I love our blogger boxes. There’s no other way to say it. It’s like Christmas morning, every other month. For June OKMH Boxes, I received a carton of love from the 45th parallel from Kirsten of Comfortably Domestic. We’ve never met, but we are twins separated at birth (never mind the pesky age difference). She is my sister from another mister. My doppelgänger. And because of that, her box was an exercise in perfection. It started with this card.
This is us in 30 years, and my vote goes to “buck naked”
Fuel for my soul, that’s what this box is.
The first goodie out of the box was this can of chipotle peppers (which we love), a jar of lemons preserved in salt (which I have never in my life tried), and a recipe for BBQ sauce that combines the two. Kirsten nailed this one. I love lemons, we both love barbecue, and TCP loves to grill. I can’t wait to try this recipe and those gorgeous salt-preserved lemons.
Smokey, zingy, tasty goodness – all in one recipe. Very cool.
Next up, a little something for the girly girl in me. Hello summer!
Lips & nails – throw in some mascara & it’s a girly emergency kit.
Then my heart stopped beating when I found these…
Dried cherries from the Upper Peninsula region of the 45th parallel.
If you’re thinking “big deal… dried cherries” then I question how we can be friends (except for my dear friend Kaki – she gets a cherry pass). Seriously, as a cherry lover there are few things as glorious as a gift of Michigan cherries. Canned, fresh or dried – I’ll take them any way I can get them. I’m not exaggerating when I say that a little tear of joy came to my eye when I pulled these out of the box. They are the perfect blend of tart & sweet, dried & plump. I covet these the way some girls covet diamonds. Have mercy, they’re delicious.
This next little gadget blew my mind.
The Cuppow – it turns any wide-mouth canning jar into a travel mug.
As a lover of canning jars AND my morning coffee, my jaw dropped when I saw this. The Cuppow fits onto any wide-mouth canning jar, which I just happen to have a love affair with. In the list of things I hoard, canning jars rank near the top. When I saw this, I did the head slap/why didn’t I think of this thing. It’s so simple it’s brilliant. And Kirsten kicked it up another notch by including my first ‘to go’ beverage AND a handmade travel jar koozie. Seriously. She raises 4 boys, homeschools them all, runs a household, trains a dog and bakes every single day. And she still found time to knit a cover for my travel jar. UH.MAZE.ING.
This simple rigid plastic lid will change you life.
Knowing my love of canning jars, Kirsten capped my June box with yet another of my obsessions – buttons. Or in this case, buttons in an antique canning jar she found in an antique shop. My mother and I went through these like kids in a candy shop, ‘ooooing’ and ‘ahhhhing’ over each new find. We laughed our butts off when we found a small denture charm in the jar. It looks ancient, it’s a little disturbing, and it’s absolutely hysterical. I loved them all. Here’s a collage tribute to our button fun because every crafty girl loves buttons.
Antique buttons in an antique jar; she just gets me
Saying that I enjoyed this month’s box would be a gross understatement. I loved it all. Kirsten’s picks could not have been more perfect. Seriously, these boxes are too much fun. I have a feeling we’re going to need to expand this next year to include more friends. Because everyone loves friends and presents.
To see what the other girls in our group got, drop in on:
Kirsten at Comfortably Domestic (who received a box from me)
Megan of Wanna Be A Country Cleaver
Kat of Tenaciously Yours
Madelyn of La Petite Pancake
Allison of Decadent Philistines Save the World
OKMH Bloggers (top) – Mads, Kirsten & Megan; (bottom) Jeanne, Allison & Kat
Inside NanaBread's Head 