The best gifts are unexpected!

It’s amazing how people touch your life.  When I had the store, I hosted about 8 retreats a year, with about 20 people attending each retreat.  That’s a lot of fun and a lot of friends.  Last fall there were a few ladies from Central Oregon at one of the retreats.  They were lots of fun, but, hey!, they were quilters.  What do you expect!?!  Among them was a sweetie named Peggy from Wamic, Oregon.  Now I like to think that I know my Northwest geography, but I wasn’t familiar with Wamic.  I was told, however, that it’s near Maupin.  So, that cleared things up.  I was also told that it makes Long Beach look like a big city!

Last week, I received a small, plain-brown-wrapper package in the mail.  It was from Wamic.  It was from Peggy!  Well, I tore right into it, and, lo and behold, out fell two beautiful, handmade gifts.  One is a pincushion and the other a tiny wallet.  I LOVE them both!  And, they’re made with my Daisy-A-Day fabric line!

Now, I don’t think Peggy had any way of knowing that I’ve been coveting this shape pincushion for a long time.  I’ve bought a couple of magazines with patterns for this style pincushion in them, and even an $8.99 pattern for a pincushion like this.  Surely, I thought, I could make one.  But it looks HARD!  I’m not real good at stuffing things.  So, I haven’t tried.  But here, courtesy of Peggy and the US mail, I now have one!  Oh, I shall treasure it!

And the tine wallet is a real charmer.  It’s got lots of room for credit cards and cash.  It, too, is made with Daisy-A-Day fabric.  It’s going right into my purse, and I know I’m going to love using it.  And every time I pull it out, I’m going to think of Peggy–and Wamic–and how the best gifts are a total, unexpected surprise.  Thank you, Peggy.

Footnote:  I knew I liked Peggy when I first met her at retreat, but I like her even more now.  No, not just because of the special gifts, but because of this note that was included with them.  “Sorry–I thought I mailed this in November.  Found it in my studio.  Does that tell you anything?”  Yup.  It tells me that Peggy and I have a lot in common!