May Newsletter & Slideshow

https://picasaweb.google.com/103753336633055957263/2015_05_Slideshow

Hamilton Newsletter

May 2015

FAMILY: Most of May was spent surviving moving (including cleaning our old home & getting our new home painted & new carpet) and the last month of school, but we still managed to squeeze in a few fun things, too :) May 8th was the Share of Southern Utah annual Walk of Remembrance & Hope. Once again, we ordered shirts and put Link's picture on the back. We are so thankful for the Devenishs & the Potts who braved the snow & rain to be there to support us & remember our Link. The Potts were also so helpful in moving! We couldn't have done it without them! May 9th was Mother's Day and Heidi felt very loved & taken care of - the girls even made a HUGE HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY sign in the basement. It was SO cute!  Early in the month, the girls & Heidi went to the dentist. McKinley was the only one without a cavity (great job McKinley!).  May 12th was Jason & Heidi's 15th wedding anniversary. In the morning, we watched the wedding video and that evening the buyers of their home, the Marxxs, were so sweet to get us a $50 gift certificate to The Depot! It was so sweet! & we had a wonderful time enjoying our dinner. On the 16th, a carnival came into town and we stopped by to ride a few rides and have some cotton candy. Afterwards, we went to McDonald's :) The 20th was the "unofficial" last day of school for the girls. We let them out of school a couple days early so we could go to the Payson Temple Open House and Mapleton for Memorial Day weekend. The Payson Temple was beautiful and the girls couldn't stop oohing & ahhing over all the sparkly chandeliers. It made us almost GIDDY to have our Cedar Temple finished (groundbreaking scheduled for August!). Afterwards, we headed up Mapleton Canyon & for possibly the first year ever, were the first ones to arrive! We spent the time setting up our tent and getting things arranged. It's the first time we've "tented it" in probably 5 years, so we were a bit wary, especially with the forecast showing 80% chance of rain. Jason was smart, though, and rigged up a tarp over our tent, and wouldn't you know it? We were the only ones who stayed dry! The Edwards, Simons & Tew's trailers all leaked. Still - it was cold and wet & muddy & we missed our trailer. However, we all still had a great time. The girls had fun running around with their cousins, finding cool rocks & fossils, hunting for firewood, making friends with worms and snails, and enjoying the campfire. They were sad when we had to leave on Sunday, but we all enjoyed a nice hot shower when we got home :) On Memorial Day, we came to the cemetery with so many others & laid a blanket down by Link's bench. We stayed for quite a while & talked about why we have Memorial Day & those in our family who had served in the military.  On the 29th, we all slept over at the Hamilton's & the next day Heidi competed in the Sand Hollow Triathlon (sprint distance).  In the afternoon, we headed to Richfield to surprise Grandma Devenish for her 70th birthday. We all gathered at El Mexicano & shouted "surprise!" when she came in :) It was fun to surprise her. Happy 70th Grandma! Now that summer is here, Heidi & the girls put together our 2015 Summer Bucket list, Pinterest style. We printed off pictures of things we wanted to do & put it in our overall theme: Make-it Monday (make a new recipe), Try-it Tuesday (try a new craft), Water Wednesday (play in the water), Thinking Thursday (do something learning-oriented), & Forest Friday (go explore our local forests). It has been a lot of fun to do these things and we've all had a great time.  Overall, we are really loving our new home. The yard is so much more accessible, it feels so much cozier and safe knowing where our children are, the street we live on now is much, much less busy, we love our new neighbors, and the girls are loving have their own rooms. Also - we have officially started Anne of Green Gables this month & the girls are really loving it!

JASON: Jason continues to have a lot of meetings at work & has worked hard on moving this past month, too!

