I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving week. Kids are back to school tomorrow, much work to be done, Christmas gifts to buy and plans to be made! We even have a CHANCE of snow on Tuesday (won't stick.. but still!) I received a couple more packages this weekend: Here's the updated list: Here's an update on swap members and packages received: 1. poisondartfrog /Alana ~ pkg rec'd 2. lois / Lois ~ pkg rec'd 3. onedaylily / Margie ~ pkg rec'd 4. farmergirl2009 / Ellie ~ pkg rec'd 5. roper2008 / Linda ~ pkg rec'd 6. texaspinkie / Rebecca ~ 7. apoppyfield / Ann ~ pkg rec'd 8. caroleapony / Donna ~ pkg rec'd 9. tlfox / Tiffany ~ 10. shemeows / Maria ~ pkg rec'd 11. hibiscusfan / Suzanne ~ pkg rec'd 12. tracyokc / Tracey ~ pkg rec'd 13. flowergirl34 / Vina ~ pkg rec'd 14. ktrout / Karrigan ~ 15. thatannagirl / Anna ~ pkg rec'd 16. Indiana.Matt / Matthew ~ 17. ibartoo / Linda ~ 18. pumkingal / Lisa ~ pkg rec'd 19. october17 / Ellie ~ pkg rec'd 20. xiangirl / Heidi ~ pkg rec'd 21. kellyk49 / Kelly ~ pkg rec'd 22. gardenunusual2 / Tanya ~ 23. tomerrol / Tom ~ 24. beautifulreddahlias / Nina ~ 25. puffie / Muffy ~ pkg rec'd 26. flower2 / Mitchell ~ pkg rec'd 27. cashclan / Sharon ~ pkg rec'd 28. shant (?) / Shanti ~ 29. vajeff / Jeff ~ 30. sinbadsmom / Kathy ~ pkg rec'd 31. lceh / Lynne ~ pkg rec'd 32. peaches0104 / Julie ~ pkg rec'd 33. lightning96 / Beth ~ 34. snapdragon36 / Debbie ~ pkg rec'd 35. Molanic / Morgan ~ pkg rec'd 36. docmom / Martha ~ pkg rec'd 37. nan-6161 / Nancy ~ pkg rec'd 38. sandysgardens / Sandy ~ 39. drippy / Kim ~ pkg rec'd 40. rane_grow / Iris ~ 41. Gretchensgarden / Gretchen ~ pkg rec'd 42. daisydawnny / Dawn ~ pkg rec'd That's the current update of received packages as of mail delivery to me on Saturday. I'm sure more will be arriving all this coming week! Now, don't forget about the game I posted last week! So far, only one person has turned words in and they did a GREAT job!! Here's the details for you again: The latest game challenge will be a simple one as this is a wild and crazy week for everyone that's busy cleaning and cooking or traveling for Thanksgiving. Before you know it we will be stringing the lights and shopping mad sales at all hours of the night and day... The dates for this challenge will run through Dec. 10th. The challenge is a simple word find game. A popular one that's been making the rounds on the round robin forum this year. Email me a list of as many words as you can come up with from the words "Winter Sowing Swap". All words must be at least 3 letters and up. For instance, "Winter" could be one word. "Sow" could be a word, "tan" and so on. (There! I just gave you 3 freebies! :) The winner will receive a bonus flower package of 10 packs tailored to items on their wish list. Have fun! ~Wendy

Whew! I'm back! Got in late Monday night, and had to drive home from MEM to where we live in MS, adding another 3 hrs to the trip home. Now its back to crazy at work. I leave before daylight and get home after dark, so I haven't seen my plants or flowerbeds in the daylight since Nov. 17. Have to go out by flashlight to ask the plants what happened while we were gone. LOL It was a great visit with family and friends in AZ, as usual. Its always fun out there. Went to one of my favorite places to visit in Tucson: the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum. If any of you ever make it out to Tucson, it is not to be missed! I suspect that Dianne's package was waiting for me when we got home Monday, but did not make it to the mailbox until Tuesday. She sent so much great stuff! I think we are 2 peas in a pod when it comes to reading material :) She sent: Country Living magazine - American Autumn issue from Nov. 1998 a vanilla scented bath fizzer - ahhhhhhhhhhhh! A whole pile of coupons - I'm a major coupon lover! So many recipes she clipped. These are so great! Crystal Light Mojito drink mix - looking forward to trying this. It's a new flavor for us. A lovely friendship card with an aster on it And WOW, Look at the seeds: Jackson Wonder lima beans Taylor cranberry bean Spaghetti squash Am. Persimmon Nasturtium Scarlet Gleam Nasturtium Cherry Rose (dwarf) Nasturtium Dwarf Alaska Sunflower Mammoth Russian Brown & Yellow sunflower Scuppernog (white) grape seeds Asclepias syriaca Rudbeckia mix bronze/orange/yellow Dianne, thank you so much for such a wonderful and generous package! And Jeanne, thanks so much for hosting. BTW, how is the horse search going? Both my husband and I grew up with horses in our lives. Both of our parents still have horses, although they have both had losses this year. Last month his parents lost one of their favorites, a 29 yr old, much loved and prized champion Morgan stallion. My father still has the QH mare I used to barrel race on. She is almost 33! Katie

Thank you! I suppose one is a photographer if one takes photos, but I've not bought any professional cameras or sold anything. Since DuBois bought me Canon Powershot S2 IS 12 X zoom and Olympus SP-550 18 X zoom point-and-shoot cameras I've taken photos but was disappointed in the picture quality, so Gail suggested I buy a DSLR. DuBois' mom sent Christmas money in 2007, so I did research and bought a Canon EOS 40-D camera and Canon EF 400mm f/5.6 L lens in Jan. 2008. It's taken a long time to get the hang of it, and even now, most of the photos have to be deleted-I'll typically take 300 photos and keep 13. At first I used tripods, but now just handhold or brace my arm against my knee. I still have to get VERY close for the photos to look like anything, so it's mostly about knowing the bird calls, habitat, habits, and trying to gain an advantage with height, lighting, etc I try to get close enough to use the auto-focus, but it only works well in strong light, with no surrounding branches. To compensate for my eyesight, I usually twist the manual focus back and forth as I shoot rapidly, in hopes that something will be in focus

Rachel, Great photos of beautiful birds. I saw my first Cerulean 2 years ago while birding/walking where I live and my first ever Blue-wing Warbler flew right into my own yard Thursday while videoing my EBB nestlings fledgling. Unfortunatly, I didn't get a photo, too busy with the fledgling, but it was a sight to behold. Renee