>> new this morning. the length some stores will go to to accommodate last minute shoppers this. toys 'r us has been open nonstop since tuesday. >> christmas crooks take over a fedex truck. see what they got away with. the new cyber scams predicted to spike and the new methods of attack. what you should be aware of. it is christmas eve, december 24th, today in the bay.

good morning, everyone. scott is home enjoying the holiday with your family. hope you are able to enjoy it with yours. speaking of families, we want to get started with the newest member of our tv family. >> i'm happy to be here and what a day to start, christmas eve. it's chilly out there, but you won't need the umbrella. temperature-wise, we are mostly in the 40s and as we head throughout the day, it will be warmer than yesterday. 60s in some locations. 58 for san francisco. big time changes on the horizon. we have a winter storm on the way for christmas day. we will let you know how much rain we are expecting and when it might hit tomorrow in the complete forecast. garvin, back to you. >> christina, thank you very much. if you were watching early this morning, you are still up after too much holiday partying or getting ready to head out for

last minute shopping. a lot of stores are betting on the second and staying open 24 hours. that includes toys 'r us. live at the pleasant hill store with more. kim? >> reporter: by the time toys 'r us closes, it will have been open for 88 consecutive hours. recognizing the crazy schedules parents have to keep juggling work and kids. toys 'r us has been open since tuesday morning 6:00 a.m. and offering last minute shoppers every opportunity to check off the kids on their list. a peek inside the store shows it is by no means crowded. that civic part of the charm. the advantage of shopping in the middle of the night that. and the midnight madness deals that changedaley and only offered from midnight through 6:00 a.m. each day. toys are us representatives said they get daily shipments and

that is the american girl sets and the funky shoulder monkey. back in september, toys 'r us said they were planning to hire 45,000 seasonal workers for the traditional toys are us stores. 600 express stores and nine distribution centers. the store here planned to close at 10:00 like the majority of toys 'r us stores nationwide. there a handful that plan to close an hour earlier at 9:00 tonight. nbc bay area news. >> from christmas shopping to christmas crooks. they struck when bandits hijacked a fedex truck. it happened yesterday when the fedex driver stopped to deliver a package and when the driver returned, he made off with the delivery vehicle. after a brief search, they found the truck in the 1800 block of

east 25th avenue. >> the driver said that somebody ended up pulling them out and bringing it and stripped it pretty much. everything is gone. no trace of anything. >> some 60 packages are missing. if you are worried yours might be among them, call fedex with the tracking number. >> the dog abuser shot and almost killed a pet schnauzer. the canine is still recovering, there is no sign of the family's other dog. the dog owners are both relieved and anxious. >> reporter: for a lot of people animals are like family. oakland police are oat look out for someone who tried to kill a canine family member. >> he was cold and wet. >> bret and brad say they didn't think their 4-year-old schnauzer kevin would make it.

he is recovering like a champ after being shot and beaten by somebody who found him last thursday. >> the contractor was bringing things in the house. the door was left a jar. >> the two rescue dogs kevin and clint slipped out the front door. bret and brad got the bad news. >> they found kevin and she was shot. he's not really doing well and we have to make a decision to put him down or get emergency care. >> an oakland police officer found him at bancroft and havens gorgelin. they wonder how the dogs traveled from the hill to this location. >> they shot him trying to run away from them. he was brutalize and had a fracture to his right leg that was show bad it was broken back on top of itself. >> he has pins in the leg to help it heal, but there is more. >> clint is a 1-year-old. he's the baby. the trouble maker. >> and he's still missing.

brad posted this website to generate interest and support. they are getting lots of it. >> being angry is not going to make him better. it's not going to find clint. >> that's the priority just days before christmas. >> if you don't have respect for another human being, how can you have respect for an animal. it breaks my heart. >> medical bills are building up. $10,000 in all. two animal groups put together a reward for $12,000 to help police find out who did this. in oakland, today in the east bay. now a warning for dog-walkers to be on the look out for predators. they are recommending dog-walkers use a stick against attacking deer who may be protecting their young. two dog-walkers were attacked in the thousand oaks neighborhood and a deer injured a woman last year. she needed stitches her her injuries.

if you forgot to feed your parking meter, it may not be a happy new year. they brought it to $58. the city's fees are among the highest in the bay area. even the mayor-elect has been a victim. she had to pay an overdue bill for thousands of dollars. a county connection bus rider will shell out more in the new year. three types of discount passes and cards will be charged 25 cents more. they are at central contra costa county. the three discount passes with the price spike include the value pass and 20 ride commuter cards and the 12 ride punch pass. the state of california which is going broke is going to give $1 million to help the city fight climate change. they voted to accept a grant to create an action plan which the

