I love these threads too! Mr Morton, Yeah! for Benjamin! I still remember helping my kids to learn to ride their bikes. My son went straight from training wheels to BMX racing. Gosh, he was a little dare devil :0 I have had a lot of dragonflies in my garden this summer too. They never sit for very long except in the evening and then I find them resting on some of the rocks in the flower beds. Of course as soon as I try to get a closer look they begin the same dance that you describe. Your garden sounds really lovely even in the fall Mr.M. All of your planning and rearranging has paid off eh? Annette, it sounds like your garden, too, is hanging on well into the fall season. Your husbands work sounds really interesting. I too would love to see some pictures of your pretty bowl. Jean, Aww, it's so hard letting go after all the years you've hung on and hung in trying to get them to this point in life. Have faith...he'll do fine. Sending you good thoughts for your tests tomorrow. I had cervical cancer two years ago so I know how much anxiety goes along with these things. Rainey, Happy Anniversary! And also, congratulations on rescuing that swing from the trash heap! You have the best luck with finding great things. And Congratulations TM!! A sweet new baby to cuddle and spoil. How lucky you are! Tracy, What colors are you using on your new home? Have you taken before and after pictures for us??? LOL I've never heard of a costume wedding. How fun! How about going as Fred Astair and Ginger Rogers? Gardening is pretty much over for me. Rabbits got all my seedlings that I started last month. Just petunias and BES blooming now. We are getting plenty from the garden now but we are just eating as it comes. I'm not doing any canning this year as I just don't feel up to it but I have put several quarts of tomatoes in the freezer. They'll come in handy this winter for soups and chili. I've been helping my daughter plan her January wedding via email and phone. Not what I had envisioned when I thought of her future wedding while she was a small girl but it is none the less coming together. I have started on a Double Wedding Ring quilt for her. Her colors are Husker red (big big fans) and white with touches of silver so I am doing the arcs on the quilt all in shades of red. I have everything cut and just began the piecing yesterday so I have a ways to go on it. I hope she loves it when it's done. I am using my machine to piece it and will do all the quilting by hand. My DD2 started high school two weeks ago and she loves it. The first couple days were difficult for her but she's settling in well. There are 8 girls in her freshman class and 24 boys...YIKES! LOL We've been teasing that each of them will have three dates a piece for Prom next spring. This next week I will be going to the city for more tests (CT's) on my spine. Also I will have my second year follow-up, check-up since having cancer in 2005. Wish me luck! MeMo

hmmmmm, I didn't realize until just now that we've got ourselves a couple of celebrities in the pool. Bunny and Linda are sooooo obviously related to Mel Brooks!!! LOL!!! I'm awarding Diene 40 points for all of her research, and Vic gets 76 points for what turned out to be an open book quiz. QUESTION #7: Who made the following quote? 50 points. "We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature." And yes, if I seem to be absent occasionally, it's probably because I've been on the phone quite a lot with Paula. This "phone-dating" is very different, but it's what we're able to do now. 40 days until I get to see her!!! Oh, yeah!!! Linda, thanks for sorta kinda keeping me grounded in this. It's nice to know someone's been here before. Even better to know your results were so good!!! As for my garden, the flowers are beginning to bloom, my corn and punkins are growing, and I'll be able to start picking lettuce sometime later this week! MMMMMM, ever have a lettuce sandwich? Man, they are good!!! Two pieces of bread, apply mayo or miracle whip, whichever you prefer, and pile on the freshly picked lettuce! DEE-LISH-ISS!!! Oops! Gotta go! Phone's ringing! (grinning ear to ear)

Margo-Congratulations on your first grandchild -soon-to-be. So sad to hear about your bird....I love when they can talk to you that is so cool. We get so attached to our pets and it is hard when we lose them. Hugs coming your way. Thanks for all the happy anniversaries...I remember when Eddie asked me to marry him and I said no way. I hate needles and told him no blood tests for me. He said he knew we could go to SC and not have to get blood tests so that is what we did. Jeanne-lets pray the treatments get scheduled soon. Keep us updated. Glad you received the daylily and hope you see tons of blooms. WE have had so much rain it is unreal. I don't know if my bearded irises can withstand all this rain, they are bad to get bacterial soft-rot with too much rain. Sue G - I received the daylilies and will ship out your Freda James Daylily Monday. Thanks A Halloween anniversary sounds interesting. Eddie always says everyone celebrates our anniversary with all the fireworks. Shirley

Just heard from the principal - form letter he has to send out, no ramifications, he just wanted to make sure we were aware in case we were keeping DS home from school if/when he just was too tired or vague "didn't feel well." Said he might have to contact me again and discuss the "problem" if DS misses school regularly (he gave example of a couple of days each week!) for the rest of the school year, but if he gets sick again and he has to be out 3 days next month, no problem, just call in each day like we've been doing, no dr's note required, no summer school, nothing. He said the average number of sick days (roughly, off the top of his head) in his school was 5! With the flu and the stomach bug going around this year, I find it hard to believe that was it, though like I said it's been a rough year (not just for DH - some schools around here closed in October since over 30% of the students had the flu).