It's The Thought That Counts!

I just have to share the sweet card my daughter made for my birthday! Don't you just LOVE homemade cards? Here's the front, with a hummingbird she drew by looking at a picture in our bird identification book, and the flowers are pineapple sage, which she drew from memory.

On the inside, she copied a few lines from a poem we read and used for copywork a few months ago. I was surprised she remembered it, but she searched until she found it again in The Oxford Book of Children's Verse. The rest of the card, of course, is just plain sweetness. She wants me to point out that the heart in "love" is actually pink inside but that just didn't show up in the photo. {smile}

Kathryn also gave me (with shopping assistance from her Granma, a.k.a my mom!) a beautiful new-but-vintage-looking hummingbird feeder:

Ken gave me a much-wanted/much-needed new keyboard to replace my old, malfunctioning one, so now it won't take me 3 frustrating hours to type one measly little paragraph (that is really only a slight exaggeration!)! He also gave me a pretty little mug with roses on it. You can't beat a dainty teacup for simple prettiness, but I love a mug for my daily tea drinking because it holds more tea! My mom gave me an ivy plant in a pretty blue & white ceramic pot, and a lovely teacup stand for my growing collection.

Getting gifts is really not my "thang" ~ ever read Gary Chapman's Love Languages? For me, gifts rank lowest of all five love languages. But these gifts were thoughtful, sweet, not-expensive (I'd feel bad if they were!) expressions of love; I love my birthday gifts, especially because of who gave them to me and because of the thought I know they put into choosing them.