Dear Sarah 13 years ago...

Dear 22 year old Sarah,

It's the night before your wedding and I know you're too excited to sleep and well....you should be!  I'm just writing to tell you that after 13 years of marriage and 4...yep, got that right 4 beautiful (amazing, and perfect) children, you made the best decision EVER!  Your dad's right, you married up.  You're going to go through some amazing experiences as well as some trials and hard times, but Darin is a rock and the Lord will guide you.  You should be sooo excited - life just gets better and better.  Great job girl - you sure know how to pick 'em!

Love,

35 year old Sarah

You gotta love these oldies, huh?!  This is Darin and me with his parents...just gazing into the future. ;-)

  

We don't have many pics from the temple..July wedding + Dallas during a terrible heat wave = few pics.  Sad that this is one of the better ones.  Oh well, the day was perfect in every other way!



Family pic in Monterrey...Roman's doing his own thing ;-)

Summer Daze...

Highlights of the summer:

Yard work...believe it or not we had the best time as a family just pulling weeds and listening to music. The landscaping was in BAD shape from all the rain and no attention...but that was taken care of in a mere 3 hour weeding session on Friday followed by 7 hours on Saturday! Whew!

(yes, we always smile while pulling weeds...here I was saying, "Weeding's my favorite!" Ha

Darin agrees...just before this photo he said, "Do you think the neighbors would mind if we pull their weeds too?" lol

The "after" makes it all worth it!

We were greeted by some friends around dusk Friday night....Fireflies which are just so magical! The kids caught, released, caught, released, and so forth until we dragged them into the house. I'm falling more and more in love with this house and this land.




Boys of Summer...Baseball time!

If you know Darin, then you know he LOVES baseball. His mom has a picture of him sleeping with his bat as a little boy. You can imagine how thrilled Darin is that his little junior LOVES baseball too. We signed Roman up for t-ball several weeks ago and it finally started this week. Boy have we gotten some leverage out of it during this waiting period..."Roman, if you eat this it will make a you a good baseball player!"..."Roman, baseball players ALWAYS take naps."..."Roman, you have to eat barbecue...Baseball players LOVE it!" haha It's really all Roman wants to talk about...and he's especially thrilled that his coach is

.....dun.du.du.dummmmmm (drum roll) Darin!!!!! Darin is going to be the best little-league coach ever. Their first practice was a huge success...well, no the kids never got the concept of running the bases BUT they all had fun. I'm bummed that I didn't get a better picture of the coach with his boy..but I will next week for sure!

This video is short but cute - I didn't realize some kid smacked Roman in the head right before he started to run. Haha..ooops, not funny.




We also had a wonderful Sunday visit with some of our besties from Columbus. I only managed one picture of the kids because I was having such a great time chatting with their mommies. Can't wait to reconnect with more of our Columbus friends!



And so the enchanted days of summer begin....

After much debate...

This cute little boy...

became this handsome young man...

I can't get over how grown-up he looks. I'd say he aged 2 years in a matter of minutes. We're loving the change, even though I teared up as soon as the clippers hit his head. No, not his first hair cut but yes, his first big-boy cut.

Without any debate this beautiful little girl...

decided to donate her hair to 'Locks of Love' and she still looks like a beautiful little girl. Maybe a tad older and more stylish too!

Amazing what a new haircut can do!


PS - in case you're wondering, Allie wants her hair to her knees and Scarlett says she's growing hers out too. ;-)

I {Heart} Swamp People.

What's that you say? You've never heard of Swamp People?! Well, you're missing out. Maybe it's just because I'm from Cajun country and I feel like I know all these people, maybe it's because of my Cajun ancestry and my love of all things Gumbo...but I LOVE this show. It cracks me up. By far Troy Landry is my favorite, his Cajun accent is so thick that he needs captioning...adorable I'd say. Enjoy this little clip and let me know if you want to head down to the bayou with me to visit my family.

You might be scratchin' your head thinking, "Isn't she from Texas?" Why don't you google map Vidor, Texas? It's the second-to-the-last town before you get to Louisiana. Darin always tells people I'm from where they filmed "Water Boy" with Adam Sandler. He also loves to tell the story of taking a boat to bring turkeys to people for Thanksgiving who lived on the river in houses built on stilts when we visited one year. I love to tell about our neighbors who found an alligator in their backyard pond and kept swimming in the pond anyway, the time some kids found a small alligator in the "ditch" in front of the church, the time we went crabbing as a family and my cousin caught a huge alligator on his line...we left immediately (that alligator was eyeing all of us kids.) No, we're no Troy Landry's in my family but the culture of sitting on the porch eating crawdads (crawfish) makes up some of my favorite memories.

PS...sorry my family has a Southern accent, not Cajun. I lost my accent when I had to take voice and diction classes for my Theater/Film major in college. My dad says I talk like a "Yankee" now. :-(

PPS...I must apologize to my Mother for revealing that we have Cajun heritage - it's on my Dad's side, not hers. ;-)

PPPS...(last one) I dedicate this to my brother-in-law Johnny who loves life on the lake and taking his kids to spot 'gators at night. He even took my kids one night!

