Santa is coming this weekend!
Check out the link to see when he will arrive in your neighborhood! NORAD is tracking Santa and his sleigh.
http://www.noradsanta.org/
Rewind Concerts Announcement
There Is Still Time to Get Your Holiday Packages Shipped!
Still have holiday packages to get or ship? Take a breath–you still have time for your gifts to be delivered on time!
UPS Christmas Shipping Deadlines:
- Dec 22 – Deadline for 2nd Day Air shipments.
- Dec 23 – Deadline for Next Day Air shipments.
USPS Christmas Shipping Deadlines:
- Dec 20 – Deadline for First Class Mail and Priority Mail shipments.
- Dec 23 – Deadline for Priority Express Mail shipments.
FedEx Christmas Shipping Deadlines:
- Dec 20 – Deadline for Express Save shipments.
- Dec 22 – Deadline for 2-Day and 2-Day A.M. shipments.
- Dec 23 – Deadline for Standard Overnight, Priority Overnight, First Overnight shipments.
- Dec 25 – Deadline for SameDay shipments.
Amazon Christmas Shipping Deadlines:
- Dec 22 – Express shipping option.
- Dec 23 – Fastest shipping option
Walmart Christmas Shipping Deadlines:
- Dec 19 – Guaranteed Christmas Eve delivery with Standard shipping option.
- Dec 22 – 3-Day shipping option.
- Dec 23 – 2-Day shipping option..
Target Christmas Shipping Deadlines:
- Dec 22 – Premium shipping option.
- Dec 23 – Express shipping option.
Best Buy Christmas Shipping Deadlines:
- Dec 22 – Expedited shipping
- Dec 23 – Express shipping.
- Dec 24 – Store Pickup
- Dec 25 – E-Gift Cards purchased at bestbuy.com
ToysRUs Christmas Shipping Deadlines
- Dec 19 (3 pm EST) – Standard shipping option.
- Dec 22 (3 pm EST) – Expedited shipping option.
- Dec 23 (12 pm EST) – Express shipping option.
- Dec 24 – Free in-store pickup is available.
Kohls Christmas Shipping Deadlines
The only guaranteed delivery option Kohls offers this year is their 1-day shipping.
- Dec 22 (1pm CST) – 1-day shipping option.
Critical Power Storm Center Update 12/17/16 12:45PM
Snow Emergency plan in effect for Frederick County and Loudoun County.
National Weather Service has upgraded to a Winter Storm Warning for Frederick County until 1pm
Woodsboro Bank closed
Middletown Valley Bank closed
Washington Co Museum of Fine Arts closed
Good Shepherd Ministries Hagerstown adult choir rehearsal moved to 4pm
Due to adverse road conditions TransIT Services delayed until 12:45PM
Frederick 7th Day Adventist Church has canceled services for today.
HCPSS AND COMMUNITY SPONSORED EVENTS CANCELLED TODAY DETAILS: HCPSS.ORG
Closings and cancellations for 12/16/16 1:22pm
Due to the expected winter storm, FMH Imaging, Lab, Immediate Care and ALL Monocacy Health Partners locations, including the Parkview offices, will delay opening until 9 a.m. on Saturday. If you have any questions or concerns, you can call the location you plan to visit first to confirm hours and availability.
Best Christmas Lights in Maryland
Bundle up and grab a hot chocolate and check out these AMAZING Christmas lights displays this holiday season!!!
According to the ‘Only In Your State’ website you’ll find the best lights in these places:
1. 34th Street, Baltimore
2. DC Temple Festival of Lights, Kensington
3. Symphony of Lights, Columbia
4. Winterfest of Lights, Ocean City
5. Annmarie Garden in Lights, Dowell
6. Lights on the Bay, Annapolis
7. Garden of Lights, Wheaton
8. Byron Memorial Park, Williamsport
9. Winter Lights Festival, Gaithersburg
10. Festival of Lights, Upper Marlboro
For more info. check out the link below:
Giving Gift Cards As Holiday Gifts–Good Idea?
During the holidays everyone is always looking for the perfect gift to give. One with meaning that shows you really care. But more and more–people are giving gift cards as presents. Is it a good idea?
Some say gift cards are the best present for almost everyone on your list. Others like Scott H. Young with Lifehack.org say gift cards make horrible gifts and explains why:
1) Gift certificates are like money, except less useful.
Money can be used everywhere. Gift certificates can only be used with specific stores. If the gift certificate offers some kind of special service or discount, this tradeoff might be reasonable. However most gift certificates can’t be redeemed for cash, nor do they offer special treatment so buying one is essentially buying less useful money.
