What a treat!

I love getting mail, anything but bills that is.  So it was fantastic to get home earlier in the week and find a parcel in the letterbox!  I had mentioned in my last post how I had been the lucky winner of Barbina's fantastic giveaway ..... well this parcel was from her, all the way from Germany.  Do you want to see what was inside?

My eyes went straight to the most stunning Malabrigo wool!!  I don't know how you managed to part with this Barbina - it's so beautiful!!!  I don't think this is a very easy wool to find in New Zealand, maybe at the more specialty shops, but this is the first time I've actually touched it.  I've ooohed and aaahed over it on many blogs - so you can imagine how fabulous it is to now have some of my own.  Now I have to have a good think about what to make with it as it's so special.  Any suggestions?

 Look at all those lovely shades of blue and green.

 Each time I turned it over there was another pretty mix of colours.   I love it - thank you so much!

There was also the most intricate wee beaded dolphin.  You can't quite tell how little it is in this picture but trust me, it would have been very tricky to make.

I thought that was a more than generous gift - but Barbina had also included gifts for Mr 7 and Miss 5!  When I saw these I got a lump in my throat - that was just the most thoughtful thing to do, you wonderful woman!

So when the children got home from school, I explained that this parcel had come all the way from the other side of the world.  They couldn't quite comprehend why someone they didn't know had sent them a gift but they sure were pleased to accept them.  I haven't seen playmobil since I was tiny when my aunty sent some to us from the UK.  My children have never seen it before - so you can imagine what a treat this was for them.

 Mr 7's contained a skateboarder.  He told Barbina is his thank you, that it looks just like him!

Miss 5's was Cleopatra and she thought it was amazing, especially being able to take the gold bangles on and off.  Both were taken to school the next morning to show their respective teachers then popped safely into my bag for them to see again after school.

I was sooooooooo happy yesterday to finally pick up my crochet hook after nearly 3 weeks.  Just when I thought all the drama of the previous weeks was over, then I went and got sick.  Aaargh.  But now that I'm starting to feel better I was absolutely desperate to get my hook out.  It was really lovely to make myself sit down for an hour and start something new. And I knew exactly what that something new was going to be.  The fabulous Annaboo has put together the most amazing tutorial for here monk/doll/cat pattern and is doing it as a crochet-a-long.  If you haven't already discovered her stunning blog you must head over there immediately!  She has clearly put a lot of time and effort into showing us how to make these little cuties.  I'd never tried anything like this because they looked so difficult and I can be a bit blonde with new patterns and always manage to make at least two mistakes the first time around.  But look, one head complete!!!  Mine is going to be a cat - I think.

Woohoo - now my head has a body and lovely long legs.  I can't wait for the next tutorial instalment so my wee cat can get some arms.   This is a lovely pattern - and I am looking forward to making some more soon.

I mentioned just before that I can be a bit blonde sometimes, well it reminded me of this photo.  It is of me and my little brother (who is now a 6 foot giant compared to me) in our matching outfits.  Mum if you are reading this, am I right in thinking you made our gorgeous shirts?  I absolutely love the fact that despite our different heights, his waistband is just about as high as mine!!!  Too cute.  I like to remind myself that I was a natural blonde once upon a time!!  This photo has been all around the world with me, safely tucked into my wallet.

Righto - I'm off now to do some baking for the weekend.  I have wanted one of these cookie stamps for months now so the time had come for me to actually do something about it!  It is a bit bigger than I had expected but the kids are thrilled with that - the bigger the better in their eyes.

Have a fabulous weekend!  The weather has just changed here in the last few minutes so I think I might just have to light the fire before I bake biscuits.  Brrrr.

See you soon,
Leah
xxxx