Hey girls, I will get your partners to you as soon as I can.
I have a small problem, Jamie and the guys are 5hrs out of town in Sidney, MT working, and they just found out they need to find a diff. place to stay. They are in a campground right now. This is also the area where they are doing the oil exploration and the town has all of 3 campgrounds and 4 hotels, (population of about 4000) there are ppl there from the exploration and enviromental services, plus there is a lot of construction people up there. So, needless to say, everything is booked and I am scouring the surrounding areas (not much around) looking for a place for them to stay!
Sorry for the delay!

Thought I'd pop in and say~

Everyone should have gotten their secret spooks info by email. If you didn't get one LMK!

Here is a list so you can see who can get plants:

Tracyvine - yes plants
Sassybutterfly/Wendy
Dieg01991/Amy - no plants (can get house plants)
Raggedyann/Annie
Margaret_2007
Debbya
ejmoore/Joan - yes plants
Pat_6 - yes plants
Vic_zn5 - ? plants I haven't been here in Oct before LOL, it's been warm enough, but I don't know how long that will last.

Those of you I don't have an ans. for may want to post here to let your secret spook know!

Mail date is by Oct 18th!

Vic, I checked my e-mail and I got who I'm to send to. I've got a few things for my partner, but not done yet.

I'm at sis's house I have to do my regular job Tuesday, Wed, Thursday night, then go do a private job Saturday and Sunday.

Here is where I was staying over the week-end. Such a peaceful nice place, and such great people to work for.

Front left of the house
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Right view of the house
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Drive Way Wall
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View over the Wall
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Deck View

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I need to do laundry

LIFE IS GOOD,
Annie

Annie, that house is lovely! What a pretty yard. I bet it was a nice stay.

Vic, I got my partner! Thank you! I will be doing some running around in the next few days to pick up some fun little things to add to my box. I have a terrible cold so won't be mailing it out as fast as I hoped. Hopefully by the end of the week it will be on it's way. :o)

Annie, what a beautiful place! I hope you got to relax a little bit and enjoy the view while you were there!

Tracy, hope you start feeling better soon!

Anyone else having trouble with photobucket, or is it just me?

Vicky

Hi everyone, DH came in on Friday morning wanting to fly to the other house so we took off before I had a chance to post. I hope you all had a great weekend. It was beautiful up there and the weather couldn't have been more perfect.

Vic, I'll try pb in a sec just to check it out for you.

Annie that place looks so relaxing! Thats what its all about, even if you have to work some, I'm sure you really enjoyed it. Thanks for giving us a glimpse. Its just so peaceful looking and a beautiful home.

I'll try to be back shortly with some pics.

Hey Tracy, this one is for you and Jerry! lol

Morning Everyone!

Any exciting plans for today???

I'm just working on my partners box! hehehehe
But, I'm having a hard time making the stuff stay, er, I mean fit in the box!!!!

{{gwi:1300181}}

Sassy, I think you need another serving of Chicken and Dumplings, you're looking a little skinny there sweetie! Go get some food to stick to them ribs!

Good Morning Vic! (although it is after 6:30 in the evening now)! No big plans for the day here. I boxed up some echies for my CP partner. I have been making a list of ghouldies for my mystery partner here. Heh, heh, heh... some toadstools, spider legs, a little bit of lizard eyeballs, bat wings, etc, etc, the list goes on and on.

Hi all, Sassy can not get on line, she is a &&&ch in my ear right now, but she CAN'T get on line, Love yyou all!!...Anita

Hey Anita! Tell that Sassy Thing we all say hi and miss her! I bet she's &&&ch'n in your ear! Poor Anita! LOL! Hugs to you!

How is everyone doing today? It is pouring rain here today so I am going to be inside all day long doing chores that I need to catch up on. There is nothing like the common cold to make the laundry pile double, the dust accumulate, and before you know it a mile long chore list has somehow appeared. Ah well, at least I can breathe through my nose again. :o)

Tracy, I'm so glad you can breath again!

