My santa went above and beyond putting together my gift! While I love Disney, I just participated in the Disney exchange, so I made sure that I included a list of some of my favorite non-Disney fairy tales - including Vasilisa the Beautiful and Baba Yaga. I’m so glad I did because /u/sitaroundandglare curated an absolutely amazing assortment of Baba Yaga-themed items for me!

First of all, can we just talk about the packaging? It was so exciting to come home from a long day at work and see this giant package absolutely covered in pictures of Baba Yaga and her house! I was super careful to cut along the edges of the package so I didn’t rip through all of my santa’s hard work. There were even more pictures and a note included on the inside box flaps! There was also a great spiced smell. Everything was wrapped in a sheet and green netting AND all the presents were individually wrapped. The decorated egg wrapping paper was my favorite! Does she deserve an award or what?!

I barely knew where to start! The very first thing I opened was a graphic novel titled Baba Yaga’s Assistant. I told my santa that I love retellings/modern updates of fairy tales, so this is perfect! The illustrations are great, and I’ve actually already whipped through the book and finished it :)

Next up, a mortar and pestle! I’ve always wanted one of these so it was awesome to see it included. For those of you unfamiliar with Baba Yaga, she uses a mortar and pestle to fly around!

The next present revealed the source of the yummy smell in the package - a cinnamon and pumpkin scented broom! It’s perfect for fall and I’ll definitely be using it to decorate for Halloween. I also unwrapped a fun, color-changing skull. What a clever way to include an element from the Vasilisa story! This is going on display in my office come October 1st!

My santa knows the way to my heart. Baba Yaga Laid an Egg by Dubravka Ugresic looks like a super interesting read! I’m holding off on reading it for now; from what I can tell I should only start reading it if I don’t have any plans because I won’t want to put it down!

I gasped when I opened the smallest box - chicken feet earrings! So unbelievably perfect for this theme! But seriously, how did you even find these? I immediately took out my boring earrings and wore these instead.

I was not prepared for how adorable the next gift was... A little matryoshka tea diffuser! It’s too bad this little cutie can’t cook and clean for me like Vasilisa’s doll, but I’ll gladly accept freshly brewed tea instead!

Last but not least, a giant book full of stories about Baba Yaga. I can’t wait to read all of this! Baba Yaga is such a prevalent character in Slavic folklore and the stories I’m familiar with are only the tip of the iceberg. I’ll be learning a lot of new stories!

/u/sitaroundandglare, thank you SO much for this absolutely perfect gift! It’s obvious that you put so much thought and care into every little detail. You are the type of santa that everyone dreams of having! From now on, whenever I think of Baba Yaga, I will remember this exchange and think of you! Thank you again!