You've Got Mail.

It's fun getting presents at Christmas time.  Pretty packages all tied up with ribbon.

It's really nice though to get packages from far away.  From people you've never met face to face but you feel like you've known them forever.

Packages with things in them like this:

Unexpected parcels  from other countries.

All the way from Italy!  Thank you Bobbi I haven't tasted them yet.

The greatest gift I have received through blogging though is making so many fantastic friends from all around the world.  My friends are the best gift ever! Thank you all for putting up with me on this blog and allowing me to share my life with you a little bit.  I hope we all have the best New Year ever in 2012.


p.s. Skype is a modern day miracle.

International Cuisine

She is international.  She is not cuisine.  But I could eat her.

I digress.  I journeyed through the snow and the wind tonight on an errand of mercy for my husband.  I needed to pick up a prescription for him at the local drugstore.  More importantly,  look at what I found when I arrived:

Tim Tams!  To the uninitiated, these are cookies from Australia.  My good friend MMMC mentioned these once in a blog post and being the observant gal that I am I remembered!  Why can I not remember important things like doctor's appointments and regular showers?  I like to support my friends so I felt it was important to purchase them.  The Official Taste Tester of the Loyalist Cottage deemed them Yummy!

In local news:

I don't know if any of you folks use a bread maker to make your bread.  I do.  It's pretty hard to mess up a loaf of bread made this way.  However:

This is what I got today.  It's not even browned.  What a mess!  It doesn't taste too badly though.  The Official Taste Tester declared it edible.  Of course, he'd eat almost anything. 

The Little Teapot That Could.

This little teapot has traveled around the world.  Literally.

She started off in Norway.  Then she was seen in Australia.  Now she makes her home in Canada.  My good friend MMMC sent her all the way from Brisbane to the LC.  MMMC loves Scandinavian design.  Being the good friend that she is, she is converting me to her way of thinking.

I hate to use her but I've had my orders.  Maybe a soothing cup of Brisbane Breakfast tea would be lovely.
My friend was afraid the the teapot would arrive and do for a Broken Item of the Week but she arrived all safe and sound with a little house tucked in alongside her.

A Scandinavian style crafted house!

Thank you so much MMMC!  I love ya more than my snowbanks.

stop the presses!  I just found out my little teapot is vintage!

Happy New Year!

Here we are with another year coming to a close.  Time flies when you're having fun!  Some of us didn't have such fun times all year.  One of you lost your house to fire just before Christmas.  One of you had your husband undergo an emergency appendectomy just before Christmas.  Some of us lost loved ones this year, some of us lost our jobs, and some of us saw our husbands lose their jobs.  But do you know what?  None of these dear souls are disheartened or discouraged because they have faith.  Faith that they can handle whatever life throws at them, good times and bad.

Gentle Readers, I wish that faith for each of you during this new year that is almost here.  I love you all.  I have made so many new friends since I started blogging this year and I am so grateful for that.  Your comments have led to meeting some great people all over the world and that is truly amazing and wonderful to me.

See you next year!

The Postman Always Honks Twice!

Today I woke up to the electricity being out.  I was very glad to have our nice warm fireplace in the kitchen.  While I was lolling around in my pj's the postman lady tooted her horn in the yard. She brought me a parcel.

All the way from Australia!  I hear it's cold there this time of year.  My dear friend MMMC sent me a Christmas parcel.  I was so excited I couldn't wait for Christmas, I just ripped into her. The parcel I mean.

What is lurking beneath all the packing?

Pretty packages tied up with ribbon.

Look at this beautiful card.  Can you see the words there in a foreign language?  I wonder if that's Australian.  The artist captured my likeness remarkably well.

First I opened up a box to find a lovely Delft Christmas ornament.  It makes me think of Horsey and Sassy.  You'll have to read MMMC's blog to find out who Horsey is.

She's off visiting her Delft neigh-bours.

Brisbane Breakfast tea.  I'm going to have it for supper though.

Along with these yummy looking biscuits cookies.  Those Australians and their funny language!

See, it says right on the package that I don't have to share.  But I will. Maybe. Just one.  Moving on....

A beautiful silk screened by hand hankie from another Australian blogger. I don't want to take it out of the package.

Then I came upon this guy.  I have no clue who he is but when I turned him over I found this:

A Mid Century Modern dollhouse!!!  I'm on a mission to find one for MMMC

Two large, luscious Australian decorating magazines.  I'm going to try and hold off reading them until Christmas afternoon.  Hubby's going through them saying "Oh look at this!" knowing I'm trying not to peek. He's getting a lump of coal, that's all there is to it.

Last but not least, this wonderful handy dandy fold up shopping bag.  I'm storing my tea, cookies and magazines in it away from you know who.
I can't remember how MMMC and I became good friends. I think I found her on someone's blog list.  I kept stalking leaving her comments until she caved in and started corresponding with me.  She's a wife, a mother to four young children, and a law student.  How you can do all that and still find time to write such an entertaining and educational blog is beyond me.  If you like vintage Fisher Price and Scandinavian design plus the antics of four lovable children, this is the place to be.
Thank you so much MMMC for your lovely gifts.  Your friendship means so much to me. You say it here far better than I can.

Au Revoir!

Good morning Gentle Readers.  Tomorrow I am heading to the Big Apple.  I can hardly contain myself.  Hubby wants to know how I will tear myself away from my laptop all week as I am leaving it at home.  I think I will be so busy that I won't miss it, but I will miss checking in with all of mes amies.  I must stop slinging french words around!  I'm sure it will be out of my system once I hear all those New Yorkers.  Please don't forget me, I will be back on Sunday.

I love you all!

Good bye, so long, farewell!