"There is nothing like the common cold to make the laundry pile double, the dust accumulate, and before you know it a mile long chore list has somehow appeared"

Whew! now I know what the problem is, all this time I thought I was lazy, turns out, I've just had a cold all summer! ROFL

{{gwi:1300182}}

Hope everybody likes surprises in their boxes!! (grinning evilly)

Joan

I've got my partners box almost done!!! Just need a couple more critters

Poor Vic! You better go to the doctor for that cold! After all this time you might have pneumonia! Not to mention you might lose that little blondie boy of yours under all the clutter! ROFL!

You two ladies are making me nervous! I am wondering if you should mark you boxes for the post office:
SCARY CONTENTS INSIDE HANDLE AT YOUR OWN RISK!

I found the coolest plant today! Well, I think it's cute, Zack is terrified of it! LOL
"looking around wondering what pile of stuff he could be under"!

Yep, maybe we should warn the usps

Hi girls, they got my internet back up today, I still don't know what happened but its back on and thats all that matters to me. Thanks Anita for listening to my &&&chin'. You don't know how spoiled you are until you can't get online! lol

Annie I'm ready for you to get some time off so you can play with us more:))

Later goulies.....

Hi Girls!
GAME TIME!!
I think this is going to be an easy one, we'll see!

I am FINALLY starting find more of these while gardening!
I am very happy about it!!

I have no idea what the prize will be, but I'll think of that later lol

Also, I got a request to find out who likes/wants houseplants......

Off to yet another job interview today *sigh*
Wish me luck!
Vic

Sassy!! Welcome back!!! We missed you! (((hugs))))
Vic - go get 'em girl!!! Best of luck!

Vic ~ I'm gonna guess WORMS! :P Goodluck w/ the job interview!!!

I'm not HUGE on houseplants.. BUT I am moving into a larger house soon so I suppose there's a spot or two for some. Just never had much luck as the current place I live has very few decent windows and wasn't that great for giving light to plants.

Hugs all,
Wendy

Vic ~ or maybe it's dirt. well you said 'happy to see THESE'... hmmm... ok brown dirt speckles! hehehe

Where IS everyone tonite? :P

~Wendy

Wendy, I knew that one was WAY too easy! LOL
Yes, you got it WORMS!!! I think there were 2 here when I moved in, now that I've gotten some compost down I see them be the tons! (It's the little things that excite me : )

Yep! It's snowing here! YUCK! I am soooo NOT ready for winter! : (
It is supposed to be back up in the 60's next week.

Vic

I knew it was worms! ;)
My box went out today, USPS #0307 0020 0003 4325 6755.

Vic,
Snow? Wow, so early!

Deb

Hi, Ladies-I'm here, Wendy, but so tired I can't hardly stay awake at my computer. My guess-Lady Bugs or woolly caterpellers(forgive the spelling). Such a long and busy day here. The weather has been so beautiful and we had a wonderful rain this week. I did get more done on my south flower bed with transplanting a couple perennials but still much to do before the snow flies. Hope to get the swap box flying soon but must check what all I have as I have been gathering here and there and due to my forgetfulness, must do inventory. Will let you know, Vic, when it goes out. Looking forward to a wonderful weekend here as we have family birthdays we are celebrating and the forecast looks great. Pray you all have a great weekend also and know lots of STRANGE boxes will be flying soon. What a fun RR this has been. Thanks, Vic! Blessings, Margaret

It's still almost 70 here Vic ~ nyah nyah nyah nyah! hehe
Go ahead.. just TRY to mail me a snowball! :P

I hear ya Margaret! I've been doing a Quickbooks job for some extra $$ and my eyes are about crossed now...lol I'm ready to hit the bed!

Hugs,
Wendy

I'm Here! Sorry, hubby confiscated the computer all evening so I didn't have my usual play time after the kiddos went to bed. He's researching putting a gas line out to the one workshop. I can't tell you how bummed I am that he is doing this. It will probably run right under one of my gardens that I just added onto. UGH!

Vic, I just saw the weather and they were pointing and laughing at Montana on the map telling us that you guys are expecting up to 7" of snow. But on the upside that was sending us some nice weather in the high 70's for the weekend. So, THANKS! We always love a warm snap in October here by the Great Lakes! :o)

Margaret, poor girl! I bet you're worn out. Have a great time celebrating this weekend!

