Yay!! Winning is a great thing! I honestly thought I'd miss more than two. Tough questions, Katie!

It's Friday, two days free, I am so grateful!

Shirley!

Congrats, Shirley!

Congratulations Shirley.

erica, my package has been sitting on my table ready to go but I have not been successful in finding a box the size I need. It's in a folded up large padded envie and I don't think the post office would like it sent like that. Lol I think I will buy a good padded envie tomorrow to mail it in. I will let you know as soon as I can. Margo

Margo - It happens to the best of us! I often find myself scrounging around the house for appropriate sized packing materials. There's no rush though. Take your time. :)

I say this little guy go from the Esperanza, zinnia, ROS, salvia and even the bean flowers.

Great shot Ruth. That's not easy to do.

Katie, I think just watching your posts of the wonderful meals you guys have has made me put on 10 pounds. LOL

Erica, I put your items in a padded envie and weighed it. Shipping to you might just be a little cheaper with a flat rate padded envelope, (like more than 50% cheaper) so I am going to the post office to pick up an envelope in the morning. I will mail your package either tomorrow or Tuesday before work and will let you know once that is done.

I did a 5k last night with a friend. I fast walked with her for about a mile and a half and then finished the rest running. She came in five minutes after me and both of us felt we had finished faster than usual. As we were standing there discussing it a guy went down with what looked like a heart attack. My friend is a nurse so she went over to see what she could do. His heart stopped so she had to do CPR until the ambulance came which seemed like forever. She thought it did not look good for him but I read on our running group facebook page that he is is the hospital under doctors care. I sure hope he pulls through. I am so proud of my friend and the fact that she might just have saved this mans life. There was a reason she finished faster because no one else seemed to have the skills to save him.

I hope everyone had a good weekend. Margo

Good Morning and Happy Monday!

Did everyone have a nice weekend? The weather was beautiful here.

Ruth, great shot of the hummer, they are so hard to get pics of!

Margo, yes, I think your running buddy was in the right place at the right time!

Katie, your "For the Birds" package is going out today, right under the wire, so to speak!

Have a great day,

Shirley!

I finally did it. I gave up on a box and everything is in a padded envelope and postage is on it. I am mailing it on my way out of town this afternoon.

DC 9405503699300128961206

Since I am mailing it this evening, they won't collect it til the morning so my guess is it will arrive on Thursday although they really don't get these packages there in 2 days like they claim so Friday maybe? We will see. At least I managed to get it off just by deadline.

Beautiful weather here today. Let's hope the weather is perfect for the day of the wedding. :)

Margo

Katie, your bird package is on its way! I have the DC# if we need it.

Shirley!

Good Morning FOTESSERS,

So sorry, I have not been checking in....visitors in town and still coming for the next few days.

I came home last night to a fun box....a very fun "For The Birds" box from Jaime! Very, very nice!!

* a lovely note

* a Songbird Mini Bird Feeder...I do not have one like this!!!

* a HUGE bag of Wild Bird Feed

* plant labels

* a package of water beads (for cuttings and cut flowers)

* lots and lots of seed baggies....in four, yes four different sizes

* Flower seeds named after birds, Rooster Tails, Hummingbird Bird Texas Sage, Blue Bird Forget Me knot

* Seeds Jaime thought I would enjoy, Pink Bonnet Columbine, Gaillardia, Common Milkweed, Love In A Mist Jewel Mixture, Pink Milkweed, Mc Kanna;s Columbine.....fantastic selection!

* Werther's Caramel Coffee candy.....I love sucking on these!!

* A very cool solar bird on a long stake that you can place in a planter or container. After the stake was attached, the height is about 2 ft. The bird changes colors. Simply lovely!!!!!!! Late last night, I popped this beauty in to the top of my of my large succulent containers which sits on top of a palm tree stump off of the patio. I just love this!!! And I have never seen this in any store. I will try to get a pic of it at night. You packed it well!

*And speaking of succulents, Jaime sent me Crassula String Of Buttons......love!

What a wonderful "For The Birds" surprise. Jaime, you over did it.....so very generous!

Thank you so very much!!

Darrin, I checked your tracking #. It says your package was delivered last Thursday. Shocking for the PO to deliver ahead of schedule. Possibly, you are out of town.....If for some reason, you did not receive, let me know. Hope all is well!

