Hello everyone,

My lurking days are also over I would love to join this swap.
Cindy

cjcjmass

Happy Monday, everyone. Would anyone like to tell us about some of the A things they are thinking about? My newest Angel Trumpet is loaded with blossoms. The two that I have babied for the past three years are not even thinking of blooming yet.

Cindy, I am so happy you decided to join! Welcome!

Here is our list of participants:

Margo (Smitties)
Carol (veeja11)
Lisa (Lissa140)
Laura (Lilangel181)
Diene (diene)
Dan (dan the mailman)
Kathie (sinbadsmom)
Cindy (cjcjmass)
Gladys (me - gladgourd)

Lurker
Linda. Linda, it must be getting lonely there behind the bushes. Come play with us!

gladys

what exactly is Linda doing in those bushes that's taking so long? Linda, need some toilet paper??? hehehe gee, I hope she doesn't get lost in there! Hey, Linda, watch out for the poison ivy!!!

I would also like to join in on the swap, but not sure what I have that is named correctly since I have been moving plants out of the beds and into the garden area so when the sprinkler system is installed they don't just dig up everything. Between my moving stuff and my poodle, (he loves to pull up the tags) there is lots of plants that are missing tags.

Ellie

Eliie, go ahead and sign up. I wouldn't mind unmarked items and I am sure there are others here who wouldn't mind them either.

I will be honest though, I am not in need of daylilies. I added eight new ones this summer from an online plant site and already had a lot through out the gardens.

I don't know about anyone else but I had a rough summer in the garden. The heat has been relentless. It looks like I might lose my new Pink Double Delight coneflower. :( I also had a big beautiful blanketflower that is dying from the inside out. Don't worry though, with 5 acres, I have plenty of flowers that did make it.

Looking forward to seeing who my exchange partner is.

Margo

Hi Ellie,
We would love to have you join us. It sounds like you might have to include a few anonymous A flowers. I think most of us in this swap are fine with having a few mysteries in our gardens.
Welcome!

Margo, the heat here in Maryland was really bad a few weeks ago - in the 100's. Even having my drip hoses did not totally help my plants. We live on a well, so I try to use as much grey water as possible. But, sometimes, the drip hoses are the only way to go. We gardeners are always looking ahead to the next season or next year...so, maybe it will be better next year.

Only 5 more days til partners are announced!

Gladys

I'm not sure which of my flowers I'll be sending, there will probably be some black-eyed susans and pineapple mint in the group though. I'm really surprised at how big the mint has grown in just one year. Last year I bought a 4-inch pot of it at home depot, and now it's basically a medium-sized shrub! I'm not complaining though! By no means am I disappointed in it! I've been able to share it with a few people this summer already, and the way its scent mixes with the scent of my roses is just great! I'm going to have to move it though (and will be crossing my fingers that I get all of it) or it'll crowd my roses right out of the raised-bed rose garden I built last year.

Whoever receives a box from me, I will do my best to let you know what kind of plants you're getting from my garden, but I can't promise that I'll know the variety. I guess that'll make them "anonymous", eh?

***sharing tea and brownies with everyone*** Here's to making these next 5 days go quickly so we'll know who our partners are soon! Cheers Everyone!

Peace.
-Dan & the Wee Beasties

I received an apple mint from a friend this past spring. I enjoy all the varieties of mints available. I have planted it in my herb garden which is done in a patchwork pattern using 12x12 patio tiles. It will keep it within the 12x12 space, (I hope).

I went to a local greenhouse today and purchased four quart size perennials for 99 cents each.

Dan, how is the Weight Watchers going? You putting those brownies in your daily points :)

Margo

I am finally going to be home during the swap time! I have been on trips the last few months and have missed out. This sounds like fun. I am currently "cleaning" my garden. I started at one point and am working my way around the perimeter of the yard a half hour a day trimming, weeding, and organizing. I have almost two acres so it will take me a while. Of course this is in addition to tending the rest of the yard too. I am thinking of doing some major re-organizing and developing some theme areas. Fun, fun, fun!