Wendy, don't you just love staring at a computer screen for hours on end? Makes my eyes feel like they've been propped open with toothpicks! Yick!

I did a little shopping today for my spooky box! My little girl was oohing and ah'ing all over the ghosts, goblins, and creepy decorations we found. The cript ( I mean box ) will be travelling soon to a ghoulie near you! Wonder who? Muah HA HA HA!

Hi everyone,
I LOVE houseplants and have a ton of them. I am always wanting more! :-)

Vic, I feel bad that it's snowing there...I won't give you a hard time about it because any day now, it will start to get freezing here! We don't usually get snow until Dec, but we've been know to get snow in Oct. Back in the early 90's we had a Halloween blizzard that shut everything down, that was crazy!

It has been a crazy busy week for me so I haven't gotten my box out yet either. Glad to hear I'm not the only one. :-) I was going to send it out on Monday, but I found out it's a holiday.....so, I guess it won't go out until Wed. Ugh, sorry.

Amy

Aw, Amy now you're making me feel guilty for teasing Vic! LOL! You're a nice girl. Monday's a holiday? Ah to be a government employee. Now that is the life. I see you're in zone 4, what state? How bad do your winters get?

Margaret, I hope you have a great weekend!! Sounds like fun!

Wendy and Tracy, I just might have one of you guys to send my box to so I'd be nice if I were you two! (evil grin)

And I'm glad you weather man thinks that 7" of snow is so funny Tracy, but you need to let him know, the news here is saying a chance of up to 19 inches!!
So, if you guys don't hear from me for a few days, you'll know I got snowed in, have no power, and my box won't be going out as soon as I'd hoped! LOL

Amy, thanks for not teasing me! At least I know someone understands!! LOL

So much for the MILD winters here! I KNEW we should have went SOUTH!!

Vic (the Snow Queen!)

(Ruh Roh) Vic, you're so pretty and nice and sweet and kind and um, well, you're just the best and we couldn't be more horrified at the huge amount of snow you're about to get. LOVE YOU!

WOW Vic!!!!!!!!!!!! Sheesh.... we get snow maybe every 4-5 years... and then it's MAYBE an inch, inch and 1/2 and it's gone by the next day! I've got plants that are just now blooming... plants have grown strange this year.. almost stopping for awhile during the hottest part of summer and just now they're taking off while the leaves are turning... go figure!

~Wendy

Hi, Ladies- Vic, I just had to post & tell you when I saw your weather report I thought about you. I can take just about any kind of weather as long as the electricity doesn't go out! That way I can at least work on the computer and be warm or cool! We have an all electric home, so that is a big deal to me. The city and county put most of the wires to everything under ground last spring so all is taken care of BUT the TV & internet. My DH stopped at the office a couple of days ago & they're supposed to set a date soon to do that. I will be thinking of you & please let us know what is up. Will keep you in my prayers, also. Wish you all could have the wonderful weather we are having in southeast Iowa. Such a beautiful Fall we are having here. Blessings, Margaret

kissy kissy Vic!!!!! :P

Hey girls!

Joan, thanks sweetie! It drives me nuts to 'not' have my internet even though lately I can't get on as much as I'd like. I still want to know its available since I pay close to $50 a month to have it! All these girls know I love to play *he he* and miss it when I can't:(

Vic, I feel horrible for you that you're gonna get all that snow! WOW! Please show us pics, the snow is so beautiful when falling, but thats it, even when we get a little around here every 5-10 years it usually melts soon after it falls, if not while falling. Just messy for us. I have to tell you, I feel for ya and I know its got alot to do with what you're used to but I can't imagine being used to dealing with snow all the time, because I've never had to. I hope I'm stating this the way its intended. Surely no offense meant, I guess I'm used to the heat & humidity of SC and I'd prefer to deal with that during the summer than dealing with all the snow some of you girls get? I also apologize, I've been slack and just didn't think. I should have had you girls iris out and you have my word you'll get them when you're ready next year. You are documented in my "gardening" bible, lol. I won't forget you I promise and any of these girls that have known me for a long time I would hope would agree to that. But in the mean time I'll find something else to send just so you know my heart is right:) Hugs sweetie and please take care in that avalanche! Jeeez.......

