Direct Swap - Mexico from Emilia

Back in September or so I swapped some map cards that I had with Emilia. They helped to fill some gaps she had in her collection and I know how important that is, especially when it comes to maps. We left her part of the swap open and when she went on vacation in November she sent me this great card from Mexico. Having been to Cancun I can say the water is this beautiful and blue! Thank you Emilia for sharing your vacation with me.

Direct Swap - Krista from Canada

Krista also belongs to the Canadian Postcrossing group I wrote about yesterday. One day we were chatting about a Christmas card exchange and she suggested that we do a random swap based on our profiles. Sounded good to me. A week or so later this card showing the Western Red Lily arrived. I did not know this was the provincial flower of Saskatchewan. Krista really did an amazing job on the reverse with a great message about herself and stickers, tape and more! Great swap - thanks Krista!

Direct Swap - Katie from Canada

One night while surfing around on Facebook, I saw a post Katie made in a group for Canadian Postcrossers. Of course, it stopped me in my tracks! She had just purchased a box set of Ryan Gosling postcards! I think I might have slightly hyperventilated when I saw this! I guess she put two and two together that he is my celebrity crush and messaged me to see if I was interested in swapping. Lucky me. A few days later this beautiful card arrived. The only thing I don't understand is why my husband wasn't as excited!!! And yes, Ryan, you can be in my never ending story!!! Do you have a celebrity crush? Willing to share it here?

Random Act of Smiliness - Alida and Lynda

One thing I must say about the friends I have made through this hobby is they are always there to help me out, regardless of what it might be for. I recently signed up to do another travelling card to feature Christmas stamps, just to realize I really don't have any Christmas stamps from previous years - oops! Lynda and Alida came to the rescue sending me some stamps from their own stash and included these sweet cards in their mailings. Thanks ladies, you saved me big time!!!

Greetings from Poland - Direct Swap with Anna

PostalLove is based in Poland. I am hoping that is the only reason she has issued a third edition of the "greetings from" series for this country only. If all of the countries I have collected start to get an update I will have to rethink this collection. It is proving to be a bit of a challenge with some countries as I like it posted from the country depicted on the front. I was lucky that Anna made an order the day it was released and she was happy to swap with me. Another fabulous design and addition to my collection! Now, if I can only find China.....

Random Act of Smiliness - Montreal Meet-up from Elaine

Every once in awhile it seems my Postcrossing account gets out of sync. Mine has been like that for close to a month now. Somehow my received cards is greater than my sent cards. When this happens your name is not given out until it is equal again. There are several different reason why this happens which I won't bore you with right now. All I know is it can be annoying! This time I had received 8 more than sent. It can take a long time to catch up when there is a difference like that, especially when I send only three officials a week. Frustrating! In the meantime to make my mailbox happy I have the swaps I've completed to post or a few RAS like this one.

Elaine and I swapped some blank cards a little while ago. She recently attended a meet-up in Montreal and very kindly sent me a signed card from there. To say I was surprised is an understatement! I was thrilled that she thought of me. The card is not only a great design but loved seeing all the signatures. Thank you Elaine!

Direct Swap - Curaçao from Lea

Lea was going on what sounds like an amazing vacation from Ireland to Curacao back in October. She was offering to swap via the Postcrossing Forum. While she liked the cards I had to offer, however very nicely explained she simply liked others better. Completely fair and totally understandable. We exchanged a few other messages and left it that if she could squeeze in another card she would. Lucky for me her time and budget allowed it. Two weeks later her card arrived. I must admit I did not know too much about this country and Lea's postcard helped me to read up on it. Thanks Lea!