Time...to relax...

Things have been especially busy around the Lowe house these days. 

Between the hundreds of hours The Big Guy Lowe put towards the planning and following through of The Life of Christ event (which was truly wonderful!!) and the added hours he's needed to fill with work and increased traveling to CA, not to mention all the activities that are part of our daily lives, we have been ready for some sort of reprieve.  Just time to sit and relax.  Doesn't that sound simply wonderful??  I thought so too.

Flash back to January.  The Big Guy Lowe was invited to a conference for those in his profession.  In order to be invited, you had to be doing very well.  We were thrilled and humbled when an invitation was extended.  As The Big Guy Lowe explained to me what we would be doing and where we would be, all I could think was "Why wouldn't we want to go?!"  One week later it looked like we wouldn't be able to attend as I had a severely burned arm with a lengthly recovery ahead of me.  Gratefully, the new skin on my arm had healed to the point that my doctors said a week in the sun (with sunblock) would be wonderful!  Whew!

Again, Grammy HB was a life-saver as she provided the loving care to our three boys.  We are so grateful mom, and love the memories our boys have of the "vacations" they get to share with you!!  Thank you!!  With the boys under her watchful wing, we were able to head out to Naples, FL.

May 2nd, we headed to the airport at an early hour--4 AM!  Thanks dad for taking us!!  With Stake Conference being the weekend before and The Big Guy Lowe being in CA part of the previous week, our trip kind of crept up on us!  Before we knew it we were on the plane headed east.

After traveling all day, we made it to FL and met up with some wonderful people that we were able to enjoy the week with!  To begin the wonderful-ness--we were staying at the Ritz Carlton.

Very nice is all I have to say.  Take a look at what we were going to have to deal with the next week.

It was going to be rough!!

We started our stay by taking a walk out on the beach.  We were immediately amazed by the number of shells strewn throughout the beach!

There was a beautiful sand sculpture too!

When we were unpacking in our room, we found a little "kipper" that made it into our luggage.  ;)  We decided to take him with us as we explored a few places.  :)

Here's our room, with kipper.

Kipper had a bit too much sun, so opted to stay under the blue umbrella for some time.

A turtle that lives in the trees just up from the ocean made his way out to the water and back.  Kipper was there to see. 

Another sand sculpture was admired by our feline friend. 

While the "cat" might have liked the sand, our favorite view was right out in front.  The water was actually warmer than the water in Hawaii--that includes all of the seasons we have been there.  It also had a greater salt content.  Nothing we couldn't deal with.  Oh it was wonderful!

The Big Guy Lowe had meetings in the morning, and I was free to do what I pleased.  One day that included a class on flower arranging.  This was my final product.

Another morning I sat and read in the most wonderful space.  Sigh...

After the morning meetings, The Big Guy Lowe and I would head out to the beach.  It was wonderful!  So relaxing sitting on the beach and then running into the surf and playing for a few hours until we were tired enough that we wanted to sit and dry off a bit--only to run into the water again.

See that little flag on the pole?  In case we needed some refreshments while we were lounging.  NICE!

We enjoyed reading on the beach too.  I was reading President Hinckley's biography Go Forward With Faith, and The Big Guy Lowe was reading President Monson's biography To The Rescue.  So wonderful being inspired by the lives of modern-day prophets.

In the evenings we would dress for dinner.  Some nights heading out to nice restaurants, other nights attending conference events.  This is where we ate one night--great steaks!

One morning we headed into the Everglades for an "Eco-tour".

This is what we saw...

 

We followed another boat the entire time.

The wildlife we saw was a bit staged.  The drivers hit some milk-type jugs that were filled with stale marshmallows against the mangrove trees...and racoons came a-runnin! 

Unfortuantely our lense was dirty from the trip, but The Big Guy Lowe was able to hold a baby alligator. 

Yep, I did too! 

On our way back to Naples, we stopped at a nature preserve.  We actually saw some wild alligators here. 

