Let Us Give A Blog Of Thanks

I have undeservedly received a cartload of goodies from across town and across the world this month, and have neglected to give adequate thanks because of various family and personal situations largely beyond my control. But I have appreciated these gifts hugely, and want to give both gift and giver their due now.

I also shamefacedly admit that except for one semi-perishable item, I had managed to buy the treats promised for our Spring Exchange prior to weakly giving in to the aforesaid plague, but had NOT managed to mail your packages off. I obtained said item and packed everything up today, and will hie me to the Post Awful tomorrow morning promptish. Chris will get her package soon, but unfortunately the lovely Mrs. Pao and Peeve will probably receive theirs post-Easter. The contents are not Holiday Dependent, so hopefully their enjoyment will not be significantly diminished by my lack of organization and fortitude.

My humblest apologies to all my benefactors for my neglect.

And now I give to you my Blog of Thanks. Which goes like this:

To Chris, from whom all Chaos flows, I repeat my thanks and list here the highlights of her lovely package:

A fabulous row counter, which I badly needed for my Travel Everywhere Knitting Bag - Woohoo!!!

A lovely bottle of Aveda shampoo for sensitive skin - I wish I could tell you what-all that scent is, but I can't read the miniscule tan printing against its background of tan-colored shampoo. I think I might need reading glasses. I'd get depressed about being that old, but I can't because I'm busy sniffing my hair.

A box of Nut Thins (yay!) and an old empty box that used to have Nut Thins in it. Don't ask. It makes sense to Chris and I...

A tin of caffeinated mints of most strong and delectable flavor.

Cadbury eggs and assorted chocolates, which (luckily for my waistline) were fallen upon immediately by The Horde - I beat them back and did manage to steal away with the dark stuff, and ate it during the first week of Dogsitting at my folks (late at night, when The Horde were comatose). My favorite was the bar with the nuts and berries. Chris has such good taste...

Yummy-smelling lime cuticle cream by Burt's Bees, which is keeping the row counter company in the knitting bag.

A CD of awesome music compiled by Herself which, according to the Vampire, "Sounds like you, mom!" Very Cool.

A Cute Sheepy notepad. I am afraid that I did misuse one of the sheets a bit, as I used it to write a polite but very slightly miffy note to the person who has recently taken to parking in such a way as to block the paved entrance to our sidewalk. But I did stick it under their windshield wiper with the Sheep side out, so that the world could admire their wooly goodness.

This Very Darling Stress Sheep Keychain, which now rules over my keys and key hook. I pet it ALL THE TIME. I love my Stress Sheep. Look upon my Stress Sheep and Despair... because I KNOW you are wanting a Stress Sheep too, right this very now, but it's MINE!



I may have forgotten a thing or two; I apologize if I did.

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About a week later, I received this from Australia. I immediately got the Grue, and rudely kept poor Kellie waiting while I spent my time lolling about in bed (well, huddled shivering and sneezing in bed, actually, but you catch my drift). Woeful apologies and eternal gratitude to Peevish, who so kindly sent me:



How do we Americans manage to live without Tim Tams? I had to share, and I resented it. A LOT. Tim Tams rock.

The fruit candies were largely confiscated by the Vampire - I suspect that was Kellie's intention. I had to wrestle them away from him in order to take the picture. I got a roll for the Pirate and I to split, but only by using subterfuge ("Look!! Over there! A Distraction!!")

The chocolates and stitch markers (they may *say* wine glass markers, but it's all a trick to fool you. Anyone can see that they are stitch markers) are mine, mine, all mine...

Kellie also sent this absolutely luscious yarn. Any weirdness in the picture is purely the fault of the photographer; it certainly doesn't have anything to do with the yarn.



That green and blue superwash wool is slated for socks for the Pirate. He's been hovering over it ever since it came, pushing it toward me every time I sit still for a moment.

The textured purple variegated is earmarked for a hat. It's going to be gorgious.

The steel grey yarn is really soft and yummy, but there was no label - Kellie, what is it? I love it. I haven't quite decided what to do with it yet, but it's gonna be for ME.

That wonderful stuff at the lower left... oh, boy. The picture can't pick up the colorway at all, but it's absolutely my very favorite color combo in the world: dark, saturated greens and plums and fuschias. I'm in heaven. I have no idea what to do with it. I may just skein it up and drape it artistically across my Basket, pretending that it's a sort of Artsy decorative thing, so that I can take it down and just sort of fondle it and gloat over it whenever nobody is looking. My Precious....

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Last, but not at all least, I just got this package from the UK, and it has Sam written all over it. Cute little stickers, too! I haven't tried any of the goodies yet, but I adore Lindt chocolate, the biscuits/cookies look lovely, and the tea is so richly fragrant that you can smell it throughout the whole kitchen, even though we haven't opened the bag yet. I can't wait for tea time, so that I can have a bikkie and a cuppa!



Confessions: I hid the Lindt bars from the boys, except for the HUMONGOUS hazelnut bar, which they are going to split. They confiscated the little sugar-shelled eggs, with much appreciation. The Vampire ate the little Cadbury Creme eggs (he whined about it when I briefly snatched them out of his mitts long enough to include them in the photo). I'm keeping the two other little eggs for myself. The Lindt bunnies and eggs will hide until Easter, but I know they will be hugely appreciated when they emerge from their lair (no, Pirate, I am NOT going to tell where they are).

See those teensy little knitting needles? Aren't they cute? They are for knitting teensy little sweaters for the mice. I'll get right on that.

But that's not all.

The Pao Kitties sent these for The Cat.



Aren't they lovely? Isn't the mouse that scurries across the floor when you pull its tail out clever? Doesn't the Red & Green Mouse have the sweetest face ever? That green ball has a bell, and it rolls across our hardwood floors more smoothly than I've ever seen a cat ball do. The toys are wonderful!

The Cat ignored it all.

Because SHE was too busy with this:



That's right. The plain cotton string with which the paper was wrapped. She was entranced. She was enthralled. She killed it. Repeatedly. The String was Mighty, but The Cat triumphed.


(Don't worry, Pao Kitties; The Cat later discovered the joys of Red & Green Mouse, who is now lodged underneath my chair as I write. She'll come around...)