Memorial Box Saturday-Ladybug

I can never summarize the importance of the ladybug in one blog! Why am I even trying? Because I was looking at my wedding album last night, and saw a photo of my ankle bracelet with a blue ladybug on it (that was my "something blue"), and was again reminded of the significance of this little insect in my life!

It all started in college, when I first met up with Sarah T. I was a freshman, she a Junior who lived on the same floor in Moyer dorm. She responded to a notice I put up in the bathroom about needing a ride up to Anacortes where my parents lived. She drove me up and we were able to talk thru that entire 90 minute drive. We ended up being roommates the next year. A mutually beneficial experience, we actually started enjoying each other's company. We were so silly, and made up all kinds of "games", one of them was calling each other "bug". I'm not even sure how we started that....something like having "bed bugs" cause we could never settle down to go to sleep. Anyway, Sarah's best friend GinnyRae lived right next door as the Peer Advisor (which is why they were not roommates). That year was one of the most "formative" years. GinnyRae got engaged, she and Sarah graduated college, and I struggled with my major (Biology/pre-med). Looking back, those were such EASY times!! Anyway, that was 1992....over the next 8 years the three of us Sarah, Sarah and GinnyRae lived a LOT OF LIFE together. We became each other's family as we shared a LONG list of life changing experiences. We were the hands and feet of Christ to each other, sharing the laughter and tears as we became a "trio" of friends. Since 1992 we have shared, literally shared: ice cream, marriage, divorce, baby showers, wedding showers, parenting (birthing, adopting), pet "issues", house buying, house selling, death, graduate school, graduations, job changes, boy drama, road trips, vacations, out of state moves, surgery, adverse drug reactions, kidney stones, sinus infections, holidays, birthdays, nap times, murder mystery parties, pampered chef parties, lots of parties, decorating, redecorating, shopping, singing lessons, resolutions, weight loss, weight gain, break ups, make ups, musical performances.....just to name a few!!

Over time, we started buying "ladybug" paraphernalia for each other, a symbol of our friendship. Ladybugs are cute, and actually there is a LOT out there in the ladybug theme. As we all live in different states now, we realized that about once a year we long to re kindle our friendship in the form of a "ladybug trio" reunion. We've managed to make it work the last 8 years, plus or minus. It's become tradition that we each bring a ladybug gift for the others to show our love, and we just like giving and receiving presents!! It has become so synonymous with our friendship, that others who know me, realizing that I have a ladybug theme to my life just by looking at my house decor, want to chip in and continue adding pieces to my repertoire. I will never reject a ladybug, and I have other wonderful wonderful friends. But there really is only ONE ladybug trio. I'm just saying.

My favorite thing that we do: 10 years ago we started a new tradition of buying/making an ornament at Christmas time for each other that "symbolizes" the year, and then making a scrapbook page that explains or memorializes the ornament and/or the year. What a wonderful collection of stories and ornaments we each have so far! That collection is a "memorial box" all on its own. It's been a wonderful way to communicate our thankfulness for each other, as individuals and as a "threefold cord" that "is not easily broken" (Eccliastes 4:12). It's the highlight of my Christmas every year, so much so that I started the same tradition for Tim and I, and then now for Lucy. So that's 4 ornaments/scrapbook pages per year. Whew, we better not have more kids!!

These wonderful Christian women have been a friendly, physical, funny, smart, encouraging, challenging representation of God's faithfulness and love. I know that not everyone has a best friend, let alone two, and I am soooo thankful for the abundance God has given to me. And so a little "bobble head ladybug" goes in the memorial box. Long live the ladybug trio!! Thanks be to God.