 

Look back through the trees...

he was probably about seven feet long. 

While we had a nice time, we were happy to get back to the beach! 

Later that night, the awards dinner was held at a private exotic animal preserve.  Amazing dancers, musicians and fire-breathers entertained.

 

 

 

And we were able to enjoy a few animal-friends too!

Here's Tyson, a FL panther. 

Can't remember the name of this beautiful giraffe. 

 

When dinner was served, this is what our table looked like.  Each table was different and each was beautiful.

Our last day we drove up to Sanibel Island for the morning.  Such beautiful shells!

We also ate at an interesting place, that had pretty good food.  We even tried alligator.  How about that?

Tastes like chicken...chewy chicken.  :)

We had a wonderful time, but amid it all, we missed our boys.  Cell phones have made being away from our boys a bit more tolerable.

The morning we were to leave, this is what we saw on the tarmac.

We were looking forward to being home on Mother's day by 11:00AM.  Unfortunately, a gas line leak derailed that plan.  We did end up getting home by midnight that night after an adventurous day.  The bright point of it all was getting to know Rod and Julie.  I still laugh a bit when I think about the adventures we shared.  We will definitely look forward to seeing them again in the fall.  But nothing could make me happier than seeing this as we drove up that night.

It says "Welcome Home" and "Happy Mother's Day Mommy".

While it's always nice to take a break, it's always better to get back home.  :)

Yep, that's gonna leave a mark

What a day.

Really.  What a day.

All seemed to be going well...until I saw water coming through the kitchen ceiling's recessed lights.  As I ran upstairs in a panic, I was expecting to find the washing machine over-flowed as I had been cranking out the laundry.  Nope.  It seems that I had forgotten to turn the water off when I threw some stinky dishcloths into the utility sink with some bleach.  Somehow with all the noise of the dryer running as well as the washer filling with water and agitating I completely forgot to turn the water off.  It must have taken 15 to 20 minutes for the sink to fill, er, over-fill.

Running into the laundry room I immediately turned off the water.  Did I mention that I only had hot water running?  Looking at all the water spilling over the floor and across the counter tops I just knew I needed to get the water draining--the plug needed to be pulled!  Seeing that the water was hot, I grabbed an old dish towel from a stack I keep for cleaning, wrapped my right hand, thought "this is going to be hot, but I will be fast".  I don't think any amount of "fast" would have helped.  I plunged my hand into the water and didn't even make it to the bottom of the sink before I jerked my arm out, litterally screaming/yelling out in extreme pain.  I remember feeling disbelief at the amount of pain I was feeling!  Unfortunately, the cute green fleece jacket that I was wearing happened to soak up hot water (go figure) and it continued burning my arm.  In more of a reaction than a thought, I pushed my sleeve up my arm and the skin went with it.  Ouch.  It hurts thinking back to that time.

But that's not the only thing that hurts as I recall the events of that morning.  Both D and J were home with me.  D was terrified and crying as he saw me struggling to keep it together.  I ran to the bathroom and filled the sink with cold water and submerged my arm--at least that made the pain bearable and allowed me to somewhat think of what needed to be done next.  A tender mercy was that my cell phone was in my jacket pocket.  I'm not sure I would have known what to do if it wasn't.  I was having such a hard time thinking.  I realize now that I was in some form of shock.  Thankfully I was able to work my phone with my left hand and I shakily navigated my way to my contacts page and called my brother.  The Big Guy Lowe wasn't my first call!  Crazy!  But I knew he was at his Portland office and wouldn't be able to get home quickly, so my brother was my first call.  I was just praying he would answer.  I can't even express the relief I felt when I heard his voice.  I told him something about burning my arm and water all over and all he said was "I'll be right there."  I hung up, feeling a bit of control coming back to me and tried to comfort D.  He would come into me and cry and then run and hide.  I tried going after him to find and comfort him, but my arm would scream in pain--driving me back to the sink.  I realized I needed help right then and made my second call--to our wonderful neighbors across the street; Sue and Gary.  When I spoke with Sue I told her I had burned myself pretty bad and overflowed water and then I started to cry.  She said she'd be right over.  I don't even think 60 seconds had passed before she was coming up the stairs to help.  How grateful I am for wonderful neighbors.  She didn't think once of herself and just ran over.  She was able to help with Drew and the water and calming me.  It was then that I decided I had better call The Big Guy Lowe.  I called three times before he answered.  Often if he is on a call with a client he will call me back, but I knew I needed to talk with him.  He had been away from his desk and when he returned saw my missed calls and picked up on the next one.  I explained the situation and he said he would meet me at the hospital.

