I was second shooting at a wedding last Saturday when a call came that I dreaded—it was from my husband. “We need to go to the Emergency Room,” he said. Everything in me sunk… Tears were only a breath away and I was trying hard to hold them back as I had to explain to the primary photographer that I needed to leave… only 30 minutes into the shoot.

I felt bad to leave her—she hired me to help her, but I could not stay. As I drove to the house I fought crazy thoughts and fear bombarding my mind. But with every breath and every tear that slipped out of my eyes I grunted my teeth and whispered: “Lord, please, please, Lord, don’t let it happen again! In you I trust…”

The memories of the past flooded my mind and I felt like everything around me was swimming, spinning out of control. In 2002, just 6 months into our courtship, Demetrye ended up in a hospital. MRI revealed a cyst on his brain and it had to be operated on immediately to save his life. One day too long and he could have been either dead or paralyzed, at best.

1 major brain surgery and 2 other procedures followed, ensuing 1.5 months of arduous stay at the hospital. I was there as long as I could be—every day. I slept 4-5 hours a night, went to work, took care of my and his finances, and spent every waking moment with him at the hospital. It seemed that the only time he could relax and rest was when I was there.

The doctors thought me crazy when I insisted that God would heal Demetrye so he would not have to have a shunt installed into his body. I told them that we appreciated what they did for us, but now we had to wait on God to do His part.

2 infections of the spinal fluid and 2+ years of recovery later, shunt free, he was back to normal. The sleepless nights, the times I had to inject antibiotics into his veins 3 times a day and try to hold my panic back when his IV got clogged were over. We could finally live like normal people.

We worked hard to pay off the medical bills and to ensure that Demetrye’s recovery times were known only to us.

We had lived through him not being able to remember what he was saying right in the middle of saying it, getting lost en route to his job and forgetting what he wanted to do before he had a chance to do it. I had to be his saving grace—one glance from him and I knew I needed to take over the conversation and to gently bring him back into it, as if nothing happened. I had survived through the ignorance and disapproving glances of those who thought I was a bossy wife because I finished his sentences for him and suggested his next thought. I have seen and felt it all.

I had lived through feeling the desperation of a man who could not as much as add two numbers together after the surgery. I had to remind him that it was temporary and prayed that it was so. I knew that I was going to love and marry him regardless. He was my soul mate and without him there could be no future.

Years later all was just a distant painful memory. The experience brought us close together, but it was one I did not like to relive often.

A few weeks ago Demetrye bumped his head on a cupboard. A day later a swelling showed up… right on the spot where the brain surgery was done. We were slightly concerned, but it was just a bruise—a bump that would go away. So, we prayed and waited. It went away in a couple of weeks and all was well.

But our life got a bit more eventful… A few weeks ago the bump reappeared and instead of getting smaller it got bigger and painful. We scheduled an appointment to see a doctor this week, but last Saturday the pain was too much to handle. Demetrye left work early and called me up. I knew it was serious.

“Lord, please, please, Lord, not again! Not now! Not ever!” I prayed through my tears as I drove home to pick my love up. “We have too much to do. We have a life to live. Please, dear God! Let it be nothing!”

We drove to Vancouver’s hospital barely exchanging a few words, praying and thinking the same thoughts; holding hands.

Thankfully the wait at the hospital was not long—we held hands and searched each other’s eyes for reassurance while waiting. “Everything will be OK, love,” we would whisper every now and then.

Thank God, everything turned out OK! Turned out that when Demetrye bumped his head he got a mild infection in the skin, and it decided to visit him twice. “Cellulitis” is the problem, the doctor told us. A week of antibiotics should take care of it.

What a relief! Forever thankful for the news we heard [yes, a mild infection compared to a life threatening alternative is OK any time of the day in our family], we chatted on the way home and I even made it back in time to help out for the remainder of the wedding shoot.

Life has gotten better in a matter of a second. But the situation made me appreciate it and every moment we are gifted even so much more. There is not one that we can waste—I treasure each one deeply. Every moment I look into Demetrye’s eyes I know I see a miracle. Every time I hear him breath and feel his touch I file those moments in the memory bank of my heart.

