Beautiful flowers, Heidi. Thanks for sharing.

Any FOTESS member who wants to play Bingo or Secret Word Bingo, please send me your choices by tomorrow morning. I'll begin drawing words later in the day tomorrow.

Hope everyone is doing well.

Sharing a picture of this beautiful cluster of red roses in bloom today. The rose is Amadeus.

Lovely roses!!

We are starting secret word bingo!

Our first Bingo word is: FREEDOM

The secret word(s) that I assigned to this one were "Of Speech" (Freedom of Speech).

I'll draw again tomorrow.

Our Bingo word for today is BONHOMME. The Secret word that goes along with this is Richard. (Bohomme Richard).

The original Bonhomme Richard was a converted merchant vessel (as were most warships of the Continental Navy), and was commanded by one of the “Fathers of the U.S. Navy," John Paul Jones. He named the frigate, Bonhomme Richard to honor Benjamin Franklin. Bonhomme Richard, which is French for “Good Man Richard,” relates to Benjamin Franklin, who at the time was U.S. Ambassador to France. “Richard” was a pseudonym used by Franklin when he published Poor Richard’s Almanac.

okay i get the game now!!! thanks jeanne.

my rose of sharon came back robust this year! it kept growing from the same stalks as last year so i may have to trim it back as its taking over the front door.

my second newer jasmine did end up surviving the snowpacolypse so i was happy to see that. i tried to grow some things with the paper towel method but everything just got moldy.

we are going to chicago next week so i will pretty much miss fall.planting. we start school the second week of august out here.

Last Day to Sign Up for this Swap is tomorrow - JULY 14.

Our Bingo word for today is FOX and the Secret Word part of it is The Swamp. (The Swamp Fox)

Francis Marion was born at his family’s plantation in Berkeley County, South Carolina in 1732. He was a soldier in the French and Indian War who built up a militia whose undercover tactics and sneaky guerrilla warfare were so effective, he became known as “the swamp fox.” The Marion Militia were so hated and feared by the British troops during the Revolutionary War that Marion himself earned the nickname “Swamp Fox” due to his stealth and cunning.

Today's BINGO word is WASHINGTON.

The Secret Word is George (George Washington).

wow i would not be able to get most of these. lol. so creative jeanne. how are things going with the house sale and thr house hunt. the market is crazy out here. are things more stable there?

weather has been hot over in 8a. i have my spinklers on but dont water my fig plants otherwise. we havent been in the backyard at all this season but are considering a summer grad party for my eldest or a backyard party for my daughter who is 16 once she gets back from summer camp. lets see... in texas though, it gets hotter as the days pass by...

Urooj, I'm still shopping for houses online. I won't put mine for sale until after I know I have a house to move to - things sell too quickly and that seems bad for everyone. Just about none of the houses I look at stay on the market for more than 3 days.

We had another hard rain last evening although the thunder wasn't quite so bad this time.

I'm going to post the Bingo choice and Secret Words for today and then will be back with the list of who each person sends to.

BINGO word is DRUM

Secret Words are FIFE AND (Fife and Drum)

A Fife and Drum Corps is a musical ensemble consisting of fifes and drums. In the United States of America, fife and drum corps specializing in colonial period impressions using fifes, rope tension snare drums, and rope tension bass drums are known as Ancient Fife and Drum Corps. Many of these ensembles originated from a type of military field music.

SWAPPERS

I kept the list the way I last posted it for people who signed up.

I hope I didn't forget anyone. If I did let me know and I will send to you as well.

Jeanne sends to Melinda

Melinda sends to Urooj

Urooj sends to Beth

Beth sends to Mandy

Mandy sends to Jeanne

Please mail by the 19th if you can. I know that's soon, but it seems it wouldn't take very long to select some Red, White, and Blue Recipes and to mail them.

Please post when you mail and when you receive.

Latest hollyhock. Using phone app so I hope this works. Heidi

Melinda, I mailed your recipes today. I hope you enjoy them.

Our BINGO word for today is LIBERTY.

I pulled it from my sugar bowl this morning and forgot that I hadn't posted it yet.

The Secret Word is BELL (Liberty Bell).

SUNDAY SURPRISE: TWO BINGO WORDS TODAY!

Our BINGO words:

EAGLE with the Secret Word being BALD (Bald Eagle)

and

DOODLE with the Secret Wood being YANKEE (Yankee Doodle)

Just a little information I found about Yankee Doodle:

Like many of the songs that have become characteristic of American patriotism, the origins of "Yankee Doodle" lie in old English folk music. In this case, and somewhat ironically, the song emerged before the American Revolution as a vehicle for the British to mock American soldiers. "Yankee," of course, began as a negative term making fun of Americans, although the exact origins of the word are debatable. "Doodle" was a derogatory term that meant "fool" or "simpleton." Even though it began as a song mocking American soldiers, "Yankee Doodle" has become a symbol of American pride. The unforgettable melody has been adapted and performed in theater, by big bands, and other variations of musical performances since its popularization.

