right now on "america this morning," a post-pandemic thanksgiving for the macy's balloons. >> baby yoda. >> to the big holiday travel crowds overnight but this morning the warning signs about covid cases in at least 23 states. new details this morning about president biden's recent physical exam and what his doctor discovered. what's next in the ahmaud arbery case. one day after the dramatic verdict, the new legal battles ahead. more smash-and-grab robberies targeting high-end retailers. this morning, how law enforcement is responding after being accused of going too easy on street criminals. holiday package mystery. 400 fedex packages apparently thrown into a ravine. and our holiday shopping guide to save you money. what's different this year and

the days you should buy certain items to get the best bargains. good morning, everyone. anksgiving. for many families this is the first thanksgiving together since the pandemic. >> while things aren't exactly back to normal, the scene here in new york appeared far more normal than last year as crews prepared for today's macy's thanksgiving day parade. >> and from the airports to the highways, the holiday travel crowds were back in force overnight. this was the snowy scene on interstate 70 in colorado. >> abc's em nguyen is here now with more on thanksgiving 2021. em, happy thanksgiving and good morning to you. >> reporter: happy holidays and good morning to you too, andrew. you know, many americans are returning to their usual holiday festivities despite covid cases and hospitalizations on the rise.

[ crowd chanting, happy thanksgiving ] >> reporter: this morning, thanksgiving already looks a lot like it did before the pandemic. americans are packing train stations and airports. >> it's a lot of people, and people are finally wanting to get out since being closed in with covid last year. >> reporter: and the traffic in southern california overnight looked like this on the 5 freeway. >> i think you guys are good. close it up. >> reporter: in new york last night a large crowd returned for a pre-thanksgiving tradition, watching the inflation of the iconic belongs starring in today's macy's thanksgiving day parade. >> what's your favorite balloon? >> sonic. >> sonic the hedgehog. how about you? >> probably the same. >> probably snoopy. >> probably boss baby. >> the pikachu one or the smurf one or the snoopy one. >> reporter: 3.5 million people are expected to line the streets of new york to watch the parade. >> to start the holiday mood

and i think with the music, i think the macy's parade shows you it's time for the holidays. >> reporter: in philadelphia the country's oldest thanksgiving day parade is making a return after last year's virtual event. the holiday celebrations come amid new concerns about the coronavirus. hospital admissions are now climbing in nearly half the country. the rising infections fueled by 100 million americans remain unvaccinated along with relaxed restrictions, colder weather and waning protection from the vaccine. some hospitals in michigan are so overwhelmed, they're asking for help from the military. >> it's very concerning about where this will go, especially heading into the holiday season. >> reporter: as for the macy's parade, organizers have made one adjustment because of the pandemic. no one under the age of 12 is allowed on the floats because of concerns that there are so many kids still unvaccinated. andrew. >> em, thank you. the cdc has issued an alert

warning about rising cases of the flu, especially among young children and young adults including students on college campuses. doctors say flu season is early this year. and new details about president biden's health following his routine physical. the white house physician says the polyp removed from the president's colon was benign. he described it as slow growing and potentially precancerous but he says no further action is required. the doctor also deemed biden healthy, vigorous and fit for duty. experts say identifying a potentially precancerous polyp is routine and that's the purpose of a screening. three more children from that parade have been released from the hospital, but ten kids remain hospitalized including the brother of 8-year-old jackson sparks, the youngest of the six people killed. darrell brooks, the man accused of driving an suv through the crowd, is being held on $5 million bail. now to the ahmaud arbery case and the guilty verdict for all three men charged in his

murder. this morning a closer look at what's next in this racially charged case that's captured the nation's attention. this morning, the family of ahmaud arbery says this thanksgiving is bittersweet. >> even though it'll be a somber or sober and solemn thanksgiving, you can thank god you didn't let your boy down. >> reporter: on wednesday a jury in south georgia found the three white men charged in his death guilty of murder. >> we the jury find the defendant travis mcmichael guilty. >> reporter: the jury convicted travis mcmichael, the man who shot arbery, on all nine charges against him. travis' father, gregory, a former police officer who chased arbery with his son also found guilty along with william bryan, the mcmichaels' neighbor who recorded the chase. lawyers say they plan to appeal. >> guilty. >> reporter: while the verdicts were read the judge removed arbery's father after he screamed for joy. >> you know what all my family went through losing ahmaud, it

