The Love Dare, Days 2 and 3

For day two, Jordan and I were supposed to do one unexpected thing as an act of kindness. Jordan had the day off (election day) and started by helping me get to work on time by ironing my pants. I decided to stop by the store and buy him some nori, because he has found he enjoys making sushi, but they didn't have any. I did pick up some roasted red pepper hummus and a couple of other things he liked. When I got home, I was greeted by a spotless living room, sleeping baby and grinning husband. (The living room had previously been a disaster.) Jordan had also done most of the laundry that had been piling up, and actually put it away, which is where the breakdown normally occurs. I really appreciated it. I didn't feel like I had "done" the day two dare yet.

The day three dare was to buy each other something that says "I was thinking of you today." Jordan and I are not big on buying each other expensive gifts; even Christmas and birthdays usually go by with handmade ornaments or just a card. Therefore, I bought Jordan a small box of dark chocolate coffee bean candy, and he bought me some Nutella (my favorite) and a couple of other things at the store. When he came home from work we both said "I couldn't think of what to get you!" and apologized for our gifts' smallness, and then laughed when we saw the evenness of what we'd purchased. We both liked what we got and agreed that more expensive gifts would have been unnecessary.

Then, as I had intended to do the day before, I gave Jordan a back massage as an unexpected act of kindness. I got out the massage oils I'd given him as a gift much longer ago than I remembered. The card was still attached and read something to the effect of "Jordan, it's been a great year and you've been the best boyfriend ever!" That dates it back to, oh, late 2003. We used to give each other back massages all the time before we had Suzi.



Massage oil, by the way, makes an excellent gift. My freshman year in college, my roommate Sara asked me to take a Swedish massage mini-class with her. She didn't want to go by herself and end up massaging a stranger. I don't remember much of what I learned, but it was fun and it gave me the idea of making a massage oil set for Jordan. I bought sweet almond oil (my mom and I had to go to Lucy's Love Shop to find it; almond oil was about the tamest thing in the shop) and separated it into four jars, then added peppermint oil and several others to make it scented. I guess I overestimated how much massaging we would be doing, because we still have a ton left over and, really, it's time to buy new oil. Do I feel a Christmas gift coming on?