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Today was an interesting day at work. My boss, Susan, is having a baby so today was her last day before she takes her maternity leave. She is truly a joy to work for and so I wanted to get her something meaningful but not too expensive and something she could enjoy on her own. I don't have much experience with the whole "shopping for expecting mothers" thing, and I knew that everyone else in the office was buying her stuff for her baby and I wanted to be a little different. Plus, there was nothing on her needs list that was within my price range that somebody else wasn't already getting. I get the feeling they waited until I went on my lunch break to decide who was getting what and it was just my luck that I ended up looking at cribs and car seats, neither of which was I willing to buy.

I was surfing the web last week looking for what a good gift would be, and I saw a website for gift baskets. Before, I hadn't thought of the idea of getting her a gift basket. When I decided that gift baskets were the way to go, I was faced with more possibilities. Should I get her the "Congratulations" basket, even though she hadn't had the baby yet (although she did look ready to pop at any moment)? Should I get her one of the fancier, more expensive looking corporate gift baskets? Or should I just get a little basket of fruits and call it a day?

I decided against the fruit basket because it sounded too much like fruitcake which I hate. Plus, I didn't want the boss getting the wrong idea. I didn't want her to think I didn't think she ate enough or that she's fat or anything like that. I opted for the corporate gift basket because it seemed to be the most fitting gift to give. I chose a nice stress relieving basket because I figured my boss would need the stress relief, especially after she had the baby. The basket itself was beautiful and it contained a special pillow, a gel eye mask, and a little massager thing that looked a little like the cheap massagers that vibrate that you can buy in Walgreens. She really enjoyed it too; it looked like she was glad to actually get something that wasn't for the baby that she could use. Plus, it wasn't out of pocket or unprofessional like the gift Sam gave her (a maternity dress circa 1967 that was about 2 sizes too big and the wrong shade of green). She even pulled me to the side later to tell me how happy she was with her gift. I was pleased to have gotten her something that she can use well beyond her pregnancy, even if it's to deal with her stresses in the workplace. After all, she has to manage a team like mine...it would be enough to drive anyone crazy!