School & Chores

So - today was Ireland's first day of Kindergarten. I was a bit melancholy when McKinley left for first grade, but no tears, so I was totally unprepared when that bus rolled away with my Ireland & the waterworks started! She said she had a great day, though, and she was glad McKinley was there on the bus with her & to walk her to class because she said she was a little bit afraid. Now it's just me & Kezi-boo in the mornings & I'm going to try & come up with a little bit of a plan so we can spend some quality time together before the baby.
As a follow-up to my post about chores, THANK YOU for all the input - on Facebook & on the blog. Right now this is what we're going to try for McKinley & Ireland:

-EVERY DAY chores: *the basics (clean room, make bed, get ready, etc) - done in the morning,
*choice chore (to be no more than 15 minutes) for after they get home from school & finish homework.

-WEDNESDAY (their early day): McKinley will be expected to clean the bathroom & we'll have a bigger chore for Ireland, too.

-WEDNESDAY & SATURDAY: they will have the opportunity to do larger chores & earn more $.

ALLOWANCE: If they complete all their every day chores, choice chores, & big chore for the entire week, they will get a small allowance.

That's our plan & we'll see how it goes & I'll update the blog.

Here's some pics of our school girls. Growing up SO fast! Sigh...

 

Moabites

We were Moabites for a few days this past week/weekend. It was our annual Potts Family Retreat. Honestly, we weren't looking forward so much to being in Moab in August. H E A T! It was hot, but thankfully there was a pool and so what did we do? We just kept swimming, swimming, swimming! ;) Oh - and we went hiking, and played games, and watched movies and talked. Love my family. Sure miss them, so it's precious time to be with them. And, of course, the girls can't get enough time with their cousins. Thanks mom & dad for another great year!!

Advice - chores & routines

So - this week McKinley starts first grade. And in another couple weeks, Ireland starts Kindergarten. It's going to be a bit strange having just Kezia & I at home in the mornings. Part of me thinks of all I could & should accomplish. The other part of me just wants to hang out with my youngest while she's still my youngest. Hopefully I can do a bit of both & find balance :)
Anyway, McKinley starts school on Thursday, so this week we are trying to get into our school routine - going to bed at the right time & waking up at the right time. We're not exactly morning people over here, so it's going to take some getting used to. This morning was a bit rough getting going.
As we were eating breakfast, I was thinking about this new schedule & how much it's going to change everything over here. We've always had "morning things" and the girls have completed their chores in the morning. Of course not EVERY morning, but that's been our schedule.  I just don't think there's going to be time for anything other than making beds, getting dressed, eating breakfast, fixing hair, brushing teeth, getting lunches together (McKinley will eat lunch at school for the first time!), and getting them to the bus stop by 8:29. Seriously 8:29 AM. And even if by some miracle this goes smoothly for the first month or two, a baby in November will ensure that I should not try & add anything in the morning.
I could have her do her chores after she gets home & we talk & she does her homework. But then I feel bad. When does she have time to just be a kid? And what if I put her in lessons? Chores on top of all that seems rough. I was thinking maybe we should just give her a couple weekly chores instead?
Any suggestions would be appreciated. I am going to try & get everything together as much as possible the night before (backpacks ready, outfits laid out, lunches put together as much as possible), but I'm still worried about getting it together in the mornings without feeling crazy & feeling like my kids never do chores anymore.
THANKS :)

July Newsletter & Slideshow

What a busy, fun month for the Hamiltons! Sorry so many pics. Just lots going on!