HEIDI: Whew! What a crazy May! Even though there is still SO much to still do (boxes piled in the garage & unfinished room downstairs), Heidi is just so thankful that everything is moved over. It's always such a big job trying to piece a home together & find out where everything should go. Still lots to do, but it is getting done in little bits here & there & she has faith that they'll eventually have everything in its place. Another fun thing for Heidi was getting her NEW washer/dryer machine. It does both! It took a little getting used-to, but now she really LOVES it! Loves not having to remember to change over clothes :) To add to the busyness of moving, she finished her 8 week healthy challenge (3rd place!!) and completing her triathlon on May 30th. She was worried it would be too hot, but it turned out just fine. Heidi finished in 1:30 & got 4th in her age group (beat out 3rd by only one minute!). It was a lot of fun & she was happy to be getting back into it after probably 3 years of not doing a tri. Heidi is also enjoying her new calling with Activity Days. The girls are sweet & it's fun to be there with McKinley & soon Ireland will officially be in there :)

McKINLEY:
-At the beginning of the month, McKinley missed almost a week of school. She was tired & kept having recurring fevers and headaches. She missed important testing & even her swimming field trip :(
-McKinley did do the mini mall again this year - she paired up with 2 of her friends as sold some of her artwork, her popcorn balls, and also some peanut butter blossom cookies. She completely sold out of her treats and came home with some fun things, too. Great job McKinley!
-McKinley did a great FHE on being a peacemaker, which was perfect timing now that the girls are home together all day!
-There was a girl that moved to McKinley's class a few months ago, Kida. We didn't know it, but she was being fostered with the Beachams. She had to move, but told Sister Beacham what an awesome friend McKinley was to her. So proud of our McKinley & her kindness!
-McKinley had so much fun in Mapleton Canyon with her cousins - especially Michael :)
-Now that the summer is here, McKinley has really been such a big help with her sisters when mom needs to run around. She can watch Noelle for one of her choice-chores, so it's a win-win situation :)

IRELAND:
-Ireland gave a wonderful FHE on fasting at the beginning of the month :)
-Mom couldn't have survived the move without Ireland's big help. Many times, she would clean up the downstairs without being asked (and it was very messy!) or she has helped make meals or watch Noelle. Thank you Ireland!
-Ireland really liked the idea of her own room with her green carpet & green walls. But the reality wasn't quite what she expected. She kept having nightmares & finally decided to sleep with Kezia. She still loves having her clothes downstairs, though. And she really keeps her room tidy!

KEZIA:
-Kezia is DONE with preschool! Bittersweet for mommy :( She is now officially a Kindergartener! Kezi enjoyed her last weeks of preschool - especially their field trip to the farm!
-For FHE we were talking about Peter & Kezia said "mom! I bet you have enough faith to walk on the water, too!" :)
-Kezi loves camping & REALLY loves bugs. She gathered snails and worms and had them crawling all over her hands. She couldn't understand why mom didn't want to bring them home!
-At the end of the month, Kezi did something BIG! She learned how to ride her bike without training wheels! We went to South Elementary to practice & she caught on so fast! She's still not sure about riding on sidewalks, but she does really well on the flat surfaces! GREAT JOB KEZI!!

LINK:
We always jump at any chance to officially remember you, our baby boy, so we again loved Share's Walk of Remembrance this year. Also- we got to make your bench patriotic for Memorial Day & spent quite a bit of time there. Mom had some hard moments with moving, leaving the home where your memories were made. But she felt some reassurances that you are present in our new home, watching over us & loving us. And we love you back a hundred fold. Love you our duder-dude.

NOELLE:
-Noelle had been toying with walking for almost 2 months, but this month she just TOOK OFF! She is practically running everywhere now & it's really hard for us to keep up with her!
-Noelle is quite the explorer - her favorite things are to pull out anything in the dishwasher if it's open, and we find kids' plates all over the house because she likes to get them out of the drawer. She also loves to open the drawers by the office area & pull out mom's old cell phone & chew on it.
-Her 2 top teeth are almost all the way in!
-Noelle now says "uh-oh scettios!" (so adorable!)
-After some lessons from Grandma Potts, Noelle finally goes downstairs the right way every time! Whew! So nice not to have to put a gate up! (though, for the record, she did take one spill down the stairs after she was trying to push a white stool around) :(
-Mom got tired of Noelle's straggly hair in the back, so one day she just chopped it. It looks really cute! (if you don't look too close) ;)
-Noelle used to cry if she was hurt or tired or hungry. Now she's started to whine, cry & even growl if she can't reach something or doesn't get her way. It begins!!!
-Noelle must have gone through a major growth spurt at the end of the month. One morning, she had cereal early when she got up, then she ate more when her sisters had breakfast, and then when dad ate, she ate still more! Thirdsies! ;)
-One of Noelle's favorites words lately: NO!!! (Oh no!)
-Noelle is pretty much down to one nap a day!
-She sleeps really well at night - sometimes waking up, but finding her binki and putting it back in. We got her a new crib because her other one was missing pieces and broken.
-Noelle seems to really like this new home. She can go downstairs easily and we have unboxed some toys for her down there, so she really likes it. Also - they left their huge TV for us, so she loves watching Signing Time down there.
-Noelle (like most babies) LOVES the bathroom. We have to remember to keep the door closed or she is in there in a snap. She has put old phones, socks, and screws into the toilet already :(
-Noelle also says MILK! & usually says it soon after she wakes up.

