Cara Box REVEAL

That's right friends... it is that time again... Cara Box REVEAL time!! As most of you know I have been participating in the Cara Box exchange since last August and for the most part it has been a wonderful experience for me (You can read about my past experiences here, here and here).  I have met so many wonderful women through the exchange and have without a doubt made some new friends for life in them. 

For those of you who don't know what the Cara Box Exchange is, it was started by Kaitlyn over at Wifessionals as a way to "Make Friends... Receive Gifts... Share Encouragement".  It is basically like having a pen pal the way we did in elementary school... we write e-mails back and forth... read each others' blogs (if your partner has one)... comment on Instagram photos... tweet... etc. Then in the end after getting to know your partners you said a box of gifts to one partner and receive a box of gifts from the other.  The exchange occurs quarterly which gives us plenty of time to get to know each other and create the PERFECT boxes for one another! 

This time around I was paired up with Kyla from Colorado and Alicia who is from California.  Our task this quarter was to create a box for our partners with the theme of where we live.

This quarter I sent a box to Alicia all the way in California.  Alicia is around my age and has an adorable little girl.  She is a SAHM who has her own daycare business so that she can be home for her daughter to watch her grow up.  I failed miserably at making Alicia's box "Philly" themed, but I did make sure to include things in the box that hopefully the entire family would be able to enjoy.  I even put my "crafting" skills to use and made Alicia a few things. 

The only picture I have of what went in Alicia's Box...This did not turn out exactly as I had hoped, but for my first time "crafting" in years I don't think it turned out too bad.  And I guess it kinda fits with the theme because it was "Handmade in Philly by me"

I received a box this time around from Kyla who is a teacher in Colorado.  Kyla and I are kindred spirits in that we both just got married recently and are navigating the waters of newly wed life.  Kyla is actually from the suburbs of Denver and I actually visited her little town when I was out there on a family vacation YEARS ago.  Kyla is also my kindred spirit because she is pretty much just as owl obsessed as I am.  One of the first things I noticed when we were first paired up and I was stalking her Instagram was the insane amount of owl things she had... we even have the SAME owl coffee mug!  

This is our owl mug... so random that we both have this!

Kyla did a great job with the theme... definitely came up with creative ways to incorporate it into a box that I absolutely LOVE! 

Kyla sent me a journal that says "Live a Colorful Life" on the front because apparently when  you come into Colorado there is a sign that says "Welcome to Colorful Colorado" and apparently that sign is a really ugly brown.  But Kyla swears (& I know from visiting the state) that Colorado does have some GORGEOUS sunsets so that must be where the "colorful" part comes from!   She also sent me a variety pack of Celestial Seasonings tea as it is made in Colorado (I had no idea) and says that if I ever come to visit their factory is a MUST see (in her words).  I definitely want to take the hubby out to Denver at some point, so this may just have to go on our list of places to visit.

Knowing how much M and I love craft beer, Kyla sent us some postcards from New Belgium brewing that she thought we could use as coasters.

Now, of course she couldn't let my owl obsession go unnoticed... so she sent me some hand sanitizer that came in a container shaped like an owl.  Then probably one of my favorite things is my owl lawn decoration.  Kyla says that people in Colorado are notorious for having yard decorations, mostly gnomes, but she thought I would appreciate an owl more than a gnome and she couldn't have been more right!

Lastly Kyla collects t-shirts from all of the places that she visits, so she sent me my very own Colorado t-shirt!  Can't wait to wear it and pretend that I just got back from visiting the fabulous state of Colorado!!

Once again I had a positive experience with the Cara Box exchange and I look forward to keeping in touch with both Alicia and Kyla in the future!! 

Cara Box REVEAL

That's right friends... it is that time again... time for the CARA BOX REVEAL!!!!! As many of you know, I first participated in the Cara Box Exchange in August and had a wonderful experience... I loved it so much that I participated again in October and had just as wonderful an experience. I actually still keep in touch with a few of my partners which is AWESOME!  I truly feel like I gained some new friends from this experience.

For those of you who don't know what the Cara Box exchange is... it was started by Kaitlyn over at Wifessionals as a way to "Make Friends...Receive Gifts...Share Encouragement". It is basically like having a pen pal like we did when we were in Elementary school, only with these e-mail/Instagram pen pals we send each other gifts after getting to know one another. The exchange occurs quarterly which gives us plenty of time to know each other and to create a box that truly reflects our partners.

