I love weddings–however with every wedding comes the purchasing of a wedding gift and I’ll admit–I’ve gotten some pretty bad ones in the past. Reasons for this bad gift giving have varied: not knowing the couple very long, knowing the groom far better than the bride, being broke and having to stick to the least expensive gift on the registry, waiting until I’m on my way to the wedding to purchase my gift, etc. Often times these bad gifts would result in gift cards (which are actually awesome but I would prefer to give something with a little more thought behind it) but once or twice it may have resulted in gifts that were total fails (I’ve really purchased salt shakers that were on a registry). I’ve also gotten quite a few middle of the road gifts–not forgettable but not total homeruns either. But I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a really awesome wedding gift until this weekend. When I printed out the registry for one of my favorite couples my eyes kept coming back to a particular gift, The Newlywed Cookbook. Both the bride and groom are very social people and come from rather large, close-knit families and they’re known for entertaining. I’ve had quite a few dinners at their place and know that both of them enjoy their time in the kitchen so I thought this would be the perfect gift for them. As I picked it up and looked at the beautiful pictures I immediately envisioned the two of them in the kitchen together making meal after meal. With no hesitation I bought the book, found a thoughtful card, wrapped my gift (with baby’s breath thanks to my amazing girl Sherita who always has the most amazing touches to add to any gift) and dropped it off at the gift table before making a beeline for the open bar and shrimp skewers at the reception.
This evening I got to spend quality time with the newlyweds and my friend told me my gift was one of her favorites and she can’t wait to blog about the meals she’s going to create. As I stood in their living room and opened it for just the second time, I again envisioned them in that very kitchen, side by side, making one of those delicious looking meals together. Creating a memory that will hopefully last forever. And most importantly creating a moment surrounded by love. That’s a pretty awesome gift (and one that I totally want for myself when my time comes).
xoxo
PS. I won’t brag by telling you where my gift fell on the list of “one of the favorites” but if it were the Super Bowl of wedding gifts my gift would definitely be on the field.
A. Nicole Daily 