Don’t you just love friends? Especially when they come bearing gifts.

Thanks to the lovely and generous Rain… THANK YOU! I have projects in queue with those yarns in mind, and I especially love the food items! I’ve already used one packet already. And the mango gummies…. I think I found my favorite gummy candy now. If only I can find this in the States…

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And of course, beyond receiving gifts, it’s always nice to give as well. I was recently in a secret pal exchange with my local SnB group, and boy was that fun! I got so many great goodies (thanks Marin!)! Sorry to say, I don’t have pictures of my received gifts and alot of my own gifting, but the only thing I have was something I whipped up super fast last week. May I present, Amy Butler’s Swing Bag! With zippered pockets!! (The zippered pockets on a reversible bag was a big deal for me, being a newbie with my zipper foot)

The recipient, a good friend (hi Lacy!), is a collector of all things parrots:

A zipper pocket (yea!):

The interior (see the other zipper pocket in there?):

This pattern was by far the easiest bag I’ve ever done (did I mention that this was a reversible bag??). =) I’m in the midst of making one for myself – I couldn’t resist. I’m usually a small bag kinda gal, but this bag is sturdy, roomy, practical, and I just love it. Next week, watch out the completion of another one! Yippee! =)

Yes, Little Miss Squirrel has a friend!

I haven’t decided whether this little dark bear is a boy or a girl. Hubby votes for girl because the little blue outfit looks too much like a dress. And my triple french knots for the eyes weren’t big enough – resulting in really shocked looking eyes. =P

A bit on the thin side, so I tried to see if this little Bear could make a good bookmarker. It didn’t look so good (especially with the bugged out looking eyes):

(P.S. The Lonely Guide Kenya book we just purchased – yes, we’ll be going there soon! Details to come later) These little stuffed felt animals are fast, cute, and addicting to make. Definately great if you need an instant gratification project (which is what I need now!). =)

Lastly, I made one of my favorite potato dishes – scalloped potatoes!

I love it creamy and cheesy, even though it is so NOT healthy. In this recipe, however, I thinned out the cream with nonfat milk, and it made a big difference in how it tasted -lighter, not so heavy – but still really yummy! I also parboiled the potato slices in the cream/milk beforehand, so it would cook faster/more evenly in the oven. Yummy! (The pan, on the other hand, was a sucker to scrub afterwards.)

P.S. Comments Update – Alot of you may notice that there has been an error message when commenting on my posts. Happy to say, I think I finally fixed it. Do let me know if it pops up again or not! Thanks! =)

Recently made a little friend for myself. I figured it would be an easy project – a couple pieces of cut up felt, glue, embroidery, and a handful of cotton for stuffing. Turns out my embroidery skills are a bit rusty – that french knot got me cursing up a storm! I ended up fudging around and “faking” a french knot. Who would know?

My friend in pieces:

My friend fully formed! Little Miss Squirrel – tada!

Her backside (she doesn’t mind showing it off):

Playing in my potpourri:

Climbing up a tree:

I will be making more little friends in the near future. She’s not as perfect as I’d like her to be, but she’s my first one, so hopefully the others will be better. =)