Gift Wrapping

What a wonderful idea- you buy something and wrap it up in beautiful paper-make it all pretty for someone to tear into like a fat kid with the king sized candy bar.

As you can probably tell  I just finished putting the last bow on the last gift. If I can toot my own horn the gifts look very nice and I survived with no papercuts or wrapping paper related injuries. Last year there was a papercut and I dropped a small recliner on my foot.

I didn't ask for much this year, a new laptop; that my Dad had gotten me the end of October. He's about as good as I am with this gift giving thing. I'd rather spoil people year round.

I  usually make some type of homemade gift also for family. Now I imagine there is someone reading this thinking I wonder what it is. Well out of  fear that my sister will read this I  can't say since she will be one of the receivers of said gift. The other was my step-mom; my son and I made star cinnamon ornaments and had them on the tree when she came home. She really liked it.

Which brings me to tonight's subject gift wrapping. I feel like my step mom was in some way gift wrapped the first time I met her. It was about 14 years ago when we met. The first thing she said was
 " I don't want to be your Mom just give me a chance to be your friend". Now don't get me wrong there are times that I think she's crazy but there's also times that I am truly impressed by the level of caring she holds.

My father came to my Mom's funeral out of respect for the fact they were married for 23 years and she was the mother of his two daughters. But my step mom also came and paid her respect, she said "that without my Mom she wouldn't have my sister or me and wants to be there to support us". I  didn't put any thought into it at the time but now looking back at it I realized two things (1) that even through a rotten divorce and some bitter words she had respect for my Mom and  (2) she cares about my sister and I which who doesn't want someone to care about them. I'm not an ogre I do like the idea about people caring about me.

The best way to describe her is eccentric, very different. But when you look past all  that you see someone who had a hard life and is now enjoying life, someone who cares very deeply for my Dad and in all honesty who am I to argue with that. So in a way she is gift to this family, she never competed with my Mom, she makes my Dad happy and she cares about us. She  said  that she looks at my older sister and I and is just amazed by us and  sees why our parents are so proud; because she also is .Recently she told me that having my son and I home is like Christmas everyday for her and my Dad and that makes me smile.