I should have ditche my husband long ago before he decided he wante a divorce. I have received these items as gifts : One Christmas he got me one of those $10 wooden letter holders that you hang up to put your bills in. I was supposed to kiss his feet for that? Another years he got me the 7-11/Walgreen's last minute gift - a plastic battery operated travel clock. (This is a man with a 6 digit income) THe first couple of year we were married he got me a nice camera one year and a lens for the camera on my birthday. On out 10th anniversary he got me a 1 carat diamond ring since he had never gotten me one to begin with. A couple of years I actually had to write down for him what I wanted, take his credit card, order my own presents out of a catalogue then wrap them and put them under the tree and say oh thank you honey for the wonderful blah blah blah. Or hand him a catalogue and say - I would like the batrobe on page 6 in a size whatever. He would order it and put the prewrapped present under the tree. I used to spend hours picking things out for him or making him something and he never got the clue. If someone can't take the time to think about what someone might like as a gift, or what their likes are and try to find something that at least means something - a small thing that they found in a special place whould be appreciated - that says something about how much time and care they are going to take in the relationship. It says something about how much they care about you. Even if you have very little money, you can take the time to make a handmade card. Scour the beach for special shells, press some flowers between paper between the pages of a book, weave some reeds - anything - just put forth some sort of effort.
No one wants to be an afterthought and when it comes Christmas morning or a birthday and there is this brown paper bag with last nights $5.00 7-11 aisle end special it it or dead flowers from the local supermarket - it can just put a real damper on things.

my husband used to get me kitchen stuff like griddles and crockpots and such.. I didnt need or want those it was just his way of telling me he wanted something cooked cause he baught what he wanted me to make in them too.

Anything from 7-11 that is still in the bag you purchased it in on the way over to her house for the gift exchange.