Wednesday, August 17, 2016

July Newsletter & Slideshow

Sorry so late! I was busy having/enjoying our new baby!

July Slideshow:

https://goo.gl/photos/TGw9a29xwsNHjw1D9

Hamilton Family Newsletter
July 2016

FAMILY: July turned out to not be quite as crazy as other years, mostly because it was hotter than normal, mom was in her last month of pregnancy, and we had some yucky flu at the end :( but even with all that, we did get out some and do some fun things. The 4th was July was on a Monday, so Jason took the girls on Friday and mom drove up on Monday. They had fun playing with their cousins, and they also got to go to a birthday party for Emry Sorenson - one of daddy's friends' daughters. They had a lot of fun. The parade was fun and they did a slip-n-slide at Grandma & Grandpa's house afterwards. The fireworks were fun to watch and daddy brought the girls' bikes, so they had fun riding those around, too. Monday, the 5th, was Ireland's birthday - see her section for all the fun things she did and got :) The 6-7, we got to have Daken come stay with us and we got to go see his baseball games. They won the gold in the Utah Summer Games - way to go Daken! After the last game, we had the Hamiltons and Daddy's friend, Brock, over for pizza. On the 8th, we prepared a picnic and went to Link's bench to enjoy. It was wonderful to be there as a family and enjoy some good food :) On the 9th, we hiked to Hidden Haven, up Parowan Canyon. Mom and the girls had done the hike before, but this was daddy's first time, so it was fun to go. It was so beautiful and when we got to the waterfall, we all took our socks and shoes off and enjoyed the cool water. Later on that day, we had some old friends stop by - the Gardners. They were our old neighbors when we lived on Northern View Drive and Ireland was especially excited to see her "Arizona Sienna." The kids had fun playing and we had pizza for dinner. Then we headed over to see the Cedar City temple and take some pictures. The next day we got some more visitors - the Edwards! They came for the weekend and then we went to see "Peter Pan" at the Tuacahn on Monday night. It was a fun play and the kids had a good time. We also celebrated Joshua & Ireland's birthdays while they were here - and went to the Lake at the Hills for some fun. Another fun thing we did was go explore all the new Shakespeare buildings that have gotten completed. They were really amazing - and fun to see. Can't wait to go see a play there soon! After the Edwards' visit, they took Ireland with them back to SLC so she could go to Joshua's birthday party - they rented a water slide for the kids and Ireland had a fun time! The Vogts came back into town from being in Hawaii for like a month, and it was good to see them. They were so sweet and brought candy leis for each of the girls. On the 14th, we headed to the Renassance Festival at the Main Street Park. It was a lot of fun and the girls had fun eating hot scones and checking out all the booths. Ireland bought McKinley a clay bird whistle after breaking hers last year. Sadly, Kezia accidentally broke it a day later :( That weekend, Grandma & Grandpa came into town with their moving truck! We went to St. George early Saturday morning to help them move into their new St. George house. YAY!! The 18th was a Primary Party BBQ at the Beachams and the whole family had fun eating, visiting, and playing with friends. On the 20th, we met the Devenish's in Beaver for dinner & then McKinley & Kezia went to spend a few days in Richfield with Grandma & Grandpa Devenish. They went swimming, to a movie, and played with cousins. Unfortunately, that's also where they picked up a yucky flu virus that ended up going through every member of the family. It hit hard with lots of puking and tummy aches, but thankfully left quickly, too. Kezia had it first, then McKinley, then the Devenishs, then Noelle, then mommy, then Ireland, and finally dad. They were each about 2 days apart. It was not a fun time - especially since the girls were cooped up and couldn't play with friends since we were contagious :( We were glad it happened before the baby is supposed to be here, though. Other than that, the rest of July was spent getting ready for baby - getting out clothes, carseat, buying a monitor, etc, and getting ready for school - going through each closet, sorting & organizing, school clothes shopping, buying supplies, etc. Also - our garden is really starting to produce, so it's been fun to eat fresh raspberries, strawberries, peas, tomatoes, and even some jalapeños! And in other news - Rainbow Truck the bunny is now a daddy! Our next-door neighbors, the Schoppman's, sent mom a text with a picture of a baby bunny and asked if Rainbow Truck had been over. Yup - he had - and now he's a dad! :) It's been fun to go over there & see & hold the cute, tiny bunny. We'll be a little more careful of "visits" to the next-door neighbor bunny in the future! :) As a family, we also enjoyed quite a few rainstorms at the end of the month. Mom and dad would sit on the rocking chairs while the girls would ride bikes or run around in the rain. It was so nice to finally get a cool-off at the end! Ireland begged to sleep in the back of the truck for a week or so & mom and dad finally gave in at the end of the month - on the 24th of July. She and her sisters had fun sleeping under the stars :)

JASON: July continued to be busy for Jason at work. He transferred to his new job, but still doing the jobs of 3 people. Thankfully, he was able to interview and hire one of his coworkers and she will start soon. He enjoyed spending time with family & friends over the 4th of July - & even got to ride his dirt bike :)  

HEIDI: With it being the last month of pregnancy in the hottest month of the year, Heidi was pretty sluggish :) But still had fun doing what she could. She really enjoyed spending 2 full days alone at home while Jason had the girls. She mostly read (& finished) Gone with the Wind & also watched some "chick flicks" :) But also got a lot of rest which she knew would be a lost luxury in a few weeks. Heidi's nesting instinct kicked in this month and she spent over $200 and many hours organizing all the closets in the house, including theirs. We are LOVING the organization that the baskets bring!

McKINLEY:
-McKinley had fun back-to-school shopping with mom and got quite spoiled with clothes. Hope she wears them all!
-McKinley finished "Alcatraz and the Evil Librarian" this month :) It was a book that the Edwards were listening to & she HAD to know what happened!
-She had a fun time at Grandma Devenish's until she got sick! Grandma said she was just swimming laps like crazy in the Manti swimming pool!

 IRELAND:
-Happy 9th birthday Ireland! She woke up at Grandma Devenish's & got to have Krave Cereal for breakfast. We were home by lunch time and she got to trace her hand on the tablecloth and also eat pizza! In the late afternoon, we headed to the movies for her birthday - she decided to go see Finding Dory, and we all enjoyed it : ) For dinner, we roasted hot dogs over the fire in the backyard! Then, of course, it was time for cake and ice cream!  Mom and Dad got her an American Girl Pony, Roller skates (with elbow, wrist and knee guards), a fun game, and a Mad Libs book that they've all had fun coming up with silly stories with. She also got money, some clothes, and another chalk game from Aunt Keeley.
-Ireland wasn't sure she wanted to go to SLC with Aunt Cindy because she didn't want to be away from mom, but she decided to go after all & she had a lot of fun. She really liked Joshua's water slide that he had for his birthday. While she was there, Aunt Cindy bought her a Barbie that can switch out clothes & Grandma & Grandpa bought her some coloring pencils and an adult coloring book online, along with fox and tiger stuffed animals. So - she was pretty spoiled, as usual :)
-We went to Walmart a couple times this month & Ireland was on a risk-taking streak. She used almost all of her birthday money ($20) on arcade games (like the kind you try to win a stuffed animal with the claw). To her credit, she did buy lots of rides for Noelle to ride on, some rings that she shared & also some candy that she shared. But she eventually learned (hopefully) that spending her money on those things was a waste.
-Ireland was SO excited to see her "Arizona Sienna" that she never thought she'd see again (we didn't either!) They had fun playing and they said they might be back for the temple open house next year, so maybe she'll get to see her friend again!
-She waited a while for Kaydence to write her back, but her waiting paid off & she got such a sweet, long letter in the mail. Now it's her turn to write back!
-While her sisters were in Richfield, Ireland had a fun time with mom at home. They spent time together and went to the park.
-One day mom asked where Noelle was. Ireland replied "She's over here!" mom asked what she was doing. Ireland said "Just cutenessing!"
KEZIA:
-One night after movie night (we watched Night at the Museum), Kezia put on a really cute puppet show story that we all enjoyed :)
-We have been trying not to stress out about Kezia's schooling situation, but we are kind of a bit worried as school gets closer & we don't have answers. We've been told repeatedly that she is "next in line" to get into the dual immersion program at East, but even after calling, they tell us there is no openings as this point. Mom finally got a hold of North and was told she could go there, but she really wants her to get into East, so we'll see what happens.
-Kezia's 2 front teeth were pretty loose, so dad offered to help Kezi out :) Kezia said he could pull her tooth, but he had to read 20 minutes of scriptures with her that night. He agreed :) So - she now is 1 front tooth short and she got a visit from the tooth fairy!
-One night in the middle of the night, mom could hear movement in the hallway, so she went out to find Kezia walking around. Mom asked her what she was doing & she didn't respond, but went to the bathroom. Mom helped her take off her jammies to go to the bathroom. Afterwards, she pulled her panties up and mom told her she forgot to wipe. So, she got toilet paper and wiped - OVER her panties! Mom had to help her change into different jammies afterwards. Of course, Kezi remembered nothing of this the next morning :)
-Kezia was the first one to get the flu. She puked & puked - but Grandma Devenish said that she said she didn't remember it at all the next day. Silly girl!
-Kezia was the only one that wanted to be on the Pioneer Day Parade float this year. So - she got to dress up in a bonnet & apron & she stood in a giant Mason Jar (the theme was preserving our heritage) & threw out candy. She got popcicles & root beer at the end and her picture was even on the front page of Iron County Today the next week!
-Kezia got to go on her lunch date this month - mom and Kezi went to Arby's!


