Showers (Storms?)

Yesterday was a "get-together" at Ricardo's work, for his co-workers to celebrate his coming baby.  They had asked me if I could come, since many of them don't know me.  They planned for a lunch/potluck/with cake at noon so professors would be able to drop in before and after their classes.  I was imagining an informal gathering with lots of handshaking and meeting and eating.

I was wrong!

The whole department was invited (which is not just math--Ricardo's area, it's called "College Readiness" and includes math, reading, and writing), so there were people there that even Ricardo did not know!  It was a full on shower, with chintzy pink decorations, a stuffed bear on the cake (yummy cake!), and some "academic" shower games (not too bad).  

3 hours later, Ric and I are still loading stuff into the jeep (the trunk wasn't big enough, we had to fill the backseat too).  They spoiled baby girl, and gave us some really special (handmade blankets and boppy covers) and practical (wipes! shampoos! products they know and use with their own!) gifts and we are grateful.  

One of the gift tables.  yep...just getting started.  One of the math professors joked that they don't teach gift wrapping in "geek school", which is why nearly all the gifts were in bags. 

 34 thank you notes to write, plus one more unknown, since when we got home and I'm unpacking everything we found a gift that I had not opened at the shower!

No card, no label, a bag and gift we did not recognize.  I checked the list that the department's administrative assistant had kept for me (she's wonderful, since I didn't know very many people at all, she wrote down everything, and then TYPED IT UP in a spreadsheet and e-mailed it to me!)  But...there's nothing that matches this gift's description in the list, so I'm sure it's one that didn't get opened.  So sad, because I don't know who to thank.  I e-mailed the admin. assistant to see if she has any investigatory ideas.  Any suggestions?

I hate it when that happens...by the way, if any of you gave us that oblong cut glass serving plate for our wedding 3.5 years ago, THANK YOU (if there was a card, it must have gotten dislodged at some point, we still don't know who gave it to us).  It is likely someone who is no longer speaking to us due to the absence of a thank you card for a lovely wedding gift.  

So, we survived shower #2.  Bigger than shower #1, and there's no telling what shower #3 will be: because it's the church one.  I am imagining a thunderstorm rather than a shower, and am so glad that Momma B is coming up for that one!

P.S.  I forgot to mention one of the best gifts of the day was from the interim dean of  the department...he gave Ricardo a book called "Fatherhood is Not Pretty".