Katie, gotta love those Shishitos!!!!!

Happy Tuesday!!

Annie

I am so glad you are enjoying your bird box! Exactly what I was aiming for. I would love to see that beautiful bird lit up at night when you get a chance. I bet it is gorgeous!

Thank you Katie for hosting this swap. It has been an awesome swap!

Holy carp (a blessed fish, as everyone knows),...Annie, what a wonderful --heavy-- package you sent!! Received it, as you noted, five whole daze ago (geez). I offer no excuses, just profuse apologies. :( If it helps at all, Elly has already jumped my case right-good-n-proper.

This being meekly-n-humbly said, check out what Annie sent, y'all:

- Package Contents -

-One honkin' gorgeous chunk (Elly sez a full yard) of Flamingo themed fabric, ostensibly

intended for me to employ its graphic elements when making greeting and or GW swap cards, etc. Seriously? As soon as Elly saw it, it instantly flew out of my hands at near warp speed! LOL! Even so, I still totally do intend to utilize as much of it as I can, likely as was originally suggested (what a great idea!).

-Black Oil sunflower seeds (like a 2,000-lb bag of them). Practically every bird loves these,

especially Scrub Jays, which are one of my favorite birds. Clever critters, they are!

-"Red Blooming Iris" starts. Yayyy! Red!!! :)

-Birds-n-flowers and Ladybug 3-D stickers. Love `em! Gonna use `em to be sure! :)

-A beautiful homemade card, featuring embossed silver-metallic butterfiles.

-Tomato seeds:

"Bonny Best" - The famous old canning tomato that was selected out of Chalk's Early Jewel by one George W. Middleton and introduced in 1908 by Walter P. Stokes seed house. It became one of the most respected canning varieties in America in the first half of the twentieth century. Medium-sized fruit are round, red, meaty and loaded with flavor. A good producer that makes a fine slicer too. Becoming hard to find due to modern, flavorless hybrids.

"Delicious" - 90 days. This tomato was developed many years ago by Burpee's from "Beefsteak" tomato, after 13 years of selection for smoother fruit. This really big tomato produces huge 1-to 3-lb fruit that are fairly smooth for a giant tomato, and as the name implies, these are delicious! In 1986 it set the world record for weight, with a giant 7 lb 12 oz fruit! Image provided by www.abundantacres.net

"Blue Beauty" - 80 days. This recent Brad Gates introduction was selected from a cross between ‘Beauty King’ and a blue tomato. Fruits are modest beefsteak-type slicers, weighing up to 8 ounces, and the flavor is as good as their outstanding anti-oxidant content! Gorgeous, deep blue-black shoulders make this unique among slicing types. Excellent potential for market, as the fruits hold well on the vine. Sunburn- and crack resistance are a welcome bonus.

"Break O Day" - A high producing heirloom that was introduced in 1931. Flame-red, smooth, globe-shaped fruit are very uniform and beautiful, perfect for marketing. Heirloom tomato expert, Dr. Carolyn Male, calls it "A workhorse of a tomato." The flavor is rich and tangy, great for canning.

I've never tried any of these,...yet. Guess which tomatoes I'll be planting come Spring, hmmm?! Along with several select others, of course.

-A box of rooted succulent-starts. Gonna be fun growin' them babies!

-Plus, printed diabetic recipes for "Hummingbird Cake", "Brick in the Wall Bird with Salsa

Verde" and "Bird in a Pie".

-BIG OL' WOW, Annie! Such wonderful birdsy goodies and surprises!!! Thank you, lots-n-lots and even more! - I'll post pictures of everything later.

Shirley,...I finally received the last object I ordered for you in today's mail. Now, I just have to pack everything up and include a note or two. - BTW, have you ever done "cross stitch" embroidery?

I received my package from Ruth yesterday and she stuck right to the theme and in such a cute way. She included the following along with explanation

Sunflower seeds for food. My hubby and I decided to make a garden next year devoted to sunflowers and these will definitely be included.

Bird house gourd seeds to make a birdhouse. My birds will love this.

Cardinal flowers seeds for nectar. She also included a cute bookmark with a cardinal and other birds on it and a pen with a cardinal head on it, so cute.

There was also another bird bookmark as well as a Birds and Bloom magazine. I used to get this magazine so was excited to receive this.

