Olavinlinna Castle in Finland & More

Let mail fly!
Everyone can use a hello, hug or words of kindness...they are always in style!

I'm in love with all my incoming mail!  No pictures of outgoing mail, no decent light lately.

Olavinlinna Castle Finland
Olavinlinna Castle in Finland-
The building of Olavinlinna, castle of St. Olaf, began in 1475. The Danish-born founder of the castle, knight Erik Axelsson Tott, decided that a powerful fortification should be build to protect the strategically important Savo region. The castle was supposed to repel Russian attacks from the east and to guarantee the control of the Savo region for the Swedish Crown. The history of Olavinlinna is a mixture of medieval arms clashing, cannons roaring and every-day chores inside the security of the castle's thick walls.

The changes in the ownership of the castle left their mark on Olavinlinna: this can be seen in the varied architecture of the castle. These days the castle's halls and rooms can be rented and used for all kinds of events.

There are two small exhibitions in the castle: the Castle Museum displays artifacts found in the castle or related to it, and the Orthodox Museum displays icons and other religious artifacts both from Finland and Russia. 

More Information can be found here.

Finland Postage Stamp
Finland Round Postage Stamp

Long Eared Hedgehog
Long Eared Hedgehog-
The long-eared hedgehog is a small and rather pale hedgehog, with short spines covering the upper parts of the body. Like other hedgehogs, these stiff spines, which are brown at the base and white at the tips, act as effective armour when the hedgehog rolls into a protective ball. The legs, feet and underparts are also whitish, the latter of which may be tinged with yellow. The long-eared hedgehog has a pale brown face, with a long, pointed snout and large, rounded ears, which appear somewhat whitish and translucent. The tail is short, but the legs are relatively long, which is particularly apparent when the hedgehog is trotting. The long-eared hedgehog produces a variety of vocalizations  including a snuffle, a cat-like hiss, and a growl when threatened.

Belarus Postage Stamp
Belarus Postage Stamp

Happy 2013 Calendar
Happy 2013 Birdhouse Calendar.
Arrived from France

France Postage Stamp
France Postage Stamp

Leo Tolstoy Street Moscow-Cat in the Window
Cat in the window on Leo Tolstoy Street in Moscow, Russia.


Greetings from Heidi-Switzerland
Greetings from Heidi-Switzerland

Switzerland Postage Stamp
Switzerland Postage Stamps

Oh Happy Day...

Mail arrival has come again
makes my day, happiness sets in.
Cards and letters are fantastic to me,
they keep me in touch with friends I can't see!

Incoming Mail
Beautiful card from my penpal in Germany.  She always has the prettiest cards.

Water Color Envelope-Outgoing
This water color pink and blue envelope is on the way to California.  It contains a postcard that was sent to a couple in California but arrived with my mail here in Texas.  I'm sure their friend or family who is visiting the Netherlands wanted them to have it so it's on the way...with a slight delay in flight.

Sapa Vietnam in Spring
Sapa Vietnam in Spring-Dreamy isn't it.

Vietnam Postage Stamps
Vietnam Postage Stamps

Victoria Kirdy Eat Your Vegetables
Victoria Kirdy Cat Illustration

Russia Postage Stamps
Russia Postage Stamps

Orange Heart
Yummy orange heart

Malta Postage Stamp
Malta Postage Stamp

Ladybird The Adventures of Wonk
Ladybird Book Cover-The Adventures of Wonk
Arrived from France

France Postage Stamps
France Postage Stamps-Beautiful

Christmas Tree
It's never, ever too early or too late...however you choose to look at it for a Christmas card, never I say! ;) This one had been on it's way since November 2012, arrived in perfect condition after 4 months travel time.

Belarus New Year Stamp
Belarus New Year Postage Stamp

Mail to You, Mail for Me!

My day is better
when I'm sending letters!

