For My Mr. Right
February is a stressful month for me. Valentines Day and my husband’s birthday are super close together and every year I struggle to decide how to translate what the love of my life means to me into some sort of gift or gesture.
Some people are really good gift givers, unfortunately I am not. Not only am I a super thrifty shopper, I rarely (READ: never!) get to actually go shopping by myself to browse and contemplate gifts in a non-child-stress-induced-rush. For at least three years now, I have survived buying everything I need from Amazon.com, Publix and The Lamb Shoppe.
For a while I tried to say that the CEO was just hard to buy for… he is the type of guy who likes technology and buys gadgets for himself. Then I tried to excuse my behavior because we are experience people who enjoy traveling and doing things together. The reality is, there are things he wants, things he could use and things that would make him smile that I should know and be able to acquire for him.
He desperately needs new athletic socks. He wants the new xbox. Neither seem appropriate (we HAVE 2 xboxes, before you men gang up on me) So here I am struggling to find something somewhere between white tube socks and expensive electronics that screams “I love you!”
Ugh. It really bothers me. Why is it so hard for me to give meaningful, thoughtful gifts or gestures for my favorite person in the whole world?
I started this post about three weeks ago, and have been coming back to it night after night. After much thought I have realized it is because I will never be satisfied. Nothing will ever be enough – special enough, big enough, or symbolic enough – to show him how much he means to me. Anything I could buy will seem like junk from oriental trading compared to the love in my heart. Cheesy, I know, but that is the reason.
As I think back to gifts of past holidays, birthday’s and anniversaries they have all been fine, acceptable gifts. But it is my perception that they aren’t special enough that stresses me out and causes me to devalue the gift. Lord knows he has never complained and is always grateful (even the year I got him a cheesy engraved compass from Red Envelope). So this Valentines/Birthday bonanza I am going to let go of my crazy, emotional overthinking. There is no way he won’t love the surprise I have in store for him. The boys helped me pick it out and have managed to keep quiet about it too. Check back in a few days and I’ll post a pic 🙂
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EVPHO 