More kindness

Before I get to the important things, I have to say that am very disappointed at the response to the competition in my last post - I really thought that someone might recognize the big boy's toy in the picture (the blue one with three legs about halfway down). I now feel quite mean at posing what turns out to be a bit of a difficult question, but I will leave it open for a little while longer before I put you out of your misery and tell you, just to give you all a chance to win a (very little) prize! (EDIT: Guessed correctly by Poppy Cottage - it is a pheasant feeder. ) This is not the prize - this is my seed swap ready to be despatched, but more of that below.

But the title of this post is nothing to do with any kindness on my part in offering a reward for an obviously impossible guessing game! No, once again I have been the recipient of kindness from others and I wanted to share this with you, and thank the lovely bloggers who have bestowed blessings upon me.

The first little parcel through my letterbox was from Elizabethd, whose blog is called French Village Life - this title conjures up enchanting images of patisseries and boulangeries and painted shutters, and has an altogether holiday feel. And in my package I received this - wonderful Guerande salt from Brittany.

We had some wonderful family holidays in Brittany, land of the lighthouse, when the boys were small, and I would always bring home packets of delicious grey salt and sweet crispy biscuits. So thank you, Elizabethd, for your kindness, and the postcard of lighthouses is on my kitchen mantel so I can dream about holidays by the sea when I stand at the Aga.

I also participated in the Summer Seed Swap organized by Julia at Marmalade Kiss - and how lucky I was to be partnered with Indigo Blue. Her skill with the needle puts me to shame, and I love looking at her blog to see the wonderful things she has made. My swap parcel arrived today and look what it contained!

Not only did I have two little pink packets of seeds and a rather tasty-looking recipe for jam, but all these goodies as well: some sweet little garden buttony-embellishments and a quite amazing fabric which was surely modelled on my harvest this summer, even down to the golden cherry tomatoes. Now I just have to follow her example and create something suitably impressive.

And Princess Bunchy could hardly contain her excitement when she saw this make-your-own advent calendar fabric. The poor child has had the same recycled advent calendar for about three years now (I shut all the doors after Christmas and store it flat between books, all ready to get out for the next year) and is beginning to hanker after something a little different, preferably containing chocolate. So this one is perfect: recyclable but with little pockets for some Green & Black's, or maybe even the odd little present (from a charity shop, of course, I won't forget the challenge!).

So, to paraphrase Tiny Tim, 'God bless you every one,' and thank you for all my lovely presents.

And to those who are waiting for presents from me, my hands have been busy, and I am working my way (slowly) through my list - good things will come to those who wait and your turn will come before too long!