Diana
w9yards

Diana,
Its great to have you in our swap. I hope you had fun on your trips the last few months. Did you collect any interesting seeds or plants in your travels?

Our swap now includes the following:

Margo (Smitties)
Carol (veeja11)
Lisa (Lissa140)
Laura (Lilangel181)
Diene (diene)
Dan (dan the mailman)
Kathie (sinbadsmom)
Cindy (cjcjmass)
Ellie (Farmergirl 2009)
Diana (w9yards)
Gladys (me - gladgourd)

Lurker
Linda.

Gladys

There are still 3 days to sign up and join our swap. Come on, you know you want to join!

I found Linda's stick so I am beating the bushes with it in hopes of getting her out, saw a young man go in and I'm worried for his safety, so come out and join us Lina and leave poor Dan alone, did you grab his arm when he passed you the toilet paper ? mispelled it I think but spell check is not workin for me. hugs carol

Carol, thanks for that "young man" description! LOL! With my 45th birthday staring at me from a month away, I'm not so sure about the young part though...((grin)).
Here's to a great week-end, and partner day coming soon!
***raising a glass***

Dan & the Wee Beasties

Did anyone see the meteor shower last night? It was too cloudy here:(

Today is Friday the 13th, and there are still two days for sign up.

I hope no one in our swap has Triskaidekaphobia - irrational fear of Friday the 13th!

gladys

Gladys, want to know something funny? When I was younger I got to wondering if I'd been born on a Friday the 13th. (I'll be 45 on September 13th...hmmm, don't really know that I want to add another year just yet!) Anywho, I looked, and found out I was born on a Monday, which for some reason was a big relief! LOL!!! Now, if I can just avoid walking under any ladders today...

Dan,
What a relief about your birthday not falling on a Friday! Are you planning anything special for your birthday? Many people at my work take their birthday as a vacation day. I know this because we give each person balloons on their birthday and there are always a lot of people off on their birthday.
Please watch the ladders, broken mirrors and black cats while you are at it. Oops, I think I am starting to show my Triskaidekaphobia!

Have a great weekend everyone. I hope everyone is thinking about all their A items!

Gladys

Gladys, I'm taking a 4-day weekend for my birthday. When I was in school, my parents never made me go to school on my birthday, and I've only had to work 3 times. Birthdays in my family are considered to be personal national holidays, and they're all about being able to celebrate them accordingly. To this day, my mother still asks what I want for my birthday dinner...can you imagine? Usually it's some kind of pasta dish, and I never have chocolate cake for dessert. I love chocolate, but can't stand chocolate cake. The absolute perfect cake is a yellow cake made with fluffy white icing, three days old. I like it aged because then the air is gone out of the icing, and it's super-sticky! As for what I'll be doing during those 4 days, I really don't have any permanent plans just yet. I'll be having dinner with my parents either the 12th or 13th, that I'm sure of. And, I'd like to squeeze in some beach time since all the tourists should be gone by then. Other than that, who knows? If Stella will be kind enough to let me, I'd like to sleep in some of those mornings, but she might have other plans. We'll see.
Later! I'm going to go play with my fabric in a few minutes, right after I head west on frontierville.

Peace.
-Dan & the Wee Beasties

Hello everyone,
I hope no one had any big mishaps yesterday. I was lucky to escape unscathed from whatever the cats were doing overnight. The only thing I remember is a Rufus running headlong into my skull at full speed and Zoe above me on the headboard. I know they were sorry, though, because this morning I was the meat in an adorable sandwich! Does anyone know if animals are affected by Friday the 13th the same way humans are? (*Cough* Wee Beasties *Cough*)
~L

ROFL!!! hence the "beasties" part!!!

I would like in if it's not to late..Sherri

Hi all,
Its August 15 - the last day for sign ups.

Sherri, its not too late and we are happy to have you join us.
I'll be posting partners on August 17...just in case there is anyone else who wants to join us today.

