The Art of the Gift

The other day Fred was looking through the Fleet Farm flyer and he said, "If you need some Father's Day ideas for me, there are some things I want at Fleet Farm." Umm..."What??!" I asked in disbelief as I mentally scrolled back a month. "I seem to recall that Mother's Day weekend you went to the cabin because--and I quote--"you're not my mother"--and I didn't get a card or a gift from you." A sheepish silence ensued and the topic was dropped.
Fred's gift giving has had its ups and downs over the past 25 years. For one of our first Christmases together, he bought me a food processor--and he still hasn't lived it down. He told me it was because of the blender so I could make daiquiris, but I suspected that he wanted the meat grinder to make hamburger during deer season. The lesson learned was that an appliance only makes a good gift if the recipient asked for it.
When the girls were little, he made sure that I always had presents to open from them at Christmas and Mother's Day. One year when they were older, they all neglected my birthday and I was feeling a little bummed. When they realized their goof, I was given some hastily made cards. Fred's said "This will never happen again." Katie's said, "You deserve a card on your birthday."
Some of the more memorable gifts he has given me are a mother's ring, a sapphire ring, a large picture for above the fireplace, a jewelry armoire....when I lost a lot of weight after having Katie, he gave me a card and money for new clothes--even shopping with me for some of them. The sweetest gift--for no particular occasion--was a card with $500 to spend at my Grandpa and Grandma Timm's estate auction after they died in 1987. I was able to buy my Grandma's China cabinet and her hope chest as well as several small items that to me are priceless.
I have every card he's ever given me, from before we were married until now. He still sends me one in the mail once in awhile, just because he's thinking about me.
I was going through these memories as I drove over to Elk Mound yesterday, and I realized that I really wanted to get him a Father's Day present. I knew just what I wanted to buy, something that he has mentioned to me a few times. That's all I'm saying because he has the uncanny knack of figuring out my gifts for him from just a few clues. I will say that it's not an appliance, and I didn't buy it at Fleet Farm. I don't care if that disappoints him--after all, he's not my father!!