This time around I was paired up with Erin from Sugar Crumbs and Ashley from A Nelson's Nest.  This quarter bloggers were paired with other bloggers from their state to get to know via Instagram as well as e-mails. 

This quarter I sent a box to Erin from Sugar Crumbs!  Erin lives not to far from me and loves to crochet.  She makes this ADORABLE Amigurumi creations which she sells in her Etsy Shop.  I will definitely be purchasing some from her as I have a few pregnant friends who I would love to see with these homemade creations in their nurseries.  I am also hoping to get some crocheting tips from Erin as my mother-in-law gave me all the tools to learn how to crochet but I think I need a little more help than my how-to book!  If you ask her if she has any hobbies besides crocheting she will probably look at you like you are crazy, but I do know that she also enjoys reading and spending time with her family.  This was Erin's first time participating in the Cara Box exchange so I hope she enjoyed the box that I sent her... I tried to make it extra special for her (& her family!!)!

I received a box from Ashley at A Nelson's Nest.  Ashley is a momma to two kids who are just too cute for words.  I absolutely LOVED seeing Ashley's pictures of them on Instagram and I am pretty sure I "liked" or commented on just about every single one of them.  Ashley is from the part of PA closer to where I went to college, so I could definitely relate to living in that part of the state.  Despite the weather trying to keep my box from me I received it on Valentine's Day and it was perfect since I knew I wasn't going to get to spend my day with my hubby... it was a great pick me up.

Ashley was so thoughtful when putting together this box for me!  She included stuff for me to pamper myself because she knows that I am working really hard and on my feet ALL THE TIME for work.  She said she wanted me to be able to relax a bit after my long days at work. 

Ashley also fed my owl and wine obsessions.  I am pretty sure from looking at my Instagram feed it is pretty apparent that I love my wine almost as much as I love owls.  I post all kinds of pictures of wine related items... in fact in the above picture of my box contents you can see my wine corks that are on my centerpiece on my living room table!  Ashley was kind enough to go to a local winery and get me a bottle of their wine to try!  I am so looking forward to trying it and may even pop open the bottle as soon as I finish writing this post (or I decided to pop open the bottle while writing this post cause I am a wineo and couldn't wait!)! Result is... wine is delicious!  She also included some adorable wine magnets for me to decorate my refrigerator with... "Keep Calm and Drink Wine"... yes please! Of course Ashley included an owl necklace for me and I am so excited to wear it!  Owls are probably my favorite animal (next to giraffes) and that comes from being a proud Chi Omega!  

I also love the fact that Ashley included a "Date Night" jar for M and I.  M and I are always looking for new things to do and sometimes we do have a hard time deciding what to do when we have a free night because let's face it, they don't happen all that often.  Ashley definitely put a lot of thought into these as she was sure to include things tailored to both of our interests... beer tasting date and hockey game dates for Mark... wine tasting and looking at wedding pictures dates for me.  She even included a few blank date sticks so that we could write in our own! I am so looking forward to being able to go on some new adventures with M!  

I am so looking forward to continuing to talk to both Ashley and Erin as I feel we have formed friendships in a unique way, but I am confident that we will be able to continue our friendships past this Cara Box experience.  I look forward to continuing to participate in the exchange and getting to know more wonderful women in the blogging community!

As always, today I think it is fitting to say that I am thankful for the Cara Box exchange.  Kaitlyn has done such a wonderful thing in introducing bloggers to other bloggers.  I have met some amazing women though this exchange and I look forward to my almost daily interactions with them all.  These are women who I have shared a lot about my life with, women who I feel completely comfortable talking with and being myself with, women who I am not afraid to share my crazy stories with despite the fact that we haven't known each other all that long.  Each woman that I have been paired with has been remarkable and I have learned so much from talking to each and every one of them!  So thank you Kaitlyn for organizing the Cara Box exchange and for helping me to meet so many amazing women!

Cara Box REVEAL

That's right friends... it is that time again... time for the CARA BOX REVEAL!!!!! As many of you know, I first participated in the Cara Box Exchange in August and had a wonderful experience!  In fact I still e-mail quite frequently with my one partner and truly feel like I have made a friend for life in her.