really devastated my family, and when i heard that guilty verdict, i really was really happy. >> guilty. >> reporter: outside the courtroom an explosion of cheers and chants. arbery's mother thanked her supporters. >> back in 2020 i never thought this day would come but god is good. now quez, which you know him as ahmaud, i know him as quez, he will now rest in peace. >> amen. >> reporter: defense attorneys claim the men had reasonable suspicion to believe arbery had stolen from a construction site before the encounter arguing the killing was justified under a citizen's arrest law at the time, but prosecutors argued the three men were the aggressors targeting arbery because of his race. >> the jury system works in this country and when you present the truth to people and they can see it, they will do the right thing. >> reporter: the charges against the men carry a mandatory life sentence. the judge will rule on the possibility of parole at a sentencing hearing in the coming

weeks, but the legal battles are not over. arbery's father says he plans to file a civil lawsuit and all three men have been indicted on federal hate crime charges. that trial is set for february. in the meantime, there's another case connected to arbery's murder. in september a grand jury indicted a former district attorney, jackie johnson, on charges of violating her oath of office and obstructing police. state prosecutors accuse her of delaying the arrest of the three men using her past work with gregory mcmichael as motivation. johnson has denied any wrongdoing and she has yet to enter a plea. yet another smash-and-grab robbery in california overnight. this time thieves targeted a nordstrom in l.a. one suspect was wearing an orange wig. district attorneys in the northern part of the state are forming an appliance to hold thieves accountable after a string of these smash and grabs in which more than a million dollars of merchandise has been stolen. experts say organized crime rings are to blame. critics of local leaders say criminals are being allowed back

onto the street allowing this streetri commonplace. a mystery in northern alabama, as many as 400 fedex packages were found apparently thrown into this ravine. fedex has sent trucks to the scene. the company says the packages will be recovered as soon as possible. police are trying to find who's to blame. a brush fire fueled by heavy winds forced people to evacuate their homes overnight. the flames jumped containment lines in riverside company as power companies considered cutting power to 150,000 customers today as a precaution that's meant to reduce the threat of downed power lines sparking new fires. and with that time now for a look at your thanksgiving forecast. good morning to you on this thanksgiving. across the west coast we're pretty dry. some rain for seattle while the cold air across the north central will eventually make its way to the northeast but for

today, 9:00 a.m. in new york city we've got mild conditions. it's going to be a nice looking day before changing as we head into friday. wet weather turns to snow across western new york and western pennsylvania friday and then the wet weather for new york city. for accuweather i'm meteorologist chris nallan. coming up, a major development as congress investigates how social media affects teenagers. also ahead, caught on camera, two teenagers trapped in this burning car. police racing to the scene. and helping those in need this thanksgiving. why food banks are facing such a challenge this year.

newly released police body camera video shows the dramatic

rescue of two teens trapped in this burning car in wisconsin, just moments before the flames exploded inside the vehicle. deputies pulled the passenger to safety. another had saved the driver. both teens are expected to be okay. the ceo of instagram will testify before congress to face questions about social media's impact on teens. he is expected to testify next month after recent reports about instagram's harmful affects on girls. lawmakers want to know how the platform will protect teens. a shooting of a woman on the streets of philadelphia marks a grim milestone for the city. for the first time since 1990, philadelphia has 500 homicides on the books and there's one month left in the year. some big cities have seen double-digit increases in the homicide rate. we turn to food banks in crisis this thanksgiving. the pandemic and record inflation aren't the only problems when it comes to helping people in need. here's andrea fujii. >> reporter: this morning, food pantries are struggling to keep

up with demand. the pandemic and record inflation leaving more americans in need. feeding america says 42 million people or one in eight, are going to bed hungry this year. in some areas, the need is even greater. >> we're seeing one in four people within alameda county, are at risk of needing our services. what we happen to be doing is being strategic about the way we're sourcing food items. >> reporter: the food bank in oakland says the cost of seven core items its needs rose by $60,000 in one month, forcing them to trade turkeys for chickens this holiday. other food banks are giving out gift cards for supermarkets because getting turkeys is too difficult or expensive. food prices have increased up to 3% by last year. and next year, they're expected to rise another 2.5%. extreme weather hitting crops nationwide and supply chain issues are creating even more challenges. supplies of canned foods are

stuck overseas due to a lack of shipping containers. >> previously, i would put an order in and get here within six weeks. having some visibility on the trends that are happening with shipping and the backup at the ports, i extended that lead time to eight or nine weeks. >> reporter: but these obstacles aren't stopping value tiers. in north carolina wednesday, the members of the north carolina hurricanes hockey team helped give out 1,000 turkeys to people in need. >> you made my day. i'm so excited. >> reporter: and in indiana, a high school football team joined volunteers going door-to-door with meals. >> to help our community, be better men. as a coach, that's what i want them to do and i hoch they learn from me. >> reporter: and here's one more issue for food banks. they say they're receiving fewer donations than in years past because people are stocking up in their own homes. mona? andrew? >> andrea, thank you. coming up, a popular