FAMILY: For the Hamiltons, July was spent 4th of July-ing! (bike parade, yummy food, parade, fun at the park, water party, BBQ, cake & ice cream & gifts for Ireland, sparklers, and fireworks), enjoying Ireland's 5th birthday (see her section), a couple trips to St. George - one for a birthday party for Jason's friend, one for a temple trip, having an open-house BBQ with friends from the old ward, camping at Kent's lake (and seeing the Johnsons up there!), camping again at Yankee Meadows with the Bealers, 24th of July fun (including a family fun-run, watching the parade, BBQ with friends, and watching fireworks), and having the Edwards come stay with us! (Hiking, swimming, shopping, Shakespearean Festival-ing, playing at the park, playing games, painting nails, watching movies, cake & ice cream-ing, and watching amazing rainstorms and beautiful rainbows and sunsets). We've been unpacking, re-arranging, and settling into our new home, neighborhood & ward. We've also had fun watching the Olympics this month. GO USA! 

JASON:  There was a fire that broke out at the top of Cedar mountain on July 2^nd  & Jason took the opportunity to get into the game & learn what there is to know on supporting a fire. He worked late on the 2^nd & came up to Richfield with Keeley on the 3^rd (Heidi was already there with the girls). We came back the night of the 4^th & for the next week or so, Jason was putting in very long hours – leaving at 5:45am, getting home around 10pm. He did learn a lot and we were able to get some overtime, which we are thankful for. He’s also had fun camping & working on our new home.  On the 26^th, he went to work late so he could go see the girls’ last day of swimming lessons. They were so happy!

 HEIDI: Heidi is glad to be in our new home & sometimes has a hard time just believing we’re here. She still has plenty of unpacking to do, but feels good about what’s been done. Overall, she’s still feeling good, but her carpal tunnel has really started kicking in & she wears her braces at night to sleep better. She has fun feeling baby move, kick, and turn. She was able to go up to girls camp for the old ward on the 11^th & it was fun to see all the girls & get lots of hugs & smiles & just be with them. She rode back with Diane in a red jeep & had fun seeing a family of skunks and 4 HUGE elks on the way back – not to mention just the fun on riding in the back of a jeep J Heidi had been wanting to see Les Miserables for a while, so it was SO fun to go with her sweetheart and see the play. Awesome. She also re-read about a fourth of the book before she saw the play & loved that, too. She enjoyed all the festivities of the 4^th of July, Ireland’s birthday, 24^th of July & camping. It has been a fun month & fun to see our home come together & meet new people.

McKINLEY:

-McKinley poked mom one day & said “your bra is getting ready to milk.”

-McKinley got to feel her baby brother moving & she was SO excited. She is constantly coming up to mom now & asking her if the baby is moving. She even got to go with mom to her prenatal appointment and hear the heartbeat. She’s going to be a great big sister!

-McKinley had lots of fun at swimming lessons this year & the very first day they moved her up a level because she was so good. She was in level 2 and her teacher was Ben Rischard. He checked off everything & she gets to move on to level 3! Here’s what he wrote on her paper: “Awesome Job! You are a way strong swimmer and did very well!”

-McKinley got registered for 1^st grade & found out she has Mrs. Robb – the same teacher as Parker Johnson! She’s excited to start at South Elementary next month & she’s excited that she’ll know someone in her class.

-Her new friends in this ward are Brenna Dixon, Olivia Price, and Kirsten Correy. Mom got to teach McKinley’s class one Sunday & McKinley was so excited!

-McKinley & Ireland went early to church on the last Sunday of the month. They got to be greeters and pass out the sacrament program. Daddy went with them & said McKinley did a great job & smiled a lot J

-We’ve been reading The Wind in the Willows at night.

-McKinley has had fun opening our moving boxes & finding some things that have been in storage for the past couple years – decorations from Primary and things from her preschool days.
-After watching the Olympics, McKinley is convinced she wants to do gymnastics!
-McKinley has been asking to do a race for a long time now & when she did the Main Street Mile with the family, she did great! Didn’t stop once!

IRELAND:

-Ireland KEPT asking when her birthday was going to be. Almost every night for a month she would ask “Is my birthday in the morning?”

