i rarely get mail anymore, and i'm not talking about monthly bank statements or this week's grocery ad, because we all get TONS of those.  i'm talking about the handwritten letter/card/note type...and i miss it.  over time, i've saved hundreds of letters from friends and loved ones, some still in my life and some not, but it's truly a gift to revisit these notes - to actually hold it in your hands, stare at the penmanship and soak in all the words.  they're pretty funny actually, because life back then was so simple and self indulgent and just plain fun - ah, the life of a child.

well, i got mail yesterday...and it was a good one.

my fiancé mailed me this awesome little note and it seriously made me bonkers with joy!  correction - he didn't actually mail it himself.  the message is definitely his, but he had a little help with the execution from the people at snail mail my email.  you send them a message via their email address, they turn your words into a hand-crafted letter and then mail it out to your recipient.  what a clever concept!  so, i still give my man the credit for the thoughtful gesture, but one of their super cool volunteers is responsible for the cutesy lettering and the seemingly effortless but better-than-you-can-do doodle of the dog.  check out their site and send someone a little note of your own...soon too, because good things like this don't last forever!

p.s. if, by some slim chance on earth, the person who actually wrote out the letter is seeing this...THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU for it.  it's going in a frame and i'm holding on to it forever.

p.p.s. this post reminds me of my dear pen pal from jersey, annie, who would write back and forth with me almost every month for years during our childhood.  ANNIE - LOVE YA and i'm so happy we are still friends today :).