(Bridal gifts can be had in the most surprising places.) My nephew got married this summer, and I know Emily Post tells me I have a year to find the proper gift, but that is not appropriate as far as I’m concerned. Finding a wedding gift, thanks to their registry, was easy enough, but I wanted to have a special gift for when I went to the bridal shower. Bridal gifts can be so generic and borderline tacky; I had faith that my local jeweler would maybe have something better.   [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="300"]

Silver Heart Charm Bracelets[/caption] Turns out they had so much I almost wished I had held off on buying their wedding present. There were diamond necklaces, diamond earrings, gold jewelry…so many different styles and pieces that I was momentarily thrown off by all the different options. I took a deep breath and decided that as the aunt (by marriage), I had the freedom to buy something a little out of the ordinary. The bridal shower was just like you expected it to be: a few of us “more mature” women feeling a little slighted by the number of friends and cousins that were there. It almost felt like they were simply marking time before they went out for their bachelorette party. I will give the bride credit; she took her time to open and acknowledge every gift – including making sure to mark off anything that had been on the registry. I could tell the moment she opened mine she almost didn’t know what to make of it. I had selected a gold pin that was a musical note. I knew she taught music to children and I thought something like this would be nice. Her subdued reaction made me think I might be wrong until I realized she was trying not to cry. She made a general thank you and went on with the gifts, but the minute that was over, she came over to me to tell me that out of all the bridal gifts, the pin I had given her was the most special. Considering she wore it pinned to her wedding gown, I’m guessing she wasn’t lying.