I needed that...

I tagged-a-long with Dustin. I needed to get out. (Even though I had spent the afternoon with friends) I still felt like I needed an escape.
Dustin helped a neighbor unload some groceries into his home (even though I just sat in the car) and then he was headed to measure something at another friends home.
The reason I bummed the ride in the first place.
I'd never miss an opportunity to visit.
I needed some fresh perspective, some laughter, some good advice. I lucked out and received all three... and then some.
I'm grateful for good friends who bless my life and somehow are inspired to tell me the things I need to hear just when I need to hear them.

I'm so grateful to be surrounded by selfless and thoughtful people which reminded me that I hadn't yet shared this story:

A few weeks ago Dustin was laid off at work. One week before his birthday. We had family coming into town that afternoon and we decided to put our sadness and grief away for the weekend and enjoy our company. It also happened to be Easter weekend and we were too busy to be sad and dwell on it. We had an amazing weekend and first thing Monday morning Dustin called the people he thought could help him that he hadn't already called on his way home from his last day at work.
We talked with our children and told them we'd have to make sacrifices. Madison was willing to miss out on her trip to Disneyland with her Junior Honor Society. The balance of money was due. She'd worked hard and deserved this trip. I wanted her to go so I pulled some money out that we still had and sent her to school to pay the rest of the money she owed. I got a phone call in the middle of the day. It was Madison frantic with excitement. "MOM, you're never going to believe this but someone paid for the rest of my Disneyland trip!" She was right... I couldn't believe it! She was so thrilled! I was amazed. When she got home she wrote a thank you card and brought it to school but I wanted to write my own:
Dear Friend,
We, sincerely, would like to thank you for your unbelievably selfless gift. We're so touched by your generosity. We appreciate your example of giving service and being an instrument in the Lord's hands. Our children will remember this forever and are looking for ways to do something just as special for someone else. We have a deeper understanding of what it means to bear each other's burdens. What we're most grateful for is to know that our family is loved and cared for. We know you wouldn't have done this if Madison weren't important to you. It is a wonderful feeling to know that there are people willing to sacrifice for our family when we know all of us are feeling the effects of these troubling times. It means so much to us and Madison and we're truly grateful. Thank you so much.
With love,
Leah Darrington and family

Field Day

Friday was field day at school for Karley and Paige. It was a beautiful day. The weather was perfect, a little breezy at times but, the whole day was wonderful. Dustin came to help with the games and I was able to wander and take pictures of all the fun.

Karley with her class getting ready to start.

Paige with her class.

Bouncing buckaroos or bucking broncos..I can't remember the names but every game had a clever name.

Paige running hurdles...

...and stacking cups in the obstacle course.

Star wars

The girls made this out of hoola-hoops and then had to run back and throw their ball at it until it fell down.

Jump the river.

Karley's got hops.

Jumping rope during the obstacle course.

Paige dribbling down the court and I love hows she's smiling in her pictures.

Potato sack race. Getting soaked at leaky cups.

Karley at leaky cups.

Taking a break at the Popsicle stand.

Paige hopping around.

Dripping wet and having just had the best field day, Karley marches back to class with her gang.

Dearest Darwin, you flatter me.

In case you were wondering... here is just a little sketch, a caricature... of me.
I knew you could already tell.
Looks just like me.
Dustin says, "If anything your hair to face ratio is just a little off."
Here's Dustin.
Much better, right?
You probably thought it was a photo of him.
It's not, just a caricature.
Dustin said, "Well, it's kinda hard to draw a shaved head with a sharpie."

That's my man.

Happy Birthday

Dustin turned 30 today!

In honor, I'm sharing 30 pictures and random things you may not know about him.

And check out this awesome post that Dustin's sister, Kourtney, did for his birthday! You'll enjoy those pictures, also!!!

Dustin loves the beach. His absolute favorite place to be. We try to camp every year at the beach and the years we've had to miss have been sad ones. If Dustin could only take one week off in the summer to go somewhere with his family it would be the beach... everytime.

He does fun things with the kids. We camped at Kolob Reservoir one year and he braved the muddy, murky, cold water to take the girls out in the water because they wanted to and he knew they'd love it.

He was so excited to give Scott his first haircut. He HATES when baby boys have stringy, shaggy hair and we all know that he's a huge fan of the shaved head look. Scott looked so much older when Dustin cut his hair. And since then Scott has had many fun haircuts and even a Mohawk a couple of times..and so has Dustin.

Dustin is He-man. He can leap buildings in a single bound and stop a train in it's tracks and rescue an old lady from a burning building...well, maybe not all those things but he is the strongest man I know and can work circles around people.

Here we're celebrating Karley's birthday but Dustin loves birthdays...especially his! He's such a party person and loves the social part of it ..and the gifts ...big, expensive gifts.

Dustin loves to work on his beloved 1963 Volkswagen bug. He loves cruising it around town.

Dustin has the best smile. When he smiles, I smile...and everyone smiles. It's hard to not smile when you're with Dustin.

Water polo, Dustin's passion and life long love. He wants so badly to go to Nationals this year. I think his dream should come true... what d'ya think?

Dustin might not love this but Dustin is dutiful and tries to always do what is asked. I took this picture of him when he was on his way out the door to some Scout thing( hard to keep track.)

Dustin loves me.

He shows me every day.

Dustin can fix anything. Ask our kids... they think he's magical. If something is broken and I'm too impatient and give up they bring it to Dustin and he can ALWAYS fix it. He IS magical.

He loves adventuring. Here we are out at the lake .

Dustin's always fun to be around. He loves clowning around.

Dustin loves his kids. He loves ALL babies. He has such a tender heart.

He loves to surf. He looks forward to any opportunity to catch some waves.

Dustin is a wonderful father to his daughters. The girls know he's always there for them.

Dustin "tolerates" Disneyland. He doesn't love to go but he enjoys seeing the kids have such a great time. He says it's because he grew up in Anaheim and he's burned out on D-Land but I think it's because he's afraid of Goofy!

Dustin loves goofing around. He also loves watching the UFC fights and he also "tolerates" my love for GSP (Georges St. Pierre) SO HOTT! But not as hott as Dustin!!

More adventuring, this time at Mt. Charleston in the snow.

I don't even need to say how much he loves PEPSI! He's got it running through his veins.

Loves jelly bellies except all the maroons, browns, blacks and dark purples, and all of the coffee flavored ones.Loves camping and wearing his big wooly coveralls... and go ahead make fun of it... but I can guarantee he's warmer than you!

Hates mowing the lawn but does it anyway because he knows I love freshly cut grass.

He loves sleep. Loves sleep. Craves sleep. Needs more sleep.

Dustin and his sibs on Scott's blessing day.

Four generations when Scott was only two weeks old.

Extremely athletic and I've never seen anything he isn't good at except kayaking but he even got the hang of that very quickly.

He said he loved me first. I was resistant and guarded but I knew he loved me and I knew I loved him. After our first date I knew we'd be together forever.

Happy Birthday, Dusty boy! (his nickname Karley gave him when she was four)