Really, when I think back, I wasn't being very rational.  I kept worrying about the kids and the water--not all bad.  I would look down at my arm, see the damage, and think "What could they do at the hospital?"  I was asked a few times when I was planning on going to the hospital or at least the urgent care, and I kept thinking "I'll be okay--I don't need to go!"  It was only after my angel-neighbor Sue looked online and read outloud to me what the correct protocol was for a second degree burn.  She read "You are to soak the affected area in cold water for 3-5 minutes, wrap in a dry dish towel, and then seek immediate medical attention."  After she read that I thought "Oh, I guess I'd better go to the hospital."  That was about 30 minutes after this all started.

I walked across the street and was driven to the hospital by Gary.  I was so grateful for his help too!  I couldn't believe how bad the pain was at that point though.  I later found out that burns will hurt more as they are exposed to the air.  Found that out a bit late, eh?  I walked into the E.R. and they started getting my info, but I was shaking so badly that the person stopped and asked me "Are you now, or have you been in shock?"  I didn't know what to answer.  He found my records from a previous visit, read the pertinant info to make sure it was me and had me sit down.  Gary came in after parking the car and sat down with me.  It was just a few minutes later that The Big Guy Lowe came running in looking for me.  I just started crying when I saw him.  Somehow I just knew I was going to be okay then.  It's amazing the amount of comfort, reassurance and love I instantly felt seeing him.  He carefully sat down next to me and I tried to show him my arm.  From the look on his face I could tell he thought it looked horrible.  It felt horrible.  Gary left to go home then and shortly we were called back.

For the next few hours we waited for what seemed like forever!  I was given some pain meds, but they didn't seem to touch the pain.  The Big Guy Lowe called a few people, looking for another Priesthood holder to assist him in giving me a blessing.  The Missionaries were reached and after a bit arrived.  I am so grateful for the power of the Priesthood, the authority to act in the name of Jesus Christ.  The missionaries stayed for a while and then headed out and shortly thereafter the doctor and nurses came in to take pictures.  They had been conversing with the Burn Center in Portland and needed to send them some pictures to get direction.  After another length of time, they came back and began wrapping my arm.  They said that my arm would need to be cleaned and all the dead skin would need to be taken off, but they wouldn't try to do that then.  We were given a return date on Sunday morning for the dressing to be changed and an appointment was made for us at Emmanuel Hospital's Burn Center on Monday, then we were released.

What a horrible day.  There were a few horrible days that followed too.  Amid all the yuck, there were so many instances of love and service shared with our little family.  Many meals were made and delivered, treats of all kinds were sent and many messages of love and concern were conveyed.  The Big Guy Lowe was amazing at taking care of everything in our home, me included.  I love him so much.

On Sunday we went back to the hospital for the dressing change.  It was pretty discouraging as they didn't seem to know what to do or how to handle my injury.  At one point, the nurse turned the sink on and asked me to come over and wash it off.  When he realized I wasn't about to just put my injured arm under the running water he decided to wrap it again and let the burn center deal with it the next day.  I was okay with that!  I didn't want anyone messing with my arm that still hurt terribly unless I was convinced they knew what they were doing.  I wasn't convinced!  For posterity's sake, here are some pictures from that visit.

