The Sweetest Thing

I like to think I'm not a particularly materialistic person. I love beautiful things, it's true. I like to hold them, feel them, even own them. But I'm pretty okay with letting them go, too. I have two kids. Dishes get broken. Sweaters get pulled. Major appliances get crayon-ed upon. I've learned to grieve it for a reasonable amount of time, and let it go.

But Friday night my sweet husband bestowed upon my a thing of beauty that I adore. I can't remember the last time I got something new, and wanted to wear it to bed, or at the very least stow it under my pillow so it was nearby.

See, it turns out, my husband was very, very busy in the weeks leading up to my birthday. He knew I've had my eyes set on an Elva Fields necklace for a long, long time now. I just couldn't bear to treat myself to one. Well, that, and it seems like no matter how often I stalk the website, the necklaces that catch my eye are always sold out. I feared I was destined to never belong to the club. The Elva club. Okay, there's no Elva club. I made that up. But you get the point.

Anyway, David, though I never subjected him to my Elva-stalking, knew I was falling hard for designer & owner Emily Maynard's work. See, I've known Emily since we were kids. I used to drive her to school sometimes. I even profiled her on the SweetSnaps blog. David broke into my Facebook account to get her email, then asked her to do something huge.

She designed a necklace for me. It's true. I'm wearing it right now. It's called "Sweet Thing." She worked with David, sent him some ideas. He conspired with my sister Lesley and my like-a-sister friend Amanda to find the perfect one. He's showed me the other ideas. But the one that Emily, from the start, thought would be the right fit for my li'l neck, is the one that they agreed upon. She finished it, wrapped it in the loveliest of boxes, and mailed it to me in time for my birthday date with David.

I don't know if I've ever felt so special.

And so please, if ever there's a fire in my house, and all the people are out safely, and you can save something, grab my Elva, would ya? I want to pass it on to the girls one day. Here's what it looks like, so you'll know (this was prior to her finishing it with the clasp and all, but it's pretty much what I'm sporting now):

Thank you thank you David for doing something so special for me.

And Emily, thank you so much for working with David. It is truly one of the best gifts I've ever received. I will pass it on to my girls one day and it means so much that an old friend is responsible for it.

Lindsay