swap gift : : recieved

early on in the swap i was notified that my "sender" had an urgent family matter and would be away from home for some time, and there was a request for a late package... of course that was fine by me... family trumps a swap every time. 

as the time went by though... i forgot all about the swap actually... forgot i had something special coming. and then... on a day when i was feeling a bit overwhelmed by my ever growing "need to do" list and feeling a bit under the weather on top of it... i walked into a quiet house and this package was waiting for me on the table.

at first i thought... i'm not expecting a package... but then it hit it me... why, yes i am!!

as i opened the package, read the card, and poured over the special contents, read the sweet little notes on everything... i started to cry. 

not only is this package from someone i feel like i know and admire (i have been reading and loving her blog for some time now), but it felt as thought she knew me. i realize that the reality is probably that we are similar people with a fondness for the same things... but still. that would not take away from the fact that i love it all SO MUCH!

here's a run down of what was inside...  some lovely tea and the most beautifully colored yarn (color based on "the copper river delta" in alaska) chosen from her favorite shops in alaska while she was there, some lovely fabric for me (in some of my favorite colors), hand dyed play silks for my children. photo cards with her lovely photography, a sweet little gourd from her garden, some blueberry honey lemon sauce (absolutely amazing!!!), and honey from their very first year of beekeeping!! the honey is actually the best i have ever tasted (and so beautifully clear)... i feel so special to get some. you can actually see the process of the honey extraction on her blog here.

thank you so much stephinie! 

and if you haven't been to stephinie's blog yet... you really should visit... i go there often for inspiration... here is a link... http://www.gypsyforest.com/.

also... i would like to give a big thanks to amanda at http://sweetpotatoclaire.blogspot.com/ for organizing this entire thing... and as always... being such a wonderful hostess. amanda's blog is another that i check into often for inspiration... and make sure to stay tuned over there if you are interested in joining a blog swap!