April Newsletter & Slideshow

https://picasaweb.google.com/103753336633055957263/2015_04_Slideshow

Hamilton Newsletter

April 2015

FAMILY:  This newsletter will most likely have some gaps. It's already the middle of May & I'm just sitting down to write this up! That tells you how crazy it's been! April was a busy, busy month! It started in SLC - finishing off our Spring Break by visiting Great Aunt Cindy in her care home, going out to eat at Denny's, & roller skating at Classic. Then daddy picked us up on his way back from his work meeting in Ogden and we headed to Richfield. The Hamiltons came, too, and we enjoyed a weekend full of family, time, General Conference and Easter festivities, including making chocolate easter nests, dying eggs with kool-aid, and going on an Easter egg hunt! The 8th was Noelle's 1st Birthday!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY NOELLE! See her section for more details about her special day. We are SO grateful - especially after losing Link - that she has made it to this milestone. She is such a joy & a light in our family. The girls put on a special play called "The Adoption" in our unfinished basement one Sunday, complete with a program, props, and costumes & we all thoroughly enjoyed it - so cute! :) On the 17th, the girls got a lateover with friends! McKinley invited Alyssa Lemarka from church, Ireland invited Mahina, & Kezia had Courtney Riddle over. They had fun playing the Dance Wii, making their own pizzas & eating caramel popcorn and watching the new Tinkerbell movie. On the 19th, we sang Families can be Together Forever and I am a Child of God in Sunday School as a family. We got word that Uncle Joe had passed away on Wednesday and we left for Texas Thursday, the 23rd. We drove to Albuquerque, NM that day & stayed overnight. Then on to Petrolia, TX. We got a hotel room at the Red Roof Inn in Wichita Falls, going back & forth from Petrolia. We really enjoyed our time in Texas! It had been 7 years since we'd last been down there & our girls didn't remember it at all, so it was wonderful to have them meet so many family members. Ireland especially enjoyed playing with Dustin's daughter, Cadence. They are the same age & Ireland was always excited to see her. We spent most of our time at Yvetta's & she was so hospitable. The kids had fun throwing around a football, flying kites, gathering acorns for the fairies, climbing trees, playing on Yvetta's swings, playing with Shane & Julie's dogs and jumping on their tramp, and being creative with the things Grandpa Bill & Ophie got them. Heidi & Jason enjoyed visiting with family. There was quite a bit of rain & even a tornado watch while we were there. Uncle Joe's funeral was Tuesday, the 28th. Aunt Kim & Uncle Jeff had flown in the day before. It was a wonderful graveside service at the Charlie Cemetery & we were grateful to be there to honor & remember Uncle Joe. We left after the funeral & again drove to Albuquerque & stayed the night. We got home Wednesday evening about 6:30pm. We are so thankful for safety in our travels and that the girls all did SO well during the long drive! Thursday morning, the 30th, we closed on our home. We are very grateful that we were able to sell our home so quickly & to wonderful people, the Marxx. We are also grateful that things have worked out to buy the Hatch home. It's a wonderful home & we are excite to be able to stay in the ward, but on a quieter street with more children. Now - MUCH MUCH MUCH to do!! :) One thing we were sad to miss while in Texas was the 5k we signed up for & trained for. We really did go on quite a few training runs, even amidst complaining & groaning. We were up to the 5k distance, so we're sad we missed the race, but hopefully we'll still get the shirts :)

JASON: Jason has been much busier than usual at work, with meetings almost every day. But family comes first & he was grateful to be able to take some time off to go see family in Texas. He enjoyed sharing memories of summers in Texas & he enjoyed seeing some of the sights along the way. He's also been very busy at home, packing & helping start to move. At the end of the month, Jason got a new calling at church. He is now the Elder's Quorum 1st consoler. He is sad to leave the scouts, especially with the fun upcoming trips this summer, but he is also looking forward to being in EQ again. One other major life event for Jason this month - after much peer pressure from his nieces, he finally shaved off his chin hair!!! :)