I'm sorry, I know I probably missed some of you and that was not my intention to ignore you.

Tracy, *lol*, I had a Pound Cake receipe I was going to post that my Mom made. DH told me not to bother, lol! So I won't but I do have some more that I've made that I will be posting. I don't have alot of low fat receipes, of course I should, but thats beside the point! *lol* So maybe you'll get some more from some of the other girls. I do have some more veggie casseroles, etc. I'll get them in soon.

Be back soon
Sassy

Tracy,
It's funny, someone else on another forum asked me the same question the other day. So, I'll just copy and paste my response...I live in Minnesota, in a suburb or Minneapolis. It gets very cold here, 15-20 below is not unusual in Jan/Feb. It's not that cold for the whole winter, but we do get down that low several times. It's pretty miserable here for a good 3-4 months out of the year! We're usually below freezing Dec-Feb for sure. On a typical year, it usually starts around Thanksgiving and goes into March. March is our snowiest month on average, but not as cold. I would take the snow over the cold any day! :-)

Vic, 19 inches?!?!?! OMG, I'm so sorry for you. Hopefully it won't be as bad as they say. Oh, do me a favor, please, please, please don't send that yucky stuff our way!! LOL

Amy

Tracy, um, am I sensing just a teensy tiny bit of guilt LOL

Wendy, I TRIED to talk Jamie into moving south! But he wasn't going for it! : (

Margaret, thank you so much for your concern, and I'm right there with you, I could get snowed in for days just PLEASE don't take my internet! LOL
Jamie was away for work all week and just got home last night, thank goodness! He had turned the furnace off and I know if I really had to light it I could, but it's not an easy one, it takes him and his older son to do it b/c you have to hold a knob way up on top and then light it down at the bottom, it's propane.

Sassy, I agree with you, it is beautiful, but that's about the extent of it. I'm not an outdoor gal in the winter, but I have a feeling that is going to change this year, Zack is soooo excited about the snow! When he seen it this morning the first thing he said is "we can go out and make snow angels!"
It's funny you mentioned pictures, we went out today and on the way home one of the roads winds down around a small mountain and there were pine trees and everything was covered in snow! It really was beautiful, I told Jamie that I couldn't believe I didn't have my camera to show the girls on GW! Then as we got to the bottom I remembered my cell ph, it isn't as pretty as up at the top, it seemed all the snow stuck up there and on all the trees, and I took it quickly out the back side window.....

{{gwi:1300187}}

I am not at all concerned about the iris! I know I will get it next year, that is fine and you don't have to send anything in the mean time! : )

Amy, don't worry, I would never send this nasty stuff to any of my Garden Buddies!!

I think we will not be getting as much as was thought, they are talking now closer to 12-14", that's still more than I want! I'll just have to wait and see.......
We haven't really gotten any accumulation yet.

Vic

I can't believe I forgot to mention this, probably b/c I'm trying to put it out of my mind!

For those of you that don't know this, I am 40, Jamie is 50 and Zack is 3....

We went to the store today and while in the checkout Zack was being cranky, it was about 5pm and no nap today! The cashier was talking to Jamie while ringing stuff and then turned to Zack and said, are you ready for this?!?
"now be nice, you shouldn't give GRANDMA a hard time"!!!!! I didn't say a word, but I still have a hole in my tongue from biting it! I'm not sure what the expression was on my face, but Jamie said he thought I was going to go across the counter and slap the stupid little (&%^^%.
Of course, it was all he could do NOT to bust out in laughter! I think I was too shocked to say anything! LOL
I told Jamie, that I think it was just b/c she had been talking to HIM, and she just assumed WE were both the grandparents! (that's my story and I'm sticking to it!)

OK, you can all stop laughing now!
I better get this tired old butt to bed!

Vic

HMMM SNOW??? WHAT IS THAT??? Please VIC send some my way!!!!! I want some!!! Last time Katy had snow was Christmas Day of 04, same year Cole Matthew left. (of course we were in Okla on Christmas Day). Katy "accumulated about 1/2 - 1" of snow, enough for some to make a tiny itty bitty snowman! Hey it made the papers and everything!!! (ok ya'll can laugh now).