Our Bingo word for today is RING.

The Secret Word(s) are The Culper (The Culper Ring).

The Culper Spy Ring was an American spy network operating during the War of American Independence that provided George Washington with information on British troop movements. In November 1778, George Washington appointed Major Benjamin Tallmadge as director of military intelligence, charged with creating a spy ring in New York City, the site of British headquarters.

Received my recipes!! I love them! Esp. The hot German potato salad. My aunt used to make this and never got her recipe. So glad to be able try this one! I also out mine in mail today! Not sure if got it in before mailman came or not, so it'll go today or tomorrow! Have great day all!

My recipes went in the mail today - I hope they arrive safely and soon! :)

Today's BINGO word is COMMANDER.

The Secret Word(s) are "in Chief" --- (Commander in Chief).

Good job, players, there have been 4 correct guesses of the Secret Words so far!

Today's BINGO word is CONTINENTAL. The Secret Word is Congress (Continental Congress). Have a great day!

hey everyone. so sorry i've been MIA. I was out of town for our religious holiday. we decided to head out to chicago to visit family and we out there roughly a week.

Beth I will get your recipes out asap. apologies for the delay.

Jeanne, i have been following your house hunt and I am very happy for you. I know that market is very rough right now and people are in such a bind. you were right to secure a place before listing yours. i wish you all the luck in your upcoming sale! yes you will be digging in some new dirt, isn't that exciting!!!!

Heidi, is that a hollyhock or is that a hibiscus. I was visiting a friend in the city during my trip to chicago and apparently the rose of sharon is a weed out there. they were everywhere and one plant had many many colors. let me post some pics of what i have been seeing these days

in trying to upload pictures from my phone but the website is crashing. also, did anyone notice the new format for messages? they lumped all of our emails with each other together and they are out of order... i was looking for my bingo words... jeez louise... anyhoo, i found them but what a mission.

rose of sharon in the city of chicago

my orchid giving off a new shoot. white orchids are the easiest to maintain by the way.

I need an address for Mandy. ANYONE please send

Mandy I had been out of town for 2 nights and up to NC so anyway, your recipes were here in the mail when I got back and I'll post more about them tomorrow. It has been a long day.

Beth, I have Mandy's address right here in front of me so I'll message it to you.

Posting two BINGO words today since I couldn't do that yesterday. For BINGO:

DECLARATION

ARTICLES

With the secret words:

of Independence (Declaration of Independence)

of Confederation (Articles of Confederation)

finally checked the mail and along with some flyers, a t-mobile payout of 14.99 and a bill for a nordstrom impulse purchase was this beautiful card and some recipes. i love pineapple and i love sweets so these are spot on! great idea sending the preprinted card Melinda. i have a few of those i may be able to send too!

loved the card - a Scarlet Tanager! thank you.

Glad you liked the card and recipes! The one is a recipe book I have, and then has cards in back of all recipes in it. Love it, you can share the recipe and still have yours!

Have great weekend to all!

Updating

Jeanne sends to Melinda - sent & received

Melinda sends to Urooj - sent & received

Urooj sends to Beth

Beth sends to Mandy

Mandy sends to Jeanne - sent & received

And now more about my recipes from Mandy. Love them all and will certainly try some of them because they sound delicious.

Blue Hawaiian Cocktail

Fresh Strawberry Bundt Cake

Raspberry Cheesecake Thumbprint Cookies

A Recipe for Homemade Marshmallows (might need to try this with my granddaughters)

Blueberry Cucumber Salad

And our BINGO word for today is BOSTON.

The secret words are Tea Party (Boston Tea Party).

That's all for now. Lots to do since I was away for a few days.

On my bucket list I always wanted to write a book. It came out this week. Its self published and my first hard copy arrived from Amazon. Just wanted to share my milestone. Chop! Chop! Chaplain. Heidi

Heidi, that is fabulous and from what I know about you, it's a great title! I have written a bit now and then, but never get far enough along to even think about any of it turning into a book. Congratulations! My goal is to write little snippets about myself and experiences and my close family members and what I know of theirs and sort of have that as a part of my family genealogy collection.

Had to mow the lawn today. With all that rain we've had lately, it grew and grew. However, the sun has been out for 3 days in a row now which is nice.

Hope everyone is doing okay despite the storms, fires, floods, COVID related things and everything else going on. Those fires look so frightening. Stay safe everyone!

wow Heidi. nice job. will check it out.

