February Birthdays

Our nephew and his eldest daughter share a birthday in early February. This one was a biggie -- her eighteenth. I wanted to do something fun. But finding the intersection of fun for me and fun for other people is always a bit of a challenge. For her fifth birthday I gave her an ocelot muff that my grandmother had had made. This was one of my most prized items as a child. The muff occupied a position of honor in my bedroom, bunking up with the stuffed animals that lived on the chaise longue I wasn't allowed to sit on. When the little one opened that year's gift, her great uncle from the other side of the family declared it the pimpiest thing he had ever seen given to a child at a birthday. Said with a straight face while carrying a miniature doberman pinscher wearing a spiked collar. Really.

Anyhoo, it's kinda become a hallmark of my gifts to her. I love to give this child and her sister stuff that they find puzzling, like my grandmother's opera-length kid gloves, or jewelry that's too adult for them. They just laugh.

This year, however, I thought it would be fun for us to actually *gasp* spend time together. So I've invited her to a mani pedi and lunch. As luck would have it, on the free table that week I found a ziploc bag with 45 fake diamond brooches in it. Score! So we combined heartfelt and pimpy all in one.

Similarly, I am gifting her father with a foot reflexology massage at the spa that used to be a discount party supplies store. Perhaps followed by a beer and some laughs.

This is what 40+ brooches looks like. She texted me that they were "hilarious and beautiful". Mission completed! Now I just have to let my cuticles grow in and find a good date for a mani pedi.