Just One More Thing
Please don’t hate me, but by some weird twist of fate I am almost finished with my Christmas shopping. This has never happened to me before, as I am usually a last minute scrambler. I’m not questioning why I suddenly became more organized; I’m just enjoying this almost stress-free miracle.
I would be completely finished if I only had two children and their respective spouses to shop for–it’s that third child that has kept me guessing his entire life. Once he outgrew Lego’s and Ninja Turtles, his needs, wants, likes and dislikes became harder for me to comprehend. He is now a mature young man with a good job and able to buy himself the big guy toys that he wants. When I asked him for ideas for Santa, he came up with the same thing he always asks for–socks and underwear. I know that he travels a lot and laundry day is often weeks apart for him, but gee whiz I wish he could come up with something a little more original.
When I asked about the possibility of clothing, tools, kitchen equipment, sheets, towels, movies or gadgets, he explained (with the same tone of voice that someone would use when speaking to a very slow 8-year-old) that he was on the road a lot and rarely has the opportunity to use any of my previously mentioned gift ideas. But socks and underwear were something he could always use. Where’s the fun it that?
Gosh I miss those Ninja Turtle days–when his wish list was a mile long and underwear and socks were never mentioned. I guess the days of searching for that hard to find game or action figure are over but the one advantage of being almost done shopping for Christmas is that I have a little extra time to figure out what the kid that has become the hardest to buy for really needs even if he doesn’t know that he needs it.