Ruth, not only do I thank you for this great package but my bird friends will as soon as I get all the wonderful goodies growing for them.

Margo

Katie, I received my prize today. I love it and you know how much Robins mean to me. Thank you so much.

Evening, All!

Wow, some really nice bird packages being sent! This has been a great swap!

Darrin, yes, I do cross stitch, but it's been a long time since I've done a piece.

It got VERY cold here, I came home yesterday and turned my little heater on. Got out the flannels too! It's supposed to warm up by the weekend, really hope so. My Monarchs and hummers have all disappeared!

Have a great evening, everyone and a great Wednesday!

Shirley!

Darrin, great....I am glad you received your birdie package. The reblooming iris are NOT RED.....must have been my handwriting. I believe they are white....I think "Immortality".

Katie, this has been an awesome swap...THANK YOU!

Happy Thursday!!

Annie

My package from Katie came today, and Wow.

She sent a copy of her favorite bird field guide, a smaller companion book, a journal and bird stamps. Plus a pretty card and handwritten note.

I do a lot of bird watching, so these will certainly be used. I love it all.

Thank you so much.

I received a great package today from Margo: motion activated owl ornament, an informative book on birds, a planner, several packs of seeds, and my very favorite -- a humming bird pot hanger!

Much thanks for such a lovely and useful pack. I can hardly wait to get the pot hanger up and get some of these flowers planted! I'm about to crack open the book and check out some of the recipes. A brief glance revealed an upcycled humming bird feeder that looked amazing.

Update on our swap sending:
Ruth sends to Margo -- Ruth SENT; Margo REC'D
Margo sends to Erica -- Margo SENT; Erica REC'D
Erica sends to Jamie -- Erica SENT, Jamie REC'D
Jamie sends to Annie -- Jamie SENT, Annie REC'D
Annie sends to Darrin -- Annie SENT; Darrin REC'D
Darrin sends to Shirley -- Darrin SENT
Shirley sends to Katie -- Shirley SENT; Katie REC'D
Katie sends to Ruth -- Katie SENT; Ruth REC'D

Looks like some really fabulous packages have been sent for this swap! I love the bird creativity.

Well folks, I came home to find a great package from Shirley yesterday. It was so late, tho, that I decided to wait until today to post about it. Shirley sent a very birdie package: Her famous homemade cards, which I always love; bird stickers from photos she took herself!!; Bird bookmarks, a bird coloring book (which I will share with my nephew; and perhaps my favorite is the bird magnet!! This is going on the fridge with the other Fotess magnet I received from Shirley a few years ago.

Ruth -- so glad you like your package! I thought you might enjoy those things :)

I still have a few prizes left to mail out, but after the day today, I am tired!

Not sure if you've seen it in the news yet, but we had quite the scare today. Even though I work for the feds, we are housed on the campus of Mississippi State University. I was out working in our aviary on campus with a group of 6 co-workers when we received notification that there was an active shooter on campus. We were instructed to lock down the facility, take cover and not allow anyone access. By lunch, the incident was over. As it turns out, the suspect was apprehended shortly thereafter. Although he was threatening suicide and homicide, no shots were fired, he did not have a gun, and nobody was injured. I think the *entire campus* breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Ahhh! No! LOL! Haven't sent to Shirley, yet! That comes tomorrow, actually. --wiping brow--

Woo hooo!! Shirley, your box is now finally on its way!

Tracking # 9534 6130 0824 5240 0388 29

I was told you should receive it by next Friday. Hopefully it will be worth the wait. :)

Morning All and Happy Saturday!

Darrin, I'll be looking for the package and I know it will be great!

Katie, glad you enjoyed the package, have fun with it! And before I forget: Why did you choose Sibley? I have a Kaufman guide, bought it mostly because I needed one, and Ken Kaufman is very well known down at Magee, in the Black Swamp Bird Observatory group. Not sure if I like it or not.

It's warmed up a bit here, the Monarchs are back and I saw one lonely Hummer sail thro. More garden cleanup to do this weekend, can't believe it's time to start all that !

Have a great weekend, Everyone

Shirley!

Good Morning everyone. It's almost September and I want to invite everyone to come back on Tuesday to sign up for the Fun, Falling for Fall....FOTESSS Swap.

Bethb

Sounds great, Beth, can't wait to see what you have in store for us!

Shirley!