A New View...

It's no secret that we were sad to leave El Dorado Hills. I have such beautiful memories from living there. One of the things I loved the most was the beauty of the land, the views. Wow, everyday I said a silent prayer as I drove, walked, or ran - thanking the Lord for the beauty of the land. I thanked Him for the views. After we found out that we were moving I had to stop my trail runs because I couldn't stop crying every time I saw these views...I wondered how I would live without them. Beauty is inspiring...and this place was the most beautiful to me.

Or so I thought. A few days ago the kids asked if they could have a picnic out in the front yard. I said sure and helped them pack a basket, find a blanket and advised them to head out to the shade. As I looked out the front door, I was taken aback by "the view"...the Lord had an even more beautiful view in store for me. Yep, I teared up a bit and headed out for a closer look.

The closer I got, the more beautiful it became....

The sound of laughter added to the beauty.

And then it was overwhelming...


...I love the Primary song, "There is beauty all around, when there's love at home."

I know that my Savior loves me and I'm so happy that He blessed me with such a beautiful view.

We're all settled and would love to hear from you.

xox

Ohio Lunts

Happier Times Do Prevail...

I don't have much time but wanted to do a quick update.

1. Allie and Kate got a new look - no braces for Allie and glasses for both of them! I think they look adorable!

2. Kate turned 7 on the 27th and Allie turned 9 on the 29th! I made them these dresses for their bdays. (The vintage-looking fabric reminds me of a dress my mom would have made us during the 70s. I'll post a link to the tutorial for these dresses later. ) We also celebrated in....

3. Disneyland! So much fun and lots of work with 4 kids during Spring Break Week...whew, a lot of people!

4. CUTE. CUTE. CUTE. She is tooo much fun!

5. It *seems* that we'll be moving at the end of the month but who really knows. I sure don't. I have learned that it's best to just roll with things...so I could wake up tomorrow and find out that we need to move immediately or I could wake up in 3 weeks and find out that something has fallen through with the house we are going to rent, or maybe I'll win Publisher's Clearing House...yep, all possibilities at this time.

6. If you're still reading you should know that #1 is April Fool's!!! Those are Darin's old glasses but the girls do look super cute in them!

Love you all and we'll keep you posted as details come together in our lives....

Major Announcement...

I've taken quite a hiatus from blogging! It seems that every time I take a break, it's because I have something big to share but I don't know how/don't want to share it?!

K...here goes...

Our time in the Sunshine State has come to an end. We've LOVED living here more than we ever thought possible, but then again we've loved every place we've ever lived more than we imagined. And that thought is what is carrying us through....

Because we are moving to Dayton, OH. Yep. (No, it's not April 1st - this is the truth!)

To make a long story short - things didn't work out here (we're on good terms with the Orthodontist here but financially it didn't work out.) We searched HIGH and LOW all over the country for a practice. We hoped to move closer to family but alas, nothing seemed to work out. The practice in Dayton kept staring us in the face and we kept saying...nahhh, let's look in Texas again. But that was not meant to be. So we flew to Dayton (leaving 65 degrees here to 12 degrees there) and met with the Dr. and saw the offices. We came home and prayed and prayed and prayed and we're still praying but during the first set of prayers we got answers and are feeling good about this decision. We're just sad to leave our friends (especially our best friend, the sun) and to drive back across the country. The funny thing is, I DISTINCTLY remember saying to Darin as we drove out to Cali, "Well, I guess we'll never make this drive again!" HAHA

Some interesting facts....
1. We still have Ohio license plates.
2. I still have an Ohio driver's license.
3. Scarlett
4. We never changed our pic over there on the right. (just up a bit)

Coincidence? You tell me. ;-)

To answer some of your questions:
1. How are the kids handling it?
GREAT! They are super excited to go back to the Columbus Zoo and COSI! They are such troopers, and they are at a great age to move!
2. When are we leaving??
Good question. We're still in the negotiating phase, so maybe 2 - 3 months?
3. Are we still accepting visitors in Cali?
Yes! (but you'd better hurry!)
4. Are we accepting visitors in Ohio?
Yes! Dayton has some great attractions...like King's Island (theme park), Aerospace Museum, and us! I hear it's lovely at Thanksgiving ;-)

This has been a long journey and it hasn't even really started yet! We love you and hope to see you all soon...in Dayton of course ;-)!

Hugs (and tears),

The TexCaliAZUteOH Lunts

"Every experience God gives us, every person He puts in our lives, is the perfect preparation for the future that only He can see." -Corrie ten Boom

Finding my way...

I just read Jessica Nye's account of life with a newborn which inspired me to update my blog with what life is like now.