Jeanne, you should not be mowing the lawn. that's crazy with the heat and the amount of land you have.

please forward the homemade marshmallow recipe you received. We have dietary restrictions and cannot have gelatin so i will need to try this homemade recipe.

i took a look at my pathos today and i can't tell if they are getting sun burned because of the window they are by, if they are being eaten by bugs (we've had a ton in the house since we've gotten those house plants) or if its because the cat keeps snipping at them!

getting worried about the COVID surge happening out here and i told the kids today to start masking up again, especially with hubby going to the hospital and the kids going back to school.

SUNDAY SURPRISE: TWO BINGO WORDS TODAY!

(Goodness, this month is going by in a flash!)

REVOLUTION

INDEPENDENCE

The Secret Words are:

American (American Revolution)

Day (Independence Day)

Hopefully we'll have our winners by the end of the week.

Yes, Urooj, so many of us are worrying about COVID once again. With this variant it didn't seem like the right time to loosen so many restrictions. Thanks for worrying about me with mowing, but I only mow a rather small area behind and to the side of the house. Mostly woods, driveway and a bit of garden space on the other two sides. Probably only takes me about 30 min. at the most and that might even include a water break. My lawn mower has the self-propelled feature which I sometimes use if I have to push a bit uphill but most of it is pretty flat. Just about time to start trimming the shrubbery again after all this rain.

Urooj, I checked the marshmallow recipe and it uses unflavored gelatin so I didn't send the recipe to you.

I'm going to start posting 2 BINGO words a day so we can finish the game this week.

For Today:

CHURCH

ALMANAC

The Secret Words are:

Old North (Old North Church)

Poor Richard's (Poor Richard's Almanac)

Have a good day!

These are melon vines over my arch. I had a long talk with them yesterday. I expect more melons and less vines! Or some melons. Cantaloupe, watermelon mostly.

MORE BINGO WORDS

Our BINGO words for today are:

BUNKER

TRUMBULL

The secret words are:

Hill (Bunker Hill)

John (John Trumbull)

John Trumbull was an American artist of the early independence period and a veteran of that war, notable for his paintings of the American Revolutionary time period. He has been called "The Painter of the Revolution". His Declaration of Independence which hangs in the U.S. Capital Rotunda is also found on the reverse of the United States $2 bill.

Watching for other recipes to be sent and received. Have a good day.

Here's a recipe that doesn't use gelatin for the marshmallows. :) https://www.seriouseats.com/vegan-marshmallows-recipe

They do note that using agar will cause the texture to change some.

Good morning! Hot and humid weather here these days. It's hard to deal with especially when I have so much to do.

Anyway, here are the BINGO words for today:

FIREWORKS

VOTE

The Secret Words are:

Display (Fireworks Display)

Right to (Right to Vote)

I'll be back with more words tomorrow.

Recipes mailed to Msndy Sorry got the delay but life got in the way

Thanks for posting that you mailed, Beth.

Here are the BINGO words for today:

ANTHEM

STARS

The Secret Words are:

National (National Anthem)

and Stripes (Stars and Stripes)

We are getting close to having someone with Bingo!

I'll be back with more words tomorrow.

Here are the BINGO words for today:

CONSTITUTION

FORGE

The Secret Words are:

Avenue (Constitution Avenue)

Valley (Valley Forge)

We are getting close to having someone with Bingo!

I'll be back with more words tomorrow. I'm almost certain someone will have Bingo tomorrow.

July is drawing to a close and I will Post for August sign ups tomorrow afternoon or evening. Theme will be "Players Choice"......"Bingo" of course and a very small mailable swap.

Updating

Jeanne sends to Melinda - sent & received

Melinda sends to Urooj - sent & received

* Urooj sends to Beth

* Beth sends to Mandy - sent

Mandy sends to Jeanne - sent & received

* I'll check more about these later today. I may have missed seeing a post or two.

And now. BINGO for the last posting of the month.

Today's words are:

AMERICA

COMMON

The Secret Words are:

the Beautiful (America the Beautiful)

Sense (Common Sense)

Winner of the Secret Word is Melinda with an incredible 8 correct secret words out of the 15 choices she made. Congratulations, Melinda!

Waiting to see who posts having BINGO.

Thank you!

Bingo!!

I received the recipes from Beth today - they sound wonderful! Rhubarb Bars, Buttermilk Pie, and Easy Blueberry Dessert. No worries on the delayed sending - it wasn't a probem for me. And it even arrived during the month! I love the cute card too. :-) I hope everyone had a great July!

Melinda has won BINGO, too! Congratulations, Melinda. It may take me a few days to send out prizes, but happy for you on the wins --- especially with this being the first time of trying Secret Word Bingo.

A great big Thank You to Jeanne for the cardinal basil seeds and wonderful 1000 piece puzzle! Has American Flag in it. Called Love Letters from Laramie! I will enjoy putting that together!! Thank you so very much for great gifts!!!