Vic, I'd trade ya snow for the 90 degrees that we are to get tomorrow and Sunday. EVEN IF it just lasts half a day... I WANT snow!

OH, forgot to mention that I can finally get onto GW! I have been trying to catch up with reading everything. (keyword being "TRYING")

Trust me Sassy, Vic and everyone else... I very much DISLIKE not having a computer! It stinks horribly!

Vic, just want to tell you also that YOU ARE AWESOME GIRLIE!!! (yeppers I was hollerin just to make sure everyone heard me!!!

Also want to thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers and Especially want to thank Tracy for putting up with my whining for the past several weeks as well as posting for me.

Now hmmm back to the snow... Vic you stay safe and warm and hmmm can ya freeze some for me??? plzzzzzzzzzz

Maybe we will have a blizzard down here this year eh?? Hey as weird as this weather has been it could happen right??? (for those of you that don't know where I live... I live just west of Houston America, now considered "Land of Ike" lol ;)

Hope everyone has a great night and hope to type again tomorrow!

Pixie

PIXIE!!!!
It's so nice to have you back!!
I sure hope you can stick around this time!
(big hugs!)

Now we just need Annie to take a break from working so hard!! We miss you Annie!!

Debby! Thank you so much for my halloween box! I love it all, most especially the sweet note. You and I have been having similar weather and doing the same things with our days. I am getting a few beds rearranged before the bad weather hits and taking advantage of these beautiful warm days!

Deb Sent...

Oktoberfest Iris (a brilliant orange bloom)
Parrot Tulips (creamy base that has deep pink/peach tips)
Red Magic Daylily
Red Tulips
Black Prince Snapdragon Seeds (Gorgeous! I will definitely be wintersowing these!)
Gypsy Queen Hyacinths
Queen of the Night Tulips
The kids loved the metal spider basket and the Planet Earth Books! They are bugging me to go pick up some candy to fill the basket and confiscated the books as soon as I pulled them out of the box. lol. They'll have to wait on the candy till they work for it going door to door. :o)

You made my day with all the bulbs. Mine disappeared on me. Dug up the one bed to re-do the border and divided the bulbs and only found one sad little bulb in all that dirt I sifted through. Thank you so much for everything. I will be planting like a happy little gardener tomorrow.

Good luck with your bed by the mailbox. My neighbor across the street has her's surrounded by a stone border and has lots of lamb's ear, alliums, tulips, and some type of mounding grass. It looks great every year even with the snow plows dumping heavy snow and spreading salt in the winter.

So Ta DA! One more masquerading petal pusher has been revealed! Thank you Vic, this has been a blast!

Tracy, what a great box!!

Where is everyone??? DON'T tell me out in the yard enjoying the sunshine!!
We've gotten about 6" today and they are calling for 9 more tonight and 7 more tomorrow! Oh what JOY!!

And if that isn't bad enough, Zack started with a tummy bug today and has been vomiting all day, we are all starting to feel yucky! So I guess if we are going to all be sick, it might as well be when we are snowed in!

Vic! OH NO! Not the flu! I'm coming! I've got all the supplies to help ease your tummies! Well, except for the buckets, those are just for playing catch (if you know what I mean). I'm so sorry you guys have the flu. That really stinks. I hope it passes quickly. That is a lot of snow coming your way. Sheesh! I hope you are stocked up on everything you need. I don't think you are going anywhere for a little while.

Thanks Tracy!!
Fortunately we are all feeling better today!

What's everyone up to?

So far today.......

Zack helped me in the garden
(I know it's hard to tell, but he is laying in the middle of one of my beds!)

We cleaned up his play area a little.....

I was going to go out on the deck and have coffee but....

I think we are at about 15" and it's still snowing, but much lighter now!
Thank goodness our neighbor that shares our driveway has a big tractor with a plow! It's about 3/10th of a mile long so I don't think we would have gotten it all shoveled!

I also put an 18# Turkey in the roaster, and invited people over for dinner.....we'll see if they show! LOL

We will be making a snowman later........

Happy Gardening!!
Vic

Vic, I can't believe all that snow. My brain is having a hard time with Zach laying in your flower bed. Wait! Don't crush the plants! Yep, my brain is stuck in the growing season and not ready for snow. Nuh uh, no way!

