Is Ben a clod for buying his wife a kitchen appliance for Christmas?

[nicnap]

Ice cream generally doesn't top the menu in December though.....

OH it does for me! I eat more ice cream per year than a Ben & Jerry's taste tester. It takes me about 3 bowls to finish a half-gallon carton. I eat it year round. So all of that being said, Ben, if your wife doesn't like it, I'll pm you my mailing address.

 

[he beholds]

I wouldn't personally want an ice cream maker, because I don't have/wouldn't make the time to make ice cream (probably b/c it is not my favorite dessert) so I don't think I'd feel like using it much and it would take up storage space. But, I love practical gifts. I'd much rather my husband realize that I wanted a set of knives or something and buy it for me, than me agonize over buying it myself. Because if it is practical, but not absolutely necessary, I personally hesitate to buy it. (If it is impractical and not necessary, I somehow agonize less!)

P.S. If you were to make her the ice cream the first time, the present would be a prize in my book!

 

[Scottish Lass]

Because if it is practical, but not absolutely necessary, I personally hesitate to buy it.

P.S. If you were to make her the ice cream the first time, the present would be a prize in my book!

Yep.

 

[coramdeo]

Marriage 101.1

Ya'll gotta be kiddn' me! Everyone knows form Marriage 101.1 you don't ever buy the wife an appliance as a Christmas, birthday, or anniversary gift. Those gifts should be personal - ie. for them and their pleasure alone. Not for the family, not to help with wifely work. This is right up there with don't forget birthdays and anniversaries! Please note: been married 42 years! I learned this lesson the first year. ......and it does not matter what she says about it being ok.

 

[Scottish Lass]

Gregg, what about the handful of women who have said otherwise?

 

[a mere housewife]

I can understand the wisdom of 'Marriage 101'; but people and situations are so different that I think, there are would be too many exceptions for such a thing to be a hard and fast rule?

Personally I would want to play with the ice cream maker myself; I so like to play with liquid ingredients and things that make noise but if your wife is not so selfish about new toys, I think Jessi's suggestion is great.

 

[Laura]

But Gregg, making ice cream isn't laborious, or "wifely work!" I see a huge difference between a vacuum cleaner (though if I got one of those $$$ Dyson kinds I wouldn't complain at all) and a kitchen appliance that lets you make the king of all warm-weather desserts.

It really all comes down to your wife's disposition. If she likes ice cream and isn't ready to read "Do us all favor and learn to use this" into a practical gift, then...

Personally I would want to play with the ice cream maker myself; I so like to play with liquid ingredients and things that make noise but if your wife is not so selfish about new toys, I think Jessi's suggestion is great.

LOL. "I so like to play with liquid ingredients and things that make noise."

 

[rrfranks]

I guess when it gets right down to it, it does not matter what we think but what your wife thinks. Unromantic clod or not, I bet your wife wouldn't trade you for the world!

 

[JBaldwin]

I'm with the women who say, "Does she really want it." It reminds me a couple of gifts my husband purchased me. Turns out they were things he wanted:
A lava lamp ("Oh sweetheart, it would look great in the living room."

A high-tech digital camera ("Oh sweetheart, this is too hard for you to use.". He never let me touch, not even once. It's now his camera. He got out of the doghouse on that one, because he bought another very nice one the following Christmas.)

But my husband's not all bad, he's gone out of his way to find things I really wanted. For our tenth anniversary, he wanted to buy me a bigger diamond. I wanted a cello. I got the cello, and every time I play it, I think of my husband.

 

[lynnie]

If she likes to buy low or no fat ice cream made with splenda it is perfect; the diet varieties out there are very limited. If she will eat any kind of cheap sugary junky ice cream, then get her one other personal gift also, just to be safe. Personally I think it is a really nice idea.

 

[Romans922]

1) Since when is Christmas a romantic time? (See your pagan celebrations of valentine's day and halloween )
2) If your wife wants it and you want to get it, get it!
3) Should your wife be upset because of any gift you give her (if you have put thought into it and gave selflessly)? No, we should all receive our gifts without complaining and with joy. If she is upset, then you have bigger problems --> see Gospel.
4) Practical gifts are always better than gifts that do nothing.

 

[BJClark]

SolaScriptura;

None of the above. I'll just tell her I want her to get up and make me some ice cream. I'm confused... why would her desire to not make ice cream for the man who gives her a lavish lifestyle equate to me having to make it?

My husband doesn't always get what he wants just because he asks..just as I don't always get what I want from him just because I ask..often times either one of us will just get up and make what we want for ourselves..as opposed to waiting on the other person...

It may be she is in the middle of something else..when you desire her to make you ice cream..

 

[he beholds]

Ya'll gotta be kiddn' me! Everyone knows form Marriage 101.1 you don't ever buy the wife an appliance as a Christmas, birthday, or anniversary gift. Those gifts should be personal - ie. for them and their pleasure alone. Not for the family, not to help with wifely work. This is right up there with don't forget birthdays and anniversaries! Please note: been married 42 years! I learned this lesson the first year. ......and it does not matter what she says about it being ok.

But it does matter if she says it is OK! I really want practical gifts, because they are so not fun to buy! I don't want jewelry or clothes or stuff!
I have a friend who got eating utensils for her birthday from her husband their first year of marriage, and she hated it. That is something I'd want! Maybe it is because I (we) hate spending money on things for the house, so we never do it. (For instance, we just bought (still cheap ones) curtains to make our ugly living room a little less ugly a month ago, and we've lived here over a year!)

