But for many, this wonderful time of year falls short -- with feelings of solitude, loneliness and even worry about where the next meal is going to come from. For a family in desperate need, there will be very little thought given to Christmas this year, let alone gifts for the children.

Why not make this a memorable Christmas for a person or a family in need? Help somebody if you can.

This list covers everything you should do ahead of time, in the planning and preparation stages. Plus, Black Friday shopping tips that you can't live without -- like what things you should do the morning of Black Friday and what things you should do while you're in the stores taking advantage of Black Friday sales.

Things To Do Before Black Friday

Start shopping early. No, not on that day (Black Friday), but even earlier! Many stores are offering pre-Black Friday sales weeks before the big day. And the night before Black Friday may yield even better deals yet!

Before you even begin to look at the Black Friday advertisements, you want to know the store policy on returns. The question you need answered is if they lower price on an item that you have already purchased, will they refund the difference? If so, what time period (usually a month) is this service in effect? If the store will refund the difference on an item purchased for more on a prior date, then there is no need to wait in line to purchase that item on Black Friday. Simply go to the store the week before Black Friday and purchase the item. When Black Friday comes along, stroll into the store (conveniently bypassing all the lines and crowds of people fighting for what you are carrying — or even waiting until the afternoon when the crowds have thinned out a bit and all the items are already gone from the store) and ask for the difference.  Source

Don't miss these other Black Friday strategies to outsmart the competition!

Sign up for email alerts & newsletters. If you really want to score the best deals, you need to whittle down your list to a number that's manageable. Email alerts & newsletters are a great way to be among the first to learn about a new item to go on sale somewhere, and fine-tune your Black Friday shopping list.

TIP: You can keep track of your Black Friday shopping list and the store ads all in one place with the following iPhone Black Friday apps: 

• Fat Wallet Black Friday iPhone App
• DealNews Black Friday iPhone App

Clean your cookies. When shopping for Black Friday deals online, retailers can tell which products you've already looked at and your basic shopping habits online. 

Retailers base a lot of their online promotions and price points on shoppers' habits. So, it's not uncommon for shoppers to notice price fluctuations after repeated purchases on the same site. Prices typically drop for these power shoppers as an incentive, but there have been documented occurrences of increases, too. You can check to see if this is happening to you by logging out from the retail site, clearing your browser's cookies, and then revisiting the product page. If you find a lower price, buy it -- re-registering with a new customer account if necessary.  Source

Buy a newspaper the Sunday before Thanksgiving. It will be full of Thanksgiving fliers and sales announcements! You will want to take the store ads with you when shopping on Black Friday (see why below). And use a highlighter and/or Sharpie marker to identify key items that you may need to reference while in the store. Use these store ads to create your Black Friday shopping list.

Check out the Black Friday Survival Guide: Planning.

What Is Black Friday?

For years, the day after Thanksgiving has been the day that retailers traditional go from being "in the red" (in debt) to being "in the black" (making a profit). Hence the name: Black Friday!

Black Friday officially marks the start of the holiday shopping season, as there's only 4 weeks left to shop until Christmas.



What Are Black Friday Sales Like?

The Friday after Thanksgiving sales usually include the most unique items that you'll find this particular year and the lowest prices on many of the most popular everyday items as well.

Black Friday doorbuster prices are typically very hard to beat -- at any time of year.

The challenge and allure to Black Friday shopping is the fact that there are only limited quantities available at these low, low prices. It's not unusual that a store would only have a dozen or so items available at that one-time-only Black Friday price.

So there's obviously an adrenaline rush that comes with being one of the lucky ones who was able to score a deal on an item you wanted. It's kind of similar to "winning" a bid on eBay and the satisfaction you feel for being the lucky "winner" -- when you know so many other people also wanted that item. Only the deals are usually much sweeter at Black Friday sales.

On Black Friday, bargain shoppers can score tremendous deals by keeping their eye on the biggest sales that can be had:

• only on this one day
• only for certain times during that day
• only on select items
• and only at select stores

My Experience With Black Friday Shopping

There are Black Friday junkies who get up early each and every year to take advantage of all the post-Thanksgiving Day specials.

Then there are Black Friday newbies who are eager to see what all the hype is about for the very first time.

I'm somewhere in between. I've been participating in Black Friday sales since 2005. I'm serious about my Black Friday shopping -- in terms of hunting down the very best deals that we most need (or want). Then on the morning of Black Friday, I'm on a mission to buy just those items. I try hard not to let Black Friday sales get the best of me by buying a bunch of things I don't need. (That's just what the retailers want, you know.)

So that's why I compiled a list of the best tips for Black Friday shopping. And I use that list each year when I'm preparing for my Black Friday shopping trip.
 

I'm not talking about a Christmas tree though... I'm talking about a Thanksgiving tree. (And no, I'm not referring to a child's craft project. That's a Thanksgiving tree with entirely different purpose altogether.)

Some consider this Christmas-shaped tree that's decorated with fall-theme ornaments and colors simply an Autumn tree.

Whatever you call it, decorating a tree for the time between Halloween and Christmas is quite common.

Thanksgiving trees -- which are placed inside the home or out on a porch -- are enjoyed between the Halloween and Thanksgiving holidays. Typically, the day after Thanksgiving is when the traditional Christmas tree goes up.

