop has to be on her desk next to the window, right? The dreams of an eleven year old…. 🙂
The BF and I always make it out to a few Black Friday sales. Call us crazy, but there are some great deals to be had! Just make sure you don’t walk out with something you didn’t need originally!
Sticking to your list is always the key, Lisa….hope you had a successful shopping day!