Today has been a great Mother's Day so far. My husband and daughter let me sleep in 'til 9:30. When I woke up, they gifted me with fabulous smell goods and cards. Vic made brunch for us while Sarai and I cuddled in bed. After brunch, Sarai went down the street to my cousin's house to play while Vic and I watched a Law and Order marathon (and did other things, but that part's none of your business). I wanted to take a long, hot bubble bath and Vic let me know that he'd bought some soap and put it in the linen closet. While my water was running, I went into the closet and found a multi-pack of Ivory soap. At first, I was irked, slightly. I like scented soaps, ones with pretty colors and nice scents. I tend toward the soaps at Trader Joe's - highly textured, great colors, heavy scents of rose, lavendar and lemon. But Ivory was all there was, so I grabbed a bar and hopped into the tub full of froths of ginger apricot bubbles. I luxuriated in the suds for a while, then grabbed the bar of Ivory. I winced a bit at the sharp scent, but forged ahead. I dipped the bar into the water and lathered up the washcloth, rubbing the subsequent lather onto my skin. I noticed that the lather was way thicker and floofier than I remembered from my childhood - when I was a kid, Ivory soap was the only kind that my grandparents used and I got bathed in those white bubbles every day. Then, I realized, that as biting as the scent is when the soap is fresh out of the package, it changes when bathe with it. It became a much softer thing when it hit my skin - I was left feeling innocent, rejuvenated and clean! It was definitely a pure, fresh feeling.
I don't think I've given up my scented soaps completely, but whenever I need a reminder of childhood or even just to feel that I've adequately washed away all the dirt of the day without the complications of flowers and fruit-filled foam, I'll turn back to good ole Ivory. It's gotta be 99.44!