The air quality here has been totally foul for daze from all the smoke-n-ash in the air due to the many wildfires up around our neck of the woods (or, anyway, at least what's left of the woods). Last night, though, it finally rained, and today it has been quite windy off-n-on, and all the nasty smoke went awaaaayyyyy. Yay! Consequently, Elly and I got a lot of yard work done. Trimming, pruning, weeding and disposing of our dried-out, spent snow-pea vines. Good to finally be able to do it all, but very tiring, as well, of course. Following this we went to Arby's. Now that we're home, not sure I can stay awake for a whole lot longer. :)

Annie, I'm still aiming to photograph the goodies you sent, this evening,...hopefully soonish.

Yesterday was what we refer to as a "Roy Day", where Roy goes into total meltdown mode over something. `Nuff said. - Main thing is, I managed to get Shirley's package mailed! Woot!!

Wow Katie, I am so glad to hear that incident turned out not to be tragic. So much of that around the country and it's hard to think someone I know actually experienced that fear. I just hope the person gets the help they need.

Darrin -- ooops, sorry! I guess I was jumping the gun... but, I knew you were close!!! Nice to hear you received some rain and it cleared the air. Bummer about the Roy Day. I think you and Elly must be saints :)

Shirley, I have used 4 different bird guides (Nat. Geo, Peterson's, Kaufman's, and Sibley The Sibley bird guide is my favorite for a couple of reasons: I like the maps on the same page as the birds, and the illustrations are the best I've seen for identification. I use it the most, and because of that, have become extremely familiar with it (which also helps with speedy ID). Btw, I got your email today and replied!

Margo, yours thoughts are my thoughts exactly re: the incident at MSU!

Beth, can't wait to see what you have in store for September.

Shirley & Erica, your prizes are packed up and will be mailed out tomorrow. I just have to print the labels at work tomorrow. Still haven't unpacked the printer at home. LoL!!

Katie -- Much thanks! I'll be keeping an eye out in the next few days.

Beth -- Excited to see what you have planned for us!

Hello FOTESS! I just stopped in to say Hello! and see how the summer has been treating everyone.... I have kept busy with... gardening, canning, sending my Daughter off to college... now an empty "nester" it seems ironic to renew connections with this group as the August swap For the Birds wraps up... I did want to let everyone know that my Milkweed patch is sending seeds off via the valley breezes and if any of you FOTESS members are interested in receiving any... just let me know and I will send you some... Just let me know.... Peggy/Canfan

Katie, I know this swap is over, but I wanted to share this picture I took today and see what your thoughts are on this bird. Going to look in my books as soon as dinner is over. Is it a

Pyrrhuloxia

Cardinalis sinuatus

Okay,...I'm finally, FINALLY ready to post photos of the rippin' kewl goodies Annie sent me for this swap.

Annie, apologies for having taken so long! Let me know if I've inadvertently missed something.

Thanks Katie. The beak is what made me think it might be a Pyrrhuloxia. We have a lot of cardinals in the yard year round and I'be never noticed one that looked like this before. Also thought it might just be sick.

Thanks again to Katie for a job well done. This swap was a total success and I had a great time.

Margo

Shirley, USPS tracking says your package was delivered to your front door/porch! Beats waiting for two more days. :) Enjoy!

Evening, Everybody!

First of all, HI Peggy! Nice to hear from you! Beth just posted the September FOTESS swap, why don't you join us this month!?

Secondly, Annie, I have that Butterfly embossing folder, never thought to use my silver paper with it! Is it silver paper or foil?

And thirdly, and most importantly, yes, Darrin, the package was waiting for me when I got home today and I have to tell you, I was astounded and thrilled at all the goodies you and Ellie packed in there! Good Grief, what a fantastic package! My pictures don't do it justice, but I'll post them anyway. But first, Darrin, don't stress about the Cerulean Blue notecards, I've received them like this before, nothing is wrong with them! And secondly, what is the little ladybug ornament/jewelry? I can't figure it out.

In any event, Ladies, Darrin and Ellie sent me two packs of notecards, one with beautiful flowers and the other has a picture of the Cerulean Blue Warbler on them. Really pretty!

Also, two beautiful hummingbird picks/stakes, with fluttery wings, will save these for my containers next year.

A motion activated robin, another beautiful butterfly bookmark, a very unique pair of tweezers two little keychain lights and a 6 inch ruler with chicks on it were also included.