city was required to do. concord's plan will set a base line for the green house gas emissions and include rules to cut by about 20% in 15 years. they could include anything from green building standards to traffic management. oakland police officers will spend christmas eve serving the community. they will deliver christmas dinner and toys to families in need. they select their families and deliver the baskets starting at 7:00 this morning. a lotto ticket could be the ticket to a merry christmas this year. the mega millions jackpot in tomorrow night's drawing is a whopping $168 million. think of all the christmas possibilities. the jackpot is the biggest since a couple in southern california won a $266 million jackpot in may. the estimated cash option for tomorrow night's prize is $107 million. a lot of good you can do with

money like that. let's get a check on the forecast on christmas eve and christmas day with christina loren. >> a good day to put the tricycle together. chilly out there. a lot of people don't have to go to work. that's good news. it's cold in spots. 40 degrees in oakland. later on it will warm up around 60 degrees for most spots in the east bay. temperature-wise, they will fall once again and the rain will return. winds are picking up as early as this evening. there is a wind advisory posted overnight for the coastal areas of the bay. sunday we will deal with a few showers and clearing late. let's talk about the system that could bring up to three inches of rain to the north bay. the east bay, you are looking at one to two inches through saturday. the fast-moving system, here it is. it will punch through and as it does so, we will see clearing as of tomorrow night.

the timing of the storm looks like it will be tomorrow afternoon into tomorrow night. 57 degrees for today looking comfortable in most spots. 58 in concord and 58 in san ramon. the extended outlook is 54. a chilly christmas day. wins picking up tonight. that may slow santa down unless he gets it on the tail. things are looking good for today. get ready for the winter storm for tomorrow. >> thank you very much. at home you may be noticing a change of scenery around us. this is our temporary home while the new state-of-the-art news set is being assembled in the studio a few feet behind that wall. we will be in new digs in a couple of weeks and it promises to be nice. coming up, what is your arthritis risk. it's not all genetics. how cigarette smoking with affect your odds. yu might have to delay filing taxes a couple of months

in the land of the littles. the winter wonderland. what's in it and where it is. >> i'm sergeant allison and this is my wife, tracy. we would like to wish a happy holiday season to my sister cynthia in oakland, california. >> happy holidays.

>> 4:44 before the sun comes up this christmas eve over the bay bridge. promises to be another dry day in the bay. this next story will put your train set to shame. check this out. winter wonderland unlike any other. in hamburg, two brothers put it

together. it covers locations from all over the world. the train said there is a sport stadium, a working fire department and a cruise ship and may be most interesting, an airport complete with planes that take off and land. there is the cruise ship and the planes coming in and landing. thousands of pilgrims flocking to the town of bethlehem. several festivities are planned and the latin patriarch will lead midnight mass. a recent decline in violence brought it back to the west bank. hotel occupancy rates are above 70% compared to a few years ago. let's get a check of the weekend forecast with the christmas day forecast and a few days after that in the seven-day forecast. christina loren is here to do this. >> i few bag of tricks because today will be nice. tomorrow christmas day a

powerful winter storm moves in. you want to be rate for that. temperature-wise, comfortable in the east bay and 42 in oakland. as we head throughout the day, you will notice the winds picking up substantially overnight. there is a wind advisory posted for the coastal areas and that will be the case until tomorrow morning. keep that in mind. northwest wind at about 5 miles per hour. calm winds for the east bay. 56 degrees in livermore. 59 degrees in redwood city and 57 in san mateo and the east bay also looks like we will see clouds increasing as we head throughout the day. 58 in concord and 55 up in napa. here's your extended outlook. timing of the showers looks like probably mid-afternoon. lasting into tomorrow night. a few showers for sunday and clearing and a dry break for monday, tuesday, and wednesday. the rain returns. back to you. >> those of who you may want to file taxes early this year may

have to wait. the internal revenue service said folk who is itemize will have to wait until mid-february to file. those who claim on schedule a, schedule b, or other education credits in the expense deduction may see delays in filing. the reason is the compromise tax bill that was signed by the president. tax breaks have to be programmed into the system and that takes time. the delay means millions will have to wait longer for refunds. >> your post cereal could be less sweet. post foods reduce the sugar content of fruity and cocoa pebbles from 11 grams of sugar to nine. they ever offering a healthier option for children. they are both gluten free. it causes allergic reactions?

some people. christmas day could be one of the busiest online shopping days this year. chris clackum explains. >> as giddy as children will be this this christmas morning, the adults are expected to do a little jumping up and down themselves. at least jumping online. they are the ones getting the digital stuff. >> ereaders like the ipad were the most sought after gift item this is holiday season. >> also throw under the tree gift cards tied to and used to enhance the devices and christmas day could end up being bright for online retailers. >> you will see a surge in online and web traffic as people play with their gadgets and buying ebooks and gifts. >> supporting the christmas surge is word that sales of amazon's kindle ereader far exceeded expectation this is

year. eight million sold and when under five million were projected. the big kids will be busy too. >> they will play with that throughout the day and they want to buy more aps so that the next day they can say hey, i got the tablet or the ipad or the kindle and the nook and i know how to use it. >> amazon sold more ebooks than physical books on christmas day. can't wait for this year's numbers. chris clackum, nbc news. if you plan to head to the mall today, you won't be alone. procrastinators will be out in force and they have something to cell brit. shoppers spend a lot of time and money this season. keeping tabs on all of it from washington this morning. at malls across america, a last minute rush.

