Creative Stuff from the Grocery

For as long as I can remember, my mother has taken great delight in filling decorative tins with cookies. Whenever she bakes, her treats don't get wrapped in crunchy tin foil or stored haphazardly in a zip-lock baggie. Nope. They go in pretty (and now antique) decorative tins. It's a mom-thing. So it should come as no surprise that I equate decorative tins with peanut butter and oatmeal cookies. :)

Apparently tins are way more readily available now than they once were...because I am seeing them everywhere.

JoAnn's has an awesome selection of holiday tins...really pretty stuff there. Not as pretty as my mom's old ones...but pretty nevertheless. In all sorts of shapes and sizes. Tempting. And wouldn't you know it...I found some cool gift-card tins at the grocery. Kroger, of all places. Made by Seastone. I had to indulge in a few of the snowflake ones. At $2, they just hoped into my buggy. :) I keep thinking of cool uses for them...beyond gift cards.

I'm not going to use the snowflake ones as gift card holders...but as tree ornaments. When they are hanging on the tree, I'll take a photo. (That would be after we get the tree next weekend.)

In other news, the holiday was wonderful. We went to my grandmother's for Thanksgiving and got to spend the day with my grandmother, my parents, my sister and her fiance' and a friend of hers, and my older younger brother. (LOL!)

It occurs to me that I have spoken (oops...written) many times here about my youngest younger brother, Army Andy, because he's (obviously) on my mind alot, given his chosen profession. Mainly, that he's in a dangerous place doing dangerous work.

But, I haven't told you so much about my oldest younger brother, Daniel. Until just recently, I would have sworn that Daniel was 7 years younger than me...but Deb set me strait when she was here...he's actually 9 years younger than me. Who knew? :) He's so cool. He can do anything with a saw and a hammer and some wood. He is a Texas boy (he has overcome the fact that he was born in Mississippi)and he reminds me alot of my Dad. He works hard and plays hard and he's very independent. He's a genuinely good-hearted man, and I am proud of that. :)

So now you know.

PS I've been oogling *kirstie*'s pea gallery for too long tonight...I am so drawn to her succinct style. Good stuff.