Dan, those sound like some nice plans. I think its great that you and your family still celebrate your birthdays in such a great fashion. I never thought about letting the fluffy white icing "age"...just the way you describe fine wine.

Laura, how was the geocaching? You never know what cues our animals are responding to. Did you read the article in Time magazine - cover story actually - about how smart our animals are...we think!

We had a lovely rain storm here this morning - a perfect time to clean at the hummingbird feeders (hummers are crazy here!, stew some tomatoes and just enjoy a lazy Sunday morning.

Partners on August 17!

gladys

Welcome Sherri, glad you could find us. :)

The geocaching weekend was GREAT, thanks for asking! There were over 2000 people that I know of, and the group I camped with really ran with the 'Area 51' theme! Here are a couple pictures:
Friends at tinfoil-hat-night (Thursday). Must protect the brain from the aliens, of course!

The tinfoil golf cart being decked out. Jen tore the cartilage in her knee the week before so that is the only reason we were allowed to use the cart without being event staff. (She and her husband were kind enough to share.) We thought the caution tape was only appropriate!

Me, with Signal The Frog, the geocaching mascot.

At one point there was an impromptu toga party by a group of about 15 or 20 campers. It was really funny! We introduced MadLibs to Phillip, the silliest 6year old ever (who insisted on being called by his geocaching handle, 'Agent P') and everyone went into sugar comas from all the smores. Oh yeah, there was also geocaching! *GRINS* I'm still recovering from the fun,
~Laura

thanks to all of you..Can't wait to see who my partner is.

ok I'm in, been lurking to see if anyone was going to bit on carols "A" daylilys. I only need daylilys so can my partner be carol veeja11? if so count me in. thanks
my sons birthday is August so I will be sending plants that are in remembrance of him that i have collected, Love those coon cats Dan! Holly

Holly, I can also do daylilies if you would like to partner up. I'm pretty sure a number of the other ladies (and mailmans) are day-lily-a-holics too, so welcome to the swap!

Sherri, tell us a bit about yourself?

HEHEHE, I feel like a Wal-Mart greeter! "Hello. How are you? Welcome! Can I help you find anthing today? Thank you for choosing MNF Swap-Mart!"
~L

Laura, those pix are great, it looks like you had a blast! Oh, by the way, can you point me towards the garden center??? lol! I used to work at the infamous wally world, and during my imprisonment, I had the opportunity to pretend to be the greeter a few times. The best times were when we got to race the scooters after hours! VROOOOMMMMMM!!!

While visiting my parents today, Mom offered to save a few hollyhock seeds for me. Of course, I took her up on that offer! I may end up packing some boxes with hh seeds though, there are enough on the stalks to easily fill a paper grocery bag! She's also going to be collecting b-e-s's, and cosmos, for me. How cool is that? Then, on the way home I stopped off at Menard's to see if the clematis have gone on sale yet. They haven't, but the butterfly bushes and coneflowers sure have! I got 2 "dark knight" butterflies, and 7 pots of coneflowers (various varieties) for under $45. Top all that with some home-cooked beans and cornbread (topped with fresh cole slaw of course!), and it's been a fantabulous day! LOL!

Here's hoping you all are having a super Sunday too!

Peace.
-Dan & the Wee Beasties

Just got back from our third annual girls camping weekend. This year my dil joined us so with my 21 and 18 year old daughters, there were four of us. We rented a cabin but still had to use the outhouse like potty. Not a fan and neither were the girls. It rained last night and hard. Somehow I was able to keep the fire going so after the rain stopped, we were able to finish the night with smores. We did have a lot of fun and they were talking about the next trip before we even got home.

Friday the 13th was no issue for us either. I actually got married on a Friday the 13th and this year was my 31st Anniversary.

So, unless I missed a post, Linda is avoiding us. Come on Linda, you know you want to join. You are down to a few hours before deadline. Just type the words "I'm in" and hit enter. You can do it!!!

Glad everyone seems to have had a good weekend. Looking forward to seeing who my new friend will be.

