First-time Black Friday shoppers are invariably stunned by the size of the crowds, the intensity of bargain seekers and the general circus-like atmosphere.

Rayna Smith carries a box of pots and pans for her mom, Lorna, outside the ABC Warehouse at Cranbrook Village.

Nathan Bomey | AnnArbor.com

"I didn’t know so many people would be out this early," first-time Black Friday shopper Lorna Smith said this morning after leaving ABC Warehouse, where a line to get into the store stretched 200 feet half an hour after it opened at 8 a.m.

The crowds didn't faze Lorna's 8-year-old daughter, Rayna, who hoisted a box of pots and pans onto her head and carried it out to her car for her mom.

Rayna said "spending time with my mom and my sister" is her favorite part about Black Friday.

Ann Arbor resident Mark Poleo took his two sons, Matthew and Nicholas, and his niece and nephew Josey and Campbell Crosby on their first Black Friday expedition.

At 5:30 a.m. they hit Target to buy a video game. The lines? Controlled chaos. But they got lucky.

"We didn't have to wait in line because we knew someone already in line" and they let the family skip, Poleo said. "Literally we're not making this up."

The next stop for his family: Office Max for a computer monitor and keyboard.

A quick stop at Panera Bread offered a break to Black Friday shoppers (l-r) Nicholas Poleo, Josey Crosby, Matthew Poleo, Campbell Crosby and Mark Poleo.

Nathan Bomey | AnnArbor.com

Newcomers quickly recognize the sensationalized commercialism of Black Friday.

Black Friday fun isn't about family, Poleo joked. "It's about let's get up early and shop and buy more stuff. We're Americans," he cracked.

Even Black Friday veterans can be shocked by the chaos.

Ann Arbor resident Terry Holman, who bought several lego sets at Target this morning for his nieces and nephews, said the scene last night at Toys "R" Us, which opened at midnight, was hectic.

"It was insane," Holman said. "You would think they were giving away something."

Contact AnnArbor.com's Nathan Bomey at (734) 623-2587 or nathanbomey@annarbor.com. You can also follow him on Twitter.