It only makes sense. There are already Halloween trees (yes, they're decorated with Halloween-themed ornaments) and Christmas trees (including upside down Christmas trees), so why not a Thanksgiving tree?

The fact is, if you have removable floor mats in your car, the driver's side floor mat could slip and lead to a very dangerous situation when you're driving.

If you want to send a holiday care package to the Troops, but don't know where to send it, the following information should help.

First, here are a couple of tips that might be helpful as well:

Before You Send Care Packages To U.S. Soldiers

Ideas For A FuN Holiday Care Package

Tips For Sending Food & Other Items To U.S. Military

Other Great Ideas For Soldiers' Care Packages

Fun Things To Include In Military Gift Baskets

Here's how to find a military address for U.S. Troops...

One way that you can minimize the time spent shopping for the best deal is to use online shopping sites that provide automatic price alerts via email when a product you're looking for goes on sale.

Here are the best product tracking sites that alert you of price drops via email...

Of course you could also call your cell phone number from a land line or a friend's cell phone, but if neither of those is available to you, then this free service would come in really handy!

I heard about this cool free service from Kim Komando's Cool Tip of the Day.

Kim says:

The site does not share or store your phone number. But you can block your number if you wish. If someone else accidentally enters your number, your phone won't ring.

For the record, Google Maps' click-to-call is another way to call your own cell phone. You can also use Google Voice to call your own cell phone.

Whether you know someone who is currently serving in the U.S. Military or not, there are lots of fun ways to do a little something special for those who are going above & beyond for people like you and me.

Jim and I have sent fun holiday care packages to the Troops for the past several years -- usually 2 gigantic boxes each time. (By the way, they always reached their destination, and in a timely manner too.)

The first few times, we sent our packages to soldiers we didn't even know. Then, for a couple years, we sent holiday care packages to our nephew, a Marine, who was serving in Iraq. This year, since our nephew is back in the States, we will be sending our holiday care package to more U.S. soldiers we've never met.

Here's a collection of tips -- everything you need to know to send a care package to U.S. Troops...

Each video features the unique pumpkin carving techniques used by 4 of their TV experts:

• Chris Grundy
   
• Jason Cameron
   
• Ahmed Hassan
   
• Amy Matthews

For more great pumpkin carving tips, check out All The Best Pumpkin Carving Tools: From Carving Kits To Power Tools!

Not me. I love playing dress up on this fun holiday. When I answer the door, I always get lots of compliments. Plus, it's neat to see the kids get a kick out of my Halloween costume each year -- it makes it more fun for them, as well as for me. 

So as you can see, Halloween is not just for the little kids, it's for the big kids too.

If you'll be dressing up for Halloween this year -- either for a Halloween party or just for something to wear when you're handing out candy to the trick-or-treaters -- then you'll enjoy these awesome DIY ideas for adult Halloween costumes...

It's fun to think about what makes you happy, compared to what you think would make your partner happy. I found some of the "men" ones interesting...

First, the women. My $.02 appear in parentheses...

10 Things That Would Make WOMEN Happier:

#1  A permanently clean home. (I strive for this daily; I'm doing much better than I used to.)

#2  A luxury trip. (I'm grateful that we now take one each year!)

#3  A big house. (I recently got one, and I have to admit, it ranks pretty high.)

#4  Losing 10 pounds. (Or 5... and for longer than just a weekend.)

#5  A great body. (Ehhh... I've stopped comparing myself to others these days.)

#6  Time for themselves. (I agree... very important! I've always done pretty good with this one.)

#7  A really romantic relationship. (Again, I'm grateful.)

#8  Being smarter. (Naaa... at this point, I am what I am.)

#9  Saying "No" more. (Not an issue for me... no kids, so I've always been in control of my own time & activities.)

#10  A luxury car. (I'll pass. I'm pretty happy with my fun Jeep Wrangler.)

From this list, I think I'd have to rate #4 "losing 10 pounds" as the #1 thing that would make me happier. Which is a big bummer since the only reason I'm not 10 pounds lighter is my own fault, darn it.

And now for the men...

There is one overhead view of 2 of them before they jumped that is simply breathtaking! 

More photos of the Birdmen here.

However, today's modern video screens are made differently. As a result, extra care must be taken when cleaning flat screen TVs and computer monitors.

Harsh chemicals such as ammonia or alcohol can do serious damage to LCD screens, plasma TVs, and computer monitors. This also includes all laptop computers and portable video games, as well. Virtually any device that produces a picture that is manufactured today will be damaged by harsh cleaning chemicals.

Many owners clean a laptop screen or LCD TV as they would clean any glass monitor or TV - DON'T make this mistake. An LCD (liquid crystal display) consists of a soft film that is very prone to damage from scratches, smudging, and clouding caused by the use of improper cleaning agents and harsh cloths. Plasma HDTVs do have a glass substrate but its surface is also very delicate because of anti-glare coatings.  Source
 

Here's how to safely clean your flat screen TVs and LCD computer monitors...

Yes, this Halloween you can carve a world class Jack-o-Lantern simply by choosing from the best free design templates found online.

Following are the best sites to find literally thousands of FREE pumpkin templates...