Packages received while I was on vacation... (entry #2 of the long blog post!)

Incoming:
    When I returned from vacation I was super excited to find 2 presents for me! The first was an envelope I received in exchange for sending a chocolate bar to another Postcrossing member in Russia. I told her to surprise me and send me what she would like to send. Here's what she sent:

    It is 3 first edition stamps from China. I REALLY liked the envelope one. It represents a Chinese shadow play. Then there is a magnet, a picture taken in the clouds about Russia and a postcard, and the last is a postcard of Russian samovars. A samovar is a heated metal container used to heat and boil water.  Very pretty.

     The second package is one that I have been looking forward to for a while. It is what I received in my Food Swap (also through Poscrossing). The package is from Miia in Finland, who also happens to coordinate the swap. (Kiitos Miia!) Here's what was in the envelope:

  Starting from the top left- dried cranberries and a vanilla sauce. 2nd row- Pasta/vegetable/spice mix, organic onion soup and creamy pepper dip. Bottom row- 5 packets of soup (1 packet didn't make it since I ate it already!!!) The flavors were strawberry vanilla (which was the one I had eaten. I'm lucky enough to have another one because it was delicious; a bit thicker and creamier than I expected. It also didn't taste like "fake strawberry" flavorings that you might taste here.), salmon (a little nervous about trying this one), raspberry/blueberry and cheddar&broccoli.
   Knowing I was going to post this tonight, and strictly for the sake of sharing with all of my friends ;), I made a cup of the raspberry/blueberry soup so you can see. It came as a powdered soup mix:

Then you add almost a cup of boiling water. You'll notice that you can see the skin from the blueberry and the seeds from the raspberries. (Sorry for the bubbles. I apparently got really excited while stirring.)

    If it didn't taste so good by itself I may have added some whipped cream or a little vanilla ice cream but I really enjoyed it the way it was.

Outgoing:
    While I'm discussing packages, I sent a package to my second soldier, Thomas,  through Adopt a US soldier.  He requested that I send some snacks, which can be a quick way to boost morale. Here's the package:

 
     This contained oatmeal cremes, sunflower seeds, jelly beans, pretzels, slim jims, wafer cookies, peanuts, cheez doodles, and a few other things at the bottom! If you are interested in sending a package to a soldier, I would recommend getting a box that looks like this:

     When you send it priority mail, it will only travel "priority" in the US, but it is a set price so you don't have to pay by weight. (Pack it up as full as you can!) They also give you a discount of a few dollars if you are sending it out to a member of the military.  
     Hope you enjoy the package Thomas. Hopefully you'll receive it as a surprise before you see this post!