My love-hate relationship with Wal-Mart today proved to be all sorts of LOVE. I was doing a little grocery shopping and came across what I thought had to be a mistake. Indeed, it was not. And indeed, my heart leapt. What did I find? Strawberries. At $.88 a pound.  I thought there had to be something wrong for them to be so discounted. Nothing. Not a flaw. I brought home SIX POUNDS of red, juicy, sweet, beautiful strawberries.  

 

Even though I spent the next 45 minutes at the sink, it was well worth the labor     

 to reap these benefits.

           

And I wasn't the only one loving it. 

    

(now I am wondering if 6 pounds was enough)

Fun at Aunt Bekah's

Forever and Always

Today marks an anniversary that is hard for me to imagine. I lost my dad ten years ago today. I don't want to write a sad post that will bring people down, but I don't want the day to go by without acknowledging what it means. Being without him has been my life since I was 19, but it seems impossible that he has missed so much in those 10 years. Thankfully I had him for my high school graduation and the beginning of college. But I didn't have him when I finished college, got engaged (he met Donnie once), got married, got my first real job, finished graduate school, got pregnant, found out we were having twins, had the boys (two grandsons!), celebrated their 1st birthday... and those are just the highlights. And MY highlights. My sisters have all had him missing at the same sort of life experiences.  And then there's the little things, like not being able to tell him about the great vacation we just had. 

So today, I guess I am just feeling the hole that is always in my heart. I miss him.  I still ache inside at times. But mostly, I just remember how much he loved me. And I love him, too. 

Forever and always. 

And We're Back

So we're back from vacation. We had a fantastic time, saw lots of great sights, ate some good food, had fun with family I rarely to get to see, drank lots of yummy wine, and just enjoyed having little responsibility for a week.  The boys had a great week at Aunt Bekah and Uncle Eric's. Or so we hear. Today was a little rough adjusting back to our routine, plus they've got a bit of a cold.  But overall, the week was a success. I will add lots of pictures and some fun stories for anyone that wants to check back another time. 

One Year Ago

Leaving on a Jet Plane

It is very strange to be packing for a vacation to California and including jackets and long sleeves. Meanwhile, I'm filling Reagan and Kiefer's suitcase with t-shirts and other short sleeves because they are staying here in the 80 degree weather. I mean, we knew it would be chilly in Northern CA, but we didn't know it would be summer-like here.  Oh well.  

I think some of you took me seriously earlier and began praying for our trip. Some nerves about the traveling have gone away and I'm really just excited to go now.  Thanks. Keep it up. ;) 

I think the boys are understanding a little bit of me saying, "Mommy and Daddy are going bye-bye for a whole week" because they've been extra cuddly today.  And just a little secret: I think this will be just as hard on Donnie as it will be me. He has definitely been asking for more hugs and lovins from the boys today.  

I don't know if I will take the time to post anything while we're gone.  So, have a great week!! 

A Couple Recent Photos

Probably their favorite thing to do:

Looks like Reagan has the "home phone and cell phone" thing down. Donnie describes this photo as "buy! sell! buy! sell!" :

This was one of the days that Kiefer wasn't feeling well. I still managed to get a smile out of him as he was lounging on his Elmo couch:

A Couple Things

that I am thankful for today:

1) catching up with good friends

2) friends that will hold your so-sleepy-he-doesn't-know-what-to-do-with-himself toddler so you can eat your lunch (thanks Mindy!!) 