Colds are miserable!  Thankfully, Mer and I didn't get them until we came home from Disney World.  Last weeks activities included being best friends with the tissue box (many tissue boxes), a lot of coughing, my voice sounding like a man, laying on the sofa and sleep!

We did make it to see, Oz the Great and Powerful, loved it!  Do you see many movies?

I wrote three penpal letters, only managed pictures of two this time around.  Better than none, right. ;)

Penpal Letter

Penpal Letter

Postcard Arrival at Mailbox Happiness!

Beautiful Grey Cat
Beautiful Grey Cat
Arrived from Russia

Russia Postage Stamps
Russia Postage Stamps

Cat & Elephant on Unicycle
Fun Cat & Elephant
Arrived from Russia

Russia QR Reader Postage Stamp
Russia QR Reader Postage Stamp

Starfish & Heart
Heart & Starfish among the sand and pebbles.
Arrived from Germany

Postcards are Mailbox Happiness!

Waving Hello & Hugs to You!

We just returned from a fantastic trip to Disney World!  Weather was perfect, parks weren't crowded and we had the best time!

I came home to a lot of mail...Yay!  I have a lot of mail yet to answer...Yay!  If you are waiting on a letter or postcard from me, I hope you'll understand my delay in replying.

Easter Egg Hunt
Let's go on an Easter egg hunt!  Made by a wonderful postcrossing member and sent to Meredith.
Arrived from USA

Moomin
Moomin cards are adorable, always make me smile!
Arrived from Finland

Finland Postage Stamp
Finland Postage Stamp

Mountain Goat
Whoop!  A Mountain Goat card!  Mountain goats are seldom seen since they prefer rugged rocky terrain above 2,000 metres (6,500 ft.).  Ideally suited for this harsh and unforgiving environment, these animals have a thick shaggy coat which has 15 to 20 cm (6 to 8 in) long guard hairs with a 10 cm (4 in) inner layer of wool to keep them warm.  Their hooves, split, sharp-edged, flexible and rubbery, enable them to climb effortlessly along sheer rock faces even when covered with snow or ice.

Malaysia Postage Stamp
Malaysia Mount Everest Postage Stamp

White Cat by Loes Botman
A very beautiful cat by the artist Loes Botman who specializes in pastels.  Another reason I love postcards, the exposure to many different artists and styles of art.
Arrived from Belgium

Belgium Postage Stamp
Belgium Postage Stamp

With Love at Valentine's Day
With Love!
Arrived from Russia

Russia Postage Stamp
Russia Postage Stamps

Penpal Letter Out-Postcards In!

Oh Happy Day!
I hope every little
thing is going your way!


I haven't had a lot of time to write penpal letters this week but I did manage to get another one off to Malaysia.


I'm loving the Lancy Cat series of postcards. This one is Happy Time-Thinking of you and wishing you all of life's best today and always.  Looks like the sweet kitty is all ready for tea and muffins.
Arrived from China.


China Start Here Postage Stamp


Contentment by Valerie Baines.  I'm going to assume this is a female cat because she's so beautiful and posing so gracefully!  My female cat often poses like this!
Arrived from Germany


Germany Postage Stamp


Joyeux Noel-Merry Christmas Postcard!  Love Christmas any day of the year, this is a cute Santa with his very full toy sack!
Arrived from Japan



Japan Postage Stamps including an adorable Christmas Kitty Stamp


Still working on completing my State Capitol Postcard Collection-Columbus Ohio State Capitol!


USA Postage Stamps-Bobcat & Benjamin O. Davis, Sr.

Penpal Letters On the Way!

Penpal letters on the way today!    Hopefully they travel safely and quickly. ;)

Yoohoo, do you make your own envelopes too?  Is it hard for you to resist picking up things here and there to decorate your envelopes with?  Do you tend to lean toward bright and happy, vintage or some other style of envelope?

It's a fact that I have enough paper to make a million envelopes but when I see new papers that I love, I can't keep from bringing them home and it's generally bright and happy colors.  How about you, what do you lean towards?