Posted By FarmerJ on January 21, 2009

It was 4:00 p.m. CST on January 6.  I sat with my face pressed against the window, in search of the Big Brown Truck.

It was now 4:20 p.m. CST on January 6.  I moved to a different window and pressed my face against it for a different view, still in search of the BBT.  The barnhouse is always the last stop on the route, and the last stop’s always around 4:00 – 4:15 p.m.  But apparently not on this day.  No, of course not!  This was the day I was to receive the prizes my dear friend, ‘J’ in Arizona had sent me.

Finally!  At 5:25 p.m. I saw lights coming down the driveway and heard the infamous sound of the BBT.  It was here!  It was finally here!  I raced down the stairs and flung open the door ~ I think my excitement may have startled the poor UPS man a little…but that’s okay.

I lugged not one, but three boxes upstairs and was so eager to tear into them.  Just then the phone rang ~ it was ‘J’ calling to see if the boxes had arrived yet.  I screeched into the phone with elation that I just got them upstairs and that I also had just remembered something that burst my bubble of excitement.  I had a commitment that I needed to fulfill at 6:00 p.m. CST and I was going to have to wait until I was finished with that before I could open my prizes.  Drat!

Like boulders through an hourglass, so were the minutes on the clock.  I thought I’d never get finished with that untimely commitment!  But alas, the moment had arrived ~ it was time to tear into those boxes.

I started with the lightest box first.  Ha!  Light.  It weighed 16 lbs!  Had my dear friend shipped me lead bricks?  No way!  Take a gander at that photo again.  There are 115 items ~ fabulous little treasures ~ she had picked out just for me.  Well, there were a couple of things in there for Darling Husbie and Son #1.  Yes, I counted each and every item.  Can’t you just see my face beaming and imagine how much fun it was to keep pulling surprise after surprise out of the box ~ 115 times?!

There was everything from packs of gum; to summer sausage; to my favorite taco sauce which can’t be found in Nebraska; to heavenly chocolate; to coffee; to makeup; to body wash and stink-be-gone spray ~ even two super cozy cuddly scarves!  Oh, and see all those green things on the upper left portion of the table?  That’s a complete set of silicone bakeware!  ‘J’ gave me a muffin pan with its special rack; two 8″ square pans; two 9″ round pans; two bread pans and two pastry mats.  How incredibly cool is that?!  Say it with me ~ that is way cool!

Now, after the giddiness had worn off a little I sat back and admired all my little treasures.  Just about then, the phone rang.  It was ‘J’ calling to see if I had finished with my commitment and had gotten into the packages.  Oh yeah!  We talked about all the cool and fun stuff she had sent me, and then she asked me what my favorite thing was.  It didn’t take me too long to answer ~ and I think ‘J’ already knew what my answer was going to be.

The coolest little blessing out of all 115 items is a little glazed ceramic bird.  I’ve never seen anything like it before.  It’s a pie bird; a little rooster.  It’s bottom end is open, and it has a little hole at its beak.  You put the little bird in the center of your pie ~ with the filling all around it ~ and it keeps the filling from overflowing while the pie is baking.  Now I say again, how incredibly cool is that?!

I know it’s a pie bird ~ and I just happen to have some sliced apples in the freezer from the 137 lbs apple frenzie just waiting to be made into a pie ~ but, for now, the little rooster sits on my kitchen window sill.  It’s a little blessing that reminds me of one ginormous blessing ~ she lives in Arizona.

Categories: Plainly Ponderings
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