3) a husband that is home by 5:30 even when he's "working late" 

4) Praise Baby videos 

5) finding a cute pair of shoes that actually come in a 6.5 Wide

6) Fresca

7) neighbor kids who lose interest in their drum sets

Hot Air

We are getting ready for our week long San Francisco/Napa vacation starting this Sunday. We are leaving Reagan and Kiefer with Aunt Bekah. And I'm getting nervous. Not for the boys because I know they will be fine. They will love (almost) every minute of being with Bekah and Eric and the girls. They will love the extra attention. I know they'll miss us, but its only a week. We'll pack our pictures in their bag so they can remember us. (Oh man, hopefully they don't start confusing me and Bekah like everyone else and start thinking she's their mom!!) And I'm not really nervous because I'll miss them. I mean, I know I will. I might shed a tear or two or three when we leave them. And I'm sure I'll say "I miss my babies" every night when I know Bekah's reading them a bedtime story and squeezing them good-night. (side note: to counter these sad moments, I will relish sleeping in until 8:00 if I so chose, navigating shops without a double stroller and 4 grabbing hands, and enjoying meals without chicken nuggets and sippy cups flying past my head)

I'm nervous for a completely different reason. I'm beginning to have what I will admit are irrational fears. I am fearing things I would have never feared 3 years ago. Planes crashing, earthquakes swallowing cities, hot air balloons exploding. (yes, in my mind I've tried to recall that ONE story I heard about a fatal balloon ride so I can fear that once-in-a-lifetime experience too).

So I guess I'm admitting these things so you can

1) tell me I'm crazy

2) tell me I'll be safe

3) pray that I will indeed be safe

Thanks.

Babies No More

What's that people say about how they "grow up so fast?"  I don't see it.   

No Matter What

So this isn't quite the post that I imagined would be one of the first. But I have a heavy heart tonight so I guess I want to get some thoughts out.  Stacey and I just went and saw the movie "Definitely, Maybe."  For sure a really cute movie. And not just because of Ryan Reynolds. Well, mostly because of him, but other reasons too. (Don't worry, I've admitted my crush to Donnie and he's okay with it)  He's a dad in the middle of a divorce and is telling his young daughter about how he and her mother met.  You follow the love story and you want everyone to live happily ever after. But you wonder, is it possible? She wants her parents to be in love but wants her parents to be happy and so if they aren't happy in love, then what do you do?  And why is she even having to think about these things?  She's a kid. 

Only I could take a chick flick and turn it into an outlet to pour all of my feelings. 

I hear people say "everything happens for a reason" and I sort of feel like its used as a cop out sometimes. Or a way to explain away something that's otherwise too difficult to explain.  My parents divorced when I was young. If it hadn't have happened, neither would the whole chain of life events that led me to where I am. With Donnie and Reagan and Kiefer. But that doesn't mean it was okay for them to divorce or make it right what happened or that it all "happened for a reason."  The reason was, they didn't think what they had was worth it, I guess? Okay, I digress. 

Our church held a marriage event last week and the speaker had us start by listing marriages of real life people that we know who have a good marriage. A relationship to admire and learn from.  Needless to say, our list was short. (Even counting 2nd and 3rd marriages) And so was everyone else's. Why is that? Why is it so difficult for people to make a commitment and stay with that commitment? And why is it that the children are the ones to pay for it?

The description of this blog is "forever and always no matter what." That's a tall order to live up to. But that's a commitment that Donnie and I have made. To each other and to our children. No matter what. And that doesn't mean that we are better than anyone else or judging anyone else. I guess its just a priority that we insist on keeping first. I hope that when Reagan and Kiefer are adults they can look back and see that we worked hard to make our family work. That we put God first and relied on Him to help us through the hard times.  That we worked together as a family. As a Team.

I promise some more light-hearted thoughts to come soon. 

And probably some pictures of the cutest boys in the world.  Speaking of them, I'm going to go smile on their peaceful, sleeping faces and try to get some shut-eye myself. 

Opening Pitch

Hi friends and family!!  Welcome to Team Duntley's home base!  I'm new to the blog thing, but I've been thinking about trying it for awhile. I spend lots of time reading my friends' (and strangers') blogs and getting insight into their daily lives. I also spend a lot of time "blogging in my head," thinking about how I would share the daily goings-on with anyone that would be interested. SO, if you are interested, please visit me often. I promise to talk about my boys. I promise to share funny and meaningful stories. I promise to share what kinds of things God's doing in my life and those lives around me. And I promise lots of pictures.  

Yea!