for frantic purchases and a lot of men. >> when the store is 90% men, we know the holidays and christmas has begun. most people spent more than the last minute at the mall. according to consumer reports, americans plan to spent an average 15 hours on gift shopping. 3 1/2 hours waiting in line. as for going online, e commerce was more popular than ever this year. sales up 15.4%. >> a part of the story is being written right now. better than a couple of years. >> at the mall of america -- >> we're running about 7% up right now. that will definitely hold through the end of the year. >> more sign not just that the american shopper is back, but that they may stick around. >> i will shop for others and buy something for myself. we are seeing a lot of that.

>> nbc news, washington. >> we want to look at what's ahead later on today in the bay. we say good morning for the first time to marla tellez. >> good morning to you at home. from giving gifts to family to giving to charity. even in downtimes, americans are opening wallets to help those less fortunate. we will show you easy ways you can take part. plus, slip sliding away. a story of a new idea all bay area drivers will be interested in. there is a new way to keep your car from sliding on slick roads. those stories and we have our eye on santa's sleigh. smoking accounts for one in three cases of severe rheumatoid arthritis. researchers based findings by smoke habits and blood samples of people with rheumatoid arthritis as well as those free of the disease. they calculated the smoking accounted for 35% of all severe

cases and one in five cases overall. those who smoked the most had the high r highest risk of developing the painful condition. the theory of the placebo effect is the power of positive thinking. you may feel better after taking a dummy pill if you believe it is a prescribed medicine. a new study found the placebo can't work even if you don't know it contains an active ingredients. they told people suffering for irritable bowel syndrome they were taking a placebo and they were still twice as likely to say their symptoms improved. cyber scams is rolling out whether on your home, computer, or new tablet. you will be unwrapping for christmas. we have a warning about the top three scams targeting your personal information in the new year.

>> forget e-mail scams, they are so yesterday. 2011 is bringing a new brew of cyber crimes targy etting your pocket book through your gadget. >> mobile applications. >> the company predicts scams and spam spiking in three areas. mobile aps on smart phones, apple products, and location-based services that use gps to track your movements. >> it's like forecasting the weather. we look at what was brewing and the storms brewing in 2010. >> beware of aps that top up when you browse on your phone. they may not have passed the same standards as the aps you buy from stores like i tune, the android market or blackberry world. >> you give it access to your phone and data on your phone and the bad guys syphon that off.

>> they take a bite out of apple that can remotely slow down your gadget. >> it will be turned into zombies. >> iphone, ipads and anything that runs on the mac operating system and connects to the internet is at risk. >> the bad goys can be using your computer to distribute spam against others. now that many of us use smart phones -- >> maybe using facebook and twitter. you get updates and where you are and what you are doing. >> cyber attackers are using that to refine scams. >> maybe you are interested in this coupon. you are like yes! that's me. i will follow that link and i got you. trick you into launching a particular web page to putting your information in on the page to installing a particular application on your phone or pc. >> the best defense is a good offense. >> be aware and cautious. >> someone who is your friend

saying i won a free ipad, they got hacked. >> i'm cautious about not opening things. pa. >> today in the east bay. social media scams will continue to plague the internet in the new year. be aware of the status updates and tweets that sound too good to be true. they may be leading you to a virus. let's get a check of the weather forecast. christina loren is here taking a look at the weather. you on facebook? >> oh,y yeah. >> i will be adding you today. chilly, but you won't need the umbrella. 39 degrees in livermore. 44 degrees in hayward and 42 in oakland. if you are going to be headed from the east bay to the north bay, patchy dense fog on the way down to about a quarter of a mile of visibility. peaz degrees in dublin and 56 in livermore and looks like it will be warmer than yesterday. we are looking towards 58

degrees in concord. a winter storm on the way as we head to christmas saturday. keep your eyes on the sky tomorrow afternoon. windy conditions as well and clearing by sunday. back to you. >> thank you very much. a holiday shopping nightmare. armed thieves hit one of the south bay's most popular shopping malls. last minute travel tips for you. take a look at the strange creature at the mythical chupacabra. we are coming back on the other side of this break. >> this is pfc young. germ 1 germany. i love you, baby. mom, dad, jimmy, johnny, j mar, i love all you guys. what can i get you?

i'd like one of those desserts and some coffee. sure. decaf or regular? regular. cake or pie? pie. apple or cherry? cherry. oil or cream? oil or cream? cream please! (announcer) when other toppings are made with hydrogenated oil, the real dairy cream in reddi wip's sure an easy choice. nothing's more real than reddi wip. fork or spoon?

>> new this morning, the hunt is on. a man walked into the mall with a rifle and tried to rob a store. he didn't stop there. we will tell you what happened next. live in pleasant hill where toys 'r us is going to extraordinary lengths to draw in