-2012 was Ireland’s magical birthday! She turned 5 on the 5^th! The fun started on the 4^th with the annual cake, ice cream, presents & water party at Grandma Devenish. Then on the 5^th, she got pancakes for breakfast & she got to help crack the eggs! In our family, it’s a rite of passage that you need to be 5 to crack eggs. She was VERY excited & daddy showed her just right how to do it. She did the sing & seek of presents and got to go to the store to pick what she wanted to eat that day & her cake. She wanted sandwiches for lunch and corn dogs for dinner & then we headed to the Aquatic Center for a party! Ella Strand & the Bealers came & we had fun swimming, opening presents, doing the piñata, and –of course – eating cake & ice cream! It was a fun day. MUCH later in the month when the Edwards came, Aunt Cindy also make a treasure chest cake for Ireland & Joshua. Some favorite gifts: pop-beads from grandma Devenish, lite bright from mom and dad, clippety-clop shoes and a Barbie from Grandma & Grandpa Potts, a singing card from Aunt Kim, and a huge Dora coloring book from the Hamiltons. She had a GREAT birthday!!
-We were talking about fire-fighting and Ireland asked if the fire-fighters wore helmets. Mom said yes. Ireland said “Yeah! Cuz if you didn’t have a helmet then you’d burn your head up!!”
-There was a book we got from the library that showed a little brother squirting his little sister with the hose. Mom asked Ireland what she would do if her little brother did that to her. She said “I would take the hose away from him!... (pause) and then I’d SMACK him in the head!”
-Ireland is getting much better at writing. She’s doing better with her name & one day she wrote the entire alphabet!
-Ireland is just a fish when it comes to swimming. She can’t wait to jump in the pool. The first week of swimming lessons, there was another girl in her class (Tots 2), but the 2^nd week, she had the teacher all to herself! Private lessons! He was very impressed with her swimming. He wrote on her paper that on the back glide, instead of doing 2 body lengths, she did 5! And he said “father than anyone else I’ve ever taught!” and his comments on the back were “I’d suggest level 1 next! (she’ll be with older kids) She was really great! Listened & learned quickly!” GREAT JOB IRELAND!
-Ireland got registered for Kindergarten & she’s in Mrs. Ecker’s AM Kindergarten class. She’s so excited because Shaylee Johnson will be in her class, too!
-For some reason Ireland has been spitting a lot lately. She says she has bubbles in her mouth & she needs to spit them out. She’s also had a harder time using words instead of hands. She’s bit, kicked & hit this month & we’ve had to take away some privileges L
-Ireland’s tags are really bothering her lately. She has cut out almost every tag in her pants.

KEZIA

-At the beginning of the month, Kezia decided she wanted to wear panties like her sisters. She’s done REALLY well! The last week of the month, she regressed some, but overall she’s really done great & we are SO SO proud of her. Way to go Kezi-boo!

-While her sisters were at swim lessons, Kezia had fun (for the most part ;) playing with the younger Bealer boys – Brecken & Owen. They did play-dough, painted, played with toys, and colored. Mom got the jumper down for Owen & Kezi had lots of fun when Owen was done with it. She even fell asleep in it once!

-Kezi is definitely growing into a big girl. She was fighting her naps so much that mom decided she’s big enough to go without them every other day or so. She’s done really well & slept better at night, too J

-Mom came upstairs one day & Kezi was up there with just her Winnie the Pooh underwear on. Mom asked why she only had her panties on. She said “I’m showing Winnie the Pooh himself!” (she had a toy Winnie and she was showing him the one on her panties.

-Kezia’s drawings are really getting good! She’s doing lots of circles and lines & you can now tell where the head, eyes, and body is. She loves to draw her family members!

-Kezia really loves all her little “friends.” Stuffed animals, littlest pet shop animals, etc. She carries them around in purses, in buckets, in boxes. She feeds them, changes their diapers and gives them water. She comes to mom and dad in the middle of the night worried about them. She sure loves them!

-Kezi’s done pretty well in nursery. There were just a couple weeks that she wouldn’t go, but overall she loves it. 

S'more please!

Last weekend was w o n d e r f u l. I have been feeling like a bad mom lately because I had lots of fun plans & ideas to do with the kids this summer, but most of it has been taken over with moving & the summer is almost over. School starts on August 16th!! Gasp!!
We didn't go camping in June at all, so we're going to try to 2 times in July. Ahhh - it was great to get up in the mountains. Right now, Fishlake is the only forest allowing campfires in developed areas. So - we went up  Beaver Canyon & spent a couple nights camping next to Kent's Lake. It was beautiful up there. Right next to the lake. The fishing was good & we even found some Cedar friends up there! Kezi caught her first fish. She was not entirely thrilled about it - it was slimy and squirmy and she didn't want to touch it :)
But between fishing, s'mores, hiking, and playing, a good time was had by all!

Hope

Last night, I was really bogged down. I really should not even keep up with the news. You know that song from Paul Simon that goes "I get all the news I need on the weather report"... yeah... that should be me.

This story about Sierra Newbold just devastated me last night. Having a 6-year-old girl myself does not help matters. I just cannot imagine... cannot fathom... my heart gets so full of heartbreak for the family and anger toward that man. Their family is in the ward of a good family friend and in the city I grew up in. Just not fair. 


Then, of course, I read a few more news stories, almost as depressing... rape...murder...abuse... 
I went to bed feeling like the world was a terrible place. How can I raise my kids in it? How can I find any peace? Where is the hope when things like this happen & the innocent suffer so much? 


This morning I was still feeling down & I prayed for hope & help & I opened my scriptures in faith. Here are some verses that I read: 

 Psalm 4:6 There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? Lord, lift thou up the light of thy ^acountenance upon us.

 7 Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time thattheir ^acorn and their wine increased.

 8 I will both lay me down in ^apeace, and sleep: for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.

Isn't that amazing? God knows the pain & suffering in this world. It hurts His heart more than my own. And Jesus understands it. Every particle of it. And still they offer their peace and their gladness if we will seek it. It was such a blessing to read this & made my heart so much lighter!

And I still think I'm going to try & stick to the weather report. 

:)

June Newsletter & Slideshow

I'll apologize up front because I was REALLY bad at capturing the girls stuff this month :( Here's what I got, though...

FAMILY:  The beginning of July was again started in Salt Lake. We had done Mapleton, and a trip to San Diego, and at the first weekend in June was Michael’s baptism and Spencer’s blessing. It was great to be able to be there for both of those events (even if poor Michael wasn’t feeling well for his baptism L After we got back from our SLC trip, most of our time was spent getting ready for moving into our new home (!), though we did find some time to attend a Paiute Pow-wow, where we saw some awesome dances, ate yummy fry bread, and met a cute little Paiute girl (probably 4 years old) that ate with us and played with us. The night of the 14^th was the Utah Summer Games opening ceremonies & Jason took the older girls. They went with the Bealers & they all had a great time. It was the Nitro Circus and they did lots of crazy stunts on their motorcycles & things & there were amazing fireworks at the end. The girls & dad had a great time. The 16^th was Father’s day & we had fun spoiling dad. He got a candy bar poster & some cards. The week before, we did special chores for him – washed the van & truck, took out the trash for him, put a note in his lunch, etc. He also got to season & grill up a HUGE t-bone steak for dinner at night. The 18^th was our big ultrasound day! McKinley was at a birthday party, so she didn’t come, but Jason, Ireland, & Kezia were there (oh – and Heidi, too ;) We found out we’re having a BOY!! We were all pretty shocked – still are pretty shocked. We were all expecting another little girl! We’ve got lots of adjusting to do around here, but we are just mostly thankful that he looked like a healthy little guy. The following Thursday, Grandma & Grandpa Potts came to help us pack & move. Their help was GREATLY appreciated! We closed on the house Friday morning (after Heidi dropped dad up for a run in Cedar Canyon & had to end up going back up through Brian Head to get home because they closed the gate before she could get back down!) & were able to take a few loads on Friday afternoon/evening. Then that night we attended the Groovefest at the city park. We had fun listening to live music, eating pizza, and dancing J Saturday the 23^rd was our big moving day! We had about 5 helpers from our ward (along with the entire awesome Bealer family) – and the Potts - that helped us get moved over. It took 4 trips with the big uhaul and Jeff’s trailer, but we got just about everything moved over by about 4pm. Grandma Potts was so great to stay at the old place & help finish packing & cleaning. We made it to the new ward by 9:30 the next morning & got to meet some members of our new ward – the Cedarview ward. It’s mostly made up of older families & couples, but they were kind & the girls got to meet some people in their classes. We also met our next-door neighbors – the Davis’ – who were very nice That evening the Johnsons (a family that moved from our old ward into a close neighborhood) invited us over to dinner. It was very yummy & nice to see some familiar faces – and it only took 2 minutes to get to their house, so it’s nice to know that they are close!  It’s taken a while – and we still have a way to go – but we’ve got most of the rooms in order. It’s been a bit amazing going from our small 1300 sq foot twin home to this 5000+ sq foot home, but we are really appreciating it. The girls (and mom) love that they can play with all the loud toys downstairs & lots of books & quiet toys in the upstairs bonus room. We love the view of the mountains and how close we are to everything – including our old friends. The dogs are still adjusting to being on the bottom deck, but it’s getting better J We also are SO thankful for a fridge! We had to go a week without one when we first moved in & we were living out of a cooler. Jason’s birthday was on the 27^th. See his section for his bday activities – happy 35^th daddy! There was a fire in New Harmony at the end of the month was a bit scary, but thankfully they got it contained before it got too close. Still – all the fires around the state make us anxious to take care of the brush around our home. All-in-all, we are feeling very excited and blessed to be in our new home (& be able to get cash for keys and our deposit back at our old home) & very excited to find out we’re having a BOY!

JASON:  Jason had a fun month with the Nitro Circus, Father’s Day & his birthday. On his birthday, he got breakfast in bed, we brought him some Café Rio for lunch, and then Hannah came to babysit so Heidi & Jason could eat at Panda Express and then go see Snow White & the Huntsman in the theaters – and drive out to check out the New Harmony fire. He’s been good at doing all the things that need to be done around the new house and finishing transferring from the old house. He is also excited to have a little more testosterone in this home when the little one arrives J Jason had this 70’s/wolverine sideburn/chops  facial hair thing going on for a while. He ( thankfully ;) decided to shave it off at the end of the month.

 HEIDI: Whew! Heidi’s mind still reels with the fact that she’s carrying a baby boy. She’s excited, though, and looking forward to coming up with a boy nursery!! She’s also excited to be at the halfway mark for this pregnancy. She started getting back into running this month & even though she’s pretty slow, she really enjoys it and it helps her physically & mentally. It was a lot of work getting all packed up, but she is thankful for good friends & family who help out. She was even able to finish Ireland’s birthday book – yay! Heidi has enjoyed not feeling so cramped & actually being able to have room to get in & out of the van in the garage. Her belly is starting to get in the way! She was thankful to get to see her family at the beginning of the month & also see her mom & dad towards the end. She somehow misplaced her cell phone in the move & has had to use her old cell phone (& pay $20 for a new SIM card), but she’s thankful she has it. She is looking forward to July & hopefully being able to finish unpacking & also spend more time enjoying the summer with the girls.

McKINLEY:

-While McKinley was helping to fold whites one day, she said “Mom! I accidentally put my hand through that hole when I was folding it – ewwww – GROSS!” (it was her dad’s bottoms J

-We showed a picture to McKinley of some Utah Summer Games sports in the newspaper. Mom pointed to some arm-wresters & asked “what do you think they’re doing McKinley?” She said “I dunno – are they praying?”

