OFFICIAL Card - Belarus

It has been a long time since I have received a Fauna of Belarus card and this one is great! Anna from Minsk sent this card showing a Bluethroat. This looks like such a sweet little bird, some of the pictures I Googled, also a colourful little one!

OFFICIAL Card - Russia

Sophie lives near Sochi and wrote to me about her experience as a volunteer for the Olympic Games last year. Love the owl she sent me - so fuzzy and cute! Also chose a fantastic stamp.

OFFICIAL Card - Taiwan

Alice lives in Taiwian chose a wonderful card for me - Mt. Fuji, located in Japan. The swans and blue skies are so serene and peaceful looking. It is also classed as a UNESCO site. Not too sure if that is her on the sticker/stamp she used, I asked but did  not hear back from her.

OFFICIAL Card - USA

As you may be able to tell from reading my blog I like birds. Of all birds, I think I would have to say my favourite are hummingbirds. I can and do literally sit for hours in the warmer months and watch them come to the feeders I keep for them. They are amazing, so small, so fast and so consistent! Claire is a Canadian who winters in Arizona. She sent me this beautiful card and told me how she had baby hummingbirds in her tree last year. That would be an amazing sight. Great stamps too!

Random Act of Smiliness - Genek from Denmark

Genek and I have never swapped. I have asked him for his address and so far he has successfully avoided sharing it with me. This is the second card he has sent me, the first one you can see here. He too attended the big Bielefeld meet-up in Germany last month. So many signatures are the same and so many new ones, that place is crazy busy! The card is great - vintage black and white bird photo, the caption on the back is hilarious - "The reward for feeding great Tits". Certainly gave me a good laugh!!! Thank you Genek, my goal is to track you down for Christmas.

OFFICIAL Card - Belarus

This is a great illustration of a Pygmy Owl that Olga sent me. I was not aware there was an "Owls of Belarus" series. Even more great birds to collect! Thank you!

Random Act of Smiliness - Alida from Canada

Alida my dear friend has sent me yet another wonderful cancellation. She had noticed on my blog I was "missing a few". I am so lucky that she has access to so many great ones! The card she tells me is one her brother picked up for her on his vacation. Lucky me, love the colours they are so bright! Thank you Alida!!!

Happy Hallowe'en!

Happy Hallowe'en and Happy Birthday to me! My dear friend Alida was the first to send me birthday wishes this year - thank you! A great card with many fun stickers and stamps on the back and of course another fabulous cancellation.

Direct Swap - Kathy from Guensey

Kathy and I just swapped cards a few weeks ago. When we had both received our cards in the first swap we pretty much immediately agreed to a second swap! This time the card she sent me shows views of Herm Island. Her message was fantastic! She wrote all about Herm (a place I can honestly say I had never heard of before). It sounds like a dreamy vacation to completely disconnect or as she says "switch off" from the outside. The hotel has no phones, TV's or clocks in the room. The island also boasts no cars, motorbikes or bicycles. One of the beaches, Kathy tells me, is full of shells carried from the Caribbean along the Gulf Stream. Hoping my card makes it to Kathy soon, it seems to be a bit slower this time around.

OFFICIAL Card - Estonia

Another lovely little bird flying in to my mailbox compliments of Anastassia from Tallinn, Estonia. This was her first card to Canada - lucky me! These two little Waxwings look straight out of a wintry scene. Birds, I like. Winter, not a fan!

OFFICIAL Card - Turkey

This bird illustration is simply wonderful. Love the colours and the randomness of the background with different letters and numbers. Yagmur from Istanbul wrote one of her favourite quotes about karma. Very fitting for this household with some of the things going on here. Perfect timing!

OFFICIAL Card - USA

This lovely Eurasian Jay flew into my mailbox from Dominike at the beginning of September.  She is from Poland and is taking part in a high school exchange program. How cool would that be! Lucky girl!

OFFICIAL Card - Finland

Marritta sent this beautiful card showing a Woodcock, it is such a great illustration. The stamps she used are wonderful too. Lately, it seems more and more stamps are making it through without being cancelled.

OFFICIAL Card - Germany

Oh, how these little birds put a smile on my face! Love the pose and expression. They are Gannets which is a new bird to me.

OFFICIAL CArd - Russia

Another incredible owl in my mailbox to make my daughter jealous! Thanks go out to Anna from Khanty-Mansiysk for this card. Funny thing, we were at the National Zoo in Washington DC just the week before this card arrived and saw a Burrowing Owl there - neat!

OFFICIAL Card - Germany

Patricia lives near Cologne and writes that her favourite snacks are Dutch Frites (yum) and pizza with spinach and broccoli (double yum). That is one of my favourite combos on pizza too!!!

OFFICIAL Card - Finland

Liesel sent me this card showing four native birds to Finland. Clockwise from top left - Parrot Crossbill, Golden Eagle, Siberian Jay or Kuukkeli and the Great Grey Owl. She went further to tell me about the Kuukkeli and the tales and myths about this magical mystery bird. Very enchanting!

Thank You Card - Annemieke from Netherlands

Annemieke has a friend who is moving to Vancouver. She was collecting cards for her as a send off gift. I sent a few and in return Annemieke sent me these two wonderful card cards showing the various species of Forest Birds and Birds of Prey and Owls. Thank you Annemieke for the thank you!

OFFICIAL Card - Russia

This is one of the cutest bird cards I have seen in awhile. So many different reasons why this Nuthatch could be posed this way. One of the questions I suggest people can answer is "what is your favourite colour?". Mark is surprisingly the first person to answer this and I love the fact he used {turquoise} ink to write his answer! Very creative!

OFFICIAL Card - Belarus

The infamous white stork of Belarus thanks to Alena from Minsk. Haven't had a card from this series in awhile - yeah me!