So much for pictures. As I type this, I am drinking an irish creme cappuccino, which was part of my sweet gift.

I received a packet of cinnamon basil (which I can't WAIT to sprout), two packets of cappucino (irish cream and mint mocha) and the cutest Jolee's stickers of clocks (one of which is already stuck to a magnet and placed on my fridge to always remind me to take some time out for smelling the garden and smelling some coffee!

Thanks so much!!

My package is finally done. I hope to get it posted by Sunday but promise no later than Tuesday. Sorry I wasn't quicker Annie. I do try to be quicker on these things but I guess I am still in time before the end of the month. :)

Margo

Evening! I'm Back! :)
We had a super time in Myrtle Beach! I just love it there! Everyone is so nice. The weather was super...anything that doesn't require me to shovel snow is SUPER weather, lol.

My seeds that I had started before we left are all sprouting. Such a nice homecoming.

I emailed Tanya back today :) Sorry for the delay.

I mailed out my envie to C-Davis last Thursday, March 14th, before I left on vacation. I'm hoping that she's rec'd it. It was a regular envie, I have the receipt, but they didn't do a DC.

Take out for dinner tonight...so tired...I think I need a vaca from our vaca, lol :)

Talk to you later!
vina

ps. in my pile of mail is a new iris catalog :D

Heather, glad you liked the envie! Bought the stickers at Hobby Lobby, 40% off! Love it!!

Vina, not a bad returning - sprouts AND an Iris catalog! Glad you had a nice vacation, I think you may have needed one!

Margo, we still have over a week, no need to panic yet!! We had sunny weather here today, still cold tho. But I loved the sun!

Well, on with the weekend, have a good one!
Shirley!

Vina, when we were at Myrtle Beach two weeks ago, it was still pretty chilly. A bit warmer inland. We were able to walk the beach but the water was too cold to walk in. Was pretty thrilled to see a dolphin one morning and it wasn't too far out either. It was great to get away.

Shirley, the weather was sunny here today as well. Very nice to see and although not that warm, the wind was a lot quieter. The weathermen are starting to talk about a storm south of here for Sunday evening. It doesn't look like the snow will get this far north but they like to try hyping it up. Actually, it looks like your family down there might just get hit as they mentioned Dayton and I know they are near there. We are lucky in that we are taking our son back to Cincinnati for school Sunday but the weather is too hit later that day.

I did see 50 in the forecast for the end of the week. Woo hoo.

Have a good weekend all. Margo

Margo, Chris was telling me about that storm. They are hoping it comes this weekend instead of next, when they are coming up for Easter. She is a little disappointed in Ohio winters; she expected severe cold in Minnesota, but not in the middle of Ohio!
On the other hand, may you and your family have a safe journey to Cincy and back.
And I second the "woo hoo" for 50 at the end of the week!
Drat, I have to go for groceries tomorrow. I can think of hundreds of better ways to spend part of my weekend!
Shirley!

Dmkelly, I received your beautiful package yesterday! I shall be opening it today thank you soooo much!

Dmkelly, I received your beautiful package yesterday! I shall be opening it today thank you soooo much!

I had the super sweetest surprise in my mailbox when I got home today =) Thank you ever so much Anne!! I loved everything! The beautiful card, the cutest sayings! and all the 'pink' items, lol even the little surprises arrived in perfect condition! I cant thank you enough Anne, it really made my day =) Many thanks!

Wow, it seems like everyone's wishes and dreams are being fulfilled quite nicely! It should be interesting to see what is done with the St. Pat's Day choice!

We still have a week to send out. This is what's left on the list:

Craftie WILL SEND to Moonfire;

Smitties has sent to Annie;

C_davis will send to Gardenlove;

Gardenunusual WILL SEND to Flowergirl(Vina)

Moonfire WILL SEND to Shirley;

Vina has sent to C_davis who received;

Octennessee WILL SEND to Smitties

Corrine WILL SEND to Dmkelly.

If I ever get finished with house-related stuff, I want to get out and take some pictures, or, I could wait until tomorrow in the hopes that we get some "pretty" snow tonight!

Have a nice Sunday!
Shirley!

This post was edited by sjc48 on Wed, Mar 27, 13 at 20:23

Flowergirl - Vina, I just sent another email today. For some reason I have not received your address yet :( checked the spam folder and nothing. Please let me know as I have your package ready.

thanks again - T

Well, didn't get out to take pics yesterday, and there was no appreciable snowfall this morning, but it is supposed to warm up this week, so it isn't all bad!