For those of you who don't know what the Cara Box exchange is... it was started by Kaitlyn over at Wifessionals as a way to "Make Friends...Receive Gifts...Share Encouragement". It is basically like having a pen pal like we did when we were in Elementary school, only with these e-mail pen pals we send each other gifts after getting to know one another. The exchange occurs quarterly which gives us plenty of time to know each other and to create a box that truly reflects our partners.

This time around I was paired up with Elizabeth from Army Ever After AND Elizabeth from Get Busy Living.  Funny coincidence that this time I was paired with two wonderful women named Elizabeth because well I am an Elizabeth too!  I wonder if Kaitlyn did that on purpose. This month's theme was "Fall".  Now any of you  who know me knows that this is the PERFECT theme for me because well fall is definitely my FAVORITE time of the year.  I was so excited to be able to put together a fall themed box and was equally excited to receive one!

I sent a box to Elizabeth from Get Busy Living this month and you can check out her Cara Box post here.  Elizabeth is a former teacher who is a momma to an almost 3 year old boy.  She too loves fall and most loves it for sweater weather, celebrating her wedding anniversary and pretty much all things pumpkin (a girl after my own heart).  I thoroughly enjoyed putting a box together that she would be able to enjoy herself, but also with her family.

I received a box from Elizabeth at Army Ever After.  Elizabeth is an Army wife whose hubby is stationed in Hawaii (talk about jealous!).  She loves fall just as much as I do and of course shares my love of pumpkin spice lattes.  I think it was fate that we were paired up together.  I received my box from Elizabeth the other day... after a particularly bad night at work... I swear I always seem to get packages from my Cara Box partners when I need them the most!

Elizabeth sent me a very fun box filled with all sorts of goodies.  I got some chocolates and a charm from Hawaii so I will always be reminded of my new Hawaiian friend (The hubby is excited about the chocolates... in fact when I told him he could have one he responded with "mmmmm I'll have 6 or 7")!  She also sent me some ocean scented bath salts as I absolutely LOVE the beach and now my baths can remind me of sand and salt weather and summer days relaxing lazily on the beach.  She also sent me a fall candle set (I'm not even sure I told her about my candle obsession... so she is good) that smells just like fall.  I can't wait to burn it and have my house smell like all things fall!!  I also received a pumpkin spice sugar scrub for my hands.  I am super excited to try this out because my hands take a beating at work so hopefully this will help them out some.

Overall this was another fantastic Cara Box experience.  I am so glad that I have decided to become a part of this as I have definitely made some amazing friends throughout the experience.  Can't wait until the next one!

Cara Box Reveal!!!!!

So I know I am late to the Cara Box reveal game, but this month I received my box a little late and since I received it I feel like I have had zero free time for blogging.  In fact I think my only post since I received it was a "Wordless Wednesday" post where I didn't really do much besides post some pictures from one of my bff's wedding.

So about this Cara Box.  The Cara Box Exchange was started by Kaitlyn over at Wifessionals as a way to "Make Friends... Receive Gifts...Share Encouragement" as her button for the exchange states.  My first time participating in the Exchange I was paired with Ashley from Our Mitchell Moments and Maddie from My Saturday Smiles.  All of us were newbies to the Cara Box Exchange and had no idea what to expect.  The theme for this month's box was "Seasons of Life" and we were supposed to make a box for our partners that captured the essence of who they are.

I had to send a box to Ashley and immediately upon e-mailing her I knew that we would become AMAZING friends.  Ashley was so easy to talk to and I loved hearing about her beautiful baby girl as well as all the other little things going on in her life.  We e-mailed back and forth A LOT and I really feel like I was able to create a box that was simply her... a box dedicated to her love for her family!

I received a box from Maddie who is a talented artist... you should check out her Etsy shop here... especially if you have little girls!  She has some phenomenal artwork that if I had a little girl I would totally love to put in her room.  Maddie is way more creative than I am and she definitely put together a box that will hopefully get my creative genes flowing a bit more!

My pretty bag of a box from Maddie!!

Contents of my box

My box included a little chalkboard that says "I love you because..." and some chalk so that MD and I can write messages to each other letting each other know why we love each other on any particular day.  She also gave me a journal and pen where I can write down anything related to MD & I.... so that we can remember why it is that we love each other and what it is that we are doing together.  I love that she decorated the notebook with red, white and blue ribbon as my favorite football team is the NYG.  I also got some really cute coasters that I plan on using during football season!  

Overall my first experience with the Cara Box was wonderful and I am looking forward to getting to know my new partners for the next box!