Drip Drip Drop: Wrapping Up

The Itty Bitty Teddy Bear Picnic swap is coming to an end. The final packages are being sent out and received and it's so much fun to see what everyone opens their package to find. :)

Yesterday after a somewhat trying day at work, I came home to find a parcel sitting on the buffet. :) This made me very happy because I knew exactly what it was and where it came from. I immediately put everything else to the side, called X to come sit with me, and dove into the package. Raili, you really outdid yourself! Raili, or Armida21 to those of us on Ravelry was my gracious swap partner. She picked out so many neat things for both X and me.

So now I bet you'd all like to see some pictures, right? Well then, let's get to it!

I'll start off with one of two final required elements. The tea set. Raili chose to knit the Cupcake Tea Set from Itty Bitty Nursery. She picked gorgeous, bright colors in green and blue. It makes the tea set perfect for a little boy (and well, let's just be honest, it would be great for a girl no matter what....it's a tea set after all!). There were 2 tea cups, 1 teapot, a sugar bowl & lid with 4 little sugar cubes (so cute!), a creamer dish, 5 plates in various sizes, 2 stirring spoons, 2 tea bags and 6 little cupcakes! I demonstrated for X how to "nibble" on the cupcakes and sip from the cups and he caught on very quickly. He was having a lot of fun with this tea set. In fact, I had a hard time getting photos because he kept running off with pieces. I say again, perfect!

Which brings me to the last and final element of the swap, the baked goodies! Raili was afraid any homemade goodies wouldn't make it as far as this package had to travel so instead she included 2 recipes for some food she thought would be great for a picnic, including banana muffins and cow pies. It'll be fun to try these! She also included 8 packs of tea in some of her favorite flavors for me to try. I've never really tasted much tea and I don't drink it regularly, but now's a good time to start and see what I think. And with the cold weather setting in, it's a nice alternative to hot chocolate (I don't drink coffee...).

Now, if you all are like me, you look at that knit tea set and cupcakes and think, WOW! That's a lot of knitting! But she didn't stop there. She included several more items that she crocheted! Starting with this adorable little crocheted bear, a little brother to Teddy (from swap parcel 2), X's sleeping companion. If I'm correct, I think this little guy is made from Sugar'N'Cream cotton in Chocolate Ombre. I have the same yarn in my stash! :) And he's a great size - he fits in X's hand just right.

And what's better than some handmade, crocheted washcloths? And a little bar of pretty smelling soap to top it off? I love knit and crocheted washcloths. We have some from J's grandma that I received at my bridal shower several years ago. They have become some of my favorite washcloths. But these are for me and I plan to squirrel them away to use myself so they don't get thrown in with the kitchen linens. :)

And the final piece of crocheted-goodness? A crocheted pincushion in the shape of a doughnut. Isn't it cute?! This is fantastic because I've only ever kept my sewing pins in the little box they came in. I'm constantly poking my fingers while trying to get a pin out. This will sit by my sewing machine, I love it!

And speaking of sewing, Raili included several fat quarters to add to my fabric collection. I know I'll be able to put these to good use. The fabrics, as you can see, include some blues and greens and even some kitties! And do you see the tape measure? I'll probably stash this with my knitting notions as I love these types of tape measures best. I love that it's square. X liked it too. He knows how to work the release button on these and snatched it up pretty quickly (until he saw the rest of what was in the box...lol).

How's my yarn stash you ask? Growing. :) This time I received some incredibly soft Paton's Angora Bamboo yarn. 2 skeins. I've already searched Ravelry for a couple patterns that would be good with this yarn. :) Including Diagonal Eyelet Hand Warmers and this Lotus Hat.

Okay, we're almost to the end. Hang in there with me! :) I don't know if I've ever mentioned this or not, but I love paisley. I see paisley incorporated into something (a men's tie, a shirt, a knit piece, on stationary) and I love it. :) So imagine how excited I was to find 2 notepads and a set of pens all decorated in paisley! :) Raili must be psychic. :)

And although X loves all the knit items and will definitely play with them all, she also included a Winnie the Pooh Bear book for him. He sat down to read it with Daddy almost right away.

And all of this lovely swap package was sent in a beautiful storage box with flowers and musical notes adorning it's surface.

Okay, okay...I PROMISE...these are the last photos of the day. To wrap it all up, I just wanted to share photos of all 3 swap packages in one place. I was spoiled, more than spoiled. And in the process of being spoiled, I got to know Raili a lot better. She's a terrific and talented person and I wish we lived closer because I think she'd be a TON of fun to hang out with!

Parcel 1