Gifts and goodies!

DH is home! :) I took half day leave off work today to be at the airport to meet him. My very excited father in law (FIL) was there too. When I saw DH walking towards the arrival gate, I told my FIL that there he is. However, FIL was probably too filled with emotion to spot him until DH was face to face with him!

It was so good to give DH a nice long hug after 8 long days of being apart. DH looked very tired and worn out because it was a very long flight. Flying economy class in a dry stuffy aeroplane with limited leg room is not much fun! The important thing is that he's home and catching up on sleep, as I type this.

DH didn't have any time during his stay to do any shopping as he was busy studying. However, he managed to buy things for us at the airport just before he left for home. He bought his parents a nice jar of strawberry jam and tea. He bought me a lovely box of chocolates! I was very surprised at the size of it (it's a really big red box, if you can't estimate its size from the photo below) and he managed to pack it into his little carry on bag! It was very thoughtful of DH as this is my favourite type of chocolate.

He bought Osh Osh a model aeroplane. It's just the right size for Osh Osh to hold and play with. When I went to pick up Osh Osh from school, I had brought the aeroplane with me. I told Osh Osh that this is a gift from Daddy. He said, "No, Daddy not back". I said, "Yes, Daddy's home and he's sleeping". I then went on to tell him that as soon as he gets home, he should go and say hello to Daddy and thank him for the gift but I told him he must say it quietly. Osh Osh looked at me and asked, "Not loudly?" I said no and he proceeded to whisper "Hello, Daddy". "Softly like this?" he asked keenly. I said yes and couldn't help and smile as he looked so serious and cute at the same time.

True to his word, as soon as we were home, he quickly took off his shoes and while I was still at the entrance, he was already on his way to our bedroom. By the time I got to the room, Daddy was awake and Osh Osh was asking, "You buy aeroplane?" I noticed that he was speaking very softly to DH. He then climbed onto the bed and hugged and kissed DH after which he climbed down and proceeded to leave the room, to let DH rest. I thought that was very mature and considerate of Osh Osh.

Coincidentally, the model aeroplane wasn't the only gift Osh Osh received today. The teachers at his school (about 8 of them) each gave him a gift for the Children's Day celebration (Children's Day is tomorrow but the party's today as the school is closed tomorrow). I was just as amazed and delighted as Osh Osh was, with all the gifts he received from the teachers - pencils, pencil cases, sharpeners, colour pencils, a portable fan (with soft rubber blades so it's harmless), eraser, a book and lots of sweets!

I told Osh Osh that he is so blessed to receive so many presents today. He said he's a very good boy. He is, indeed, a very good boy! :)

The purpose of my post is not to glorify material goods. It's just to share what these gifts mean for us. The gifts are just gestures of the love that is in our lives. I'm sure DH was very happy to see the expression on my face when he presented the big box of chocolates to me. Likewise, it was a very special moment for me to see how Osh Osh's face beamed when he saw the model aeroplane. It was also such a nice warm feeling when Osh Osh and I opened the presents together. I'm sure DH felt the same when he eventually joined us while Osh Osh was describing his goodies loudly. We shared his delight when he first put the pencils into the sharpener. We were just as curious as he was when he asked us what sweets he had received. We excitedly helped him keep all his goodies into his pencil cases.

Simple things...but oh, so meaningful! It's moments like these that I am so grateful for.