Pandora Possibilities

The past two years have been so much fun for my niece with her Pandora bracelet.  I gave her the bracelet for her 16th birthday as a special gift.  I knew she would be getting her license soon, but didn’t know when the purchase of a car would be in the future.  I know the car was something she wanted but I wouldn’t be able to give her.  So I tried to give her a little something that would hopefully compare to a car.  I guess she would have to stick to borrowing her parent’s car for awhile or catch rides with her friends who were lucky enough to have their own car.  I know that when you are sixteen you try to have as many freedoms as possible and I hoped she would get this one soon.  I had to wait until I was eighteen before I had a car, but I know that times are changing and children have more places to go than when I was that age.  They do not like to stay in one spot for long and feel like they always have somewhere they should be going.  I knew she was saving money for her dream car but didn’t know how much she had saved.

In order to make her birthday special I gave her this bracelet in May.  I knew she had seen them before and admired them.  She is the kind of person who likes to collect things and in these items she collects she likes to show her personality.  I had to take two tries on the bracelet because the first one I got her was too big for her wrist.  So when she was able to wear the correct size bracelet she could show off her new Pandora beads. 

The first bead I bought her along with the bracelet was the wrapped present bead.  I thought this would be a fitting bead for her since it was her birthday.  I wrapped it in a cardboard tube used for holding posters, because I knew she thought I was giving her an American Idol poster.  I joked to her one time about her obsession with American Idol.  She never misses a show.  Either she leaves friends houses or parties early if the show is on or she will TIVO the show.  If anyone were to ask her what her favorite show was I know she would answer American Idol.  She is a very good singer and sings at weddings.  Several times I have told her to try out for the show and told her I would even wait in line with her.  I told her she could make me famous by association.  She is a very modest person and always says she is not good enough and doesn’t want to waste anyone’s time.  I know her mother and grandma also would agree with me.  I told her one time when we were out shopping in Appleton that the next holiday that came around I would get her a poster of the show for her room.  It was, of course, a joke but not one that she forgot.  When she started to open the tubular present she said with a snicker, “I think I know what this is.”  And she was thinking I had purchased the poster.  My plan had worked.  Maybe another time I will surprise her with the actual poster, when she is least expecting it…and of course in a package that would be very inconspicuous.  When she found the small present bead and bracelet among all the tissue paper she was excited.  She said she always liked charm bracelets but never had one or had anyone buy her one.  Then she started naming possible charms she would like to get.  I think she had been looking at all the Pandora possibilities before her birthday.  Maybe she was secretly hoping she would receive one.  Or maybe this is just what I would like to think.  I always like to feel that I am the best gift giving person.

Her mother bought her the green oval lights bead for her birthday.  I had told her I was buying her daughter a Pandora bracelet so she thought she would add to the personality of the bracelet with this bead.  She chose the green gem because that is my niece’s birthstone.  This is a pretty way to add color to the bracelet and also tie the color to her life which was started in the month of May.  Green is also a popular color right now and a color I know my niece has a lot of in her closet.  Every time I see her she has a new green shirt on, all in different shades.  She is quite the shopper, for deals especially.  The other day she was wearing green flip flops to go with her shirt.  I don’t think she has any green pants or shorts but I wouldn’t put it past her.  I’m sure the green bead was a great purchase for her bracelet and kind of wish I had bought her that bead.

Her grandpa gave her the flower bead to add to her bracelet for her birthday.  The bead was a nice addition in the month of May because flowers were just starting to bloom and everything was starting to look beautiful outside.  The bead has a daisy on it which is my niece’s favorite flower.  I am not sure that her grandpa knew this but it was still a thoughtful purchase on his part.  He is not typically the jewelry buying sort of person.  I am not sure the last time he bought anyone jewelry.  This bead reminds me of a May Day many years ago when my niece was about five and I received a knock on the door and when I went to open it there was a May basket hanging on the door.  I thought it was the neatest thing and that maybe that the neighbor across the street had dropped it off because we didn’t see them much.  But later I found out it was from my niece.  I should have known because she always liked daisies and liked picking them for other people.  It was not uncommon for her to come over and give me a handful of flowers. 

After a little prodding, my brother bought my niece the cross bead for her confirmation.  He never knows what to get anyone for special occasions so I told him about her charm bracelet.  He thought it sounded like a good idea.  I actually ended up picking out and buying the bead myself and had him reimburse me.  He is her godfather so it was a very special gift to her.  Now she will have her beliefs, which are very important to her and her family, as part of her charm bracelet.  The sad part of the story of this bead is that she received a lot of gifts on her confirmation and somehow misplaced this cross bead.  My brother does not know this but she has yet to find it.  Some day I should replace it for her if she doesn’t do it first.  I guess she still has the memory of receiving this bead from her uncle on her special day.  Maybe she even has a photograph of the bead that was lost.

My niece received the snowman bead from her friend partly as a joke.  My niece is not a fan of winter and cold weather.  Everyone who knows her is aware of this fact.  I don’t think she has ever built a snowman in her life.  She always talks about moving to Florida after high school and attending college there.  She fell in love with Orlando, Florida, when she went there with her family for a vacation a few years ago.  If she does move in the future she will have this snowman bead to remind her of winters in Wisconsin and all the fun she never used to have in the snow.  It could also remind her of all her new memories which will be made in the warm sunshine.  I think a sunshine bead would be more fitting for her.  Maybe that will be one of my future purchases for her.

