Missed It By That Much

The first mother's day for a new parent is a trial. You can't come up short with your gift. It's a bit unnerving until you are finally blessed with that idea that will make you a gift-hero.

Many men are confused about what a good mother's day gift ought to be. There's something to be said for decking out your wife in some high quality jewelry (bling, as the kids call it.) And there's certainly something to be said for the overused, yet often appreciated, gift of a baby booty charm with the child's birth stone in it.

But jewelry is not your only option my friends. Good thing too, since I can scarcely afford to get the jewelry that comes out of the quarter machines at Wal-Mart, let alone anything of significant value. No instead I was forced to be sneaky, and resourceful.

I asked myself, "What makes my wife happy?" Answer: our son and trips to Red Lobster. I got it half right, but going to Red Lobster on Mother's Day is like waiting for the new roller coaster at your favorite theme park. NO THANK YOU.

So I did what any double-naught spy would do. I snuck my son out of day-care and went to have our portrait taken. I'm going to do something now I've never done before. I'm going to reccommend Wal-Mart. That's right, Wal-Mart. I was impressed. I had a 12:30 appointment (this was done on my one hour lunch break) and it went great. Great pictures, great surprise, great gift and my son was brilliant. He was smiling from ear to ear in each of the seven poses.

I couldn't manage to keep the pictures from my wife until Mother's Day. I tried. I stayed strong up until the proverbial twelfth hour, but I broke Saturday night and showed them to her.

Job well done Daddy. I'm rather proud of myself, I must say.