Taking the Wax to Robb.

When Robb and I were married, there was no chest hair or back hair to speak of. For that matter there was very little leg or arm hair. (He was a later developer.) This was a fact that I loved and as we got older and he started to accumulate hair on his back and chest I would casually mention to him that there were places to go where he could have that "stuff" removed. He always replied with something along the lines of "Not in this lifetime." Since I didn't see us having another one, I was pretty sure that it wasn't going to happen but that didn't stop me from mentioning it time to time.

Just the other night was one of those times. Sunday evening I said, "hey, lets try waxing your back." With each spread of wax I could see him tense and with a quick pull the hair was gone. It was magnificent. There were some gasps and little exhales of breath, but all in all Robb remained pretty calm. The back went so well that when we were done I asked if he wanted me to try his chest. All I got was a 2"x3" area of wax on, placed the cloth making sure to rub in the direction of the hair, and with one quick pull I ripped off the piece of cloth, the wax and the hair all while simultaneously Robb flew up into the air and through the roof. Ok, so Robb didn't go through the roof but he might as well have. That ended our wax session.

The Lovely Valentine's Day

This year was definitely like no other Valentine's Day I have ever had. Robb and I had promised not to succomb to the commercialism and buy something for the other. With all the trips we are taking this year, we decided to save our money and just do something nice for each other. That said, what made my Valentine's Day was something I would never have expected, yet was totally wonderful and helped me to wake up with a smile.

We had friends over to our house on Friday to have dinner and watch a movie. I should probably back up a little and tell you that our oldest has been extremely excited lately because she has a loose tooth. She first started noticing it the end of January, but Robb and I couldn't actually tell it was loose until about a week or so ago. Anyway, Friday evening we had a delicious dinner of fajitas and were partaking in some dessert when Olyvia became extremely upset. She was crying (the pretend crying that is extremely exagerated, but there are no tears) exclaiming that there was a popping noise and she was very worried and her tooth just has to come out right now. I called Robb over and he came right away. There was a little bleeding that we wiped with a papertowel. Robb checked it and wasn't quite sure it was ready but asked her if she wanted him to take it out. She said yes, but then said no. We decided that sticking with the no answer would be better for us and for our pocket books years from now should this become an issue that causing deep emotional scaring needing counseling. I calmed Olyvia down, dried her pretend tears and she finished her dessert, exclaiming in a high pitched hippity hoppety voice "I'm gonna loose my tooth. I'm gonna loose my tooth." Dessert was finished, teeth were brushed and the girls went to bed.

The next morning I am awoken by the sound of Olyvia, "mommy? mommy? are you awake?" I roll over barely awake and say "yes honey, what is it?" Now if I wasn't awake before, I am now. At the top of her high pitched little voice I hear, "I pulled my out my tooth. Look mommy . . . (visualize mouth wide open) my tooth is all gone." I couldn't help but smile. What a delightful way to be woken up. I gave her a huge kiss and rolled over to make sure Robb wasn't missing out on any of this wonderful first lost tooth experience.

Olyvia then got right down to business and asked "When do I get to put it under my pillow for the tooth fairy?"

Chehalis Flood 2007 & 2008

The first week of December 2007 Lewis County Washington was hit with a horrible flood. A flood that wiped out homes, roads, rail roads, farms, businesses, schools and much more. After the flood, many thought that they would have time to recover from the devastation, but just 13 months later they were hit with another horrible flood. The reported losses may have been fewer then the previous year but the losses were just as devastating.

In late January we traveled down to Chehalis to lend a hand. We traveled down with over twenty others from First Lutheran. The trip down, originally planned for the weekend before Christmas, was moved to January when we received all the snow and the roads were too treacherous. Between the time we originally planned to go down and the weekend in January that we did go down, the 2008 flood hit.

While in Chehalis we had an opportunity to help the Sanchez family who had previously lost their home in the 2007 flood. Over the last year they had acquired a home, placed it in an elevated position and began to move in their belongings. However, they had not yet moved in all their belongings. When the 2008 flood hit they again felt hard losses as their belongings, waiting in tents on their property to be moved into their house, were covered in flood water. Our job was to help them separate their damaged belongings from those that could be salvaged. All the damaged belongings were then divided into burn piles or trucks to be taken to the dump. It was devastating to watch as this wonderful family had to go through the sorrow and devastation of saying goodbye to so much all over again. Because of where the Sanchez property was positioned, they ended up with a lot of debris on their property when the waters receded. Mrs. Sanchez told us that many people will come to their property to look for belongings that they are missing.

We had a great group of people working with us and it was wonderful to be able to help as much as we could. Our girls went with us and although it was cold and our oldest spent some time in our truck trying to stay warm, they did a great job helping us. Our youngest was an amazing trouper, hauling debris to the burn piles and carrying anything her little arms could hold. Thank you to all of you who gave up your weekend to help others.

The Odd Couple

A few days ago a dear friend of mine sent me a link. One of those forwards that I will admit I usually look past. For some reason I didn't look past this one. Maybe I had an extra minute that afternoon or was intrigued by the subject line of her e-mail. Either way I decided to watch and was so glad that I did. Her e-mail was a video that was put together of Steve Hartman's visit to an elephant sanctuary in Tennesee. I encourage you to watch the short video. It is really amazing the love, trust and unabridged companionship that these two animals show to each other.


Watch CBS Videos Online

Years ago a good friend of mine was thinking about whether or not the man she was with was the man she wanted to marry. She asked me how I knew that I wanted to marry Robb. It is hard to put into just one sentence. There is so much feeling and emotion involved and at the time I wasn't sure, I just knew. After watching this video I know now that all of these qualities that can be seen in these two animals are qualities that I felt I had with Robb. To this day I feel very blessed to have him as the partner that I share this life with; A life that can have its ups and downs.

This relationship filled with love and trust and happiness doesn't have the ability to ward off all bad things. People can still get hurt and hard times can still fall upon them. The fabulous thing is that you have someone to go through these things with.

At the end of the video Steve says about the couple that "they harbor no fears, no secrets, no prejudices. Just two living creatures who somehow manage to look past their immense differences." He then seems to challenge us to do the same in not just our primary relationships, but in all our relationships. What an amazing thing we can learn from two animals that are so different in every way. Lessons of friendship for sure, but also of hope and forgiveness. This speaks to me in a very precious way.

As a mother of two children I have recently been asking myself, "who do I want my chilren to be?" Knowing that in the end I only have so much control over this, I feel that it is my responsibility to be aware of what my intentions are as I raise them. Do I want them to be smart? Do I want them to be loving? Do I want them to be popular? Do I want them to be an athlete? All these questions have been rolling around in my head and the conclusion that I have come to, the underlying desire in my being for my children is for them to love others and to be forgiving no matter what. I want them to be the kids at school that get along and are welcoming to everyone. That aren't quick to judge but rather quick to open their arms. That is a hard thing to do and as a parent I am sure that I am going to have to teach them this quality more in how I behave and love and forgive then in telling them how to. I am excited for this challenge. I know that if those two animals can love and forgive and trust even with all their differences, then so can I. I encourage you to join me in making a difference.