They sent me a cross-stitch pattern for a Cerulean Warbler, which I'm not going to start until I retire next year. Great project for winter and it will give me some time to review how to do this! Ellie, where did you find this pattern?

We're not done yet! I got two packs of seeds: Firecracker Penstemon, for the Hummers, and Evening Star sunflower seeds!

6 packages of hot chocolate mix, a gazillion assorted flavored teabags and 2 Dove bars! If it weren't 97 in the shade, I'd be enjoying one of these now!

And my favorite out of the whole glorious package, a beautiful white ceramic mug with a pic of the Cerulean Blue Warbler on it! Darrin, this is so pretty! And I can tell you read my post about the Warblers being one of my favorite birds! How sweet of you guys to take the time and trouble to find something you knew I would like. This mug will always be special to me.

Darrin and Ellie, I can't thank you enough for this package, I never expected all of this and I am thrilled with all of it. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

Shirley!

Okay, I'm having trouble posting the pictures. I'll be back as soon as I figure it out.

WhooHooo!! Did it! Isn't that mug lovely?

"But first, Darrin, don't stress about the Cerulean Blue notecards, I've received them like this before, nothing is wrong with them! And secondly, what is the little ladybug ornament/jewelry? I can't figure it out."

The little glass ladybug is just as you speculate,...a bit of ornamentation,...maybe something for a necklace, a bookmark tassel, an attachment for a gardening hat, a zipper pull,...follow your fancy!

"They sent me a cross-stitch pattern for a Cerulean Warbler, which I'm not going to start until I retire next year. Great project for winter and it will give me some time to review how to do this! Ellie, where did you find this pattern?"

Actually, Elly didn't. I found the picture online and used "PCStitch" to render the patterns. - I learned how to cross stitch from Elly's brother, Bob, years ago. I've done quite a few pieces, even using waste canvas, most of which have been given as gifts. Haven't done it for a long while, though, myself, either. We still have many purchased pattern books and a fair-to-middlin' selection of DMC floss. Painting with thread!

Darrin, how neat that you cross-stitch! And thanks for answering the questions. I think I'll let Tabitha and Myrna decide what to do with the Lady Bug trinket!

Have a great Wednesday, All, hopefully it will cool down here!

Shirley!

Hi All!

Just checking in. At work (chaplain at beef processing plant) we are recruiting Burmese (Burma/Myanmar). Many have come to America as refugees. Another beef plant closed in Iowa so we are recruiting, but the housing market where I live is so tight it squeaks. Our plant is 70% Hispanic-Mexico, Guatemala, Puerto Rico, Cuba), 20% African (Somali/Sudan) and 10% Other (White/Asian). We need more people and with the turnover rate this is where we are at. So I have become Housing Heidi! Lots of history here-landlords with bad experiences before, being sensitive to both sides. Our "transitional housing" (a motel that rents by the night or the week is nearly full, too. I wouldn't wish that place on anyone, but it's better than homeless. So I think of all of you, but I haven't been here as often. Also adopting a few newbies and mailing seeds! What fun!

Oh, and the Burmese are Christians! Woot! Woot! More believers praying in my plant! Professionally I love everybody. As a believer-welcome to the club! So glad to have you!

Park beds are doing well. Just need more time!

Heidi

Heidi, thanks for sharing that. Three summers ago I worked with a group of ladies and one young gentleman from Sudan. What fantastic workers! And, such pleasant cheerful folks. I really enjoyed them. Certainly would have had more if possible. You have quite a challenge with the housing and a reward in working with enthusiaistic (SP?) Christians.

Shirley, I will sware you gifted me with that butterfly card (that I sent to Darrin). I know I did not make it, as I am not that talented. I am pretty sure it was paper, not foil. I LOVE your cards!!!!

Happy day to all.....Thanks again Katie for a wonderful month of August.

Annie

Katie -- Wow! Thank you so much for the beautiful hummingbird feeder.

Katie, what a great prize! Thank you! I use these suet cages the most, and can hardly wait to try your recipe. The small cages are also easy for Tabitha and Myrna to fill; they always help me set up the feeders!

And I can hardly wait to start reading the Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior! What a great book! And I think that's a Hooded Warbler on the front!

Thank you, Katie, and one more THANK YOU for hosting August!

Shirley!