At first, I thought my match had shafted me. I was a little disappointed, but I'd still had fun sending a gift to the person I was matched to. Then, I got a message from my gifter, saying they were sorry that they hadn't sent my gift yet; they didn't have enough money to ship in time. That was all right by me-- I'd been in the same boat before, so I could understand that!

A few days ago, they told me they'd sent the gift, and sure enough, a package arrived on my doorstep today. It was HUGE, and it was HEAVY!! I could barely wait to grab the camera before tearing that sucker open and I was SO EXCITED for what was inside!

Three brand-new, gorgeous cookbooks! My match had obviously paid attention to my wants, because one of them was the Ball's Complete Book of Home Preserving, which I'm ashamed to say I didn't have; it's like the bible of home preserving. I just discovered the joy of canning my own food this summer, so this book is PERFECT! I can't wait to put more things in jars!!

The next two are ones I'm so pumped for. One of them is The Professional Pastry Chef. Both my father and I like to bond over baking, so this is a book I think I'll have to fight him to be able to use! :) The last is The Joy of Cooking, another classic that I didn't have. I have a feeling I'll be making a lot of my own meals this winter...

Even if it was a little late, I totally feel like I hit the motherload. Gifter, you ROCK!! Thank you so much!!