Daisydawnny, hope you are feeling much better now! For katbird, terrene, mnwsgal and lois - I am so sorry for your losses. I was always more of a lurker than a poster, but I have so enjoyed this site and got alot of great plants by ws! FB is not the same - I can barely find new messages or postings on it, let alone do the searching that was so invaluable to me in learning about ws. I really don't even like it for socializing. Who cares if I'm going to the store? Does everyone really want a picture of my life every 15 minutes? No one wants to be that bored!!! I am one of the many who has not done as much gardening the past few years. I lost my mom unexpectedly in 2011 and my dad after a long bout of cancer in 2012. So what little attention and energy I have had have been elsewhere. While my flower beds are reasonably full, I do plan to ws a few things this year - annuals and such - to fill in gaps. I want to get back to digging in the dirt regularly and taking better care of them. I think it will make for a very happy spring and summer. :- )))))))

A couple of notes because the rest is going to be rather long and involved: Lynda, I have the Vitex marked for you and in your baggie! And thank you for the marigolds! They will be very interesting with my others! Dessie I would be more than happy to receive your little helper's seed packets! I think it's great! Wendy Try some Chai Spice tea, it works wonders in helping clear up colds and flu. I always add a dollop of honey to help sooth the throat. It's a staple in our house and really does help. Alright, here is my take on this.. I can understand how many were hoping that the two swaps would not coincide, but, we all knew there was a fair chance of that happening. For myself, I know that I continued to update my list, even well after Patty's swap's mailing deadline. I did my updates using the same method we did for Patty's swap- using an updated date. Even had I not, I knew there was a good chance the two swaps would overlap. I joined this one knowing full well- according to the guidelines posted for it- that I may NOT receive as many as I sent in. That I would receive as many as were sent in FOR me, up to five packets of the SAME item. I recall there being some issue with this and a member who became very rude in their comments about this fact. Yes, my package from the What's Left swap is in the second batch to go out. No, I did not keep strict record of what I sent to those who were in the What's Left swap. I did keep better records of what I'm sending for this swap. I also know that a lot of people will be sending in baggies of seeds marked as extras- not dedicated for anyone, but to add in when it's seen those items are on someone's list. No, these may not be some of the rarer or more exclusively wanted items on someone's list. But if someone has some of those rarer or more specific items to share, I'm sure they would have put them into your baggie before they mailed. So, I don't see that anyone would be missing out on anything. The only way I could see having updated one's list further as complicating Patty's swap would be if someone had removed things from their list. Updating and adding items would not have conflicted. Because if there were any extras of what you were wanting, Patty would have included them. So, I guess I'm not really understanding how there is such a need to update the lists just because one is in both swaps. If I receive duplicates, wonderful! Because the things on my list are things I want! If I don't receive something on my list, then no one had it to share. If I receive so many of something that I can't plant it all, then I can bless someone else by offering it up for a trade. So, perhaps I'm being dense here, but how would one not receive something sent in specifically for them (up to FIVE packets of the same item!) that was on their wants list in this swap? Everyone has the chance to see your wants as posted and you have had the option to add to that list, as many including myself have this whole time. The only thing I could really see the two swaps happening almost simultaneously possibly affecting would be one's have's list. I'm sorry, I don't mean to upset or offend anyone. I'm just honestly trying to understand why this is such an issue. So please don't take this as meaning to offend or as pointed to anyone in particular. This is just me trying to understand why so many are upset about this. If you prefer to email me privately and help me understand it, I would be pleased with that and please do! Perhaps there are aspects and issues with this that I'm not readily seeing and should consider. I don't want to keep the thread off track by my question becoming a debate here. Perhaps there can be some adjustments of dates if this swap happens in the late summer or again next winter, but for this year it is as it is and personally, I'm really enjoying it! Nancy, I hope you don't decide to drop out, because I know that I should have at least a couple of things from your list, perhaps more. But I'll respect your choice and be your Garden Buddy either way :) Fran, you have a real job ahead of you and I don't know how those like you and Patty do it! Leave me hosting my "pair em up and let em go" or true RR type swaps! I think those of you that host this kind of swap are awesome! Angela, you have been a wonderful help to Fran and all of us in this swap! I know the time it can take to code pages like that, though updates are easier once the initial work is done, and I want to say THANK YOU for the time and work you are putting in on this swap for everyone's benefit! Kathy~ heading off to stuff more little baggies and envelopes.

i would love some of these if i could!! that would be so cool!! armenian cucumber tortarelo cucumber golden gopher musk melon? royal golden melon lee okra zolotistala melon casaba melon 1 bosc pear 2 mustard gai choy 1 garden peach tomoto 4 okra mix 1 daikon radish 1 canary bell peppers 2 lemon balm 1 sweet chocolate peppers 1 bok choy 2 green zebra tomato 3 peppers yolo wonder 1 peter peppers this year, i think will be a great year for that square foot gardening!! especially with all that is needing to be put in the ground!!! **big smile** i have lots of 6 blazing star liatres 21 single white angel trumpet-smells awesome 14 lavender datura- don't smell but is pretty!! 4 sesamie seeds so if anyone want's these, let me know. :') these are filled pretty good!@! ~Medo

Walkin- I am in central NM. The consignment shop, I believe, was called Furniture on Consignment. It is off of I-25 in Albuquerque. You could call and see if they have any bunks and ask to have them forward you pictures to gauge if you like them. If you decide to make a trip to Albq, places to check would be: 1. American Home. I think that this is the largest furniture dealer in NM (not saying much but they have a large kids section). 2. Unpainted Furniture - I haven't been there in a while but there prices are reasonable. 3. Simply Stickley - Stickley is pretty good quality and thus not cheap but they just opened a showroom in Albq. I think that I saw bunks on their site under Stickley Starters. 4. Amish Connection - Once I saw bunks in their showroom. I don't remember seeing them there recently but they also have catalogs and they may have different wood options if you desire that. As far as making the bed, I make 9 yo DS change his own sheets on the top bunk. I think I have seen him crawling under the mattress flipped up to do it, but I just look the other way. Since the bottom bunk is perpendicular, it is on casters and I just pull it out to change the sheets for the 3yo. HTH