Spoiled Rotten and the Christmas Spirit

Within the past weeks I received not one but two lovely parcels ['packages' for you yanks] from some very sweet British friends who took pity on me. Boy was I chuffed [excited]!! Especially because as a mum [mom] you rarely get surprises at Christmas time. (Unless you count the broken tooth and new crown (tooth replacement) that I'm getting for Christmas this year!)
These surprises were SO much more fun! The first was from Wendy in Chorley. Look at the adorable little bundles. The picture is terrible because I took it with my little camera right as the battery was about to die. But I couldn't wait for it to recharge - I couldn't resist opening all of those little bundles!

And here they are, minus the wrapping and some of the chocolates.

This little hand-crafted notebook is so sweet.

And check-out this haul of Cath Kidston goodness. Oh my heavens. I was giddy as I opened each treasure. The Buttons tin included some sweet Christmas buttons too. And as I'm posting this, I'm realizing that I don't have pictured the sweet heart ornament filled with lavender that my daughter insisted on 'borrowing.' Thank you again, Wendy! Wendy is an amazing mum with four kids, two of them with very special needs that she calls her angels.

Then, only a short time later, look what else shows up in my post box!

Another parcel this time from Katy
(who happens to be making my favorite spider web quilt yet!)

After seeing my love for Cath, Katy offered to send me this CK shopping bag also for Tesco.
I am going to have the most chic shopping bags in Utah!
But she didn't stop there.

She sent me some of her favorite cleaning cloths that are stylish to boot.
She said she'd even seen a quilt made from these cloths!
(How handy would that be!)
I can't wait to use mine.

One of my favorite British sweeties: Jelly Babies.

Gone before I even got out the camera.

And then MORE Cath goodness!

Is it weird that I love that paper bag as much as the spools of thread that came inside?

I might frame it.

I wish it were fabric.

More Cath treasures including this little Union Jack pincushion

that I was coveting on the back of the last CK catalog.
It must have called to Katy on my behalf.

Katy also included some little swatches of CK fabric which I am so excited about
because I've been collecting bits and bobs to make an homage to Cath quilt.

And now I can use actual Cath Kidston fabric in the quilt!

Many thanks again to my new British friends for their sweetness and generosity to a girl who is homesick for England. Especially at this time of year.

My favorite Christmas carol is "In the Bleak Midwinter", which I think is played much more commonly in the UK. It brings back sweet memories of the two Christmas seasons I spent in England. (Christmas really is extra magic there for some reason. Maybe it has something to do with Charles Dickens, Christmas Crackers, and the title "Father Christmas" which is so much more charming than "Santa Claus.")

The first Christmas season was at the end of my time as a student living in London about 14 years ago. On the day before I went home I walked by myself from the British Museum through Covent Garden to the Houses of Parliment. As I made my way through the festivities at Leicester Square, a brass quartet was playing Christmas carols and started to play "In the Bleak Midwinter." It was one of those sublimely Christmas-y moments compounded with the sadness of leaving this city that I'd fallen in love with. The second was two years later and in much-less glamourous [glamorous] Liverpool. Being away from my family for the first time ever on Christmas Day, I was given the gifts of love and kindness by many endearingly cheeky Scousers [Liverpudlians], in many cases at a sacrifice to themselves.

Can you tell I got a strong dose of the Christmas Spirit today (could be the giant piles of snow outside our door) and that it's making me wax nostalgic? Thanks for indulging me. Hope you're enjoying some cozy, nostalgic Christmas Spirit of your own. As well as some hearty Christmas goodies. And no surprise dental work.