random catch up

   Just returned from the post office with the intention of sending these goodies to Ireland in a Postcrossing swap.

   Those Coconut nest candies are my favorite at Easter (with Cadbury mini-eggs as a VERY close second). Unfortunately, when I got to the post office, I saw that it was missing from my package and that I had left it on my desk. So... I ate it. Sorry if you are reading this Brian! There is also a New England Patriots ceramic magnet in the package. I don't know how I forgot to photograph it. It's been one of those days apparently.   I don't know the user that I'm sending this stuff to so I'm really hoping he likes everything. (In my shopping for this package, I also got suckered into buying about $20 of stencils, stickers and art supplies.) Brain is one of the moderators on the Postcrossing forums so I imagine he does a ton of work with these swaps, many that I have benefited from.

       While I was at the post office, I also picked up their newly released From Me to You stamps. Cute.

     Okay.. I need to force myself to do something productive.. like art or snail mail. lol.

      For my Christian friends, I hope that you have a blessed Easter! What are you doing? My parents and niece are coming to church with us and then coming over for dinner. I'm looking forward to it.

10 minute update- literally

   So, some of my blogging friends have wondered if I've dropped off the face of the earth. March is a super busy month for me. So, why haven't I been writing a lot in Feb or March- in preparation for all the stuff that has to be done. I carved out literally 10 minutes of this afternoon so that I could add some of my cool mail here. If I miraculously end up with more time tonight, which I doubt, I will update my 366 stuff. I just wanted to let you know:
1) I'm alive
2) I miss checking in
3) Thanks for the awesome mail
4) I'm still writing letters/cards so if you're expecting a reply, it should be coming
5) I will emerge again from my season of insanity on April 11.. or 12th depending on if I accept an invitation for the 11th. lol

Here's some of the recent mail:

 Card from a new pal. This is the first mail from her and I look forward to responding!

 Huh? What is this? A package from Peru? Who in the world do I know from Peru? Nobody. Ok, so I rip the parcel open and remember a "mystery envelope" round robin I signed up for. This one wasn't the best loot. I added some postcards and sent it on to Lithuania. Here's what was inside.

 Cool pin

 Self-adhesive bra. This is a first for me.

 Tea

 Ear ring

 Matroyoshka keychain

 bracelet

 washi tape

 Is it weird that these finger puppets from Peru were my favorite things?

 Toys- like the stuff you'd get in a Happy Meal

 Cell phone charm

 Next mail:

 Also from a new pal. Isn't it beautiful!?

 Huh? ANOTHER surprise package? YES!!! It came on a great day too. This was from my friend Ashley and she sent me some awesome music stamps. I'll take a picture and post those later. I might try some gelli plate creativity with them!
Speaking of Ashley- this is today's mail. (AH!!! I'm past my 10 minutes. At the risk of being late for something else...I'm finishing. Have I ever mentioned that I hate being late... or when people are late?) Here's some more Happy mail from Ashley:

 Adorable

 That dress is made of fabric. Your creativity always amazes me

 :)

 Postcrossing card from Singapore. I'm being recruited into the Navy. Cool dragonfly stamp. It shimmers with different angles like real dragonfly wings.

 Il Duomo in Italy.  Beautiful.

 Venice. I've sung at St. Mark's Cathedral. I'm so glad it wasn't flooded when I was there. It was rainy and it smelled gross in Venice I have very strong memories from the day I was there. It was so cool for me to get this card!

Postcrossing card from China. I like the women dancing and the jellyfish stamp.

Ok... 17 minutes until a meeting a mile and a half away. I hope everybody is great. I just realized I have 6!!!! more things I haven't photographed yet. I'll try to do it later tonight. They are also really cool for me. Phew... 15 minutes. I will survive this month.

Outoing mystery envelope and food swap and postcards

Incoming...

     It is not often that I open my mailbox and am greeted by a naked woman. I'm glad Timmy didn't get the mail with me! This is a painting that that is in the Hermitage. It is by Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) It is called The Union of Earth and Water and it was painted around 1618. The people in the bottom of the painting freak me out a bit. 
RU-1434551

Outgoing...

    Have I ever mentioned that I like giving things more than receiving sometimes? Well, I really do like getting mail but I like picking out things that I hope people will like too. Here's my outgoing mail from the past few days:

Mystery Envelope 22-
     I took the postcards, lip gloss and the 5 Spice soup mix. I replaced those with stickers, Oreos (you people are missing out if your country does not sell Oreos... eat with milk.), and Lip Smackers lip balm.

