Merci!!!

We have been "under siege" in our household this past weekend...held captive by a sick baby and her sick mommy...but I'm beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel and after a little antibiotics, the baby at least is beginning to turn the corner! So I finally have a moment to sit down and post a whole bunch of "thank-you's", which I've been dying to do for quite some time and finally have the opportunity.

First, merci to Claudia of The Paris Apartment! She writes a beautiful blog which I read regularly, but in addition to that, she's owned a well-renowned shop in New York City since 1993 and has written a book called The Paris Apartment. She's an expert at decorating in fabulous French style, using flea market finds and refurbished furniture. Both her shop and her designs have been published in numerous publications. She also...wait for it...takes people with her on guided shopping trips at the Paris flea markets several times a year. Um, hello...that's pretty much my dream vacation. (In fact, I've said as much to my husband in the past. A week of shopping at the Paris flea markets, then a week in a villa in the South of France to recover from my shopping excursions!) When I grow up, I'm going with Claudia to Paris, it's as simple as that. Anyway...drumroll please...Claudia stumbled onto my blog recently and posted about it here, sending all of her fabulous readers to my site! (Can you hear the music swelling as you read this?) How flattered am I??? Merci, Claudia!!! I would be more eloquent but that's about all the French I know!!!

Second, merci to to my new friend Nancy Kremiller. You may remember she's my artist of the month for February, and I posted my interview with her last week. She sent me these charming magnets, featuring her original designs, as a thank-you gift. So it's my turn to say "merci" to Nancy. These are by far the cutest magnets on my fridge!! (Sorry about the photo quality here.)

Then, I thought you might like to see a few of the birthday gifts I received last week...

...this purse (by Etsy seller revolutionoftheheart) from my mother-in-law. Well, she was really sneaky (in the best way) and purchased it for my birthday after reading about it in my Friday's Fabulous Finds - Black & White post. woohoo!! I knew there was a reason I wrote a blog. :-)

...this mug from my friend Beth...she knows me too well!! Beth knows that if my whole house was clean, it would definitely be a dream. It made me laugh.

...and this is the cover of a recipe book that my friend Tae-Ja made for me. Every page is different. I'm trying to convince her to sell her recipe books and handmade cards on Etsy...don't you think she should??

...more pages from the recipe book...

and last, just for fun...the gift bag that my Candle Giveaway winner received...

...I had fun playing with packaging that would convey the "nesting instincts" theme...so, one feather stamp and blue/tan ribbon later...a gift from Nesting Instincts. As much as I love to receive gifts, I might even love giving them more. Thanks again to all my friends who entered the giveaway. I'll do more again in the future, I promise!

Merci to all my wonderful friends, both new and old - ones I mentioned here and more that I didn't. They all made my birthday special and blessed my week in their own ways.