Presents! Gifts! YEAH! Part Two

Giving gifts is fun for me, but let me make it clear: I LOVE getting gifts too. If you'd like to send me one right now, I will give you my address, just ask. Here's a top five gifts I've received list, in no particular order:

1. Tickle Me Elmo. For most of middle school, a backwards Elmo hat was my signature, every day accessory. Don't mock it, I still know it was awesome. Anyway, the Christmas that Tickle Me Elmo was the hot item and people fought over them in toy stores and sold them on ebay for hundreds, I had the flu. I felt like crap. That night, when Grandma had convinced us all to leave the dinner table to rush to the presents, everyone was instructed to watch me open my first gift. Weary and confused, I sat in a chair while my cousin grabbed her camera and handed me the gift she had purchased for me. And it was...Tickle Me Elmo! I realize I was technically way too old for a toy like that, but MAN was it exciting. And it gave my great-grandmother the giggles, which made it entertaining for the whole family.

2. An Insurance Deductible. The Christmas before Jeff and I got married, he got in a wreck that required thousands in repairs. Fortunately, Jeff had insurance to cover most of it. Unfortunately, his deductible was super high. This was rather crushing for us. We were at my aunt's house a week after the crash, and she pulled me aside and told me that God had told her to pay the deductible. She ended up splitting it 50/50 with Grandma, and this gift blew me away. Not only was it super generous, but it was something we never would have considered asking for and gave us such peace and glorified God. BAM! Awesomeness.

3. A Military Pin. For my 16th birthday, my Grandma Bradshaw gave me the pin and compact set that Grandpa Bradshaw had given her when they first started dating. They have such a beautiful love story, and I was utterly honored to get this heirloom.

4. A Children' Book. For our anniversary this year, Jeff wrote a children's book, incorporating pictures of us and hilarious fictional names. I love it. It's thoughtful, creative, and funny. (For the record, my engagement/wedding ring was probably the single best gift I've ever been given, but that feels like cheating.)

5. A Wedding. Sometimes I am dumb and forget what an amazing gift my parents gave Jeff and me. I guess our American culture makes us girls feel all entitely, which is whack. Not only did they finance the whole shindig, they were also super supportive and helpful through the whole thing. Obviously that is a gift I will never forget.

This is just a sampling. Other favorite gifts that pop into mind: a photo collage with a brain teaser incorporated into it from Zoe, tickets to see Jimmy Fallon from Sissy, a surprise short family vacation at the Disneyland Hotel from my parents, a homemade quilt from Grandma Bradshaw, a maternity sweatshirt and mini celebration from my friend Tabitha (it was the exact right amount of hoopla for a freaked out unexpectedly pregnant me), a surprise party with a spy theme from Zoe and our friend Nathan (we were really into Alias then)...the list goes on. I'm blessed. And I'm leaving out tons of other examples. 

What are some of your favorite gifts?

Presents! Gifts! YEAH! Part One

Every Christmas, my family gathers around the dinner table and eats an elaborate turkey dinner. About ten minutes in, my grandmother (who, by the way, is one of my favorite people out of all the people ever) inevitably interrupts the feasting with "Is it time for presents?!" And it's not that she can't wait to open her presents - she just loves the excitement of it all. I think I get my love of gifts from her.


To be clear, I'm not really the best gift giver in the world. I tend to forget birthdays fairly often, even sometimes with Facebook reminding me. Fail. However, when something strikes me as perfect for someone, I get very excited about gift giving, and I thought you Lobsters might enjoy some ideas. Here are my top three favorites:


1. For my sister's birthday many years ago, I sent a letter out to a bunch of people we love asking them to write a short story or memory from their life and to send a picture that related to it. I compiled them all, scrapbook style, creating "Chicken Soup for Jenna's Soul." This gift was slightly ruined because Sissy found the letter I sent out before she received the gift, but it was pretty great nonetheless. 
2. Speaking of sister, she and I have been recreating childhood memories via poorly scripted/poorly acted short videos that we compile on DVDs for our parents. I highly recommend this. We have a great time making them (we think we're way funnier than we are), and my parents claim to love them too. 
3. For my best friend Mikkele's birthday this year, I wished that I could surprise her with a visit. As I am not made of diamonds and gold, that was not possible, and I decided to make her a video instead. And then I thought about how most of her closest friends live no where near her, and maybe they would like to make her a video too. So I sent out a Facebook message to anyone I'd ever heard her mention and asked them to send me a birthday video. I compiled them all on a DVD and edited it because I am a fairly new Mac user and find that stuff exceedingly fun. It ended up being like a really weird variety show - there were poems, songs, words of wisdom, a prank, a dance (well...me sitting in a chair dancing to Britney, but that still counts), dramatic readings, a tongue twister recitation, and even a fake cooking segment. 


Zoe also wanted me to mention a little mini garden set that I mailed to her. I painted little pots and sent seeds and a tray to arrange them on. She had recently been expressing her interest in cooking, and I thought she might enjoy her own personal herb garden. This was cute, but not quite a gifting masterpiece. But I'm sure glad you liked it, Zoe. 


I think part of the reason these were so fun to give was that I had a blast making them, and I felt like they gave a little glimpse of how much I love the recipient. Lobsters, what is the best gift you've ever given?