If she likes to buy low or no fat ice cream made with splenda it is perfect; the diet varieties out there are very limited. If she will eat any kind of cheap sugary junky ice cream, then get her one other personal gift also, just to be safe. Personally I think it is a really nice idea.

This is why I wouldn't want one: I am fine with generic vanilla ice cream and banana slices.

SolaScriptura;

None of the above. I'll just tell her I want her to get up and make me some ice cream. I'm confused... why would her desire to not make ice cream for the man who gives her a lavish lifestyle equate to me having to make it?

My husband doesn't always get what he wants just because he asks..just as I don't always get what I want from him just because I ask..often times either one of us will just get up and make what we want for ourselves..as opposed to waiting on the other person...

It may be she is in the middle of something else..when you desire her to make you ice cream..

The quote in bold, was it a joke? You don't seriously tell your wife that you want her to get up and make you anything, do you??? If so, I just was not aware that there were too many Fred Flintstone-type men still around!
I am sure you were kidding, though! If not, I bet she'd sacrifice some of the lavishness for a please, if you can't have one with the other.

-----Added 12/4/2009 at 01:38:51 EST-----

Being of Scottish descent, I lean toward the practical side. I think this falls in the middle, which is what I often seek in a gift---it's something she has said she wants, it's useful (as opposed to a knick-knack that merely needs dusting, which equals work), and it may be somewhat of a splurge. By this I mean it's unlikely she'll buy it at Walmart next week; it's not a necessity to keep the house running. Therefore, it's different than replacing her iron, for example.

But even I did ask for an iron!! That is something I'd hate to spend a lot of money on, but it would make my life so much easier--not that I see ironing my husband's clothes very frequently after Christmas comes this year!

My husband's thing is he hates to buy me something that I asked for. He thinks that's unromantic.

 

[Kim G]

I love practical gifts. My husband and I pick out things together, and they are always things we need but don't feel like we can spend the money on the rest of the year. Kitchen appliances, new socks, mildew cleaner, ironing board . . . these all make great gifts for us.

Perhaps if we were more wealthy we would enjoy less practical gifts. But when you have to watch every penny, you want your money to be spent on things that you'll use often (not flowers or jewelry).

 

[SolaScriptura]

Last Christmas I got her, among other things, a huge cast iron skillet and one of those really high end Kitchen Aid stand mixers.

First class all the way!

 

[coramdeo]

I would and offend do buy things like ice cream makers or new appliances as "just because" gifts but not for Christmas, birthday, or anniversary!

 

[SolaScriptura]

I can't believe that 18 people are hating on me so far.

I'd love to hear what kind of Don Juan gifts you give your spouse!

 

[Mushroom]

I can't believe that 18 people are hating on me so far.

I'd love to hear what kind of Don Juan gifts you give your spouse!

They just don't share our extreme level of cloddishness, Ben. It's a carefully cultured characteristic.

 

[Skyler]

Umm. Your wife doesn't ever have access to the PB, does she...?

 

[SolaScriptura]

I can't believe that 18 people are hating on me so far.

I'd love to hear what kind of Don Juan gifts you give your spouse!

They just don't share our extreme level of cloddishness, Ben. It's a carefully cultured characteristic.

Indeed. I often think that most people fail to apprecate how tough it is to become a truly cloddish person...

-----Added 12/4/2009 at 05:03:12 EST-----

Umm. Your wife doesn't ever have access to the PB, does she...?

Nope. She has absolutely zero interest in accessing the PB.

 

[py3ak]

If you were a TOTAL clod you wouldn't be asking the question. And unless you wooed her under false pretenses, she should be familiar with whatever degree of cloddishness you do possess and presumably loves you for it. So go for whatever gift you think she would like, or hit up her best friend for advice if you're not sure.

 

[BJClark]

Ben,

I can't believe that 18 people are hating on me so far.

I don't hate you at all, so I hope your not including me in that count..
all I said is that *I* see that type of gift as more of a 'family' gift and not a personal give your spouse gift..

My husband bought a vacuum cleaner one year..I put it under the tree as a "family" gift..since *I* would not be the only person using it..

 

[JoyFullMom]

I'm not a hater...I didn't even vote! LOL!

 

[Skyler]

I don't hate you, I just think you're an unromantic clod. Nothin' wrong wif dat.

 

[Rich Koster]

I didn't click on the poll. My suggestion is that it will be a fine gift as long as it is not the ONLY gift.

 

[Lady of the Lake]

Too little information to come up with any response.

 

[reformed trucker]

I was going to say nothing says "I love you" like a Kitchen Aid, but you got her one last christmas. You really DO love her...

 

[a mere housewife]

I just realised that apparently Abraham and Fred Flinstone have something in common:

'And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, "Quick! Three seahs of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes."' (Genesis 18:6)

 

[Mindaboo]

I personally can't think of anything MORE romantic than an ice cream maker. In fact, I like the idea so much, I'm considering doing the same. Thanks Ben.

Of course, my own clodness level may influence my thinking on the subject.

All I can say is remember the trash can you bought me for our 5th anniversary. Do I need to say more? Let's not go there, okay?

Do you guys eat a lot of ice cream? It would be a fun gift, not one I would want, but your wife might enjoy it.

 

[JoyFullMom]

I personally can't think of anything MORE romantic than an ice cream maker. In fact, I like the idea so much, I'm considering doing the same. Thanks Ben.

Of course, my own clodness level may influence my thinking on the subject.

All I can say is remember the trash can you bought me for our 5th anniversary. Do I need to say more? Let's not go there, okay?