Surprise!

So, here we are just pulling up to my parents' house for what I thought was going to be a small, simple, quiet birthday dinner, but I was mistaken - very mistaken! It was anything but small, simple, or quiet. In fact, it was a fantastically large group of my dear family and friends decked out in dandy 1950's attire, with cool bee-boppin' hits jamming in the background. "Surprise!" they shout! Embarrassed, I feel... but very happy and grateful, too.

What a perfect way to start my new decade. You can't go wrong with hamburgers and hot dogs grillin', tater tots and french fries accompanying, 7-layer Jello, peach cobbler, and root beer floats topping off a full belly, friends conversing, ping-pong balls ping-ponging, and faces grinning.

Thank you all for caring for me and for festively adorning poodle skirts, jeans and white tee-shirts, Converse sneakers, plaid, and leather jackets, red lipstick, taped glasses, cigarette packs rolled up in sleeves, handkerchiefs and folded down socks, with and without ruffles. And a special thanks to Gayle and Mama for making me such a lovely and personable stars-and-moon skirt. I love it and you for your creation!

(I'm sorry that I don't have pictures of everyone and that there are so many of me!)

June and Gene, my parents-in-law

My Aunt Debbie and Uncle Larry

Jillian and Julena, my cousins

Friends, Donovan and Erin

Sister-in-law, Kathy

Sister-in-law, Kimmie

Friends/co-workers, Abby, Stephanie, and Sabrina

More friends/co-workers, Michele and Shannon

Friends, Lauren and Aaron

Friends, Scott and Tamara

Friends/co-worker, Matt and Megan

Friends/co-worker, Tim, Joey, and Diane, (missing baby Ellie)

Friends, Judy and David

My brother-in-law's parents, Glenda and Butch

Friends, Jack and Karen

Brother-in-law and nephew, Mike and Nathan

Papa and Mama

Gayle, my sweet sister

And surprised I was!

Many, many thanks,

Dawn

10,954th dawn

On the way to the hospital on the day I was born, my parents stopped to take a picture of my first dawn. Then they named me.

As the anniversary of my 30th year approaches, I decided I wanted to give my parents a picture of another sunrise, my 10,954th dawn.


So, on Saturday morning, I woke uncharacteristically before the sun and rushed to a picturesque location in Rancho Vistoso. Ironically, despite my name, I'm quite the sleeper and rarely up with the morning birds, so I'm unfamiliar with the precise moment that the sun creates those magnificent pinks I've heard so much about and have seldom seen.

As I made my way through the maze of roads from here to there watching the East intently, the sky lightened to a matted blue-gray and the birds chirped their morning songs. I didn't think I was going to make it to a pretty spot before the sun peeked over the mountains! I had such adrenaline rushing through me in my urgency to beat the sun and it felt like I was arriving to a show just before they close the doors and stop admitting spectators. But I found my seat just in time, before the show began. I even had time to look around to scope out just the right vantage point.

When the changes in light began, I was enamored and I wondered why I don't get up to enjoy more of these free displays - a daily gift I take for granted because I'm more owl-like and tend to stay up late (as I'm doing now to put my blog to bed) and I usually prefer to sleep in as long as possible, long past the morning's first light. That habit may have to change.

It turns out that the magic moment is literally right before the sun graces the horizon, or in our case, the top of the Catalina Mountains. It was amazing how quickly the dawn-event transpired. The sky remained quite dull and then suddenly, pink, yellow, and orange hues highlighted the clouds and the blue of the atmosphere intensified briefly to a deep saturation.

I laid crookedly on rocks embedded in the ground, shooting up at the sky. I don't think I look at the sky enough, and I always feel better when I do.

The sun's rays and beams seemed delicate at first, twinkling (like stars do) before fully rising above the mountain peaks, and they dazzled me as they back-lit little buds and flowers, normally so seemingly insignificant, they now seemed the most beautiful thing.


Welcome, new light. Hello, new day. I ask myself, "What are you going to do with it, Dawn?"

A whirl of images from memories flickered through my mind like a flipbook - a book that spans the past 10,954 earth rotations. That's a lot of spinning and quite a dance through space. I'm finding that the questions and struggles that plague many new 30 year olds, including me, are: "Have I really used each day to its full capacity up until now?" "Where did the last decade go?" and "Is this where I thought I'd be by now?"