2) Gift certificates are a mark of defeat.
When I’ve given gift certificates in the past, the unstated words are, “I give up.” A gift certificate is basically a sign that you couldn’t think of an actual gift to give the person, so you will just let them pick it out for themselves. If you want a gift that says, “I don’t know you well enough to pick out a gift, but I thought cash was tacky,” get a gift certificate.
3) Gift certificates have expiry dates.
Not only are gift certificates a more restricted form of money, now some companies have the nerve to put an expiry date on them. As if trading your money for less valuable money wasn’t enough, now you get the bonus of having money that only lasts for a year or two. Most stores won’t tell you about the expiry dates, but if you check the back most tell you that your less-valuable money will become completely useless after several months.
4) Gift certificates can backfire.
The main argument for a gift certificate over cash, is that it shows at least some thought into preparation. However, this can backfire if you get someone a certificate for a store they never shop at. I’m sure we’ve all had the joy of running over to a store to use a gift certificate to buy an item we don’t need, just to feel like we aren’t wasting it.
5) Gift certificates can cost your friends and family money.
When you give a gift certificate, often you are forcing them to pay some of their own money to use it. A twenty-five dollar gift certificate isn’t a whole lot at some fancy outlets and technology stores. You may be forcing your recipient to spend another ten or twenty dollars in order to use your wonderful gift. How thoughtful!
6) Gift certificates get lost.
Many stores have started using gift cards instead of certificates. These little devices magnetically store info about the dollar value they hold. Despite the tracking of the gift certificate money electronically, you still need to have the card in order to use it. That means that if your certificate gets lost, the money is gone forever. At least you can deposit cash in the bank.
7) Gift certificates have leftovers.
What actually costs exactly twenty-five or fifty dollars? Usually your lucky gift-card recipient will be left with a couple dollars on their card after buying a gift they probably didn’t really want for themselves. This means your tradeoff for less valuable, expiring money loses an additional dollar or two.
8 ) Gift certificates mean a trip to the store.
Buying a real gift for someone says: “I know you don’t like to treat yourself, but I went to the trouble of getting something I know you’ll like at a store to save you the visit.” A gift certificate is the do-it-yourself version of a gift, forcing the receiver to make a trip to whatever store you happened upon and spend hours driving, browsing and fumbling with the card.
9) Gift certificates don’t earn interest.
Okay, so twenty dollars in cash isn’t going to appreciate much in your 1-2% annual interest savings account, but it’s still more than your certificate. Slowly losing the battle against inflation you can be happy knowing your gift becomes less and less valuable each day before it eventually gets lost or expires.
10) Gift certificates… aren’t all that bad.
I’ve been giving gift certificates a hard time. Despite their many flaws, sending cash is still a faux pas by many peoples standards. And despite the lack of logic in preferring one to money, many people still do. Many people actually prefer the colorful little cards to gifts if it means they don’t have a choice at all.
#wfrefan #wfre
Kip Moore To Take A Break
Kip Moore recently wrapped up his “Me and My Kind” tour and says now he is going to do something he has not done in a long time…he’s going to take a break. In an interview with Rare Country, Kip announced his plan to take some time away from the stage. Kip says he has essentially worked non stop for the last 12 years and that he needs to “breathe a bit.” Kip also says this is a “real” break with no guitar, no microphone and no songwriting.
Free Country Rewind Christmas Special
Be sure to join me Sunday morning for the Free Country Rewind Christmas Special. Grab your eggnog and roasted chestnuts and enjoy four hours of your Christmas favorites from the biggest country hit makers of all time. We will also be taking the Rewind on the road as we will be at Wal-Mart on Route 26 for the finale of this year’s Toys For Toys campaign with the US Marine Corps Reserve from 9 until 3. We want to make it a Merry Christmas for every child in Frederick County and we need your help. If you have a favorite song you would like to hear, send me an email. Don’t forget about our special Free Country Rewind holiday concert with Diamond Rio on Wednesday night at the Weinberg Center. Get your tickets today.
Pet Costumes-What Your Dog & Cat Really Think About Playing Dress-Up!
We love our pets and love to show them off.
During this time of year, many people go out and buy cute and festive costumes for their dogs and cats. Companies that make pet costumes are racking in the bucks! Americans spend over $330 million dollars a year to dress up our beloved four-legged friends. But do our pets like playing dress-up? Maybe not.
Check out this video from JImmy Kimmel!
By: Dianah Gibson