Connecting.................

........through 'swapping' ................

...isn't it lovely to get home after a particularly fraught day and find an amazing parcel with lovely labels all the way over from the other side of the world, waiting for you?? and better still, the box is filled with all sorts of lovely things...

 and with my recent inclusion in my friend Betty's  'From My Home To Yours' Swap I was paired with a lovely lady in NZ called Julie, check out life in her Threadbear Cottage here and who makes the most delightful and expertly handmade items, one of which she sent me as part of our swap.......

 ......aren't these pantaloons and feet adorable???
and what about her wings??!!....

......and here she is in all her gorgeous glory, Dolly the Friendship Angel, lying in the box patiently waiting on me lifting her out and into the sunshine, which I'm sure she's missed on that long journey among the clouds.....

  .....cute hair.....

......look at her pretty 'Kiwi' necklace, which is  made from Paua Shell and that lovely dress with those beautiful NZ flowers which are called Pohutukawa and grow on a native tree, also know as the NZ Christmas Tree, The native birds  are called Tuis...

...she loved sitting in the tree and getting her pic taken.....

 ....and look at that big smile....I think she's going to like it here (I may have to knit her a new coat and hat for the Winter to keep her warm!)..... 
                                                                           
....and there were other lovely things in the box too, like this charming and colourful tea-towel with a map of NZ on it.....now I can see exactly where Julie lives and where my BFF is emigrating to in the New Year (but that's an enitrely other story for another time!)....

...what a cheery-looking Merino Sheep (I love knitting with his/her wool)...

...and lovely postcards showing some of New Zealand's wildlife....so much colour!...

...and you may get one of these notecards from me one fine day!....

....this pretty flower reminds me of a Scottish Thistle....

....and the soap Julie sent me, made by her friend, will be very good for my sensitive skin.....

....and lots of leaflets about interesting things to see and do in NZ (hope I get there one day)...

and that concludes our little trip around NZ, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed being Julie's Swap Partner - Thanks Betty for organising the swap and a million thanks to Julie for being such a kind and generous 'swappee'. I loved everything you sent me and rest assured, Dolly will be very well looked after and happy here, x

Time to Go

Love to All

xxxoooXXXoooxxx

 Footnote :    In my exuberance to publish some comments, I accidentally hit the 'delete' button! That's never  happened before so my sincere apologies to Meredith, Kris and John for sending them off into cyber-space without a by-your-leave!! I did manage to recover John's comment with the help of 'Blogger Help' but unfortunately, Meredith and Kris, for some reason, I was unable to get yours back. Please accept my apologies once again and rest assured, it won't happen again. Thank you for leaving your comments though - I did manage to read them very quickly before they disappeared!!!