My niece’s dad gave her the hanging pearl bead for her birthday because he told her that it reminded them of one of their trips to Orlando when she was swimming at the beach and came running back to him with a shell.  He told her to open it up because there could be a pearl inside.  She worked on cracking it open for quite awhile.  So when she finally got it open and found nothing inside she was very disappointed, but decided to pretend that she did find a pearl.  She told her mother it was a beautiful pearl that she didn’t want to show anyone because they might take it form her.  She said she was going to sell it for a lot of money and would be very rich some day.  My niece said she had no recollection of this event, but it is a cute story that she can now share with others.

Her boyfriend gave her the clear oval lights bead.  He told her that he thought it looked like diamonds and said, “Aren’t diamonds a girls best friend?”  Of course the answer is yes and she really likes this bead.  She was probably thinking too bad these aren’t real diamonds but it is still a very pretty bead.  He is such a nice guy and fits in so well with the rest of our family.  We are all hoping that they do last forever, but only time will tell.  I’m sure she won’t rush into anything because she knows that forever is a long time and it is good to be sure of your feelings.  She also has college to look forward to. It could only be a high school romance and nothing more.  I guess he was using the bead as a promise ring she later told me.  He wanted to use it to show his love for her and his promise that they would always be together. 

The note bead was given to her from another of her aunts.  Everyone knows what a big role music plays in her life.  She has always been in choir and in different school musicals.  She has sung the American anthem at several sporting events around the area where she lives.  She will even sing at my upcoming wedding.  I have not picked the song yet but am sure she will have some good ideas as to what songs she is most comfortable with and would be most fitting for my wedding.  I hope she will continue singing into her college life and well beyond.  It makes her happy and who she is today.

The purple lights bead was given to her from her little niece who is only 4 years old.  I guess she saw the bead at the jewelry store and said that looked like a bead that her aunt would like.  She told her mom, “that is adorable.”  I guess that was her new favorite word at that time.  She would call everything adorable.  I remember her calling her sick cat adorable and we all laughed so hard because it was much less than adorable.  But I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder isn’t it?  It also helped that the little girl always says that purple is her favorite color.  I think that was one of her first words when she was about one or two years old.

My niece’s mother gave her the turtle bead for Christmas.  She had always liked turtles since she was younger and had a stuffed turtle, which she took with her everywhere like sleepovers at Grandma’s and also to the library.  The turtle was purple and blue and had a rattle in the inside.  You could usually hear her coming down the stair because you could hear this rattling getting closer and closer.  She actually still has it but doesn’t carry it with her anymore.  It’s funny how some thing will hold up for so many years and it’s great that it is a washable toy because I can’t imagine how dirty the turtle would be if it wasn’t.  It is on a shelf in her bedroom.  It is probably something she will have forever and will probably be able to pass it on to her children when she has them.   She also has some turtle figurines, which had been given as gifts to her from different relatives on many special occasions.  I think this collection will be something she treasures for many years to come.

I gave my niece the pretty pink circular bead for Christmas.  She once was telling me how her best friend had this bead and she thought it was cute.  I thought she could use a little pink on her bracelet too.  It’s nice to have a lot of different colors on your bracelet .  I think it adds to the character of her bracelet.

My niece bought herself the swirl bead with gold on it.  She said it reminded her of a ring she made in Jewelry class in high school.  She is very good at art class and had been in an advanced class since sixth grade. This piece she made actually was on display at the clinic because it was done so well.  Someone looking at the piece actually even wondered if they could purchase this ring or if she would make her one.  My niece never did make another ring.  She said it was a one of a kind piece.

Her boyfriend gave her the chunky swirl bead with diamonds in it.  Again he thought he would give her something that looked like diamonds.  I don’t think he is one to buy colorful jewelry.  He likes plain things or ones that are uncolored.  I think he does have expensive taste though, because he has given her more expensive beads.  He sure treats her well.  I don’t think she even needed to point out that she was wanted beads for Christmas, he just did it on his own.  This seems to be very rare these days with men.  Usually they need to be driven straight to the jewelry store to get the hint that this is what their girlfriends want.

 My niece’s aunt gave her the purple hanging bead.  Her aunt had her pick out which bead she wanted and she picked this one.  It was an easy purchase.  I guess this bead just stood out as one that would fit well on her Pandora bracelet.  It’s makes it easy when the person picks out their own beads sometimes, because there are so many to choose from and sometimes you are not sure which one they would like.

Her mother bought her the clear hanging square bead.  She said she couldn’t decide between the two colors but decided on this one because it seemed a little more elegant and she thought her daughter would like it better.  I am coming to believe that my niece is not picky.  I think she would like any bead that was purchased, as long as there was a meaning associated with the gift.

The next bead I want to give my niece is the house bead because her family just sold their house and they are unable to move into their new house for about three weeks after they have to move out of their current house.  We joke about how they will be homeless.  They are actually going to live with my parents, with whom my sister hasn’t lived with since she was eighteen.  I think it’ll be a fun experience for them and one that will definitely be unforgettable.  The house bead will be very fitting for my niece at that time.  It’ll be a good time for them to get an even closer bond with the entire family.

-Judy Heeg