I have read several times that people feel like they won Reddit gifts with a certain exchange. I don't know if it's ever truly possible to win, but I won a new friend with my Trick-or-Treat+ Santa, and that has shown to be quite a beautiful gift.

There were some bumps in the road with my Santa in regards to my package. The letter that was meant to be enclosed in the box fell out and had to be mailed separate. The letter got to me in record time though; just 4 days I think! I was proud of myself for not opening the letter until the package arrived on Thanksgiving day.

I'm away from my other home, in a different country and away from my family for the holidays. I feel like the universe somehow knew that I would need the package more than ever on Thanksgiving, hence the reason there were problems with it. My Santa and I stayed in touch the whole time which I think made the anticipation of the package that much more special. I had come to feel like I was expecting a surprise from a close, longtime friend.

Now that both pieces of mail had made it to me safely, I wasn't quite sure if I was supposed to open the letter or the package first, so I recruited my boyfriend to peek at the letter and tell me what he thought. He said to open the box first, so I did.

Before I go into detail about the contents, I want to say a little something special. Every time I have signed up for an exchange, I do my very best to put together a package that I hope will make another person smile, but I also send a little piece of my heart off with the gift. After opening my trick-or-treat and reading the letter, this was the first time that I felt like someone sent me a little piece of my heart back.

Everything that was inside of the shipping box, including the Halloween box that encased my other gifts, was absolutely amazing! The son of my SS helped him pick out the pens and pencil, since I mentioned that I loved a pen that writes well. The Halloween box that you see in the picture that is holding my other gifts has a beautiful story behind it. My SS's birthday is on Halloween and his Mom gave him this awesome box as part of his birthday gift. It is also the box that he used to hand out Halloween candy with his family. Every time it is opened, it says one of about six spooky phrases. I love it! I have felt more than honored that he decided to pass on this box from his Mom to me. I promise that I will keep it forever.

Other treats enclosed in my special Halloween box included postcards from a local museum in his hometown, some of my favorite candy I miss from my other home that they don't have openly available here in the Netherlands: Three Muskateers, Reese Cups and Starburst. There was also a Blow Pop sucker and a few pieces of Dubble Bubble chewing gum. My match also enclosed my favorite Toll House chocolate chips and Reese peanut butter chips so that I can make my holiday cookies! And it gets even more amazing! I have wanted and needed some nice baking mats for a really long time! Rolled neatly inside were two Artisan Metal Works Silicone Baking Mats that I can use to bake my cookies and other goodies on!

Last but absolutely not least, he remembered my furry babies. These extra treats for my kitty, Stormy, and my old gal, Izzy, are what brought me to tears. Anytime they are remembered and thought of it means the world to me. I received some toys for Stormy and some dog sushi for Izzy. Stormy loves the jingle balls and Izzy really enjoyed her first piece of the dog sushi!

Oh, and I almost forgot about my little bugs! I received 5 little bugs wrapped in plastic that I initially thought were candy, until I read the letter, hah! They are supposed to grow when you add them to water! I haven't grown one yet, but I will be dropping one in some water tonight! :)

I feel like I could write forever about how much happiness this package brought my way. As I already mentioned, I don't know if anyone can ever really 'win' Reddit gifts in an exchange, but I will say that I believe I received the most beautiful and heartfelt package, as there was more to it than just receiving a box of goodies....I made a friend. Thank you again to my new friend for making this such a special and memorable exchange.