Food and Drinks
wine
gift card for restaurant
honeybaked ham gift certificate
pasta
gourmet food
coffee
bread mix
soup mix
dip mix
cookies, chocolate

Gardening related
mushroom kit
seeds or plants
potting soil, compost, bark
gardening gloves
bird seed

Travel related
night in a hotel room
wine tasting excursion
river boat dinner cruise
activities while on vacation
car rental
dog kennel

Entertainment
concert tickets
show tickets

Health and beauty related
massage
spa day
haircut
shampoo, lotion, body wash, soap
wrinkle cream

Stuff for the house
candles, scented oil
candle torches for outside
printer cartridges, photo paper

Any more ideas? I don't really have any hobbies that I need supplies for, I already get several magazines, and I don't commute (so I don't need a gift card for gasoline).

This list is already pretty long, but I'd like to hear more suggestions. I'll probably use this list for Christmas too.

This is Glenda's recipe, it a little different than Ruthie's.
Pineapple Casserole

1 20 oz can pineapple chunks, drain, and reserve juice
3 Tbsp flour
1/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup grated cheddar cheese (grate your own) Pre grated cheese doesn't melt
1/2 cup crushed Ritz crackers **I always use saltines

Preheat oven to 350

Combine flour, sugar and 3 Tbsp pineapple juice. Stir in cheese and pineapple. Spoon into greased casserole dish. Mix crackers with butter, and add to top of mixture.
Bake 25 minutes or until bubbly.

LOST IN THE DARNDEST PLACES:

An elderly Floridian called 911 on her cell phone to report that her car has been broken into. She is hysterical as she explains her situation to the dispatcher: "They've stolen the stereo, the steering wheel, the brake pedal and even the accelerator!" she cried.

The dispatcher said, "Stay calm. An officer is on the way."

A few minutes later, the officer radios in. "Disregard." He says. "She got in the back-seat by mistake."
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FAMILY

Three sisters, ages 92, 94 and 96, live in a house together. One night the 96-year-old draws a bath. She puts her foot in and pauses. She yells to the other sisters, "Was I getting in or out of the bath?"
The 94-year-old yells back, "I don't know. I'll come up and see." She starts up the stairs and pauses "Was I going up the stairs or down?"
The 92-year-old is sitting at the kitchen table having tea listening to her sisters. She shakes her head and says, "I sure hope I never get that forgetful, knock on wood." She then yells, "I'll come up and help both of you as soon as I see who's at the door."
____________________________ _ ___________________________________________
"I CAN HEAR JUST FINE!"

Three retirees, each with a hearing loss, were playing golf one fine March day. One remarked to the other, "Windy, isn't it?"

"No," the second man replied, "it's Thursday."

And the third man chimed in, "So am I. Let's have a beer."
_______________________________________________________________________
LITTLE LADY:

A little old lady was running up and down the halls in a nursing home. As she walked, she would flip up the hem of her nightgown and say "Supersex." She walked up to an elderly man in a wheelchair. Flipping her gown at him, she said, "Supersex."

He sat silently for a moment or two and finally answered, "I'll take the soup."
_______________________________________________________________________
OLD FRIENDS:

Now this one is just too Precious...LOL !

Two elderly ladies had been friends for many decades. Over the years, they had shared all kinds of activities and adventures. Lately, their activities had been limited to meeting a few times a week to play cards. One day, they were playing cards when one looked at the other and said, "Now don't get mad at me .. I know we've been friends f or a long time, but I just can't think of your name! I've thought and thought, but I can't remember it. Please tell me what your name is"

Her friend glared at her. For at least three minutes she just stared and glared at her. Finally she said, "How soon do you need to know?"
______________ ________________________________________________________
SENIOR DRIVING

As a senior citizen was driving down the freeway, his car phone rang. Answering, he heard his wife's voice urgently warning him, "Herman, I just heard on the news that there's a car going the wrong way on Interstate 77. Please be careful!"

"Heck," said Herman, "It's not just one car. It's hundreds of them!"
_______________________________________________________________________
DRIVING

Two elderly women were out driving in a large car - both could barely see over the dashboard. As they were cruising along, they came to an intersection. The stoplight was red, but they just went on through The woman in the passenger seat thought to herself "I must be losing it. I could have sworn we just went through a red light." After a few more minutes, they came to another intersection and the light was red again. Again, they went right through. The woman in the passenger seat was almost sure that the light had been red but was really concerned that she was losing it. She was getting nervous. At the next intersection, sure enough, the light was red and they went on through. So, she turned to the other woman and said, "Mildred, did you know that we just ran through three red lights in a row? You could have killed us both!"
Mildred turned to her and said, "Oh, crap, am I driving ?"

I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have always wanted to be. Oh, not my body! I sometime despair over my body, the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, and the sagging butt. And often I am taken aback by that old person that lives in my mirror (who looks like my mother!), but I don't agonize over those things for long.

I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly. As I've aged, I've become more kind to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend.

I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avante garde on my patio. I am entitled to a treat, to be messy, to be extravagant.

I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon; before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging.

Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM and sleep until noon ?

I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 60&70's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love ... I will.

I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the jet set.
They, too, will get old.

I know I am sometimes forgetful. But there again, some of life is just as well forgotten. And I eventually remember the important
things..

Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when somebody's beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and
understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turning gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face. So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.

As you get older, it is easier to be positive. You care less about what other people think. I don't question myself anymore. I've even earned the right to be wrong.

So, to answer your question, I like being old. It has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day. (If I feel like it)

*********************************************
this was in my inbox just now, and I thought you all would love it too.

Moni

> Julie Andrews turned 69 - To commemorate her 69th.
> birthday on October 1, actress/vocalist, Julie
> Andrews made a special appearance at Manhattan's
> Radio City Music Hall for the benefit of the AARP.
> One of the musical numbers she performed was "My
> Favorite Things" from the legendary movie "Sound Of
> Music."
> > Here are the actual lyrics she used:
> > Maalox and nose drops and needles for knitting,
> Walkers and handrails and new dental fittings,
> Bundles of magazines tied up in string, These are a
> few of my favorite things.
> > Cadillacs and cataracts, and hearing aids and
> glasses, Polident and Fixodent and false teeth in
> glasses, Pacemakers, golf carts and porches with
> swings, These are a few of my favorite things.
> > When the pipes leak,
> When the bones creak,
> When the knees go bad,
> I simply remember my favorite things,
> And then I don't feel so bad.
> > Hot tea and crumpets and corn pads for bunions, No
> spicy hot food or food cooked with onions, Bathrobes
> and heating pads and hot meals they bring, These are
> a few of my favorite things.
> > Back pains, confused brains, and no need for
> sinnin', Thin bones and fractures and hair that is
> thinnin', And we won't mention our short, shrunken
> frames, When we remember our favorite things.
> > When the joints ache,
> When the hips break,
> When the eyes grow dim,
> Then I remember the great life I've had, And then I
> don't feel so bad.
> > (Ms. Andrews received a standing ovation from the
> crowd that lasted over four minutes and repeated
> encores.) Please share Ms. Andrews' clever wit and
> humor with others who would appreciate it.