-McKinley really enjoyed going to the Utah Summer Games opening ceremonies with Ireland & dad & loved telling mom about the cool stuff they saw.

-McKinley is excited to tell people she’s a FIRST GRADER now!

-McKinley was a big helper trying to get things packed up. She’s very excited to be in our new home!

-When we had our ultrasound, McKinley was at her friend, Kate’s, birthday party. We kind of made her wait a while before we told her, but when we did, she was SO excited! She was REALLY hoping for a baby brother!

-Mom wanted McKinley to keep practicing her handwriting for the summer, so she got on facebook & asked if anyone wanted to be a pen pal with McKinley. Now McKinley has FOUR pen pals! – Amanda Neff (Farmington, who she knew from Herriman), Allie Tate (Washington state, mom’s cousin’s girl), Hannah Hazlett (Riverton, the daughter of a girl mom was a cheerleader with), and Amy Sorenson (Moab, daughter of an old Snow College roommate of moms) She is excited to meet some new friends &  loves getting letters in the mail.

-McKinley says “I like my new house. I love candy. Ummm… Ireland is silly. She just doesn’t know it.”

-We are reading “The Wind in the Willows” with McKinley at nights. It’s been fun & we all enjoy it & she can do the summer reading program at the library.

IRELAND:

-One thing that Ireland will miss about our old home is her friend, Ella (same age). She would get on top of the dog kennel and look down into Ella’s yard & yell “ELLLLLLLAAAA!” – and Ella would come out & they would talk and exchange treats. Ella’s mom told me one of the last nights we were there, Ireland went & got her jump rope & put one side of it on Ella’s side of the fence. She then proceeded to tell her to go get Whiskers (her cat) and tie the jump rope around him & Ireland would haul him over to our yard. Thankfully, Ella’s parents had the wisdom to ask why Ella was looking for Whiskers because even if Whiskers would have survived a rope around the neck and getting pulled up to our yard, we’re not sure our dogs would have been kind to Whiskers.
-On the way to the ultrasound, mom asked Ireland if she thought we were going to have a boy or a girl. Ireland said “We’re havin’ a girl cuz girls have girls and boys have boys.” We had a discussion about that on the way to the hospital J
-Ireland is still in denial that she’s having a baby brother. She says maybe it will still switch around and be a girl!
-Ireland says “I love you. You’re so sweet. I love you. You are so beautiful. I know that K-e-z-i-a is little AND I would like a big ginormous giraffe for my birthday AND I want a big elephant for my birthday. I’m five year old.”

KEZIA

-Over Memorial weekend when we went camping, Kezia came into bed with mom & dad in the middle of the night. In the morning, mom asked how Kezia slept, considering it was in OUR bed. She said “Yeah… I got squished up.”

-Also over Memorial weekend,  mom was talking to someone & heard Kezi say “mom!” Mom answered “yes?” Kezia looked up at grandma & said “my mom said yes!!” (apparently, I was unknowingly saying yes to eating chocolate)

-During one of the confirmations after Michael’s baptism, Kezia heard the dad say “Holy Ghost” & she says “Mom! He said about a ghost!!”

-While Kezia was helping fold laundry one day, she was folding one of dad’s things & she said “I’m folding this for dad. He’s an old man.”

-Kezia points to mom’s tummy & says she has a baby girl in her tummy and then she points to her own tummy & says she has a baby boy in her tummy.

-Kezia also really likes to pat mom’s tummy.

-Kezia loves to run around in our new home. There’s LOTS of tile so the “pitter-patter of little feet” is a little amplified.

-Kezia LOVES to read books. A favorite of hers lately is “No David!” She’s so cute, turning the pages, saying “No David! Come back here David! Go to your room David!”

-Kezia says “watch a movie. Catch a grasshopper. Play with toys. Ahhh!”