An Open Letter to my Pen Pals

My dearest pen pals,

I've been in kind of a slump lately.  I'm not sure why, but every time I sit down to write a letter, I seem to get stuck.  I have so much to say, but nothing comes out. Is this what they call, "writer's block"?  I have the words swirling around in my head but I can't seem to put pen to paper. I am a month behind in my replies.

I think about every single one of you on a daily basis. I feel like I have cultivated some real friendships through letter writing and I don't want to damage the beginning of new friendships by taking too long to respond.

Lynn M., Kimmie, Rachel, Jackie, Mariska, L. R., Lisa, Patt, Margie, Melanie and Lynn B:   I have all of your latest letters in front of me and I promise I will start replying next week in the order that they arrived.  (yes, I have a system of keeping track and I never file a letter away until I've replied to it, AND I never throw a letter away)

Melanie, you are a new pen pal and I appreciate and love the letter you sent me. Please be patient. I promise I will reply to your letter soon.

Until my pen touches paper, expect the unexpected and enjoy the magic of little moments.

Love,

~JarieLyn~
XOXOXXO

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Yesterday, I wrote five postcards for Postcrossings.

One recipient was using her dog as the addressee and wanted other pets to write.

So, here's what I came up with.

This Postcrossing stirred my creative side a little. as much as writing on a postcard can. So hopefully, it will help me get back on track.

The Postal Machine Ate My Mail......

Yesterday I went to the post office and checked my mail like I do every day.

I was delighted to find several pieces of mail in my box and when I got out to my car I sat in the parking lot and read my postcards and then started on the two envelopes I received.  

That's when I noticed that one of the envelopes was from the United States Postal Service. 

What's this? I thought.

At first glance it looks like my mail was save completely.

I was happy.

Until I opened it.

I still have hope that the contents are safe even while looking at the mangled envelope.

There were three items inside; A pencil, a mini photo, and this piece of paper that I looked up on Google translator to understand. 

It appears to be a log for expenses of the day.

I know It's not for a swap because I have received all of my swaps.

If the sender wrote me a letter, it is missing from the envelope.

Thank goodness she put a blog address on her envie.

Now I can touch base and let her know that her wonderful surprise was destroyed by the postal service.

:(

Postcrossings:

This lovely card traveled all the way from Ukraine.

The sender writes:

Greetings from Lviv, city of old narrow streets with aroma coffee and chocolate.

Welcome to Lviv :)

I'm planning to visit Las Vegas this year.

Hope my plan comes true :)

This postcard is in your favs, so I hope you will be happy :)

Best wishes, Yura.

Yes, I do really like the postcard.  It's very pretty.

This postcard came from Belarus.

The sender writes:

Hello, my name is [Isseniys]

I live in Minsk-it's a capital of Belarus.

I hope you'll like my card, because I'm really interested in graffiti.

Best wishes.

I think he may have made this card himself from his own artwork.

Not sure, but I do find it interesting.

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This is from Amber. 

She did a beautiful job on the envelope but the photo does not do it justice.

It's a vellum envelope embellished with what looks like a cutout from a magazine but it's not thin like most magazine pages.  

It's very nice.

All the little white rain drops are drawn by hand.

Inside, were some postcards that she designed.

I love it.

Tucked inside another cute little envelope was this tiny card that measures about 1 3/4" by 2 3/4".

It was such a lovely surprise and very much appreciated.

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Outgoing Mail:

This is going to a pen pal who lives on the East Coast.

An Invitation, Cowboy Style

I received an announcement awhile back from my nephew that he's "gettin hitched".

I think I shared it awhile back via this blog.

The official invitation arrived yesterday.

I love the idea of having a themed wedding.

I also love that I get to go buy some new cowgirl boots.

These are the boots I currently have.

The chain on the other boot is broken and the boot isn't as cute without the decoration.

Also, red really isn't my color and I actually surprised myself when I bought these.

But as you can see that got lots of wear on them.

I almost bought a pair of boots while on vacation in Texas last year.

My husband wanted to spoil me and as much as I loved the boots I saw, I didn't want to spend the money.  They were almost $400.00 for the pair.

I scrolled through 1,848 boots online this morning.

I'm posting some pictures of a few of the styles that I like.

I love the design of this one but I can't stand the toe curled up.

It seems that a lot of the boots made these days are made like that.

I want mine flat to the ground, but I am  not completely opposed to a tiny curl upward.

Also, as cute as some boots are, if they are too stiff then forget it.

I realy like a little color in the boots.

These are very stylish but I wish the middle inlay wasn't of an eagle.

But still, they are cute.

I like the the colors and the decorative rivets/studs in this one.

Another pair of black boots that look more comfortable than the black ones above.

A splash of color without being overwhelming.

There is something about these boots that I really like, except for the curled toe of course.

I like the snake skin and the strap. I'm not sure if I'm crazy about the top part though.

These are nice.

I like the color.

These are very simple and kind of plain but classy.

Do you wear western style boots?

Which boots do you prefer of all the ones I posted?

Need your input please.

This is a tough decision.

I'll be wearing mine with a skirt.

I don't have the skirt yet, but I have a vision in my mind.

The Letter Box

This is a letter box in my step-dad's office building.

I'm not sure if it is being used but I really like how it looks.

I'll get back to posting some mail soon.

Stay tuned.