It's not that I'm unhappy; that's not it, not in the least. I'm a very happy individual. I love my God, my husband, my family, my home, my cat. I have so much to hope for still, to dream about, learn about, and to share, but there is a slight mourning for a decade that's gone. Should of, would of, could of - too late for regrets; move on, right? This feeling is a lesson, I guess - if you don't want to mourn time gone by, then don't wait; do it today. See as many dawns as you can.

Thousands more await me,

Dawn

Her Right Foot

You may be wondering why I have a picture of my mama's foot and what's that little white dot at the top of her second toe?

She will be embarrassed that I'm posting pictures of her "Halloween" foot, but this is definitley worth documenting! She has - I mean, had - all sorts of foot problems - a bonion, a hammertoe, a heal spur, neuroma, and plantar fasciitis. Two of the maladies have been fixed and hopefully will make all of the other issues less severe.

That white "dot" is the top of a pin going down the center of that second toe! Yi-yi-yi! {said with a shiver!} The doctor actually broke her second toe that had the hammertoe and the pin is there to try to straighten it out. But it wasn't just one toe that was broken; it was two! The doctor also had to cut open the inside of her foot, break that big toe too, install hardware for a new and improved joint, and go in a scrape the "knuckle" of her big toe for the bonion. Ooch!

Today, after three weeks with the pin and crutches, they took that pin out and Mama is sporting a lovely, blue, stylish, velcro boot and she can actually put her weight on her foot again (sort of)! She's been told that she has good bones and I think that she definitely has been a good patient and a good sport about the whole endevor!

with "soles,"

Dawn

Ender, Another Adorable Nephew of Mine

Ender is my sister-in-law Keri's little boy. He is one year and nine months old and such a cutie-pie! I wrote about Ender on his first birthday back in January. You can see that post by clicking here.


The above photo is the only "posed" picture we got. After the first five minutes, Ender became very much independent and a tour guide of his backyard, wanting to show and play with everything. I had to be super-obnoxious to get him to give me the quickest of glances. I got a lot of exercise chasing him around, and sadly, I was sore the next day! I definitely need to do that more often! It was fun playing with Ender!


He is very, very "Durfey" and has a lot of Keri's features. I love his grin!


Ender hums while he runs. He can't run without humming. And that's a fact. It was adorable.


Oh, okay, so this picture looks posed, too, but if it weren't for the alluring strawberries holding him in place with their juicy tastiness, he would have been up and running (and humming).

Keri and her Ender boy. Motherhood and childhood... how lovely.

Snap, snap,

Dawn

Liam's Lips + Gravity =

(Tilt your head to the right for the full effect.)

Liam fell asleep on his mathematician-dad's chest.

X+O=Love,

Dawn

Liam's First Photo Shoot

Liam Patrick Durfey

Little Liam has come at last, and the twenty-six-and-a-half-hour-long-labor began, appropriately, on Labor Day, which was his due date! It was a Labor Day extravaganza! But just over one Earth rotation later, his actual birthdate came: Tuesday, September 2, 2008 at 4:27pm.

I was blessed to join my sister-in-law Jen, her husband Kelly (Kurtis' twin brother), Pam (Jen's mom), and Alison (friend and doula) during the laborious journey for Liam's arrival. What an honor and awesome experience.

I've witnessed two births within 6 months and have gained two nephews. What an exciting year!


I saw a bumber sticker on a car the other day that said, "Midwives help people out." Ha ha! Shelley, the nurse, was fabulous! And Alison, the friend and doula was incredible! They helped more than just Liam out. He was the priority, of course, but everyone benefited from their kindness, support, patience, skill, and love.

Jen was stead-fast and strong. She had amazing focus during contractions. We were very proud of her... Kelly was especially proud of his wife and son as you can see by the expression on his face. It was an emotional day for them both. Right away, it became evident that they will be remarkable parents.


Liam came with a sweet little cry and was imediately placed on Jen's chest. They both seemed to find great comfort in the other.

He weighed 8 pounds, 13 ounces and was 21 inches long.

This wee one came out looking a lot like his mama complete with a cowlick, and lovely, dark almond eyes, but we're sure some Kelly characteristics will surface as he grows.

Jen's mom, who will be refered to as Nana, was such fun to be around. She couldn't stop tearfully smiling at her first grandbaby. Congratulations, family.


Precious Liam. You are loved indeed.

With a smile,
Autie Dawn