No. 11: The Ultimate Gifts for Her Guide

the best gift I've ever received and a crucial request

^Fun fact, I painted those gift boxes for our first married Christmas eleven years ago!

I’m a person who has put together gift guides since before Instagram and Pinterest existed. I’m a product of the catalog generation, you know? Toys ‘R’ Us and FAO Schwartz were the original gift guide, influencing all of us and making our mouths water at the very thought of living like Preston in Blank Check or one of the Olsen twins. I love making gift guides because I am a noticer, but I always want to make a very important caveat so these guides I’ve color coordinated and curated don’t get confused for the true heart of gifting.

I wrote about this concept last year because it was burning into my heart as I contemplated the concept of stepping away from a job that required pushing stuff and excess for stuff and excess’ sake. The thought that we all know to be true but sometimes forget when gift guides and Black Friday Sales are screaming at us for weeks on end is this: the greatest gifts are the result of paying attention.

If someone were to give me a Rolex this year, I’d be like, “Oh wow. That’s super extravagant. Thank you.” But if someone were to give me a Hu chocolate bar, a pair of cozy socks, a mystery novel on sale at Target and some fresh bubble bath? I’d be OVERCOME with joy. Like, you get me. You see me. You know me. And there truly is just no better feeling, right?

O is a very lavish gifter. I’ve had some gifts for the books, I won’t lie. But a single gift that costs next to nothing is what will always be the most special to me. Many years ago, I began telling O about my favorite ballerina, Misty Copeland. This was before she was all over the place and he’d often see me watching her dance, reading up on her and devouring every video I could find of her latest performances. One night as we were about to head out on a very rare date-night back in Virginia, O told me to dress comfy because he had a surprise after dinner. I feel compelled to say this was in a season where I was super pregnant, romance felt distant and I truly thought the surprise would be grabbing frozen yogurt. (I would have been thrilled about, by the way.) Instead, We pulled up to a beautiful amphitheater in the middle of the park and goosebumps spread like ink in water to every inch of my body as the lights dimmed and Misty herself took the stage.