A Wedding Anniversary to Remember

Saturday, February, 18, 2012.
Victoria and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary. The day began about as normal as possible. Victoria's Mom arrived in the morning to take care of Brodie for the remainder of the day and night. I had an eventful itinerary planned. Beginning with lunch and horseback riding in North Scottsdale, accommodations at the swanky Hotel Indigo located in Old Town Scottsdale and an evening of dining at the quaint Petite Maison French Restaurant.
We enjoyed our lunch and horseback riding and after checking into the hotel we spent about an hour lounging on the outdoor patio, taking in the beautiful Arizona sunset, and having our fill of one of our favorite activities, people watching. With about an hour to go we decided it would be wise to retreat to our room to get ready for dinner.
As you may recall from my last post Victoria's hair has been falling out. Understandably, Victoria wanted to wash and do her hair for our dinner. I heard a phrase coming from the bathroom that has become very familiar, since she started to lose her hair, "Oh My Gosh!...Jeff, look at this!". I went into the bathroom and Victoria had handfuls of hair that had come out. I tried to blow it off and tell her that it would be okay, but I think we both realized that this was more than ever. I also noticed, some bald spots on the side of her hair that I had never noticed before.
Victoria began to blow dry and comb her hair, but with each stroke of the brush more hair came out. It was unmanageable and could not be styled. I tried to comfort Victoria as she began to cry. Hair was everywhere, and the only remaining hair was at the very top of her head and in the back. The sides of her head were completely bald. We had such a wonderful day together and I couldn't believe this was how it was going to end. Victoria asked for me to leave her alone for a minute, so I respected her wishes. By the time I came out of the bathroom Victoria had a scarf wrapped around her, which she had brought as a backup, just in case.
She looked so sad, and I could tell that our night was going to be ruined by this. Victoria was playing with the scarf and I could sense that it just wasn't working out for her. Normally we are very positive, and Victoria can put a smile on her face when she needs to, but I wasn't going to let her be sad, and have to face public after having such an emotional event happen. I whipped open my IPad, went straight to Google, and looked up wig stores in Scottsdale. I called the first wig store in the search results, which was conveniently located about two minutes from the hotel.
The lady on the phone was very kind, but said that she was sorry and they were closed. I explained that we just needed to come in and get a wig real quick. I was just looking for a quick fix to the problem we were facing. I conveyed to her that my wife had just lost a bunch of hair, due to chemotherapy. The lady on the other end of the phone explained that we would need some time to make a decision and it wasn't a quick process. I think she sensed the desperation in my voice and asked me if we were going out that evening. I said yes, and it was also our anniversary. She told me to come right away. I couldn't believe it, this shop had been closed for an hour and a half! Victoria and I rushed out of the hotel and hopped in the car.
Parking was a disaster as the store is located in a very busy area of Scottsdale. I dropped Victoria off in front of the shop, so I could find parking. I finally found a place to park, and made my way into the wig store. The owner and her assistant had Victoria in the back and told me that I wasn't allowed to look. The restaurant was holding our table, so I kept nervously looking at my watch. After a few long minutes, the owner called me back. Victoria had a huge smile on her face, she looked fantastic, had regained her confidence, and was ready to go out in public.
Victoria liked the wig and I didn't care what the price was, she was happy and we were going to have our Anniversary dinner. This Wig Angel graciously reopened her shop, shaved Victoria's head, fit her with a great wig, and made sure Victoria was happy. The owner was so caring, kind and her willingness to help us in a time of desperation was unforgettable.
Victoria and I went to our dinner and had a fantastic time. I was so happy to see her sitting across from me thoroughly enjoying herself. At one point I was overcome with emotion. I was so upset earlier to have to see her crying on our anniversary, to see her unhappy and losing her hair. She told me that the hardest part for her was the fact that people told her she would start to lose the hair about 14 days after the first chemo treatment. What they didn't tell her was that be the third week it would be gone. She thought that it would start to fall out after the first treatment but wouldn't start to see bald spots until maybe a few months later. So, it was a bit of a shock to her. But, with a little luck finding the wig store and seeing her happy at dinner was incredibly overwhelming. The rest of our evening couldn't have gone any better and will be a wedding anniversary to remember.
Thank God for the good willed people in this world and specifically for those people that he seems to position in the right place at the right time.