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you read it there. congrats, james, you're going to be a dad. the woman put it together in 24 hours. procter & gamble is recalling some of its deodorant sprays. benzene was found in some of its old spice and secret aerosols. it comes from the propellant that sprays the deodorant out of the can. with more stores closed for thanksgiving, but big difference, fewer discounts and the supply chain crisis. this morning, the holiday shopping rush is well under way. new figures show since november 1st, online sales are up. nearly 20% compared to last year. >> consumers are very concerned that the products they are looking to buy won't be available if they wait later in the season. >> reporter: the items seeing the sharpest spike, toys and

video games. >> in the past, black friday marked the beginning of the holiday season. this year, people should consider it a deadline for when they need to get the bulk of their shopping done. >> reporter: pandemic-related supply chain issues and inflation are changing the bargain-hunting game this year. many shoppers are planning a return to physical stores. >> make a list, check it twice and have a game plan ready to go when you see an item on your list, you can act fast. there will be shortages of inventory. >> reporter: more than 60% of holiday shoppers say they have found items marked out of stock. what should you buy when? analysts say today is the best day to buy toys. tomorrow on black friday, clothes and tv. and monday, on cyber monday, electronics and travel. >> consumers very much of the mindset they need to try to get what's available now versus waiting for the very best deal. >> reporter: experts say in-store shopping is best for big-ticket items like washington machines and furniture, facing

major shipping delays. but gifts like electronics, online be a better bet. and coupon sites for discounts. inventory is low for toys and tech items due to shortage of semiconductor chips. typewriters are in demand. thanks to the pandemic, more people are nostalgic for the simpler times. one typewriter repair expert near boston says it's the busiest he's been in 40 years. >> how do you erase? >> you take the paper out and start over again. coming up, a new announ announcement for the pentagon when it comes to ufos. also ahead, an eye-opening way to use turkey leftovers. dad, we got this. we got this. we got this. we got this.

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time to check "the pulse." we begin with a good reason to be thankful for thanksgiving turkey. >> turkey leftovers played an instrumental roll in the development of lasik bim reali ibm realized they could conduct surgery with lasers. >> one got the bright idea to try laser on turkey leftovers. since then, 40 million people have had eyesight corrected with lasik. the pentagon is delving further into ufos. >> it is starting a task force that will explain phenomenon. a recent report from a military could not explain 143 such incidents. next, the owners of the boston red sox are interested in buying an nba team. >> axios reports that the fenway sports group will look for a football team.

they are trying to buy teams in markets and sports. they are trying to buy the pittsburgh penguins. in the nfl, aaron rodgers went to totally extreme lengths. >> he wanted to prove that a report he is suffering from covid toe is wrong. the report suggested that rogers had lesions on his foot. >> if i have room on this camera. let me see if i can -- there's no lesions whatsoever. that's called disinformation when you perpetuate false information. i have a fractured toe. >> he says he will play on sunday. finally, the netflix show "squid game" is brought to real life. >> they had the sugar cookies. the popular youtuber gathered contestants to compete in games from the show, includiing red light/green light, and tug-of-war. >> the winner had to settle for $450,000.

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[music] announcer: chicago ushers in the holiday season at the 30th anniversary of the magnificent mile lights festival. with fireworks, bands, floats, balloons, and musical performances, plus more than one million magical lights, and it all starts now! good evening, and welcome to the bmo harris bank magnificent mile lights festival. - i'm alan krashesky. - and i'm cheryl burton. happy holidays, everybody! we are joined tonight by val warner and ryan chiaverini. joining us for celebrities, bands, and lighted floats are hundreds of thousands of people here in chicago along michigan avenue. and welcome to everyone watching out there. that's right, and to kick it all off, disney's "frozen," the tony-nominated best musical from the producer of "the lion king" and "beauty and the beast" is now on tour