brown paper packages...sort of

We've been getting boxes of Christmas goodies in the mail the past two days from my mom! It's so fun to get presents in the mail. The first box we received had letter block magnets in it for the kids to share. They have really enjoyed playing with them and making their names on the fridge. I received a bag of spices and sprinkles. It was such a nice surprise! The next day, we received some more boxes and in them the kids got some great toys from Grammy and Grandpa. Henry got a Tonka truck that lights and makes noise. It is also a pull and go so it moves on it's own. He also got a cool flashing flash light and a little foam airplane. The other gift he got I am saving for another post it's that cool!
The girls each got little animals with a baby. Marcail's was a little mama cow and her baby in a stroller. Naomi got a mama pig and her baby in a cradle and rocking chair for the mama. They just love playing with those little finger toys. They also received a groovy girl doll each with non-hootchy mama clothing and a crocheted purse each too. The kids were ecstatic with their gifts! I got some goodies as well. A wonderful smelling candle from Bath and Body Works that smells like "The Perfect Christmas", a yummy smelling room spray, "Creamy Nutmeg", some Chex Mix (mom makes the best), Christmas decor she's "out grown", some Hershey's kisses, an awesome vintage tin w/ flamingos and palm trees on it and some moo-lah. Thanks, Grammy and Mom! James also got something but he's in Ocala so he has a gift awaiting his return.

So, you know how one man's trash is another man's treasure? I've got some of that growing by the front door. The boxes we got from my mom smell so much like her house. I don't know what it is that makes her house smell like "mom's house" but it does. I think it's a mixture of patchouli and cedar? Whatever the case, it just made me so happy to smell it as I walked by the tower of boxes I need to take down to the dumpster. And, strange as it may sound, the scent of my mom's house wafting from the boxes made me really in the mood for Christmas! So, maybe that trash will stay right where it is for a while....my trash potpourri if you will.