It began late November with Thanksgiving's Early Bird Thursday, rolling into Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, followed by Cyber Monday.

The holiday shopping season is finally in its last stretch."Super Saturday" presented customers a chance to grab a few more sale items before gathering around the Christmas tree.According to the National Retail Association, the average spending for holiday presents is estimated at $800 a person.The NFA published its findings on last-minute shoppers with results showing men are more likely to procrastinate when it comes to holiday shopping. An estimated one in four men wait until December to start shopping compared with just 17 percent of women."I was going to pull a Grinch this year and wasn't going to get anyone anything, but now I feel obligated and there aren't any stores that sell a time machine," said late sale shopper Aaron Marouchoc.Time and budget are the main causes for procrastinating."Potential disruptions from yet another government shutdown in mid-December and a slower pace of job creation and income growth are just a few key factors that impact holiday shoppers' spending this year," said National Retail Federation President and CEO Matthew Shay."Price, value and even timing will all play a role in how, when, where and why people shop over the holiday season," Shay said.Shopper Lori Stahley said, "I waited so long because I just didn't have time, but I think people wait for sales," Lori Stahley.Sellers Books' employee Jessica Crowley said Saturday was one of the biggest days of shopping with people scouring the racks for holiday-themed literature. "It was a lot of Christmas books. That was the big seller this year," she said.Cyber space retail mogul Amazon enticed shoppers with the promise of shipment delivery before Christmas by joining its Prime membership club. Amazon has even guaranteed one-day delivery for members. For most online shopping, shipping deadlines may have already come and gone."People will have to pay through the nose for shipping now," said Trooper Pompa, owner of Sound Check Records.Consumers also cite budget for the wait-and-see approach to gift buying. Many big box stores such as Walmart and Kmart offer last chance doorbusters. Kmart has worked on including free standard shipping on orders of $35 or more. Free in-store shipping is offered as well.Gift cards are among the highest last-minute purchases due to availability and ease of purchase. For eight years in a row NFA's holiday surveys have found gift cards to be the most requested gift item during the holiday season. Total spending on gift cards has increased 28 percent since 2006, according to the retail association's research.Other popular in-person pickups have included the new Adele album."If people wanted it they had to physically buy it since she didn't release it to iTunes. We had more sales this year because of that," Pompa said.Of course the Beatles remain at the top of the gift list. "Anything vinyl by them flies off our shelves."Electronics such as iPads and tablets have topped gift lists along with every "Star Wars" item.Randall Sellers, president of Jim Thorpe Tourism Agency, said many stores will be staying open for Christmas Eve to give people the chance to pick up a few unique presents."People take the week off, kids are home from college and many are hoping to find one more perfect gift," Sellers said.Shopping local has become so popular this time of year that the town will have free metered parking the day after the holiday until Jan. 1.