Lucky days

The other day, I got an email from Sharon who asked me if I had received anything in the mail from her. "Why, no," I replied coyly, "was I expecting something from you?" Apparently I was, because a few days later, what should appear in my mailbox but this:


Look at all that polka-dotty goodness. And that soap...mmmm... smells so nice! Now, I'm still not sure what I did to deserve such a sweet parcel from Sharon. Maybe there's a catch to this... I'm so suspicious. Sharon said she would reveal all on her blog, but I'm impatient to know. Hmmmm.
And my luck didn't stop there. I won a giveaway at heylucy and Marné sent me a package:


Just look at that cute little bird on the envelope. Then I opened it up and found inside this beautifully decorated box containing three sweet little mushrooms.

What a lovely surprise. I'm going to use the mushrooms when I make my terrarium. I did some research on terrariums and they sound so easy to put together. As soon as it's warm enough for me to be tranporting delicate plants, I will bring home some clippings from plants at work, and maybe I'll pick up a miniature violet. I heard they do well in terrariums. I have the perfect glass cookie jar to house it and it will take a place of pride on my dining room table (thereby displacing any dogs who think they have the right to nap up there in the mid-afternoon sun).

Yesterday I got a message from Barb at Bejeweled Quilts by Barb who told me that she was giving me the Sisterhood Blogging Award. Isn't that an honour!

Of course, I have to pass on this award to some fellow bloggers. I have picked just a few, mainly because I'm short on time right now. So, my nominations go to:

Sarah at Makin' Projiks

Jenessa at Rainy Day Treats

Jodi at Simply This That and the Other

Stacy at golden bird knits

and my newest friend, LillySue at A Peace of Bliss.

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Now you know that I would not intentionally leave out anyone. I keep up on many many blogs and I think they're all great (or I wouldn't bother reading them). I picked the bloggers above because they are relatively new to me and I think you should go over and meet them, too!

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So, if your name is above (or even if it's not and you know you deserve an award) you can do the following if you want - no pressure.

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1. Put the logo on your blog or post.

2. Nominate 10 or fewer blogs which show great Attitude and/or Gratitude!

3. Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.

4. Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.

5. Share the love and link to the person from whom you received your award.
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Okay... you still with me? Good. As you know (because I keep bragging), I'll be gone for a couple of weeks. I've pre-written a few posts to keep you up to date on where I'm going. Every two or three days, a post will appear (magically!) telling you what we're doing that day and where we are. I fully plan to divulge details of the trip when I get back, but just in case you think, "I wonder where Rachel (and her group of 20-something teenagers) is today..." Well, all you have to do is check my blog and you'll know. You can also check the weather forecasts online and laugh at me because it's supposed to rain for the entire time we're in Italy. I hope that 15-day forecast is WRONG! I also hope that when I get back to Canada, the snow is GONE! Is that too much to ask?

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You'll be having your own adventures while I'm gone and I doubt I'll have the opportunity to check in on you. I'll miss you!

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Arrivederci!
☺