Black Friday at the Wynfrey

Good Wednesday morning!

The Gallery Pic is of something a little different for me on a Tuesday night. The Mystery Bag Party #1 Girls wanted to have a "reunion," so Jill planned a pot-luck at her home. This is picture of all the girls except for Miss Melaney who had a previous engagement. (I'm telling you, the Mystery Bag Party has turned out to be a very special party indeed. Please enter the Contest if you haven't already done so.) It was a night spent eating, talking, talking, talking and finally a picture op. My favorite kind of evening. I shared something with the girls on Facebook regarding my ride to the festivities, and I'll share it with you now!

Okay. I had dental surgery Monday, so last night was not my best night. Jenny offered to drive since I wasn't driving yet (drugs, you know). Halfway to Jill's house, my backside started sweating. Being the upbeat person I always am (NOT), I began to try to figure out what major illness begins with a sweating backside. When I told Jenny I was getting warm, she informed me she had seat warmers in the van and she had turned mine on. Imagine my immense relief. I was ready to call Gardendale's finest (paramedics... not the mayor) with the symptom "big, sweaty bottom."

Anyway, I was kind of there/kind of not for the rest of the night. I'll be posting Contest rules again tomorrow for girls who haven't entered yet!

CHRISTMAS EVERY DAY IN DECEMBER

Okay. Here are two more inexpensive and EASY ideas to celebrate Christmas every day of the month. You started off the day with chocolate from the advent calendar, right? You are now coming home from work and school and your house will smell and sound wonderful... and the best part is it will take you all of two minutes (if that long)!

DAY 2

3. Use your Christmas china EVERY meal. Have the table set for breakfast and dinner with candles glowing. Even if you're just serving corn dogs and tater tots (yum), use the pretty stuff. If you don't have Christmas china, invest in pretty Christmas paper plates and use those. Enjoy meals on these plates all month long!

4. As soon as you enter your house, light scented candles and have Christmas music playing. If you don't have a lot of Christmas CDs, just use the radio and put it on the Christmas station. Create a festive atmosphere with smell and sound.

Special Guest of the Month - I was a little loopy yesterday from the tooth thing (or should I say a little loopier), so I didn't give Joan a proper introduction. Joan is the wife of Dale, and mother of Austin and Lauren... two of my favorite Patricks ever. She is also a daughter, sister, niece, cousin, aunt, friend and much, much more to literally HUNDREDS of residents of our fair city. She has a wicked sense of humor (which I thoroughly appreciate), and she is a great "teenager" mom (which I thoroughly try to emulate). I am honored to call her my friend... or cousin? (Are we related, Joan? But even if we aren't related, we're still friends, right? Right, Joan?) While I await the answer, here's a little more of Joan's interview...

11. If you could be any age (prior or later than now), what age would you pick?

39 forever.

12. What is your favorite old hymn?

Almighty Fortress is Our God.

13. What is your family's favorite meal you prepare?

One loves spaghetti, and the other two love meat and veggies.

14. Shoe lover or purse lover?

Shoes, definitely.

15. If you could remove someone's burden and take it as your own, whose burden would it be?

I don't like this question because it doesn't make me feel good about myself. I wish none of my family or friends had burdens, but I don't want them either. (I don't know what it says about me, The Enchanting Belinda, but I thought this was funny, and I'm not sure it was meant to be funny. Hmmm.)

16. Where is your "happy place?"

Anywhere there is shopping involved.

17. Name a fond childhood memory.

Family vacations. My dad traveled so we were able to have a lot of experiences many of my friends didn't get to have. They were all so much fun.

18. Who are you most like... your mother or your father?

FATHER!!!!!!

19. If someone wrote a book about your life, what would the title be?

A Legend in Her Own Mind. (Again, I don't know if this was supposed to be funny, but I laughed... a lot.)

20. Did you grow up in a small church or a large church?

Small.