Food Swap Round 5-
     There is a slight chance that this person may check here so I'm not going to say where the swap is going to. I hope the person likes it.

For those of you not from the US- Brach's candy hearts are little, chalky hearts that have words printed on them. They are only sold near Valentine's Day. Teddy Grahams are graham crackers shaped like little teddy bears. My children really like them, though we don't have them often. Graham crackers are kind of like a mix between a cookie and a cracker. Goldfish are small, cheese flavored, salty crackers. Again, my children love them. Spanish Rice mix- flavored with spices that is similar to Cajun cooking.Corn bread mix. I'm not a big fan of cornbread but when I do have it, I like to eat it warm with butter. Hidden Valley Dip can be used for salads, potato chips, vegetable platters, etc. I really like that. Lastly, Oreo cookies, mentioned above. I also threw in some tea and a few pieces of candy including York Peppermint Patty and Reeses's Peanut Butter cups. I can't wait to see where my food is from!

US-2035968

   What do you think the name of this woman should be? Love the skull necklace.  Headed to Russia.
US- 2036926

Headed to Germany. It's a day of odd postcards.

Headed to Monique in The Netherlands. Like my new deco tape?  Cute.

The 366 Project:

Sent: 12
Received:5

     Still on track and looking forward to finishing up with my respond pile :) 

Other...

     We tried the Malaysian 5 spice mix last night. Here's what it looked like:

My plastic, green bowl does not make this look appetizing at all.
Reviews:

Timmy says "It's okay. It's creamy."

David, Mr. "I don't want to eat dinner", said that he really liked it. Then he ate 3 bites and was done..

     I thought it was pretty good. My husband thought that the soup needed more vegetables so he added almost double the vegetables. I thought that made the soup taste too corn-like. I would've preferred to just have it made the way it was supposed to be. He cooked it while I was at a dr's appointment. Matt thought it had some "earthy, Indian tasting spices."  It smelled a little like Ramen noodles.

     Tonight Matt and I are going to a bed and breakfast in New Hampshire and then taking a cooking class tomorrow. Should be fun! I'll update when I'm home.


    

 



 
  

Mystery Envelope 22

Incoming...

     Today I arrived home from work to find a large, stuffed envelope in my mailbox. This is from a round robin I often participate in. One person starts an envelope with 10 items in it and then the envelope passes between 5 other participants before returning home. When you receive the envelope you take out the items that you'd like and replace those items with items of similar value. This envelope started in Japan and has been sent to me by Verlustangst in Malaysia. Here's what was inside:

4 postcards that will be perfect for my A Month of Letters challenge or for Postcrossing.

     A flower handkerchief

 A 5-Spice Mix. I think I'm going to keep this to try it. You cook it with chicken, peas, carrots, mushrooms and baby corn.

 Sorry for the bad picture. This is a bracelet on top of a small patch of bubble wrap.

 These are toothbrush holders. They clip on the top part of the toothbrush and they have a suction cup on the back. Hey Miss Tricia, this could work at the preschool! I love the smiley faces.

 Pencils. I might keep these to give out as student prizes. They'll be excited to know that they're getting something from a different country. (Even though most of the stuff they have is also from different countries)

 Lip gloss. I'm keeping this and I'll probably add in more Lip Smackers from the huge pack I got for the lip balm swap.

 Matryoshka keychain. She was round and wouldn't stay put.

 An expo2012 pin from Korea

 Eyeliner. I couldn't pull off gold eyeliner though I was tempted to see what I would look like

  I will update what I added to the envelope before I send it out. Any suggestions? (It should be pretty light and worth the value of the things I took out.) It will head to The Netherlands, England and Brazil before heading back to Japan. 

Outgoing...

    I have a letter headed out to The Netherlands but I want to wait until I photograph it. I also plan on finishing another letter tonight so I'll take a picture of that too.

The 366 Project 

Sent: 8
Received: 4
    

Other:

     I have decided to join A Month of Letters to help keep me on track in February. It looks fun. If you've ever wanted to start writing, check out the site. If you'd like to send me a letter, or want one from me, message me. (I need to finish catching up with penpals first but I anticipate being caught up before February.)
     Have a great day! Thanks for checking in.