Hope everyone had a nice Monday, if there is such a thing! Mine was pretty uneventful.

One more week to mail out, let me know if there are any problems I can help with!

Shirley!

Just checking in!

4-5 more days to finish the swap, hope everyone is getting ready to mail out.

A kinda warm day today, in the low 40s and supposedly in the low 50s by the weekend - YAY!

Talk to ya all later,
Shirley

I am headed to the post office tomorrow. Sorry Annie, I am usually better than this at getting my packages sent.

Will post DC afterwards, Margo

Morning!

Tanya, emailed you back. I often wonder where the emails go that get "lost". It seems to happen a lot to me when I go through the GW. Hope this one makes it.

Shirley, Garden_C rec'd her package from me. She sent me an email thanking me. I don't know if she'll post here?

Strangely busy today...long story short...I'm making 8 stuffed animal guinea pigs...yes, you read that correctly! :) HA HA!
Have a super day...off to get sewing ( a different kind of sewing, lol )
vina

ps. I was checking some craft sites the other day and came across this page called (OH! How I love this!!) A Found Garden! A man made an entire flower garden out of found things...He made stepping stones filled with everything he'd found from stones to old watches and even kids bubble wands. It was so colorful! Has anyone ever tried a Found Garden before? This is going to be my new bed this summer. Wish me LUCK! :)

Hmmmmm, stuffed guinea pigs. Sounds like that is a challenge. Will have to check out that Found garden info. I call it recycling which I love to do in the garden. It is fun to find a unique look with something that would end up in the landfill.

I finally did it. Annie's package is to arrive on Friday. Tracking - 9505 5101 5140 3086 3727 00

Margo

Margo, looking forward to it.

Vina, just looked up the craft site above....not finding it. More info!!! A Found Garden, so cool!!
Stuffed animal guinea pigs....what are you going to do with them?

Happy day to all!

Annie

Evening All!

Vina, yes, what are you making the guinea pigs for?
Thanks for letting me know about Carol.

Margo, thanks for posting!

And here is an update:

Craftie WILL SEND to Moonfire;

Smitties has sent to Annie who received;

C_davis WILL SEND to Gardenlove who received;

Gardenunusual has sent to Flowergirl(Vina)

Moonfire WILL SEND to Shirley; was sending Saturday;

Vina has sent to C_davis who received;

Octennessee WILL SEND to Smitties who received;

Corrine WILL SEND to Dmkelly

Please remember to post here when you mail out!
Have a great day tomorrow!
Shirley!

This post was edited by sjc48 on Sun, Mar 31, 13 at 19:19

Good Morning, Everyone!

Just wanted to wish everybody a Happy Easter weekend with friends and family, just in case I don't get back on here before Monday! I think this is a busy time for all of us!

The deadline for mailing out the "Choices" is Sunday; hope to hear from everyone soon!

Please remember to post here when you mail out and when you receive, Thanks!

Have a great weekend!
Shirley!

My envelope has been sent to smitties (probably arriving today?) and I just wanted to thank everyone for participating in an awesome swap. I love getting mail and trinkets and just feeling connected to a community of sweet garden folks. I look forward to next month!

Got my package from c_davis (carolyn) yesterday. She send me 11 packets of seeds!

White Rose Champion
Pink Rose Champion
Pink Peony Poppy
Lemon Balm
Italian Striped Zucchini
Golden Zucchini
Bloody Butcher Tomato
Bonnies Best Tomato
Japanese Black Triefel Tomato
Marketmore 76 Cucumber
Rouge Den Hover Lettuce

Thank you Carolyn!

Those are wonderful seeds!

I grew Japanese Trifele a couple of seasons ago, they were prolific while being slightly neglected, tasty, and made a wonderful tomato sauce. They are shaped like pears, so cute on the vine. I had wished I saved seeds.

enjoy

Hi Vina,

I sent out your package today - confirm number 9114901075742387393281
which will be visible in a couple of days.

Happy Easter everyone!

Nothing arrived yet, perhaps tomorrow. I will post when it does arrive.

Annie's package says it is out for delivery. I hope you enjoy it Annie.

