Mindy et al, I got that tall blue pot I had my eye on. It might have been $200 marked down to 40 marked down to TEN DOLLARS. I also got a big metal/copper bucket marked down from at least 150 to $37.50 (I don't think she did the math right. I'll have to check in the morning. I had wanted something like a watering trough near the bees, and this might fill the bill. Or we can use it for logs. That magnificient green pot. I met the nice guy who works the floor. I told him what I wanted to pay for it and without my knowing it he called the ?manager? anyway a woman, and she no way was she going below $160. I think the problem is there was no pink marked down price, so it was 75 % off 699. I really don't want to pay that much because I know I won't move it in freezing weather, and it may break. I'm only willing to risk 100 or less. If anyone can talk them down to $100 or less, I'll take you to LaPatisserie for lunch or Quebrada in Arlington for a cake. Could also do Lakota for a dozen cookies. There's a challenge for the bargainers out there! I'll pay you back in cash and could even meet you at Mahoneys to load and transport pot. Mindy, I saw two "maroonish" pots (one upside down, the other on top) on the pallet, next to the sky blue tall. Are those the ones you are talking about? If there was a salmon pot in the "transition room" I missed it entirely. I'm not looking at your post right this second, but I thought you said it had some branches dispayed it it. I'll look again, maybe when I check to see if the christmas tree is marked down. I wasn't too offended by the look of its branches. But then I had pots on my mind. Marie

First of all, I would like to thank everyone for their advise and suggestions. I've been really busy this week so I haven't been able to respond yet. We are allowed to bring homemade treats to school we just have to be carefull as to what is in it. I ended up sending in string cheese and whole grain club crackers. We individually wrapped everything and sent the treats in little party bages with a gold medal to go with it (DS wanted to to do race cars as his show and tell so we sent in medals for all the kids). I sent the lables in also so that the teacher coiuld double check everything. The kids liked the little bags and DS was happy to be able to give his friends "presents" as he put it. And I was happy to have found a healthy snack to send in. So many parents send in junk food and I hate it. I try to feed my family healthy stuff as often as I can and junk food is an no no in my house. Thank's again you everyone I really appreceiated all you r help. Pets HI Mom! :D

Have any of you tried Oreo Cookie Balls yet? My husband brought me one home that someone at his office made. It was so good! I plan to make them for our holiday party this year. They sound very easy to make. Only three ingredients and no baking. If any of you are familiar with chocolate wafer ice box cake these work on the same principle. 1 pkg. (8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened 36 OREO Cookies, finely crushed (about 3 cups) 4 pkg. (4 oz. each) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate, broken into pieces, melted MIX cream cheese and cookie crumbs until blended. SHAPE into 48 (1-inch) balls. Freeze 10 min. Dip balls in melted chocolate; place in single layer in shallow waxed paper-lined pan. REFRIGERATE 1 hour or until firm. Here is a link that might be useful: Oreo cookie balls

I found this one today. OVERNIGHT APPLE BUTTER mixture of apple varieties, rather than just one type, will produce apple butter with rich, complex flavor in this slow cooker recipe. Good choices include Esopus Spitzenburg, Granny Smith, Jonathan, Northern Spy, Rome, Stayman, Winesap, and York. Enjoy the apple butter over toast or English muffins, or serve it with pork chops or chicken. Yield 4 cups (serving size: 1/4 cup) Ingredients 1 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup honey 1/4 cup apple cider 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 1/8 teaspoon ground mace 10 medium apples, peeled, cored, and cut into large chunks (about 2 1/2 pounds) Preparation Combine all ingredients in a 5-quart electric slow cooker. Cover and cook on low 10 hours or until apples are very tender. Place a large fine-mesh sieve over a bowl; spoon one-third of apple mixture into sieve. Press mixture through sieve using the back of a spoon or ladle. Discard pulp. Repeat procedure with remaining apple mixture. Return apple mixture to slow cooker. Cook, uncovered, on high 1 1/2 hours or until mixture is thick, stirring occasionally. Spoon into a bowl; cover and chill up to a week. Stovetop variation: Combine all ingredients in a Dutch oven. Cover and cook over medium-low heat 1 hour or until apples are very tender, stirring occasionally. Strain through a sieve as recipe instructs in Step 2. Return mixture to pan. Cook, uncovered, over medium-low heat 15 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently.