An introduction

Well here we are the newest addition to the LUND family. Before I begin, I need to pause and tell you about the amazing family that we just plunged ourselves in to. Just imagine for a minute... your son comes home and tells you "I am dating a girl who has just recently divorced after being married for 15 years... oh and is a little bit older than me... and is a little bit CRAZY...oh and did I mention... she also has four children who coincidentally are also a little bit crazy. And I am going to date her for almost a year and then marry her and start bringing ALL of them over for Sunday dinner??? What do you say???"

Well, I am a mother of a son. And if he came home and told me this, I would fall out of my chair and then kidnap him while he slept and send by him by boat to some foreign country where the girl could never find him and where he could never escape. And I would visit him from time to time and slap him upside the head. And then I would make it my life's mission to find another boy (who wasn't my son) to date the girl and pay him if I needed to-- to make her the happiest girl on earth.

But this didn't happen. Not even at all. This amazing family treated me like I was a normal, suitable dating partner for their son, brother, nephew and cousin. They even asked questions to get to know me better and inquired about the kids often. They didn't seem scared or upset and never once tried to kidnap him (to my knowledge anyway).

Raleigh is very quiet and thoughtful. He thinks his words and actions through before he acts. He is a calming force in our chaotic household. He is very funny and even goofy at times. He served a mission in South Africa and has a strong testimony of the gospel and his duties as a priesthood leader. He puts my needs WAY before his own. He cares what I think about things and even asks my opinion. He opens the door for me and sends me flowers "just because." He gives massages, he makes me laugh everyday. He invites the spirit. He has great friends, wonderful parents and siblings, and the greatest group of aunts, uncles and cousins anyone could ever ask for. He is a smart businessman and is a very hard worker. He does his own laundry. He steam cleans the bathroom. He can iron as well as MY MOM (that's huge). He is amazing at EVERY sport and to top it off he is GOOD LOOKIN". This past year he has been to band concerts, cheer competitions, numerous school activities. He has dropped off History Fair Projects, taken kids out of school for lunch, been present for several emotional breakdowns, managed thousands of behavioral issues and waded through rivers of tears. He has seen me at my absolute worst and IS STILL HERE.

We were married on June 15th. And packed up the Budget Truck the following day and moved to Northern Utah. Raleigh is a manager of the Orem Best Buy and I am what is called the Admin in American Fork. We are happy to be here in "the bubble" and look forward to great adventures on a daily basis.

I want my sweet, perfect husband to know that I thank my Heavenly Father every day that he found me and that he was brave enough to love me. And I want his family to know that I know that this probably isn't the life they would have imagined for their beloved first born son, but I will do my best to make him happy and be the wife he deserves. I will help him to be the best person he can be and I will love him forever. Thank you for being so accepting of me and my kids and for giving us a chance to be part of your family.