Two special gifts

Birthdays are fun! You get well-wishes from family and friends. You get dinners and cake and ice cream. And of course, you get presents. And I got some amazing presents this year. Two of them made me cry, they were just so special!

The first came in a High School Musical card (with sound, of course!) from one of my Ya-Ya friends in California. Taped inside the card was a new charm for my Italian Charm bracelet, one she picked out just for me:
Do you see it? It's a cardinal! I cried when I saw it because it was such an obvious and tangible reminder of God's love for me, and of hers. (If you don't know why I love cardinals so much, read this.) Thanks again, Jen! It meant so very much to me!

Then there was a gift from my dad... and kind of from my mom too. When my mom was dying of cancer almost 12 years ago, she told me that she was leaving me her engagement ring and her wedding band. After she died, however, my dad asked me if he could keep mom's wedding band with his, and of course I said yes.

Fast forward to 3 years ago, when I lost my wedding set. I was devastated, of course, but I started wearing my mom's engagement ring on that finger. After a time Steve and I started looking for a band for me to wear under it. But because of it's unique style, nothing we could find looked really good with it. This ring was made to be worn with one certain band... both of them designed to be worn together.

So when we were at my dad's for my birthday this year, I asked dad if he still had mom's wedding band. And he replied that he did... and then he asked if I wanted it! He found it in an old gold jewelry box that used to sit on my mom's dresser. We had fun looking at the old trinkets and pictures that were also stored in that box. I cried again when he handed the wedding band to me and I slipped it on my finger. It just meant so much that my dad was willing to give it to me, to "complete" my wedding set like nothing else could.

Now not only do I have a beautiful wedding set again to wear each day as a symbol of my own loving marriage; I am also reminded, every time I glance down at my finger, of my parents' love for each other... and of how much they both love me.