A True Delight

In July, niece Catherine and partner will tie the knot in London where they currently live. We celebrated Catherine at her bridal shower near her family's home in Newport,Rhode Island this past weekend. Catherine is a brilliant bubbly 36 year old professional. The bridal shower guest list included college friends from law school, four aunties, the groom's mom, and an assortment of close  female family members. Dressed in a pretty pink sparkly whimsical dress, Catherine floated serenely into the restaurant. Upon spotting each friend from college  however, she let out a joyful scream. I found this rather adorable.  While we waited for our food to arrive, bride to be  Catherine took the time to carefully introduce each of us. The intros reminded me of a who's who of accomplished women. What would my niece Catherine say about me I nervously wondered?  How well does she even know me?  Well, she managed to mention my career teaching French and deemed me an amazing knitter.  Evidently, she has not checked out my latest sweater project. Every five minutes I scream, but not in the least joyfully, for my knitting teacher Mary's help.

       Our restaurant  Aurelia which boasts a Forbes and  Relais et Chateaux  mention  did not disappoint.

mixed greens salad

lobster roll with onion rings and fries

four chocolate cake 

I enjoyed every bite, and between every bite I tried my best to make conversation with the mother of the groom who is as bubbly and beautiful as the bride.  Place fifteen women in one room, and the volume goes sky high.  Even higher when the bride to be resumes screaming again with joy as she opens her presents.

I spent a long time choosing a gift for Catherine.  Something lovely, heartfelt, and meaningful  does not come  easily to mind.  At the only other bridal shower I attended, the bride's mother gave her a onesie.  The girlfriends presented her with intimate lingerie. From me, she received a nightshirt with something goofy written about coffee, which seemed appropriate at the time. 

Back to my gift dilemma for Catherine. I spent hours looking at jewelry. With no clue as to what Catherine prefers, I sleuthed out her Facebook posts and any pictures I could find online. Sterling silver  was spotted in several of her images.  Ok, but what exactly in sterling silver?  Free association came to the rescue. A bridal shower evokes love, romance, tenderness. She needed  a keepsake. Ah ha! A locket! My illicit best friend Amazon offered too few quality options.  I turned to Etsy. A few sterling silver lockets big enough to hold a picture of Catherine and her beloved caught my eye. The vendor sent it to me accompanied by a more casual  second locket  as a thank you gift. In each locket lives a little dried flower waiting to be replaced with a picture. I added a homemade card of good wishes. Catherine screamed as she opened the card and the locket. Nailed it!