How'd dinner go last night? That turkey sounds fantastic. Did you have a houseful of people?

Vic - I read your message about all that snow. I had no idea that "winter" would come so early where you are! In fact, if I had gotten your name in this swap, I might have sent you plants!

I know I'm in the minority, but I'd LOVE to have that much snow about once a season. Of course, I'm not ready for it yet (smile) ... I still have a lot of things to accomplish before end-of-season.

As I've complained before, we're still in a near-drought status my part of KY. The rain has been all around us for the past few months but left this little part of the world dry, dry, dry. Last week (I think) we were promised a soaking rain. When I awoke in the morning and heard the rain, I was SO happy. It stopped after a pitiful 1/4"!

It's also been very warm here this fall. It's supposed to be 85 today and has reached at least 83 for the past week!

Deb - That's a great box that you sent Tracy! I hope you'll receive one with just as many nice surprises!

Tracy - Deb really outdid herself! I especially like the sound of the Parrot Tulips and the Oktoberfest Iris. I looked up the Iris because I've been trying to find a pretty, orange one. It's lovely!

Obviously I missed commenting on most posts so, "Hi, everyone!" (waving) I hope you're having a good day!

I should get my box sent out on Wed, though it could be tomorrow. I'll e-mail you the DC, Vic.
Pat

VIC!!! Hey Vic....! *Dusts the snow off the snowman.. OH! THERE you are!!!! hehe I'm sending you a VERY important email! lol Lemme know if you get it.

Hugs!
~Wendy

(Waving HELLO to Pat!) Hiya Sister! Deb really did do a great job with my package. I got all my named irises planted out in the same bed. I can't wait to see them bloom in the spring. I tried to plant the black, white and orange near each other. The parrot tulip is pretty. I love the creamy white blending into the pink. I also got my dl's planted in a similar fashion. I am pretty mad because a lot of my plant markers faded before I could re-do them in the grease pencil. I will be waiting for them to bloom next year to get them all id'd properly again. Ugh!

I am taking advantage of these beautiful days here. I have one more day of dry weather to finish demolishing one of my flower beds. I spent the afternoon digging and dividing a ton of purple iris. I am either going to have to give them away, pitch them or put in a new bed. I was going to put in a new bed along the side of the yard by the second driveway but I don't know if I will be able to now that my wheelbarrow has a flat. I have to haul a huge amount of compost from the far back part of the property out to the front. Hubby took the tire off to fix it and decided to buy another one so I am stuck waiting. Sigh, this means the tire won't go back on for a LOOOONG time. So anybody want any tall plain old purple bearded irises? There would be a few light blue ones mixed in with them.

I hope you get some of this rain coming on Wednesday. Maybe it will be as big as the last one that we got and cover both of our states!

*poking head out of snow bank*

Hi everyone!

Tracy, that was my first though too, "don't crush the flowers" LOL

Pat, I had no idea this was October in Montana either!
And I would love it if it were just once in the season! : )

Wendy, got your email! Thanks!

Our official snowfall was 22" where I'm at! I don't feel too bad, some areas not too far got 42"
It did break the state record that was set over 10 years ago, so I'm hoping this is not going to be a yearly trend.
It is supposed to get up to 60 this week, and a lot of the snow has already melted. I've still got grass to mow, ground to till, and my next years veggie garden to get ready! I sure hope it warms up : )

Vicky

Tracy! It sounds like you're making great strides in winter prep. Congratulations!

I'm right there with you on the wheelbarrow predicament. My tire went flat last week and my DH did the same thing. I said, "Can we fix that this weekend?" He said, "It'd be better to just buy a new one on the wheel. I'll pick it up one day soon..." Grrrr! We've been married a long time. I know "soon" could just as easily be next spring. Doesn't he know I've got things to do and the weather is pushing? I may pop in at Lowe's in a bit and see if I can do it myself. If I do, I promise you, it probably won't even occur to him again until sometime mid-winter! LOL!

Hold that thought for the rain reaching us tomorrow but the newest forecast now says our "best chance of showers" is Thursday. It's bad enough that some nearby counties are now having to have water shipped in from other states because their supplies have dried up!