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I went shopping this afternoon for my daughter’s birthday present. My daughter is grown, has a busy life where she works as an engineer for a large construction company, is raising two very active children, and makes enough money to buy everything she needs… or wants. Therefore, picking out a birthday present for her can be a challenge.
Her interests as a child centered around puzzles, Legos, books, and games. It seemed that the more pieces in the box, the better she liked it. At one time, she combined the pieces from three different puzzles and delighted in putting all three together at once. Over time, the Legos and puzzle pieces found their way behind appliances, under rugs, into the garbage, and down the drains. Puzzles had to be weeded out periodically and thrown away during annual toy purges. Lego sets were combined in great tubs and stored in the basement. Games were outgrown and donated along with outgrown clothes.
Fortunately, she still enjoys some of these things. Her Legos from the basement have been brought up and taken to her home where she “helps her children” create new worlds with the tiny plastic pieces. Her love of puzzles has passed along to her children as well. Last year, I bought her a three-dimensional wooden puzzle. When assembled, it had many moving gears which propelled a marble through the contraptions. It took her three days to put it together, but I think one of those puzzles was enough. I mentioned to her that the company had many other such puzzles, and she didn’t ask to see the catalog.
She loves to read but picking out reading material for someone else is tricky. Western novels for some people are delightful, but to the non-fiction historians, they can be a bit of a drag. Romance and Science fiction don’t overlap well. Maybe if I bought her a gift-card to the Amazon bookstore, she could make her own choices. She and her family visit the library regularly, so maybe I’ll just let her take care of the reading material.
I do not buy clothes for anyone in my family. Either I end up with them too small or too large, too old fashioned or too weird. So, giving them a nice dress, a cute pair of jeans, a warm sweater, or a sexy set of lingerie is out of the question.
Therefore,IfoundmyselfatWalmart this morning with no idea what I was going to get her. If I had realized that November 24th was coming up this quickly, I would have gone on-line and tried to find a unique gift. But next day shipping is too expensive, and I had waited too long. As a retired, single woman who marks her calendar with doctor’s appointments and church services, sometimes the date gets away from me. So, Walmart it was.
Puzzles, games, and toys were out. I though about a warm hat and scarf. No size requirements would mess that up. Then I thought back to recent years. Not once did I remember her wearing a knit hat. Hmmmm. She has curly long hair which might not work with a knit hat. Earmuffs! That would do, but I could find no earmuffs in the store.
In my desperation, I came across a pair of pajamas, some house shoes, and a bag of her favorite chocolate candy. She should be glad I remembered the candy. The rest of the stuff can be returned on Black Friday.