Margo

When does this officially close? Why hasn't Linda signed up yet? Some of life's great mysteries need to be solved. I am anxiously awaiting the chosing of the partners, I think it has been almost a year since I have joined a round robin. This should be fun!!

HI Diene!!! Good to see the creator of the MNF joining the swap.

Things are too busy for me to join this month. School for the kiddos started last Wed & hubby is recovoring from another hip surgery.Hope you all have fun!!!!

later...April/dirt_under_my_nails

Hi everyone,
I had hoped to have the partner's list a day early. But with two late additions - welcome Sherri and Holly - I've had to re-think the partners.
Diene - it is very exciting to have the creator of MNF in this swap. April, thanks for pointing that out. I think Linda is lost in the bushes for now. I know she has been busy with the baby shower and she told me she was making the centerpieces and favors. Sounds like her plate is pretty full right now.
Margo - the camping weekend sounds fun...in spite of the rain. S'mores can surely make the camping worthwhile.
Dan, you are getting quite a collection of seeds and plants. As far as I am concerned, you can never have too many!
Laura - good job greeting. Ma'm could you tell me which is the shortest line?

Partners tomorrow!
Gladys

Linda's pretty busy at the moment, what with running two other swaps, prepping for the baby shower, helping Sarah move, and the rest of her everyday stuff too. Not to mention, cleaning up after 4 dogs and 9 cats...lol! She's told me that she'll be in the September swap though, so she's not gonna be gone for long. And who knows? Maybe she'll come flying in with one of those stories about Ben Franklin and Company, remember those anyone? They sure explained a lot, didn't they?

Sooooo, when do we get our partners? Gladys? Can we get a peek at the list???

Okay, time to get wet. I'm powerwashing the house today.

Peace.
Dan & the WBs

Here is a list of participants. Sorry to keep you in suspense about who your partner is. I'll post tomorrow - August 17.
Margo (Smitties)
Carol (veeja11)
Lisa (Lissa140)
Laura (Lilangel181)
Diene (diene)
Dan (dan the mailman)
Kathie (sinbadsmom)
Cindy (cjcjmass)
Ellie (Farmergirl 2009)
Diana (w9yards)
Sherri (sherrih)
Holly (mamasllamas)
Gladys (me - gladgourd)

ohh I must have threw a wrench in the wheel, for being late in the game......... holly

Hello April, sorry you will not be joining us. I would really like to be known for something other than "the creator of MNF". I started a swap theme and many people pick up the reins and kept this going. That is what is wonderful about this group, it continues to change and change is always good in group dynamics so can I stop being the "creator" and just be part of a great ever changing group.
I do tend to get verbose, sorry. Sorry Linda won't be in this but next month is good too.
Gladys has promised us our partner's tomorrow. Yeah!!

Diene, how about we call you The Instigator, eh? LOL!

Gladys, we're okay with partners coming out tomorrow. A little more suspense won't kill us! Really, it won't. Well, maybe just a little. Okay, I give up, the suspense IS killing us, but it's entirely Diene's fault! After all, she's the one who had the bright idea that started this group, and if she hadn't done so, well then, we wouldn't all be here waiting on pins and needles to see who our partner is! That Diene, always instigating things! ((insert evil laugh here))

WHEWWWW!!!! "throwing self in chair and fanning face".. I do apologize for not being in the swap this month, Gladys and all. My daughter moved into an apartment and I helped with that. Then we had a baby shower in Altoona and I helped with that. THEN we had her baby shower for her here yesterday. I made 10 centerpieces, 1 head table centerpiece, 20 cards, one lap robe, 4 wreaths, and 6 button brooches. I helped with the decorating and the other grandmother to be with the party planning and all that. I"m exhausted!!!!...BUT...I will serve tea and cookies on the veranda..."sweeping veranda and setting out tea cups"...hard to believe that I"ll be a grandmother sometime next month!!!!

Hi everyone, how goes?

Diene and April its good to see yall around again! We missed you.

