The Hat and the iPad

Avery sitting with most of the Christmas presents I made.

A couple of days before one of my family Christmas get-togethers, I grabbed any available box I could find so I could wrap my handmade crocheted items and jewelry gifts. I was running out of options, though, so I grabbed my old iPad box for Avery’s gift, forgetting about the story I’d heard only days before:

10-year-old Audrey, Avery’s sister, had a broken iPad and she asked Buddy, the family’s Elf-on-the-Shelf, if he could fix it. Miraculously the next morning, the iPad was fixed!

4-year-old Avery, upon learning about how Buddy had fixed her sister’s iPad wondered out loud, “How come Buddy didn’t fix my iPad?” Mom and Dad exchanged glances. Avery’s iPad was graveyard material – waaaaaaay beyond the repair stage. 

Soooo, when Avery opened her gift from me, she exuberantly exclaimed, “I got an iPad?!” She was practically dancing in her seat.

She ripped open her present and found – a hat, a hand-crocheted hat. Biggest letdown ever, but trooper that she is, she didn’t complain. From other family members, however, I heard, “Way to go, Grandma, break a little girl’s heart!”

Oh, yeah, uh oh, I forgot.

Oops!

That event occurred on December 19th. A couple of days later, a little girl approached Avery’s dad when he was working a couple of towns away, and asked him if he wanted to purchase a raffle ticket for – some organization – I can’t remember what (there goes that memory again). He did, and then he forgot about it. (I’m not the only one who forgets.)

A couple of days later somebody knocked on the door to my grandkids’ home and when my son-in-law opened it, he found a stranger standing on his front step, holding a package for him. 

“You won the raffle!” 

So on Christmas morning, when Avery opened her presents and found another iPad box (I laugh just thinking about it), I wonder what went through her head. Would she ever again be able to trust that what she was about to open was a fair representation of what was depicted on the outside of the box, or was this another form of deception? I wonder if she asked herself, “Am I getting another hat?”

Afterword: When I met with a few more grandchildren a couple of days later, I made sure to write a message on the outside of their boxes: “Don’t be deceived by the packaging.” Good thing, because not knowing that one of my grandsons had broken his phone, I had folded his scarf inside an old Walmart phone box.

Present For My Parents

The Author of this post is Cheryl Martinez I live in California but I am originally from Philadelphia. My parents still live there, in the same house I grew up in. They are very frugal people and hardly ever do anything nice for themselves. I wanted to do something really special for them last year for Christmas, so instead of buying them some lame gift like I usually do, I went tohttp://www.directstartv.com/localchannels/Pennsylvania/P/Philadelphia/ and got them Directv. I got them all set up and had the service billed to me so that they don’t have to worry about it. Sometimes my dad’s frugality borders on obsessive, and I knew my mom needed some entertainment at home. My dad is still working and my mom is retired, so she gets bored at home. I want her to enjoy her retirement after she worked so hard for so many years. I hate to think of her at home all alone and with nothing to do. I am glad I could afford to do something nice for them since I know my dad would never agree to pay for it. He is such a cheapo!

Surprises in Small Packages – My Hilarious Christmas Present

Celebrating Christmas with my son and his family is a rare occasion, so when the opportunity arose this year allowing me to spend Christmas with Greg and his family, I was thrilled – a bittersweet thrill, because it meant I couldn't spend Christmas with the rest of my family, but I had missed so many years of Greg being gone to Japan and Iraq (4 times) and other parts of the world, I really couldn't pass up the invitation.

(As much as I would love to spend holidays with the entire family, the likelihood that all of us will ever get to spend the holidays in one place at one time again is pretty slim – though I am hopeful).

Anyway, here I was, having Christmas with my son and his family, watching them open gifts, taking videos and pictures, when my son and daughter-in-law told me how sorry they were that I didn't have a gift to open.

I didn't care. I didn't really want anything, but they had already ordered something for me – it just hadn't arrived yet, so Michelle showed me an online picture of my gift – a pair of boots. I like the sweater look in boots, so I was already looking forward to getting the gift I told them I didn't want.

The funny thing about my shoe size is that I can wear a 3 in children size or a 4 and a half in adult size. Finding adult shoes in my size, though, is nearly impossible.

Michelle explained to me that she couldn't get the boot in a 4 and a half, so she got me a size 5. Because of my persistently swollen right foot (since November, 1999), size 5 is more comfortable for my right foot anyway. I just have to be careful not to fall out of my left shoe.

I was surprised she was able to find it in a size 5 since most stores, including online stores, don't usually carry sizes that small, but I was fairly certain that if one existed, Michelle would be able to find it. Now I really was looking forward to the expected deliver date of December 28th.

Everybody, especially Kaden, was eagerly awaiting my gift arrival day. When my gift arrived, we opened the box and found the size 5 boots (see in photo above). Good things really do come in small packages, and this one came with a surprise.

Who knew how many different size 5 boots we could order? Look at my beautiful brand new baby boots!

