Happy New Year's!

Hope everyone has a fun and safe New Year's Eve!!!! Thank you for stopping by over the year and taking a moment to read my blog and even better, taking a moment to comment! Looking forward to sharing more with you in 2013!!!

This card is one I recently sent showing Lake Superior Provincial Park. The only Great Lake I have yet to see. Maybe a New Year's resolution...

Direct Swap - Niki from Bahamas

At the end of November I came across Niki's profile on Postcrossing and really liked a card she had recently sent. She agreed to swap, however didn't have the card on hand and asked if I could wait a week. During that week if you can believe it I received the exact card from my friend J.J. - what are the odds of that ?!?!?  Lucky for me, Niki had many other great cards to swap with and was still keen when I followed up with her. This card that she sent me shows the various coin and paper money used on the island. On the back it says "A popular Bahamian saying goes..."May you always have sand in your shoes and a dollar in your pocket!" Love it!!! The stamp Niki chose for me is a great one and oddly this card was not cancelled at all in the post. Hoping my card makes it to her soon.

OFFICIAL Card - Finland

Gertrud lives in Helsinki, Finland and sent me this great card which I received on Monday. It shows, as she describes the "idyllic" Postbacken Museum in Porvoo. The buildings date back to the 18th and 19th century and almost all on on their original sites. Looks like it would be a very interesting place to explore. Haven't seen a Moomin stamp in awhile - they are fun!

Random Act of Smiliness - Tracey from Canada

Today's card is from another one of the wonderful ladies I met in Ingersoll at the Postcrossing Meet-up last July. Tracey sent me this great Victorian Christmas postcard and stamp. She wrote telling me all about her last minute preparations for Christmas. Only two days ago now but it feels like a blur at this point! Looking forward to hopefully exchanging more cards with Tracey in the future.

Random Act of Smiliness - Alida from Canada

Alida is one of the ladies I met at the Postcrossing meet-up in July. She sent me this sweet postcard wishing me a Merry Christmas, which I received last week. Love the card and love the postmark! Thank you Alida  - hope your holiday was great too!

Merry Christmas

Wishing you and your family all the best for a Merry Christmas filled with love and laughter!

PS - I just picked these up late last week and cannot wait to send these out next year. I don't think the glitter really shows up on the scan - they are beautiful!!!

Random Act of Smiliness - Eileen from England

Last week I received a lovely card from my dear friend Eileen in Chorley, England.  I had seen a post she had made on the forum looking for folded Christmas cards and had sent her one. The sweetest part was our cards crossed in the mail. I didn't know and she didn't know we were expecting cards from the other. Later that week I realized I forgot to have the kids sign it so we sent her another one on "12-12-12". Luckily she received them both before Christmas.  Merry Christmas Eve everyone!

Direct Swap - Olga from USA

With this card I have only two more states to go - yeah me! Olga responded to a forum post I made looking for state maps. She lives in Virginia and picked this card up while on a layover in Denver. Smart cookie! In return, I sent her a butterfly card from the Butterfly Conservatory in Niagara Falls. She received my card earlier in the week as well.

OFFICIAL Card - Germany

Maria has been a Postcrosser for 5 months and recently sent me this map card of the Neckar River area. She tells me her hobby is sports ballroom dancing - sounds like fun and a good workout!

Direct Swap - Kimber from USA

I am getting closer and closer to reaching my goal of a map card from all 50 states. This time I have Kimber, a Postcrosser from Minot, North Dakota to thank for this fabulous card she swapped with me. Kimber lives on the Air Force Base as her husband is in the Air Force working on the electronics of B-52's. She has several pets and runs a daycare out of her home. Fun stamps she used too!

OFFICIAL Card - Ukraine

This multi view of Crimea arrived earlier in the week from Olga in Simferopol, Ukraine. While it may be hard to see, the water slide in the upper left looks fun - I love water slides! She says she has two young daughters that are also happy to participate in Postcrossing. Olga also let me know that she was looking forward to Christmas, New Year's and the premiere of the latest Hobbit movie. Not a series I am fond of, but I am sure my husband and son will fill me in.  The stamp she used is new to me and one I really like.

OFFICIAL Card - Poland

I received this multi-view of Kolo, Poland last week from the user Kusiu0. The main picture shows the Town Hall and along the bottom ruins of a Gothic Castle and churches.

Random Act of Smiliness - CaptainSoul from USA

Two weeks ago or so I saw a post CaptainSoul had made in the Postcrossing Forum. He was (and has been for quite some time) offering random postcards, unwritten and in an envelope, no strings attached. While that is not normally how I like to receive my cards the offer did intrigue me and I responded. Last week I received these three cards - a map of Florida, an aeriel view of Daytona Beach (a spot I have been to) and my favourite of the three - a Lighthouse Keeper adjusting the light. It doesn't say which lighthouse it is exactly, but the card is printed in Massachusetts. The stamps used were ones I have never seen. I especially like the highway interchange one. I have sent a card in return to say thank you - posted it on 12-12-12 - the last time this century a postmark will be numerically symmetrical. I know Postal Geek!

