On December 26th at 12:01 am, the carols instantly stopped and the pop/rock songs began. Christmas was over (sigh).

I mulled over the giving and receiving of gifts that had occurred Christmas morning. No squeals of delight or “what-were-you-thinking?” reactions and the much-desired element of surprise was missing a couple of times.

I’m sure that online shopping was bigger this year and will continue to grow in the future, but there’s a trade-off for that convenience — it spoils the tradition and joy of surprise that comes from hiding Christmas presents. I remember hiding the boys’ gifts when they were small so their eyes were wide with surprise when they entered the living room on the big day. Now that I look back, it was easier keeping their gifts in the garage, car trunk or the guest room closet. These days, you must be prepared to intercept the deliveryman, hide email receipts in folders with code names (“Menopause” is a good one), scrub your internet history and buy outside of your shared bank accounts so a loved one doesn’t see charges on the credit card or debits in the checking account.

I enjoyed using Amazon’s Prime membership to do some of my shopping. But when you share an Amazon login to get the Prime benefits (or forget to log out), “Your Recently Viewed Items and Featured Recommendations Inspired by your browsing history” pops up. (This could also cause disappointment on Christmas morning when your husband sees a recently viewed 60” HD TV and then receives a wallet).

My husband’s thoughtful gift to me was a patio heater. I knew a couple of weeks before Christmas because it was delivered to our doorstep with an emblazoned ink drawing of the contents right on the box.

My husband’s gift came in a box clearly labeled Germack Pistachio Company.  Yikes!   Surprise foiled again!   Of course my husband and I assured each other that we were both adults and we could deal, but it was a little disappointing.

We have less privacy when shopping online than shopping in stores (especially if you’re sharing computers or smart phones). I visited my Facebook page to relax after shopping, and everything I had just browsed had an ad plastered all over my page!  “Big Brother” instantly came to mind…it felt really creepy!  Every time you buy online, you create a profile that other companies try to match to get your business.  Shoppers are then found out when a loved one notices the targeted advertising that pops up on the computer or Facebook page.  Although online shopping is convenient, there is no foolproof way to make sure the gift recipient doesn’t stumble on your purchase. You can, however, cover some of your technological tracks:

1. When sharing an Amazon Prime account, either avoid logging in to your Amazon account while shopping or remove those recently viewed items. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click “view or edit your browsing history” at the end of the horizontal bar with thumbnails of the items you’ve recently viewed.
   
   Once on your browsing history page, delete each item one at a time.
2. If you keep a wish list on Amazon, I have discovered that it offers a “Don’t spoil my surprises” option for the wish list feature by keeping bought items marked as “un-purchased”. See how at Amazon.
3. To avoid spoiling the surprise by a gift waiting on your doorstep with images of the contents, order from one of the merchants that allow pick up at the store, (Wal-Mart, Best Buy and Apple are some of the stores that offer this option). Another option is to ship deliveries to an alternate location. Ask if personal deliveries are allowed at your workplace, or ship to a family member, friend or trusted neighbor. Also, FedEx has a feature to hold your delivery at the nearest FedEx location for pickup (and it’s free!). More information can be found at the FedEx website.
4. Close your email and social media accounts when your computer is unattended.
5. Use a separate credit card, bank account or gift card to purchase for your partner.
6. Keep pop ups at a minimum:
   • delete your browser history by deleting your cookies. Google “how to delete cookies on (Mac, Firefox, Internet Explorer, etc.).
   • use Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari or Internet Explorer as browsers. Google Chrome allows you to search the web “incognito”; Safari and Firefox call it “Private Browsing; Explorer calls it “InPrivate Browsing”
   • control ads on your iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch. Go to settings>Privacy>Advertising
   • Digital Ad Alliances’s AdChoices button   at the top of corner ads, could limit the number of ads. More information can be found at http://www.youradchoices.com
   • Opt out of ads: For Microsoft go to: http://choice.microsoft.com/en-US  for Google go to: www.google.com/policies/technologies/ads

Finally, install a good ad blocker. Adblocker Plus is a free, customizable browser extension that blocks banners, video ads, and pop-ups, and prevents companies from tracking your browsing data. It’s available for Firefox, Safari, Chrome, and Internet Explorer, as well as Android.

Now you’re prepared to shop online privately.  If you need more help, perhaps you can take “Intro to KGB Clandestine Operations” at your local community college.