Monday was such a better experience!  It was so wonderful knowing the doctors at Emmanuel's Burn Center knew what they were doing!  They were able to clean my arm, remove lots of the dead skin and then teach The Big Guy Lowe and I how to clean and apply the dressings.  We left there feeling a sense of confidence that we could do what was needed.  It was the first time we felt that way since the accident.  Here are some pictures from that visit.

Today, just two weeks after my accident, my arm looks great!  I'll have to take some pictures for comparisson.  Our divinely inspired bodies are amazing.  I have so much to be grateful for and I will write more at another time.  For now all I will say is I'm grateful...very grateful.

Aloha...Third time's a charm!

Isn't that view breathtaking!  We think so.  Wait though.  I'm way ahead of myself.  I need to go back a few weeks.

This has truly been a wonderful year where trips are concerned.  In May, The Big Guy Lowe and I were able to go to Maui for a week and a half and we had a wonderful time!  In August, we were able to go to Oahu with our family and grandparents and stay for a week in Kailua!  AMAZING!  With both of these trips happily under our belts, you'd think we'd be satisfied.  That makes sense, doesn't it?

Well, truth be told, it just let us know how much we loved being over there.  The amazing water, the beautiful sand, snorkeling and playing on the beach, eating the fresh fruit, the virgin mango-coladas! 

SO GOOD!!!

With these wonderful memories bringing smiles to our faces, we knew we wanted to go back.  When?  We weren't sure, but we knew we wanted to go back.  The extended side of the Lowe family had been talking about heading back over and that sounded like fun.  We had learned from previous experiences that we would want to be in our own accomodations--while still close to everyone, and close to the ocean!  We all started looking at possibilities.  I guess it was during all of that looking that The Big Guy Lowe came across a great deal.  A deal that just couldn't be passed up...if possible.  A resort on Maui, just north of our favorite beach was offering their condos at 50% off during a specific time.  In addition to that, flights were reasonable and rental cars were too.  We talked with Grammy HB to see if she would be able/willing to watch our boys if we were to go away.  She said yes...and that was it!  Reservations were made, plans created and within just a few short weeks we found ourselves once again, sitting at Mama's Fish House on the north coast of Maui enjoying the stunning view and food.  Ahhhhh.  Now we're caught up!

This trip was going to be shorter than the previous trips, but we were excited!  I will say, leaving home for the second week in December is a purely CRAZY time to go on vacation, but it was still fun!  We stayed at the Honua Kai Resort on North Kaanapali Beach in West Maui.  Everything was decorated for Christmas! 

 How fun, and a little odd, was that?

This picture doesn't do the resort justice, but it shows some of the red and green lights for Christmas.  Our room was on the top floor, just to the left of the center tower. 

These are the beautiful grounds during the day.

 

Walking out toward the pools and ocean.  Such a beautiful day! 

Looking back from the beach.

Such a beautiful beach...even though the water isn't as user friendly as it looks!

We had a great trip, even if it did come with a few hiccups!  A few of those being sharp coral on an unfamiliar beach--ouch(!) and a day of torrential rain! 

To make up for the "sharp" beach, we headed back to Kaanapali Beach that we love.  Nothing like enjoying a cabana on a perfect Hawaiian beach!  Sigh....

And that day of rain came at a perfect time.  We had a lot of sun the day before and the chance to explore Kihei was welcomed.  Nice roads, eh? 

 

Rain in Hawaii might sound like a bummer of a day, but it was one of our best! ;)

Another high point of the trip was having dinner with a recently returned missionary and his family that just happened to be vacationing the same time we were.  The Horton family was wonderful!

Unfortunately we didn't bring our camera that night, but this is Elder Horton when he said goodbye before his transfer.

Overall, The Big Guy Lowe and I love spending time together.

 We have been greatly blessed this year and are thankful for all the experiences our little family has had.  We're currently looking into our next trip to the Islands...  :)  Mahalo