Hey Grannie Linda, is it really next month?? Do we know boy or girl yet? Also, put the broom down and take a seat. I'll bring the Kahlua!

Gladys... *throwing myself down in a 2 year old fit* I'm dying! Are we there yet? Meanie-head! I'm still dying! *giggles* I can't wait!
~Laura

Oh my gosh Linda, where did that time go? I didn't realize it was getting that close to you being called Grandma. How exciting. I will get an email off to you soon to get caught up.

I gave my job notice today. I have had enough of all the drama that goes on. I love my job but the management is awful. My husband was worried about my health since I have been getting so stressed and frustrated. He teaches at the local High School and also has a position teaching a night class at the University so he told me to just quit. My last day is September 2nd. I will take some time off and then look for a new part time position.

Now to sit back and wait for my partners name. Can't wait.

April, I am sorry to hear about another surgery for your hubby. I hope it goes well. Its kind of amazing all the advances that have been made with hip surgery in the last few years.
Margo, its great that you recognize that you need to make a change and actually do it! Your health and happiness is not worth any paycheck!
Linda, wow, you were very busy. I hope someone is serving YOU tea and cookies on your veranda...no need to make any for us. You deserve a break, grandma!

So, here is the list. (Its my first time to do this and I double checked to make sure I didn't leave anyone off.)

Margo sends to Laura
Carol sends to Holly
Lisa sends to Diene
Laura sends to Kathie
Diene sends to Cindy
Dan sends to Ellie
Kathie sends to Diana
Cindy sends to Gladys
Ellie sends to Sherri
Diana sends to Margo
Gladys sends to Lisa
Sherri sends to Dan
Holly sends to Carol

Email your partner to introduce yourself, tell your partner a little about yourself and be sure to give your partner your mailing address.

You should mail your box by August 24 and be sure to post the delivery confirmation # (DC) here.

And then when you receive your box, please tell us about the creative "A" items that your partner sent you.

I hope we continue to have fun. Now Laura, I hate to reward you for throwing such a two year old tantrum but I hate to see you suffer so!

Enjoy!

Kathy, Incomming email!
~L

emailed carol thanks holly

E-mailed Sherri, waiting to hear from Ellie. I'll be posting the september swap sometime this weekend.

Dan

Emailed Hollie...could not post the other day when u asked me to tell about myself..Anyway I am married,have 4 children,6 grandchildren,11 birds and I'm only 46 yrs young..Congrats Linda on becoming a grandmother its wonderful. I just wanna say I am so glad I found this site..You all are so great..This is gonna be alot of fun.a special thanks to all of you who came to my aid while I was lost here, I think I'm on track now and I have my list fixed.That would be due to Jennifer, whom I have deemed Queen of the Day!!! If you'd like to know more check out my page..
Sherri gw/sherrih

I hope everyone is ready to start packing up the boxes. I sure wish I could send my delicious gazapacho soup to my partner. It is full of my garden stuff...but none of them start with A :)

I emailed Cindy and Lisa.

I hope to hear that all of you have contacted your partner.

Thanks Gladys, my email will be sent tomorrow and I will get started on my box.

Hello Gladys - I have contacted my partner and will start working on my box tomorrow. I leave on Thursday for PA for my niece's wedding and will not be back until Sunday or Monday. So I really need to get my box out tomorrow. Have a great night all.
diene

I'm ready to put together Ellie's box, but I'm waiting to hear back from her before doing any digging.

Diene, it's nice to have you back amongst us. Have yourself a safe trip.

G'nite Everyone, it's been a long day...

Just a suggestion Gladys, there are no hard fast rules but usually when a swap is closed a second posting is made so people know they cannot join and for those with dial up, it can be accomplished easier.
Usually the first post is by the host listing trade partners and then the game begins.
Have a wonderful day all.
diene

shipped my "A" box to Carol today. Holly

Holly,
I think you are the first to send their box. Congratulations! Don't forget to list your delivery confirmation number here.

I've heard from Cindy but not Lisa. Has everyone been contacted for addresses?

gladys