HEIDI: It's been so nice this month not to have showings to deal with. Now, she is tackling a bigger beast, though - moving! While it's such a short move & there are many things they don't have to take apart, it's still a huge job! Heidi continues to do her 8 week challenge as well as doing her triathlon training, though she hasn't gotten nearly the training in that she'd hoped. This month, Heidi worked with our local newspaper and radio stations to get the word out about the Share Walk in May. Heidi enjoyed going to Texas & really enjoyed spending some "girl time" with Julie & Rachel, going shopping & getting ice cream. During the drive, Heidi read to Jason a book she's been wanting to read for a while - "Unbroken." It was an amazing book & neat to be able to read it with Jason.

McKINLEY:

-A dream McKinley had this last month:  Family was doing a race. Short race. McKinley got done super-fast & then she was with her class on a field trip. She realized she was in a dream & had super powers. Then there was a pirate & they went into multiple doors & they twisted a girl that took them back in time. There was Braxton & Kida. Back to Lincoln's time & there was a mean guy that she remembered. He was pretending to be a dentist. She hid under the tablecloth & saw Mickey Mouse. They went to the library (it was labeled). The only books in the library were Narnia & a few others. So they went to the map & decided they wanted to go to George Washington's time to save endangered animals. Then she woke up :) Now, she wants to do a blog about endangered animals.

-McKinley really loved meeting family in Texas and she loved the art set that she got from Grandpa Bill & Ophie.

IRELAND:
-One day mom overheard Ireland asking McKinley "Have you ever caught a dust fairy before?"
-Ireland gave mom a super-cute invitation for a popcicle-poetry-picnic at school. Mom was a couple minutes late, but glad she came because she thoroughly enjoyed Ireland's poetry and getting to spend time with her.
-Mom also spent time with Ireland to finish her habitat assignment. She chose the savanna because the cheetah is her favorite animal. She did a great job on it! Unfortunately, we missed the Arts night this year because we were just getting back from Texas, so she didn't get to display it as school, but she did show her teacher after we got back.
-Ireland really loved her new friend Cadence who she got to play with in Texas. It took a few hours for her to warm up, but afterwards, they were pretty much inseparable. And she asked to go play with her whenever they were apart.

KEZIA:

-When we were in SLC, Aunt Cindy gave a lesson about being honest. Kezia must have really taken it to heart, because for a few weeks after that, she would come to mom about any indiscretion. Her confessions included opening her eyes during prayer, thinking about a movie during prayer, staining her shirt, & whining.
-We went to a carpet store one Saturday & the owner had a puppy. The puppy was excited and was chewing on everything. It chewed on Kezi's arm & a few minutes later, Kezia came to mom & said "Mom! Mom! I know why puppies like to chew on people's arms!" Mom asked why. She said "Cuz there's bones inside!"
-One day in the van we were talking about swear words. Kezia asked what swear words were & while mom was formulating a response, she said "Oh! Nevermind! I know - like pinky swears!"
-Kezi got to go to her friend, Hadley's, birthday party this month & had lots of fun!!
-At Aunt Yvetta's, Kezia found some red ants :( For some reason, they really like her!
-Kezi enjoyed Texas & liked to sleep in the hotel & watch movies in the hotel room with Ireland.

LINK:

On one of our training runs as a family, Ireland & mom saw a BEAUTIFUL purple bird fly past! We've never seen a bird like that & we knew that it was a love note from you & Tundra <3 font="" nbsp="">
It's been hard thinking about moving from the only home you ever lived in. Mom has had a few meltdowns just thinking about it. Please be close to us in our new home, baby boy. We love you & miss you more than you know.>