21. What is your favorite holiday, and why?

Christmas. It is my Savior's birthday.

But wait! There's more! Come back tomorrow for the final installment... and hopefully a picture. JOAN, I NEED A PICTURE!

Wednesday Wisdom - The month of December will feature quotes about Christmas... some funny, some true, some about Santa, and others about the true reason we celebrate, but always, always about Christmas!

"Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions of our childhood days, recall to the old man the pleasures of his youth, and transport the traveler back to his own fireside and quiet home!" Charles Dickens

"There's nothing sadder in this world than to awake Christmas morning and not be a child." Erma Bombeck

Black Friday at the Wynfrey

This is not a cheap tradition, but if you plan well, you will recoup what you spend on the hotel room at The Wynfrey with the money you save on gifts.

1. Book your room. We booked two rooms for eight people. Two people had to drop out, so after a quick call to the hotel, I cancelled one room, and all six of us stayed in a room with two double beds... and an inflatable mattress. It cost us $10 a person for the two extra people, and I think the reason they let us put two extra people in the room was because they were children (technically). Book your room in January when they have their 2010 calendar ready.

2. The Wynfrey has a "Shopper's Special" for $10 more per room. You will get a newspaper with coupons and bag with more discounts inside.

3. The four main stores open at 4:00 a.m. (Belk's, Macy's, Sear's and J.C. Penney's). The other smaller stores start opening at 5:00 (along with the food court) and everything is open by 6:00 a.m. This is when it starts to get crowded.

4. There were three adults and three kids, so we decided to take one hour shifts with the kids. Bev took the 4:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. shift while Amy and I did some quick shopping.

5. Plan on going to the mall one day prior to Thanksgiving. Roxie and I went Wednesday and there were NO crowds at all. During this time, I made my game plan. My first stop was Sear's, then the ornament kiosk which was open by that time, and then one of the smaller stores to pick up a sweater I knew Roxie wanted. Three gifts in one hour. It was time to meet in the food court for breakfast. We had no problem finding seating although it was getting crowded. We ate and Amy took her one hour turn with the girls.

6. Also, have a plan of what you want to buy. There are great specials, but stick to your list and look for the best bargains in the newspapers before you leave your room.

7. We continued swapping up with the girls from 4:00 until 10:00. We then met in our room, and started packing for the 11:00 a.m. check-out. After we put all of our bags in our cars, we met again for lunch in the food court before heading home, exhausted but happy!

You may be asking yourself, "Why spend the money to stay at The Wynfrey? Why not just go to the mall early that day?"

1. The fellowship and "spend the night party" atmosphere is fun the night before.

2. Being able to take large packages back to your room or car parked only seconds away is very, very convenient.

3. You will totally recoup your hotel expense if you shop wisely, stay focused on your list and watch for other bargains they have at the mall. (For example, if you spent $100 before noon, you could stand in a line and receive a free $10 mall gift card and a free year's subscription to the Martha Stewart Magazine for yourself or for a gift. I immediately took the $10 gift card to a store which had pajamas Roxie wanted for Christmas. I also had a 20% off coupon I received from another store in the mall. That, along with the $10 gift card saved $16 on something from my list.)

4. I saved $205 on gifts I had on my list from shopping Black Friday.

5. I left with 85% of my shopping done... in one day!

I would suggest putting $5 or $10 in an envelope marked BLACK FRIDAY beginning your next paycheck so it won't be a burden so close to Christmas.

In a word... it was FUN!

Have a wonderful Wednesday, December 2, 2009. Take a moment to breathe, be still and enjoy your family today. Tomorrow I'll have a holiday date for spouse or child, more easy things to do to enjoy the ENTIRE month of December, Blog Linkage to make you smile and/or inspire, and the last part of our Special Guest's interview. Thank you, Joan!

Take care, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.

Sincerely,

The Enchanting and Slightly Less Throbbing (but Still Not Comfortable) Belinda