Welcoming gift!

This is a story of a gift that keeps on giving! The Cedaredge Women's Literary Club has a Christmas ornament exchange each year. Members bring ornaments wrapped and take turns picking out a package to open. After the first ornament is revealed, then the next member to open a gift has the choice to either take the known commodity or to open another package. One year I came home with a real charmer! Being the giving mother that I am, I immediately regifted it to Jamie and Eric that Christmas. For some years, the ornament has been gifted back and forth between us. I don't remember when we last "gave" it back but apparently we did a good job of hiding it in Jamie's maternity underwear drawer. Jamie hasn't needed the drawer's contents for some years.

After a few days of settling in, I noticed that we had this beautiful object hanging from our fruit basket. Having a little bit of trouble with my memory (many people have commented kindly that I am Dory from Finding Nemo in human form), I just thought I had stuck this lovely thing up there before we left last year.

What actually happened was that last fall, Jamie called Rita and asked if she had any customers coming down to Cozumel in the near future. Jamie wanted to get the ornament down here to greet us upon our return. Rita, not being a Dory at all, remembered the story of the ornament exchange and was happy to be a part of the plot! Rita actually went back to Chicago this fall and Jamie mailed the ornament to her there. Voila! It appeared at our house, thanks to Rita, the courier.

Athough the ornament looks very much at home with our decor, we are confident that it has not found its final resting place. Heh, heh! For now, we are incredibly impressed by the devious child we have raised.