Margaret "Maggee" Miggins

Houses For Sale: 1618 Median Price $359,900

New Homes: 3 Median Price $529,900

Foreclosures: 1.032 Median Price $339,900

Snapshot of NJ Mortgage Rates

15 Year Fixed 6.187%

30 Year Fixed 6.572%

1 Year ARM 5.539 %

Rich in history, the town of Maplewood is home to the historic landmark of The Durand-Hedden House & Garden. This non-profit consists of a historic house from around 1790 that has been restored to show the continuum of its life from 1790 to 1930. They hold open houses are each month with tours, children's activities and country store. School tours are also available, along with a junior docent after-school program for members in third and fourth grade.

More about the Durand-Hedden House & Garden can be found in the book Maplewood, published by Arcadia Publishing in 1999, available from bookstores like Amazon.com.

Open on Sundays from 1-4pm, September through June, the Durand-Hedden House & Garden is located at 523 Ridgewood Road in Maplewood. You can call them at 973-763-7712.

If you feel you cannot move your plants with you to your new home, all is not lost. You can take some cuttings (small clippings) of your favorite plants before giving them away to friends or neighbors. Pack the cuttings in damp paper and place in unsealed padded mailers along with a bit of its original soil, if possible. The clippings can survive like this for several days until you arrive at your new home, and then you can then replant them with plenty of water.

If, instead, you'd prefer to bring your special house plants with you, here are some tips to help keep them safe along the journey:

1. In the weeks or months before moving, take especially good care of your plants to ensure they are strong enough for the move.
2. Several weeks before moving, prune them to make them easier to pack. (Do not prune ferns or succulents, though.) Different plants need to be pruned differently, so consult a gardening book, nursery, or master gardener for advice if needed.
3. Re-pot plants into non-breakable plastic containers. Terra cotta pots are notoriously easy to break, and you don't want your favorite plants to end up dying during the journey because the pot didn't hold up. Thoroughly clean the new pots to eliminate any pest communities that may be lingering in them from prior plants.
4. A week before you plan to move, treat your plants for pests by placing the plants in a large plastic bag and applying a bug strip or bug powder. Seal the bag and leave overnight to ensure a complete kill.
5. If moving in the same town, simply pack your plants in open boxes, cushioning the sides of the pots with newspaper.
6. For taller plants, tie cane to support larger them and minimize damage. If you don't have room for them to ride upright, pack moss into the top of each pot, wrap each pot with plastic, and secure the plastic in place with string or tape. This way you can tip the plant on its side in the car without losing all the potting.
7. If moving in the winter, wrap plants with newspaper before loading them, because even a few seconds of exposure to extreme cold is dangerous to them. If possibly, load your plants while the car is in the garage to avoid outside air entirely.
8. If traveling long distances with plants in a car, the trick is to treat your plants as you would pets--don't let them get too hot or too cold. Leave the windows in the car open slightly when parked, and water them regularly.
9. You can arrange to have plants shipped by land or air, but it's expensive and there are no guarantees. If you want the job done right, its best to do it yourself.
10. Regardless of your method of transportation, the most important thing to do is keep your plants moist constantly. This is best achieved by placing moistened newspapers around the soil and wrapping them around the stalk of the plant.

Yoga is an ancient practice that can benefit mind, body, and spirit. For those interested in the physical and stress-relieving benefits of yoga, Surya Yoga Academy in Summit is a great choice. They aim for an intense and thorough workout in each class. While their Introduction to Yoga classes take place in normal room temperatures, most of their other classes take place in temperatures over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. This is referred to as "Hot Yoga"-a series of yoga poses done in a heated room.

Hot yoga is designed to increase stretching abilities while avoiding injury. Proponents of hot yoga ascribe to the idea that since skin is the largest elimination organ in the body, the intense sweating caused by practicing hot yoga will flush out toxins and help the body regain its normal functioning.

Since sweating is a large component of hot yoga, be sure to being your own yoga mat, wear light clothing, and drink plenty of water before and after class so you don't get dehydrated. It is also best not to eat during the two hours before class.

Surya Yoga Academy's friendly instructors trained with Baron Baptiste, Jimmy Barkan, Bikram, Jivamukti, and Dharma Mitra. Classes offered include hot Hatha yoga, hot power yoga, strength building, hot Vinyasa yoga, hot Hatha flow, and pilates. The first week of unlimited classes is only $25. For more information, visit Surya Yoga Academy's website at www.suryayogaacademy.com, call 908-370-6029, or visit them at 25 Maple Street in Summit.

The Messy Artist, an art studio for kids, focuses on sensory exploration and the process of art. All the art projects we do are open ended in nature, and the children can use the materials in any way they choose. We follow a "hands off" rule and request that adults not to touch their child's artwork and instead create their own projects alongside their children. The Messy Artist believes this approach encourages independence and success, and builds self-esteem.

The Messy Artist program was created by Donna Bernstein, an early childhood educator and child development specialist with a Master of Arts degree and twenty-five years of teaching experience. Donna is also a potter who works in her home pottery studio.

For more information about The Messy Artist, call 973 378-2425, email Donna@themessyartist.com , or visit 60 Valley St. in South Orange.