OFFICIAL Card - Finland

When I received this card last week, we still hadn't had out first snowfall. It was unseasonably warm for November and early December and we did see rain, lots of rain, but no snow. Helena from Jyvaskyla, Finland sent me this pretty card produced by the Calligraphy Society of Finland.

The poem reads as follows - " Autumn is short. And Spring comes late. Frosts in early Summer are a widespread hazard. It is not surprising that Finland is sometimes known as the Land of 3 winters. Autumn, Winter, high Winter and Spring Winter." Certainly put a smile on my face.

OFFICIAL Card - Germany

Milena lives in Augsburg, Germany and 4 days after mailing me this card it arrived. Another fast delivery via German Post! I have been enjoying night views more and more when I receive them. It really gives a different feeling to a picture. This one is of her hometown and shows Perlach Tower, the Town Hall and St. Ulrich's Church. She wrote telling me about her day and her adjustment back home after living in Sweden for a year. Lucky!

OFFICIAL Card - Netherlands

Remember this card I got a few weeks ago? What a fun coincidence when I received this card from Karin last week! It came in at lightening speed too - 3 days! It is a portrait taken in 2010 of Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Maxima's daughters Princesses Amalia, Alexia and Ariane. Such beautiful girls! They are also on the stamp she used. Karin wrote me telling me the first snow of the season had fallen overnight and how surprised she was in the morning. Nothing here - yet!

OFFICIAL Card - Belarus

Anna from Vitebsk, Belarus sent this fun outline map of her country. It shows various things Belarus is known for and she provided a translation for each for me. Bison (the world's largest population is in Belarus), cornflower and storks (another national symbol, for some reason I find this one odd!) along with the many forests, rivers and lakes. Lots of little tidbits that I have just learnt about this country!

OFFICIAL Card - Russia

Masha lives in Vologda, Russia. She wrote telling me her city in an ancient one founded in 1147. There are many tourists who come to visit and many churches. This view shows The Church of St. Andrew in Fryazinovo (1670-1687). Oddly, when I try to Google anything it only has images no other info about this place. Who knows why. It does look neat, so close to the water and with such a unique coloured roof.

OFFICIAL Card - Portugal

Ana lives outside of Lisbon and sent this card showing the famous boats transporting Port wine on the River Douro. I like how the card has just a splash of colour on the black and white. She also used a stamp from the London Para-Olympic Games.

P.S. I have had lots of visitors lately from some new and fun countries. Would love to know who is out there reading this - please post a comment and let me know- thanks!!!

OFFICIAL Card - Belgium

I have received a few cards from Belgium now but somehow whenever I do I always think it is my first!?! This great multi-view came last week from Kathleen. She wrote telling me she lives in north Brussels and is a 15 minute walk from the Atomium. I remember when this was in The Amazing Race! She decorated it with some super sweet (and glittery!) stickers too! I love when the views are labelled like this, much easier than trying to track them down via Google.

Expired Card - France

Always tough when a card is expired and it never seems to fail that it is the "really good" ones that go astray - like this one sent to Clemence in Rennes, France last July :(

Direct Swap - Kate from USA

Kate responded to my forum post looking for state maps. She lives in Oregon but travelled to Idaho and had this great map card. She wrote me about her trip and how she used Idaho potatoes for her Thanksgiving. In return I sent her an Ontario card for her collection. Only three more states to go!

OFFICIAL Card - Germany

Corinna lives in Leipzig, Germany and wrote me the most amazing note on this card. She just told me about her day and when and where she was writing this card to me. Her little details were so great - I felt like I was there with her!  She mentioned her dream would be to travel to Alaska - funny I received this the same day as Michael's card from Alaska. She may or may not travel there but she indirectly travelled with it! I am going to have to Google Image these views to try and learn what more of these places are. So far I have found the New Town Hall, upper row middle and St.Thomas Church, third row far left, Monument to the Battle of the Nations, last row, second from left. It is like a virtual geo-cache!

Bahamas from J.J.

My, my this one was a surprise when I got it last week -my first card from Bahamas! J.J. was in the Bahamas in the middle of November and sent me a wonderful map card of the Islands. I didn't even know she was going. I must admit I am very envious of her, she is lucky how she is able to travel so much. While she said she was enjoying her time she was looking forward to going home. Hope her trip overall was a good one! Super stamp, but sadly no stamp cancellation on this card for her to see.

Direct Swap - Michael from USA

About a month ago I contacted Michael about swapping for an Alaska state map card I saw in the gallery. He didn't have any and I subsequently found another person to swap with. Two weeks ago I got a message from him saying he had found a map card if  I was still interested. I thought it was so sweet that he remembered I couldn't dare say no. Yesterday I received this card from him. It is a geologic map and shows the many different types of rocks Alaska has from all the geologic eras but one (Precambrian - older than 543 million years). He is a Graduate Research Assistant at the University of Alaska and studies Atmoshperic Sciences. He wrote that it was super cold -29C but with little snow. In that case I would take lots of snow and a bit more heat! A really cool card and much appreciated swap!

OFFICIAL Card - Netherlands

Janneke lives in a village in the Netherlands and sent this card to me last week. It shows Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and his Argentinian bride Maxima on their wedding day in 2002. A great card for my small yet growing Dutch Royalty collection.