This pregnancy was by far my most difficult. It was very. painful. I cried a lot. I prayed a lot and I begged God to let my kids forget it. The pain really affected my mental state - I would say I had a low-grade depression most of the time. That was new for me. Once I realized that the pain wouldn't be going away I just started to pray that I could feel happy. If I could feel happy, then maybe I could enjoy time with my kids. The few days and/or weeks where I felt happy made the pain tolerable. I didn't want my kids to remember what a grouch I was, nor how many times they had grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner. Not the best chapter of my life.


Delivery was amazing. As I told Darin, "It was my finest hour." hehe I was so blessed. The Lord answered my prayers and everything went smoothly - epidural, great nurse, small baby, epidural..some blessings need to be counted twice. Of course the best blessing is Scarlett!


Postpartum. Happy. Yay, no baby blues but baby highs! My list of physical problems keeps growing, but what a blessing to feel happy.

Nursing...yikes! As my mom said, "Well Sarah I guess you know you're not a Holstein!" (that's a dairy cow.) I've NEVER had good luck with nursing and it breaks my heart. I want to nurse so badly but it seems my body isn't meant to. With my other kids I thought they were colicky...as it turns out, they were just hungry. Sad that it took me 4 babies to figure that out! So after going through all the pain and blood in the first stages of nursing, I thought I had it worked out....except that two weeks in my milk started drying up. Seriously?! How is that possible?! I'm doing all I can to make it to the 6 week mark but truly, after I nurse her she still drinks 2 -3 oz of formula. Ya, I'm fighting a losing battle. Has anyone else had this problem? I even have a hospital grade pump, drink lots of water, take Fenugreek, eat oatmeal...what else can I do?!

Scarlett is happy, sleeps lots, burps lots, hates baths and is constantly getting loves from her family. Darin walks in the door each day and declares that it's "his turn". Roman gives Scarlett lots of kisses and shares Elmo with her. Allie and Kate love to hold her and both got to feed her a bottle which is very grown-up of them. I cuddle her every second I can!

(new computer, no pics on it, so sorry.)

Welcome Miss Scarlett

Scarlett Elizabeth Lunt
born September 7, 2010 at 6:30 pm
weight: 7 lbs
height: 19 inches


We're so excited she's here! The delivery went smoothly. She's just a sweet little angel. I love this picture but it doesn't capture how small she really is - at the doctor on Friday she was only 6lb 8 oz! She's a big eater though so I'm sure she'll be gaining soon. Her sisters and brother love her so much and constantly ask if they can hold her. Roman did ask if my belly (which is still big) had a brother in it. Haha We're loving life with 4! Thank you for the phone calls, prayers, and well wishes!

She's here! I was and still am on cloud 9!


She wants her Mama...


Weighing in.... 6lbs 15oz....basically 7lbs

A VERY Proud Papa...

Heading up to our room...


The Super Excited Siblings...

Little Sisters could be slightly overrated to someone... ;-)

Going home outfit...

Now we're at home enjoying sleepless nights. Oh Joy!

Beach Bums, Back to School, and Baby Bumps

The summer is winding down and Baby Scarlett (yep!!!) will arrive before we know it. Thanks to Darin's sis and bro-in-law, we had an end-of-the-summer vacation at Huntington Beach. They have a beautiful beach house that accommodated a large crowd of Lunts! It was a perfect way to end the summer...Family+Beach+No Schedule = Heaven! Some of Darin's sisters and their families were able to come too...there is nothing like having cousins to play with! I wish I had taken pictures at the house with the other family members..seems like I only broke out the camera at the beach. Thanks again Robbie and Amy!

My cousin, Rhonda, lives in Southern California and was so awesome to bring her brood down to play with us at the beach. This is Kate, Chloe (Rhonda's daughter), and Allie.

All of our kids together...

Rhonda and me...I'm not sure if this picture does it justice but we look more like sisters than cousins. It's so funny how that happens sometimes! We hadn't seen each other in 10 years! At that time neither of us had kids, and now we both have 4 (well almost ;-)! I loved that we could just sit and talk for hours while the kids played, I love friends/family that you can pick right up with even if it's been a decade since you last got together!

Most of our beach time was spent with Darin's sister Donette and her family. This is Roman, Brady, and Kate. Donette's boys are just the right ages for our kids, they played all day and night until we forced them into bed!

Tyler dug a big hole for the kids. They ran and jumped in it, dug in it, and played until the tide came in and washed it away. They even found an extra friend (not sure who the little blonde girl is) along the way.

We went to an aquarium..can't remember the name. Ha But it was a lot of fun. The kids got to touch all kinds of starfish, stingrays, and other stuff...where was my camera for that?!

1st Day of School. Not sure why but everyone must take a picture in front of their door on the first day of school....this was actually after school because my camera wasn't working that morning. Happy to say that the girls are loving their teachers and we couldn't be happier with them either (lots of prayer that they would get the right one for them)! Oh, and yes I made them wear these outfits the 1st day, with the promise they could pick whatever they wanted after that. Ha!

She's coming.....