Genuinely Wrapped With Love (+ Mr. Mouse and Mr. Bear!!!)

Nothing I write here will do justice to how utterly beautiful and meaningful this gift is. My only regret right now is that I did not video myself opening the package so that you could see the layers of care, thought, and creativity that my gifter put into building this box. There is so much I need to say in gratitude to my gifter and I am not sure where to start. So I will start with today. Unbeknownst to my gifter, I have been really sick this past week. Today was my first day back at work and it was a rough one. I received a message during the day from my gifter that my gift had been delivered. I was really excited and had a spark of joy simply from having something to look forward to. When I got home and opened the box, I was greeted with purple tissue paper and silver stars (my favorite color combination!!!) and instantly smiled. The next layer was a piece of paper that said "A really big HUG DELIVERY!" and my face lit up further. If ever there was a day that I needed a hug, it was today (this was definitely one of those moments where I wondered if my gifter was a mind reader). Anyhow, the next layer revealed Mr. Bear and Mr. Mouse- my jaw dropped. These two adorable friends had appeared in my Reddit feed a few days ago and I remembered giving them an upvote because 1) they were absolutely adorable and 2) the wrapping job was gorgeous. I could not believe that these two friends showed up at my door! If I could go back and give more upvotes I would because the wrapping job is even cuter in person! Underneath this layer were three additional packages all beautifully wrapped in a cute polka dot paper with string. One package had two origami cranes (which I have kept and given a new home) and one continued the "Bear Hug" theme. There was also a note bundled with some ephemera, lollipops, and honey sticks. At this point, I did not want to open anything because the gift was clearly "wrapped with love." It was so pretty. I did not want to undo the effort and love that went into it! Eventually, my toddler threatened to open the presents if I did not and I caved :) The gifts themselves are just as thoughtful and lovely as the wrapping. Because the hometown exchange tends to be my favorite, my gifter shared a bit about her family along with information about her lovely hometown and with recommendations of National Parks to visit! I really enjoyed learning a bit about the "Beehive State!" The honey sticks and Utah sticker (decorated with the Sego Lily) are themed to the state. In addition to loving to learn about new places, I really love birds. My gifter painted a mother and baby goose for me and my toddler and turned it into a bookmark. I can't tell you how much I love these two little geese. They are just so happy looking and I can't help but smile looking at it. It is definitely something that will get lots of good use and will bring me joy for a long time to come. Continuing the bird theme, my gifter sent me a lovely pair of hummingbird stud earrings. She shared that there is a hummingbird that has raised babies on her porch for the past five years and that the earrings reminded her of that. I look forward to wearing these and honoring your hummingbird "neighbor" from afar! The next bit of the bird theme connects back to the paper cranes which decorated one of the gifts. My gifter shared the story of "Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes" and its meaning to her. The paper cranes now have a happy little home on one of my bookshelves. Furthering the bird theme, my gifter also sent me a Roost café iced coffee glass featuring Brewster! During the initial pandemic lock downs, playing Animal Crossing was one of the bright spots for me. I can't tell you how much I love this glass-it is perfect! Lastly my gifter sent me some fun items for relaxing/self-care: bath-bomb (that is what Mr. Mouse was!), face masks (Mr. Bear!), and three candles which smell delightful. I am looking forward to using these for a self-care day sometime soon! To my gifter- thank you from the bottom of my heart. So much love, energy, and effort went into this gift. Everything was so thoughtful and I am in awe of your talent and creativity! Thank you!!!