WooHoo...

...the mailman's just been! I've received 2 long awaited parcels.
The first one came from Cat, "the Gypsynurse". I entered one of her competitions and here's what I won:

Green bangles to remind me of the green of grass; Green Goddess hand and body balm made with tea tree oil & shea butter; a sweetly smelling soy candle along with a Paris "carte postale". All wrapped up in silver paper and sealed two adorable vintage looking stickers. How cool is that!
Cat very generously offered me my choice from her Etsy store. It's well worth a visit. Just click here.
Her blog is also worth reading....whether she's writing about family histories or just about toiling at work. Take a look.
Cat, thank you sooo much for your generosity! I promise to return the favor ...just as soon as I learn to make Hostess Twinkies in miniature! LOL

Now before I show you my other parcel, let me just take a minute to show you the things I received from the ATM Christmas swap.
from Cia:
from Christina:
from Cate:
from Minigirl:
and Anne Mari:Thank you so much ladies! In return I sent them: a grocery basket with a wreath for their front door, wrapping paper and enough goodies to fill 2 Advent plates like these:


...and now are you ready???? Take a look at the card all the way from Amsterdam!!

Inside were not only my 3 pillows but also a fourth showing little Yuki!
The top pillow shows my Tzie, a Shih Tzu that I had for 14 years until she was snatched by dognappers from in front of the house. A medium once told me during a psychic fair....without being asked! and with more details than she could ever have known, that I had a small black and white dog following me. I'm glad because even after all this time I still think about her.
Then from left to right: my current dog Luna-Lei, our new kitten Yuki and finally Puppy Cat. Puppy was a Maine coon who only lived 2 years before dying of cardiomyopathy. This largest breed of cat is genetically prone to heart disease.
Elly, how can I ever thank you!!!!!!! I'll always be grateful!

Elly not only does beautiful needle work, like my pillows. She's also a dollmaker and very talented miniaturist! Please take a look.