Margo

Hi ya'll...just a quick note to let ya'll know i'm still here and Shirley I'll be mailing yours out to you 1st thing in the morning...sorry i'm running late on it but things have been extra busy around here lately...hope all are having a good spring so far...it's finally warming up here some...wore shorts today for my daily walk :)

Evening All!
Margo, Heather, Dianne, GU, and GL, thanks for posting!
My Spring is coming along real nice - this little guy came visiting today!
I'll post an update over the weekend,
Shirley!

Good Morning!

I dreamed a dream that I was sitting on top of a cocktail bar

Margo, I was sitting on top of my pub bar table late last night when I opened your package...LOL!

And now for the contents of my cocktail box.......

*a very nice note
*seeds...cosmos Psyche, cosmos sea shells, coneflower sombrero red, cosmos daydream
*seed baggies....actually pill pouch baggies.....I am with you Margo...perfect for seeds
*A clock.....to funny....tick toc...tick toc...the bar is ready to close!
*Several lime margarita mix packets
*bunny chocolate candy

What a fantastic box....Margo, you covered my dream perfectly!!!

Thanks so much!!!!

Annie

Received a card from Heather yesterday with a lovely note telling me a bit about herself. Heather, we love the Smoky Mountains and living in the flat lands of Ohio here, can only imagine living right near mountains. Must be fabulous.

In my card was a notepad to take notes from my gardening books. Clever. There was also a package of Sparaxis bulbs that unfortunately the post office seems to have flattened a bit. I am going to plant them with a positive attitude and give them tlc.

Thank you Heather and Happy Easter to all. Margo

Received a card from Heather yesterday with a lovely note telling me a bit about herself. Heather, we love the Smoky Mountains and living in the flat lands of Ohio here, can only imagine living right near mountains. Must be fabulous.

In my card was a notepad to take notes from my gardening books. Clever. There was also a package of Sparaxis bulbs that unfortunately the post office seems to have flattened a bit. I am going to plant them with a positive attitude and give them tlc.

Oh and Heather also included a drawing of herself and her bassett hound Darlene. Cute!!!

Thank you Heather and Happy Easter to all. Margo

Hi Everyone, did you all have a nice Easter? Sure hope so! My company left earlier and it got very quiet here, very quickly! My Vinnie cat finally came out of the bedroom closet, where she hid all weekend. Tad bit anitsocial, that cat!

Gardenlove, 11 packs of seeds? How great is that!
Sounds like Margo and Annie got great envelopes too!

And here is the update I promised you!

Craftie has sent to Moonfire;

Smitties has sent to Annie who received;

C_davis has sent to Gardenlove who received;

Gardenunusual has sent to Flowergirl(Vina), who received;

Moonfire WILL SEND to Shirley who received

Vina has sent to C_davis who received;

Octennessee has sent to Smitties who received;

Corrine has been in touch with Dawn

Please let me know if there are any mistakes on the list!
We're doing really well with this, just a few more folks to hear from.

Does anyone know who is doing the April MNF swap?

Well, off to "neaten up" the house and then get ready for Monday!
Talk to ya all tomorrow!
Shirley!

This post was edited by sjc48 on Mon, Apr 1, 13 at 21:10

Hi ya'll :) Hope all had a great Easter!! Mine was pretty nice...the weather was awesome!!! ...me and my girls cooked here at my house and my mom came over after church, then me and mom went to visit the church and cematary at my grandparents' graves ...on the way back home i stopped and got me several wildflowers (which my mom called weeds lol) that were so numerous it wouldn't hurt to grab a few...figured if i could help spread them up closer to our way they may catch on and then i can enjoy seeing them along our road ways...plan on planting them in a big pot together at 1st maybe ...they are in shades of purples, reds, and yellows...some of it is red clover...i have to look it up and see what the others are...then when i got back home my son colored eggs...lol yes i know it was a little late for us to be doing the eggs but we were all so busy we didn't get a chance before the actual day...Shirley I got your bubbly in the mail Saturday morning...I do have the confirmation # but it's in the van so I'll try to remember to bring it in when i go out again...Margie sent me an email that she was mailing hers out to me on Saturday also...i have so much to do between the house and the yard and the kids activities i don't know which to tackle 1st :) ...i got me some asian lilies for my birthday that i need to plant so i think i'm gonna do the yard 1st while it's nice outside and not too hot...also need to get my corn and beans in the ground and plant me some tomatoes and peppers...hhhmmm so much to do but so glad it's finally SPRING lol...anyways hope all are doing well and enjoying spring so far...talk to ya'll later --- Dianne

I've been in email contact with my partner, Dawn getting to know her & offering tips for her wish... a garden without weeds! I sent her envie last week, but forgot to post that I sent it.

