Yeah I'm with Marci and Crystal. Mine have each participated and it was fun but also frustrating because you never know if you've gotten enough or if you got the right things. Everyone loves sending and receiving clothes, but what if they don't fit? Sammy is in between sizes in most brands and I know which brands she can wear. I would hate for someone to go out and buy shirts that don't fit, I would feel terrible. And then "all natural" means different things to different people. So if you exclude food and clothes you have what, toys and blankets? Maybe we should do a blanket exchange!
Now that would be fun and a lot less pressure!
Also, it makes a difference who you get. One of Loki's buddies was a long time member so we knew her and there were lots of posts to go back and see what she liked. That worked out great! But then Sammy got someone who I don't think ever posted again after the GE and had barely 100 posts all in the showing forum - no fun posts about her dog. We had no idea what to get and we missed out on getting to make a friend. Some people spend hundreds of dollars and others stock up all year. We liked shopping specifically for our buddy instead, which meant they got less "loot". Others put no effort into it (very rare, but it happens) - I remember when one person ordered her entire GE package from like WalMart and had it shipped to her buddy. I mean, half the fun is wrapping and decorating the package and writing the card! I know that YT vendors will send packages to GE buddies, but they are in on the fun so that is different!
I don't want to discourage you though. Gosh some people participate every time and can't wait until the next round! You should definitely do it once and try it for yourself. I'm glad we participated. I just think I would like it better if we toned it down a little
Maybe we should do themes... or say it has to fit in a certain sized box... something like that.