My husband and boys are the best. They made my 40th birthday awesome, as did so many of you who have wished me a happy birthday. Thank you!
I wanted to share the thoughtful gift my husband bought for me. But first, a story:
When I was in Jr. High, my mom needed new plates. She picked out some of the prettiest I’d ever seen. I loved them. They were our “everyday dishes” and we used them for years.
When she died, out of everything in her kitchen, I wanted those plates more than anything else. My dad, however, had a difficult time parting with them. They were very much “Mom” so it made sense that he wanted them too. Instead, I was able to have several other meaningful kitchen items of my mom’s, so I was okay to leave the plates with my dad.
A few years later, my dad remarried. The two of them got dishes of their own, so finally, the precious plates were mine.
I’ve loved using them for my own family during the past five years. They are a piece of “Grammy” that I can share with my boys, a treasured item we use constantly. But in a busy household, breakable items will sometimes…break. Here and there, one of the special plates would be dropped and broken. The stack of my mom’s plates began to dwindle. Each time one broke, I know Matt was watching me bravely and sadly clean up and throw away the shattered pieces. I know the plates are just “things” but some things are more special than others. These plates definitely rank at the top of my “special material possessions” list.
Knowing my love for these plates, Matt has searched online for a couple of years to find replacements. They were either unavailable or ridiculously expensive. We got down to just seven of the eleven plates we started with. I refused to put them away and get something else. Using these plates everyday was something I loved and needed to do.
Finally, just before my birthday, Matt’s efforts paid off. He was able to find a perfect set of six, presenting me with this wonderful gift on my 40th birthday:
I don’t believe there was another gift I would have rather received. (Well, except for the handwritten poem he also presented me with. Wow.)
Now my stack of treasured plates takes on a new special meaning. I am blessed. I am rich. And the love in this family? Unbreakable.