LINK:
We loved having a picnic at your bench this month. It made us feel like a real family. One day we were driving to daddy's work and Noelle pointed to the cemetery and said "Is that Link, mom? there's Link, mom. I want Link." Oh, sweet boy. How we ALL want you. How we miss you. How we LOVE you.  

NOELLE:
-Well, this month Noelle has officially decided she is embracing the TERRIBLE TWOs and everything it involves. She must know a big change is happening with the new baby, because she is acting out like crazy - pulling hair, hitting, pushing, even biting. Along with the coloring on the walls and throwing things. She has spent a LOT of time in time-out this month, sadly. And no matter how many times she goes in time-out, or we explain to her why it's not okay to act that way, she continues to challenge us. We would love it if this were a SUPER short phase with the baby coming, but I guess we'll see!
-Daddy was loading his dirt bike onto his truck via the ramp and Noelle was outside climbing the ramp. She slipped and smashed her mouth on the ramp. She was bleeding and her teeth did look a bit different, but it just took some loves & ibprofin for her to feel better, thankfully!
-When we went to the Lake at the Hills with the Edwards, there was a toddler girl was wearing the same swim suit that Noelle owned - a ruffled Minnie Mouse swim suit.  Noelle wasn't wearing it that day, but when she saw that little girl, she was a bit frustrated & upset. She pointed to the girl & said "that's mine! That's MY swim suit!" Mom tried to explain it to her, but she wasn't really buying it. Eventually she said "Okay. Let's share!" The other funny thing she did at the lake - trying to blow up the inflatable tire. She would put her mouth over the sealed hole & blow with all her might :)
-A big rite of passage this month! Noelle can ACTUALLY put away the utensils from the dishwasher! We just put the utinsil holder on the open dishwasher & she will sort them out! She does a really great job - YAY Noelle!
-Noelle still LOVES nursery. She will ask when we're going to church - and then when we're at church, she will ask when it's time for nursery.
-She LOVES the sandbox, too. She will constantly ask to go outside in the sandbox. She loves it when mom or dad or her sisters come with her, but she will even go by herself and play out there for quite a while. She also loves to yell to our neighbors & says "Adelaide!!!" It's so cute.
-Noelle being sick was probably the hardest. She just didn't want to lay down and she HATED puking in the bowl. She would push it away even as she was throwing up. And she threw up a LOT. Thankfully, it was only about 24 hours of misery and she was feeling better.