Not ONE moment to waste!

So, yesterday, when I heard giggles in our kitchen I was ready to embrace more beautiful moments.  My niece and nephew came over—their little aprons in hand—ready to bake cookies… if they could find someone willing to do so.  Uncle Demetrye, of course!  The man has his own recipe and they love him to shreds.

He simply could not resist them—he donned his Home Depot apron on and off they were to bake chocolate chip cookies.  I grabbed my point and shoot to eternalize those precious moments.

{Looks like my point and shoot’s flass reflected off cabinets in a weird way and created spots… }

{What’s a baker without some flour on him?}

And here is the final product:

Looks good, doesn’t it?!  We got to eat it while, after talking uncle Demetrye into more mischief, we played the Mexican Train.  [I had to switch to my “pro” camera to capture exactly what I was seeing in my head.]

{the sense of victory… even if it is short lived }

 

{Time for Silly Faces!}

 

 

 

{It took a LONG time to catch my nephew’s Silly Face–he was camera shy }

{Back to the Game}

{the most amazing sibling interaction… I heard him say to her: “woman, please!” ha-ha-ha…}

{Keeping the score–losers had to wash dishes… the boys did a great job doing it }

{sibling love}

 

 {staring contest… she simply could not keep a straight face on}

 {R* did better}

 {…so S* had to try again… }

 {after the game and the movie S* finished off her afternoon with her favorite aunt–my gorgeous sister Marina}

 {they are inseparable!}

 So, you see, every moment is a gift.  Waste None!  Appreciate what you have and who you have in your life to share those moments with.Our families and friends are the reason we have such moments altogether.  Why else would God so graciously give them to us?  To mess our perfect plans, of course; to show up when we least expect them and while doing that create the most unforgettable moments.

Now, go capture yours!  And treasure them too.

Each year, when this time of the year comes around, I am especially reminded of all the reasons I am grateful to live in the United States of America.  Freedom abounds here still; opportunities are overflowing and are waiting to be taken. From all the places I have been to I still love USA the most.

My big plans to celebrate?  I will actually be working HARD!  Each year our church, Kelso Church of Truth, runs a food booth at the local lake [that’s where the city fires off all the cool fireworks].  We raise funds for various projects each year, and this year is no different.  We will be making and selling delicious Russian Foods in Longview, WA, AND this year we will also be offering Vegan/Vegetarian options, including my favorite—green/fruit smoothies.  So, yours truly [me], will actually be in charge of the vegan/vegetarian food most of the time.  I have to make sure that all of the conscious folk in Longview/Kelso WA area get served and eat well while celebrating our nation’s independence and spending time with their families.

Here are some fun shots from previous years’ celebrations.

So, if you are in Longview, WA and need a good bite to eat—come see me at the Russian Food booth, at the lake Sacajawea, by the statue of a boy with a dog. 

Happy early Independence Day!

PS: We will be there Friday-Sunday this week!

In the last week all 4 graduated from high school and are standing poised to face their future.

I actually got to photograph 3 out of 4 senior sessions for these cuties. Check them out.

Zarina, Kelso High School Senior [more images here and here] 

Alex, Vancouver Senior [more images here]

Irina, R A Long Senior [more images here and here]

Two days ago I got to see Zarina turn over her tassle. What a proud moment for all of us… for all of them!

Demetrye and I loved the sunshine in AZ, although, to be honest, were completely shocked by all the brown we were seeing when we got into our rental car and headed to the resort.  The first day I thought AZ was plain ugly.  By days 2 and 3, though, something must have changed in my brain, because I started seeing beauty in the plain dirt mountains! [not like the ones in WA state, for sure] 

I looked up a lovely vegan restaurant where we had our first AZ meal: Lovin’ Spponfuls. If you are in Tucson, you should really try their food, especially the mushroom soup! Delicious!

Day 1 was reserved for rest and relaxation [we had to get up at 4 am that morning to catch our plane].  One the second day we went site seeing.  Jewish Historic Museum was our first stop.  The museum is dedicated to the memory of The Bergen Belsen holocaust survivors. 

