Merry Christmas.. to me! :-)

I attended the Portland Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution meeting today at the Red Lion Hotel near the Convention Center.  It was fun as everyone was wearing Christmassy things and we had a silent auction and we all brought an ornament to share and sang a carol or two.  It was another brilliantly sunny day and I pulled over alongside the Sandy River on the way home to snap this photo.  The sun sparkling on water is one of my favorite things.  What is yours?

When I arrived home, there were 3 packages and a card awaiting me!  This box below is from Lucy R. in Essex UK - they had a Swap in the "We Love Lucy" group on Ravelry and I sent a box to Lucy and she sent me this.. ohhhh.. fun! 

Talk about fun, to open a box from someone from a different country who has tried to learn about you by visiting your blog and reading about your likes and dislikes.. and to see what they put together for you!  She wrapped everything in this wonderful printed linen - I'll show you more of it soon... 

I opened the card and this absolutely DELIGHTFUL card that you open up and it makes a 3D snow globe.. it's so neat and I've never seen anything like it! :-) 

Lucy had wrapped everything is pretty tissue.. and packed it in pretty red shredded tissue. 

Here is the printed linen.. with scenes from Lucy's home area.  Oh how I'd love to visit there! 

3 adorable Christmas themed stitch markers!   

4 lovely squishy organic cotton skeins.. ohhh.. yum! 

Look at this FAB handpainted glass ornament with a British flag on it.. it will take pride of place on my Christmas tree and I'll think of Lucy each time I see it.  AND it's from Sainsbury's which I've heard of but never seen.

Then.. another fun thing.. a puzzle ball.. can't wait to put this together as I love puzzles! 

She included this fun publication so we can learn about Essex.. and of course I adore anything coastal and light-house-y! :-) 

Also in the box was this fun post card with a map so I can see where things are. 

And I was thrilled with this GREAT little cookbook.. it has recipes from each County in her area - I handed it to hubby and suggested he might try some of these.. LOL!  He read all the titles and we both enjoyed the names of things immensely. 

Such as "Essex Meat Layer Pudding".   

Here is a group shot of everything.. plus the "Wishes" chocolate.. except for 2 things that I didn't get in this photo... 

2 precious and wonderful hand-crocheted stocking ornaments!  What is fun, is these are so very similar to ones I've made, but special to me as Lucy made them!

Lucy.. *T*H*A*N*K* * *Y*O*U*!*!*!* so very much!  I love everything so much!!  I can't wait to hear that you've received the box I sent to you.  *<[]:{D
==================
I also received a vintage cherub ornament from Italy - this one is tiny - that I found on Etsy.com.

I also got my 3rd ornament in a swap in the "We Love Lucy II" group on Facebook. This one is from the swap organizer, Dionne L.  - she also included a neat crochet hook with a pretty swirl design down the center!  Thanks, Dionne!

At the DAR meeting today I got this crystal candle holder in the silent auction - it's an Oleg Cassini design. 

And.... a huge bag of baby colored yarn was given to me by the sweet Sandy D.  There must be 20-25 skeins in there.  She bought it to make a baby thing for her granddaughter, who is now a teen and so she needs different colors.  She knows I make a lot of baby gifts. Wasn't that nice???

And lastly, I just had to show you -- my younger sister Denise's son, Shane, is on a 6 week trip touring SE Asia and sent us this photo.  Roar! Scary!  The next day he sent a photo of him riding an elephant!  What a kid! 

And so my friends.. time for me to relax.  This social whirl has made me tired. :-)  Time for me to "blob" and take it easy.  Love and hugs all around.. 

:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦:

  *M*E*R*R*Y* *C*H*R*I*S*T*M*A*S*!*

:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦:-·-:¦: 

((hugs)), Teresa :-)