NOELLE:
-HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY NOELLE!!! We were all SO excited to celebrate your first birthday, baby girl! We got to buy a new birthday tablecloth, decorate a new birthday crown, and buy gifts for your special day! You loved playing with the doggie that sings & unwrapping your gifts! You were pretty spoiled this year, getting a new car seat and a tricycle with a handle on the back that we can push you around. You also got a happy birthday outfit and a new book. You seemed to really enjoy your birthday cake and ice cream. Mommy spent a lot of time on your birthday book, so hopefully one day you will enjoy it :) McKinley also spent a lot of time drawing a picture of you :) You are SO loved & are such a joy & light in our home, our sunrise baby girl. We love you!
-At the moment, Noelle still prefers crawling, but she has taken up to 18 steps! And she's started to walk from point A to point B if it's not far. Way to go girl!
-Noelle is learning more signs! She knows baby, ball, hot, all-done, and when "Signing Time" comes on, she says and signs "Signing Time!"
-Noelle can point to your nose!
-One afternoon, Noelle seemed especially entranced by Link's picture. She kept crawling over to it & reaching for it. Sure wish we could see what she sees!
-Noelle is dancing! If there is music, watch her shake up & down. So so so cute!!
-"Uh-oh" is still Noelle's favorite word, but she's added "Uh-oh! spagettios" :)
-She still loves Sydney and we have to pull her off of her sometimes because she will crawl all over her & she really likes to keep touching her nose.
-Noelle is getting good at rolling a ball, stacking blocks, and playing with puzzles! She also continues to LOVE books!
-We all were SO THANKFUL for how well Noelle did on our trip to Texas. From being 36 hours in the car, to having to sleep in a pack & play in 5 different places, she did amazingly well! As long as we had whitenoise, her doggy, her sleep sack & a binki, she usually went right to sleep. 

Cinderella

I think this post is mostly just for me, but I'm putting it out there anyway.

Yesterday, my 9-year-old daughter McKinley & I went to see the new Cinderella movie in the theater by our house. I'll be honest. I wasn't 100% looking forward to it. I've seen different variations of the story of Cinderella like, 423 times. But, she wanted to see it and she earned this date, so off we went. And anyway, dates are more about being with my child and less about the actual activity.

But again, I'll be honest. I didn't absolutely love the show. It might not have helped that this theater had technical glitches, including the screen blacking out and a really fuzzy, crackling speaker. But other than that, I just like the cartoon version better. I miss the songs. And there are things that can be done with animation that you just can't really do with real-life people.

Still, similar to reading the same scripture like, 423 times, you can still come away with something different, something you needed to understand at that moment in your life. And there was definitely something that I needed to understand at this moment in my life.  While the moral of the story -  to "have courage & be kind," was important and ties into my realization, it wasn't what I walked away with.

McKinley and I talked about how much grief Cinderella had been through in her life - losing her mother and then her father. And then losing her material possessions and her comforts. She had been through so much and could have easily turned hard-hearted and bitter. Then we talked about the stepmother. In this version of Cinderella, she is a widow to begin with, and then loses another husband. The lesson was a simple, but powerful one for me: I  have the choice to be Cinderella or be the stepmother. Both had immense grief. One chose to let it soften her and help her to see how precious and treasured life is and the other let it harden her and help her to make everyone else's life miserable because hers was miserable.

As I've pondered this question, I realize how often I have chosen to be the stepmother.

It's true. Oh, I will have friends and family that will try to stop me and tell me that it's not true, but the reality of grief is that even those closest to us don't see quite the depth of this deep hurt & how it affects us. Affects ME. I have Cinderella moments. I do. But more often I am the stepmother.I nstead of finding joy in seeing my friend's & family's children (especially boys) that are close to Link's age grow up, my heart frequently hardens, constricts, and I usually have to walk away so the bitterness doesn't completely take over. It's hard. But it's also a choice. I believe I need to take more accountability for my thoughts and feelings. Admittedly, they come without me choosing them, but I DO have a choice with what to do with them. And I want to be more like Cinderella - choosing the good. Choosing kindess. Many times it takes courage TO BE kind. Especially when we feel so wronged. So cheated.  

I'm going to make the choice more often to be better instead of bitter.


1 Peter:

5 Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.