Then we headed to my favorite site of the whole trip–St. Xavier Mission.  The building and the surrounding areas were simply breathtaking!

The inside of the building was masterfully restored to its old glory by numerous artists.

I have to explain the next couple of images.  The entire trip my husband had an unhealthy fascination with cacti.  He had the need to touch and poke as many of them as possible.  He ended up being poked by one of them [I think they finally had enough of his abuse ].  During one of our morning walks he broke a needle off one of them and tried to hand it to me… the wrong way!  I got PIERCED with it…

We also visited the old town of Tombstone, AZ, known for the gunfight headed by Wyatt Erp and his brother.

Just imagine our disappointment when we flew back to Washington to a non-stop rain… Makes me sad just thinking about it…  Now we are counting days to sunshine.

Meanwhile, if you are a recent client and have to get your images by a certain date–Be Careful to Read the Following!

I will be out of town May 12-18th. If you have to have your images before these days, you HAVE TO PLACE YOUR ORDER no later than this Thursday, May 6th, 6 pm! I will then try to have them in town by Monday, May 11th!  Any orders place after May 6th will not be processed until after May 18th!

Enjoy your day!  I will be thinking happy and warm thoughts in the days to come

]]> http://www.elenaphotographers.com/blog/2010/05/03/vacation-notice-elena-photographers-longview-wa/feed/ 3 http://www.elenaphotographers.com/blog/2010/04/16/anniversary-longview-wa-photographer/ http://www.elenaphotographers.com/blog/2010/04/16/anniversary-longview-wa-photographer/#comments Fri, 16 Apr 2010 14:30:07 +0000 Elena http://www.elenaphotographers.com/blog/?p=1456 I finally had a few minutes to download my favorite images of our 7 Year Anniversary from my trusted Canon PowerShot [I love having this little camera with me at all times!  I will never lose another precious moment!].

We started off uneventfully by driving to Vancouver, WA.   However, a trip for us is NEVER uneventful!  You have to hang around my hubby long enough to understand what I am saying… just look at him.

Then I got bored staring at the road and… became a little self-absorbed

We stopped by Panera Bread for a bite to eat [does not sound romantic?! you are wrong!!!   you should have seen Demetrye patiently waiting on me while I had an on-line meeting with my Nutrition Forum].

Then we stopped by a book store–we are admittedly book worms and we love it!  We love to spend our time together reading and talking about what we read.  Got to love a smart man!!!

Then we headed over to watch Letters to God movie.  It was a good thing that we took this picture beforehand.  There was hardly a dry eye in the theater by the time we got out.  The movie is worth every penny.  You should really go see it.

Afterward we grabbed a snack and stopped to visit one of our favorite couples of all times–my niece and nephew and their little kiddos.   We had a great time and then we were off and finished our day driving home, holding hands, smiling and loving each other.

The day after Demetrye gave me a card that brought tears to my eyes–he is amazing at picking cards like that.  I will have to take a picture of it and post it here soon.

7 years?  I can hardly believe that we had been a man and wife this long.  Time flew by and I cannot wait to see what the future holds for us.  We have been through so much together and our love for each other has only grown stronger.

I love you, babe!

Love you, babe!  You are the love of my life!

Why was I excited to see him?  Well, shortly before Slava got married to his young and beautiful wife Yelena last June he joined the National Guard and had to leave a couple of short weeks after their wedding for his training.  I have not seen him since.  So, yeah! I was excited to see him come back. 

A quick snapshot was in order [of course]. I pulled out my tiny Point and Shoot PowerShot 780IS and got this wonderful image that I know Mom will appreciate for a long time.  Slava and her have a very special bond, as do a lot of her other grankids, including our handsome Paul [on the left].

After I managed to get them huddle up and smile for me I was off to finish making my fabulous vegan pizza and then we had a great time catching up on all things new [and not so new] in our lives.

Welcome back, Slava!  Can’t wait until you bring your bride to WA from MN   And thank you for your willingness to serve our country! [BTW, all service wo/men have a special place in my heart.  If you are one of them and are looking for a photographer, contact me for a special offer for you only .]