Anyone have experience removing bindweed? I've had just a bit of it that came in some daylily roots, so I can't say I've battled it. Just pulled it out as much as I saw, then when it twirled up again I pulled it each time I saw it last spring & summer. I don't see it again on my patrols.

Any tips would be appreciated because we have a huge amount of it in one location at camp. Someone covered the garden with a brown plastic tarp covered with bark thinking it would choke it; however, the bindweed is alive & well under it with thick white stems the last time I looked.

Is painting herbicide on to the stems the only way to go?

Corrine

Yes, Corrine and I have been e-mailing and she's given me lots of new websites and ideas. Next weekend, if it's not raining, I'm going to replace one of the old dilapidated raised beds with a cinder block bed. I like the idea in this climate of having a bed boarder that also works as a heat sink.

The envelope hasn't made it here yet, but that's ok. I think the universe gives us things when we need them, not when we want them, so the anticipation continues... like Christmas.

As I wandered around the yard this weekend, I saw so many areas that could use a few flowers or tomato plants or something. My sweet husband just shakes his head, follows and asks where to digs. We planted 14 trees and 8 grapes this last weekend.

Bindweed... one of the bains in my garden!!! The more you abuse it by pulling and covering, the more it likes it and says thank you by coming back stronger. I'll take some advice on this one too.

Is this swap still open?

Evening!!
I rec'd a late Easter Surprise today. Tanya's package arrived! :)

A beautiful card, some awesome Bells of Ireland Seeds ( I LOVE THESE!), and a super cool pocket sized green sharpie...little hands have already tried to claim this but I've put it in my garden box. ;) THANK YOU SO MUCH! What a wonderful surprise!!!

Oh Gosh! Totally forgot the Garden Gloves. Taylor has claimed these. They are perfect and she love, love, loves them! THANK YOU! :D

I'm getting to work on the Found Garden. I have 2 very large cardboard boxes that I'll be filling with my found things. The kids are getting right into this as well. Billy gave me some of his little dinosaurs to make dinosaur stepping stones...how cute!

GUINEA PIG Day was a HUGE success. My brownie troop used the computer lab and looked up facts about guinea pigs. We made a guinea pig care poster, and discovered guinea pig rescue organizations (I didn't even know they existed till now) And we found out that the guinea pigs like to sleep with stuffed animals, it makes them feel safe and more calm in new surroundings. So my girls made 16 stuffed guinea pigs. The girls each kept 1 and the rest got mailed to a guinea pig rescue in the state. :) I have a picture of a few of them that I'll post later. I made the pattern and sowed most of the stuffed animal. The girls then inverted them, stuffed them, sowed them close and did the faces and ears. Not too shabby for 8 and 9 year olds. We also had guinea pig snacks. Carrot sticks, celery, spinach, bananas, peaches, and even some pineapple. We were full little piggies when we finished.

This week is spring break for the girls. So later in the week I'm taking them camping! I must have lost what little brains I had left, lol. Camping in 40-50 degree weather. We'll be in a building, thank goodness. And we'll def. have a fire. Can't wait to do some hiking :)

Hope everyone had a super Easter!!
Talk to you later.
vina

Evening Everyone!
First of All, Zackey, yes, this swap is closed, in fact it's almost over!
Vina and I both received our packages today,
Craftie/Margie has sent to Moonfire/Diane, and
Corrine and Dawn are in touch with one another.
As soon as they post that they have received, the swap will be over!

Vina, what a nice Easter surprise! And I love the
guinea pig theme for your troop! What a great thing to do! I have never heard of guinea pig rescue organizations either!

And Diane, your package was great, reminded me that I really love Ireland, yeah, all year long! Diane sent a package of Irish buttons, which I'm going to save and share with Tabs and Myrna next year; a Woman's World magazine with St. Patrick Day crafts (love the fingernail paintings of shamrocks!); a green bandana with shamrocks all over it; a card with the "original" Irish blessing on it and some hand cream/therapy. Also a nice handwritten note! This was a great package, Diane, you fulfilled my choice quite nicely! Thank you!