 6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:

 7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

March Newsletter & Slideshow

https://picasaweb.google.com/103753336633055957263/2015_03_Slidehshow

Hamilton Newsletter
March 2015

FAMILY:  Lots of traveling & fun this month! The 6^th was mom’s birthday and the girls surprised her with breakfast in bed and lots of homemade gifts. She had a surprise for THEM, though, when she told them – after they’d already gotten ready for school – that they in fact WEREN’T going to school & we were all going to go up to SLC & Grandma & Grandpa were taking them to Disney on Ice! We really should have recorded their screams J They were SO excited! It took us a little bit to get out the door because we had to leave it show-ready, but we finally got on our way and headed North. We stopped by in Fillmore at the Garden of Eat-In for lunch and it was fun and yummy. We made it to the Potts in time to eat some dinner and head over to Tiarra’s play, Guys and Dolls. We were so happy to make it to her play – she did FANTASTIC as Adelaide! And was very entertaining.  Afterwards there was a cake & ice cream party at the Potts. So much fun J Saturday, the 7^th, we headed over to Trisha’s for breakfast and a little more birthday fun as we also celebrated Uncle Richard’s 60^th birthday. Grandma & Grandpa took the grandkids to Disney on Ice that afternoon & they all had a great time. That evening we went to the Simon’s and had fun playing games with them and the Edwards.  We came back on Sunday after going to the Murray Ward and stopped by the Bensons. Quick trip but packed with fun!  On March 14^th, we finally had our Sibling Share Day (the last one was cancelled because of the snow). It turned out neat – Mom & McKinley read some stories, we went around and talked about our angel brothers, then we did some crafts – candles, bracelets & coloring. It was a neat day. That evening we headed to the park for some pizza and fun on the playground. The 17^th was St. Patrick’s Day and the girls had fun eating Lucky Charms, dressing green, and finding people to pinch J The 26^th was Link’s angelversary. Grandma & Grandpa were so sweet to come down and spend the day with the girls while Jason & Heidi went to the temple. The St. George temple was closed for maintenance, so they drove to the Manti Temple and had a wonderful time doing sealings and an endowment session for family names. We all met at the cemetery after the temple to put our chain of family names on Link’s grave and release balloons. It was chilly, but beautiful. Afterwards we came back & watched his slideshow. We love our baby boy and while our hearts still ache to have him here, we know he is doing great things where he is at. The 28^th was the Sunday before conference, which was on Easter, so we put on all our pretty dresses the week early and headed to church. After church, we headed up North again. We made it in time for Sunday dinner and watching Into the Woods with the family. Monday, the 29^th, Jason headed to Ogden for a budget meeting and Heidi & the girls stayed with Grandma. Their spring break was that week & mom let them have a couple extra days off ;) Monday evening we got together with the Simons for FHE and toured the conference center, which was really neat to do right before conference. And then we hiked Ensign peak just as the sun was setting. It was wonderful, beautiful & fun! Tuesday was Spencer’s birthday and so we headed out to the new Children’s Museum of Natural Curiosity at Thanksgiving Point.  Grandma Potts & GG came too! It was so much fun and there was SO much to see and do! We all had a great time. Wednesday, the 31^st, we hung out with Michael & Joshua at grandma’s. The girls had fun playing in the backyard and we also went to the Murray Park, which was fun! Thursday we visited Great Aunt Cindy in the morning and went to Classic Skating at night. It was a wonderful spring break with family & friends! In between all of our month events, we had quite a few showings. Every week, we had 3-4, sometimes 5 showings. We received a full-price offer on the first day it was on the market, but they wanted a 90 day close and rejected our counter to put in a 72 hour clause, leaving it on the market. We had another offer from a couple from Holladay (their bishop is John Bytheway). We countered and although they still talked to us and kept looking at the home, they never countered. About that same time, a couple from California saw our FSBO sign and stopped by. They came three times to see what it would take to finish our basement to be able to accommodate their large collection of juke boxes (we actually went to their warehouse to see them – pretty neat!). Finally at the very end of the month, we got an offer from them of 320k. They are cash buyers , can close in 30 days and can put 10k down, so even though we had other offers that seemed forthcoming, we went ahead and accepted their offer and as it stands right now, we are scheduled to close on the 30^th of April. What a blessing!! Another thing intermixed with all our happenings was sickness L It started Jason getting strep throat. Then Ireland had a sore throat, then pinkeye. Then Noelle had pinkeye and was just acting really sad. We got eye drops for both Ireland & Noelle, but had to end up giving them to the other 2 girls as well. Also – Heidi had a really sore throat and just felt yucky for a couple weeks. Hope we’re done with that for a while!

