Holidays 2012: Recycle Lights, Phones and Coats; Donate New Toys

Do you have items you no longer need? A number of holiday collections are underway and items can be easily donated at one location. Find out more!

Are you buying a new winter jacket? Do you have holiday lights that no longer work? Did your kids get duplicate toys this year? Did Santa bring you a new cell phone? If you have items you’d like to toss but aren’t sure what to do with them, a number of collections are taking place in Montgomery County and items can be dropped off right at the Salvation Army at 18705 North Frederick Avenue in Gaithersburg, MD. You can also drop off items at Goodwill of Greater Washington at 619 South Frederick Avenue in Gaithersburg or 4816 Boiling Brook Parkway in Rockville.  Have any unwrapped, unused toys? They can be donated to Toys for Tots in 2013. If you have coats you no longer need, donations are being collected through many local churches. Cell …

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Christmas Fun Facts and Trivia

How much will we spend this year? And what's the best-selling Christmas song of all time? Find the answers below.

We know that there were three Wise Men, 12 days of Christmas and that Santa delivers all his presents around the world in one night. But did you know some of these numbers? $23,439.38  How much it would cost to buy your "true love" all the gifts in the 12 Day of Christmas . 12.9 billion hours, $447 billion How many hours Americans were expected to spend shopping, wrapping and returning gifts last year. That was about 42 hours and $688.87 per person.  Get your postman/postwoman a gift According to Hallmark, Christmas is the largest card-sending occasion . Nearly 1.5 billion cards are sent to friends and family every Christmas Season. (That's actually down 400 million cards since 2004.) $983 million The value of U.S. imports of Christmas …

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Les Miserables, Django Unchained Head 2012 Holiday Movie Premiers

Your guide to movies premiering between now and New Year’s Day.

  With many offices closed between Christmas and New Year’s Day and the kids out of school, going to the movies tends to be one of the more popular holiday-season events, and Hollywood is unleashing some serious star power to end 2012 and welcome 2013. Patch has put together this handy guide to all of the great year-end movie releases: Friday, December 21, 2012 Movie: The Impossible Stars: Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor What it’s about: The main stars play a couple vacationing in Thailand with their three sons who get caught in the 2004 tsunami. Rating: PG-13 -- Movie: Jack Reacher Stars: Tom Cruise and Robert Duvall What it’s about: Cruise plays the role of Jack Reacher (the hero of many Lee Child books) as a former military investigator …

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Holiday Sugar Cookies - An Edible Canvas

A look at a fun and time-honored tradition of decorating holiday cookies for family gatherings or holiday parties.

  One of my favorite childhood holiday traditions is decorating cookies; the possibilities were endless. In the world of holiday cookies, you could have a purple reindeer with an orange Reese's Piece nose to guide Santa's sleigh. You could have a blue Christmas tree with red hots and chocolate chips for lights. In the imaginative world of the holiday cookie, anything is possible. Here are some to remember when decorating holiday cookies either at a party with friends or at home with family. If you choose to decorate your cookies before baking them, use decorations that are able to withstand the heat of baking. This includes nuts, dried fruits, colored/natural sugars and sprinkles.  If you choose to decorate your cookies after baking them, …

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Eye Safety Tops the List This Holiday Season

Five quick tips for keeping toys safe for kids.

  As the countdown to Christmas Day continues and parents rush out to get their children gifts this season, safety tops the list for one expert. Local Voice’s blogger Anna Schmitt from the American Academy of Ophthalmology advises parents to keep in mind their kids' eye safety. Schmitt says toys such as airsoft guns, bb guns and paintball guns can be particularly hazardous. Read more: Keep Eye Safety in Mind When Choosing Gifts this Holiday Season. Join Patch’s Local Voices! We want to provide a platform for your message. Email Tamika Smith, the Community Manager for Montgomery County, at Tamika@Patch.com to sign up.

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Potomac's Local Holiday Shopping: Scarves, Toys, Homeware and More

We're doing the hard, thoughtful holiday work so you don't have to.

Hanukkah: Not Christmas for Jews

While the two holidays fall in close proximity to each other and are celebrated in popular culture together, Hanukkah does not hold the religious significance for Jews that Christmas holds for Christians.

Each year, Hanukkah falls in close proximity or during Christmas according to the Hebrew calendar. Because of that, the two are celebrated side by side under the “Happy Holidays” moniker. But in terms of religious significance, Hanukkah doesn’t rank as high for Jews as Christmas ranks for Christians. “It’s hard to not make a big deal of out Hanukkah living in America, and I’m not sure it’s a bad thing,” said Rabbi Rhoda Silverman of Temple Emanuel in Reisterstown. “That’s not a problem for me as long as we don’t forget about everything else that makes us Jewish.” Jonathan Schwartz, senior aide to Baltimore County Council Chairwoman Vicki Almond and a member of Temple Emanuel, sees Hanukkah as having two roles in the lives of American Jews…

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When Does School Close For Christmas In Potomac?

Montgomery County public school students will have an 11-day winter break this year.

Montgomery County Public School students will have an 11-day winter break this year, including weekends. Public schools and MCPS offices will close on the following dates for Christmas, winter break and New Year’s Day: For a full list of MCPS vacation days, check out our calendar here.

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Get Your Photo Taken With Santa

St. Nick's coming to Montgomery and Prince George's county malls this month and here's where you can go a snap a picture with the family and your pets, too.

It's that time of year again! Santa Claus is coming to town and he's available to take those adorable family photos with you and your children. Here's where Santa will be this holiday season. Wheaton Westfield Wheaton, 11160 Veirs Mill Rd Silver Spring, MD 20902 Santa will be perched in his chair, waiting to take a photo with your child, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Nov. 17 through Dec. 24. Photo packages run between $21 and $45, and all come with a gift card to Shutterfly. Bethesda Westfield Montgomery, 7101 Democracy Blvd Bethesda, MD 20817 In Bethesda, you can have your child’s photo taken with Santa on the lower level of the mall, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 …

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