Birthday Gift

My husband just had a birthday. I won't tell you which, but I'll give you a hint: it's a bigger number than my own age. It's nice being younger. He hits all the big birthdays before I do, so they don't come as such a shock once I reach them. It's very good of you, sweetie, and I do appreciate it...

Anyway, I have a particular fondness for finding just the right gift for somebody. When I manage to pull it off, the results are unforgettable. If you're familiar with the Love Languages theory, gifts is a pretty big one for me.

Well, this year I wasn't expecting I'd have much time to come up with a really spectacular birthday gift. As much as I love adding the personal touch, it's a little more difficult with a baby. But a few weeks ago a friend of mine posted a picture of a glass that he had personally etched, and I was inspired. Whatever it took, I had to find a way to make my husband a set of etched glasses.

So I went on Amazon. I found all the necessary materials. They came in plenty of time. I opened them up, psyched myself out, and then realized... etching cream is not for messing around! Seriously! This stuff comes with a warning that it can cause severe burns that aren't immediately painful or visible. Worse, if somehow you manage to ingest it, it's pretty fatal (unless you go right away to the doctor for the antidote). Yikes!

But I was not deterred. I spent the evening before his birthday working on the glasses, despite the scary etching cream. And the results were really fun! Here's a picture of the best ones of each of the two sets I made.

For the video game illiterate, that's a Cactuar from Final Fantasy and a Triforce from Zelda.

Some of the others weren't quite so good. One of the Triforces bled a bit, and moreover was on crookedly. But my husband really liked them! He's happy and I'm happy. Hurrah!

Happy birthday, sweetie!