Oh shoot, she also sent Alpine strawberry seeds, which I may pass on to my brother, who does good with them, while I do not! He will love them!

And thanks to those of you who posted pictures, really brings my spirits up!

Margie, Diane, Corrine, and Dawn, please post here when you send and or receive!

And, Ellie has posted the April MNF swap, check it out! Sounds like a good one!

Talk to ya all tomorrow!
Shirley!

Smitties - I am SO sorry that the tiny bulbs got beat in the mail. I had worried about it but I truly thought they would make it. Ugh. Regardless, glad you received it! Happy Easter!

Just checking in, I hope everyone had a nice day. It is still so cold here! Bright and Sunny, but very cold.
Have a great Wednesday!
Shirley!

Same here Shirley as far as weather goes. It is so deceptive with the sun shining but the wind keeps it so cold. I am heading to Columbus Saturday to join in a 5k. It is a glo run in that it is run at night starting at 8:30 and we are given glow in the dark necklace, bracelet, and glasses along with a white tshirt. Along the route, we will be running through tunnels with black lights. It sounds like fun but when I signed up, I figured it would be a bit warmer. I also came down with cold yesterday that I hope doesn't hinder my progress. It is supposed to be a high of 60 with a low of 50 so that should help. I tend to jog/walk as I do not have the stamina to jog the whole way. It is just for the fun of it anyway.

Heather, no worries. It is always a learning process when it comes to shipping things. Probably best to use padded envelopes in any shipment of seeds or bulbs just to be on the safe side. I think a couple will be able to be planted but I will try them all.

Time to hit the couch with my trustee blanket. Good night all. Margo

To clarify I sent the envie last week, so should get to Dawn any day now.

Corrine

I sent moonfire her package she should be getting it soon.

margie

Evening!
Uploading some photos from my camera :)

I love pictures! When we were having our camp training we had to have bear training. First thing they said was, "Don't take our your camera and shoot pictures." LOLOL! The whole room looked at ME :D

Anyhoo...here are some stuffed guinea pigs. The ones we mailed to the rescue had thread eyes. We were afraid the piggies would chew on them. These were for the girls :)

Guinea Pig Day...

I knew my envelope would get here when I needed it most. Today was my first day back after spring break and seeing a cute card and some fun seeds waiting for me was just what I needed! Thank you Corrine! I'm excited to start them!

People do the same thing to me, Vina. Come on, who doesn't go out without their camera, I mean, really!

Corrine and Craftie, thanks for posting!
Dawn, glad your package arrived and that you are enjoying it. I'm glad you and Corrine were in "correspondence" about the swap, that was great!

As soon as we hear from Diane, we can officially close this swap! Have you all checked out Ellie's April MNF swap? You should!

Shirley!

Hi Everyone, just checking in.
Hope to hear from Moonfire soon!
Shirley!

So nice reading everyone's posts - Vina I am so glad you enjoy!

Snow is finally melting, I am anxious to plant peas and sweet peas when it does. Rain for the next couple of days which is fine with me!

Glad everyone had a beautiful Easter!

Just checking in again, folks!

GU, I'm excited to start my sweet peas too! I bought some rather expensive, for me, seeds and I'm going to plant them in large pots and let them trail their way up a cut down tomato cage. Can hardly wait to see what it will look like!

I'll probably check in tomorrow,
have a great Tuesday!
Shirley!

Hey ya'll :) Sorry I haven't posted sooner!! I've been extremely busy lately and haven't been on the net much ...

I did get my package from Margie!!! :))))) and I LOVE it...Margie sent me some note cards that have dragonflies on them, some cute butterfly clips...i think they are like paperclips of some kind but i think i'm gonna clip them to my curtains and my plant pots!!!...some small seed starter pots, and an egg plant...BUT it's not the typical egg plant lol...it's a ceramic egg and you crack the top and water it and out grows a SNAPDRAGON lol...and i so love snapdragons :))...there was also 2 butterfinger eggs which i've eaten already and a cute card

THANKS so much Margie....it couldn't have been a better selection for me :)

Happy Spring ya'll...it's finally nice weather here!

Sorry for the late post!

Dianne, sounds like a great package, especially the clips! Thanks for posting!

And that finishes the swap, ladies, many thanks to everyone who joined in, hope you all had fun!

Have a great day!
Shirley!

Shirley,

Thanks for another fun and creative swap.

Happy weekend!

Annie