P.S. HUGE CONFESSION – After all of my chemo infusions, I started taking a chemo pill every day, which, along with the weather, has contributed to my skin becoming so cracked and dried and my nails so brittle, I had to give myself a Photoshop pedicure and a smooth-tool brush around my toes to cover up the unsightly areas of my foot. I missed some areas, but nobody ever gave me any awards for my Photoshop skills. (Admit it – aren't you impressed by the color match between the boots and the fake nail polish?) By the way, we took back the boots.

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The Sweetest Christmas Present Ever

Michelle, Kaden, Taylor, Zac, & Greg

My grandson, Kaden, just said, "Know what I wish?"

"No, Kaden, I don't. What do you wish"?

"I wish I could give Santa a gift."

At this point my heart melted all over the place, but I was curious about what type of present he would want to give to Santa.

"So what kind of gift would you like to give Santa?" I asked Kaden.

After some thought, he replied, "Probably a stuffed animal."

"What kind of stuffed animal."

"A reindeer."

And, as the grandma to this amazing child, I wondered how many other kids would have thought of giving a gift to Santa.

Want to read more from this author? Please see the sidebar and THANK YOU for visiting.

Christmas In an Online Bed/Bath Shop

Christmas is coming and while I'd love to tell you about gifts you can purchase for your loved ones, I'd really like to tell you about gifts you can give to YOURSELF! I have never seen bedding like the New Bedding by Veratex or the New Bedding by Triangle Home Fashions. These are some of the most beautiful comforter sets I've ever seen. And if you'd prefer Chenille & Matelasse Bedspreads, check out that link as well. The colors and selection are amazing.

This place offers far more than just bedding, too. You can also take advantage of their Slipcover Sale, their Table Runners and Place Mats, and even their Modern Stools and Chairs.

Just click any of the links in this blog and you'll be taken to the spots that sell the items.

And if you've ever wanted an Outdoor Fireplaces (perfect for this time of year and they are so beautiful), check out that selection. Gorgeous stuff. Too bad my daughter didn't know about this place when she was looking for a fire pit for her husband last Christmas.

OK, now for the "shopping for others" part of this blog (though I suppose you could purchase any of the items listed above for them too): If you have any sports fans, like Chicago Cubs or Chicago White Sox fans, check out their MLB Shower Curtain and Accessories. OK, I'm going to shop now – I mean stop now.

 Happy Shopping! You can thank me later.

FUN and FUNNY games!

I had to tell my kids this year that we were going to have to cut back on gifts for Christmas. Money has been grim, so I've been looking online for family video games as gifts for my kids and grandkids. I used to give each person his or her own gift, but with four kids, three spouses, ten grandchildren, two more spouses, and two great grandchildren, I'm pretty much tapped out in the finance department, so this year, everybody gets a "family" gift. Well, except for the unmarried ones among the group.

Two of my kids have Wiis, so, not knowing which video games they already have, I thought I would let them pick out the one they want me to get for their family gifts, something that everybody in the family would enjoy playing. I found a great resource for VIDEO GAMES and this blog is my way of asking Greg (and his family) and Brittney (and her family) to click the link. Please tell me which game you want. They have lots of other games too, though, so if you want a Playstation III game or an XBox 360, I'll get you one of those instead.

And now a gift for Lindsey. I know, Linz, you already have my Christmas present, but this one is free and it's lots of fun. I think you'll enjoy it. And it fits in so well with why you're going to school.

Lindsey is my second oldest daughter who loved playing dress up games even when she was a baby. Every morning she went into my closet, examined my little scattering of shoes, and always picked out the same pair (I had only two classy shoe styles – she preferred the brown straps to my decade old black and gold 70's platform shoes). She would then gather her bracelets, necklaces, crown, and rings, and parade around the house in her pajama top and diaper. Very cute. Well, I just found the perfect online dress up game for her.

This online dress up game is fun and FUNNY! Well, funny for me – fun for Lindsey. You see, I have no fashion sense whatsoever, so when I tried to play dress up games, I lost miserably. Lindsey is going into fashion merchandising (she didn't get that talent from me obviously), so I'm sure she will do much better than I did. And it won't cost me a penny, because this Dress Up Game is free (click the link). She can even play it at work during down time (don't show this to your boss, Lindsey).

I even found a game I like to play (I love skills games and brain games – they have both, and LOTS more). You can find so many games on this site.

Keeley and her family don't have a computer, so I'm saving this blog for her when she makes trips to the library (do they let you play games at the library?) – if so try any of those links above.

While I wasn't necessarily looking for anything specific for my parents or siblings, I came across something I know one of my sisters will LOVE. I can't tell you why. No, I'm not trying to be evasive. Let's just say that Cindy has been setting up a web site that concerns beauty, and I found something she may want to use to connect to her site that offers beauty information for her visitors. Cindy, check out this BEAUTY INFORMATION site – they offer skin care analysis, hair care consultation, a fragrance finder, and even (you know I love this) a beauty horoscope. Plus they offer expert advice, so I think it will make a great link for the site. I promise to tell everybody the name of her site when it is up and running. For now, though, it's a secret.

That was my "hook" to get you to come back to my blog. Will it work? I hope so.