JASON: Jason has been good about helping out and getting ready for showings when he’s here. He’s also been really good about working with agents and potential buyers. Work has been busy as well, and he’s had a lot of planning projects he’s been working on – even having to stay up and work on them well after his meetings in Ogden. No word yet on the fleet job he applied to.  

HEIDI: It has been a busy month with all the showings and life in general, but Heidi is grateful for all the help & support of her family and grateful that we hopefully won’t have to show it anymore!!! She is reading the Chicken Soup for the Soul book about angels on the other side sending love notes to earthly loved ones. It’s been SO neat! She also read “Fairiest” – the 4^th book of the Lunar Chronicles, which was good. Heidi also finally started training for her triathlon. She got her bike all tuned up and has gone on a few rides since then. She’s also gotten back into swimming & trying in general to just get back to basics in her training. She must be a little nervous about race day because she keeps having dreams about her race and forgetting to bring her bike or stopping to talk to someone & realizing she never did finish the race. Hopefully things will work out better than that!  Heidi did have a few really rough days before Link’s angelversary. Lots of tears and anguish. She misses her baby boy so very much – and she felt much like she failed him with not getting as much family history done as she had hoped for him. His angelversary day was very special, though, and she felt his love and joy. That helped so very much. Another thing that was really good was getting to visit with a couple other angel moms – Cindy from SHARE met Heidi at a park & shared some really special experiences with her. Anna, her SIDS mom friend, met her for a hike when they were up in SLC & it was very therapeutic and healing. Another exciting thing that happened this month is that Heidi finally got everything planned & reserved for her & Jason’s 15^th wedding anniversary! Since it’s during school, they aren’t going till August, but she is SO excited to go to Prince Edward Island!!!

McKINLEY:
-We had Parent-Teacher conferences at the beginning of the month. When I sat down with McKinley’s teacher, Miss Heap, she said “you must just really look forward to coming to McKinley’s conferences. You always know you will hear how wonderful she is.” McKinley is really doing well and is constantly bringing home 100%+ tests. Her teacher also talked about what a great writer she is and she did very good with her persuasive essay writing.
-McKinley’s science fair was the first part of the month. She decided to do it on the eyes. Her friend, Addison, has a genetic eye condition called Retinitis Pigmentosa. We researched it and learned about how the eye works and then made a pair of glasses to simulate what it would be like to have Addison’s condition – with black blinders on either side, cutting off her peripheral vision. We all tried them on and it was very interesting – and sobering to understanding a little more about her condition.
-McKinley planned and cooked (with minimal help) 2 meals (enchiladas, sloppy joes & mashed potatoes) and a dessert (marbled brownies) this month – and they all turned out really yummy!
-McKinley really loved doing scripture study with Michael when we were in SLC. She came to mom and talked about how she wished she could skype with him every night. She learns so much from her cousin, which we love. One thing that was kind of hard, though, was that Michael had the day off school to spend with McKinley & the girls, but they couldn’t seem to find common ground.  Michael wanted to play outside & do sports-type things. McKinley wanted to do dress up and write a story together. In the end, they did a little of both, but it’s becoming harder for them to do something they both enjoy L
-When we were in SLC, McKinley decided to write a persuasive paper about why dogs are better than cats as pets. She didn’t have to do it, but came up with the idea herself and did a great job!!

IRELAND:
-Ireland’s parent-teacher conference went well and her teacher, Mrs. Willden, really loves having her in her class and is so impressed at her reading skills. She was already at a 4^th grade level at the beginning of the school year, so they aren’t re-testing her.  She also seems to breeze through the spelling tests as well. We are so proud of our Ireland!
-Ireland’s science fair was also at the beginning of the month. She decided she wanted to find out the different factors that would affect how ice freezes – hot water, cold water, room temp water, vinegar water, salt water, water with metal & water with plastic. It was an interesting science project & took a lot of the day to record information, but it turned out really cute and we used the movie “Frozen” as the theme for her board. It turned out cute & fun!
-One day Kezia ran to mom & said “Ireland is being mean! She gave me two choices – being punched or getting told on & I didn’t like either one!”

-Ireland missed 3 days of school for pinkeye L It was kind of nice to have her home, though & get to cuddle with her and have her help out.
-Ireland and Joshua had a lot of fun getting together this month. They don’t always get along, but mom was proud of them for working things out on their own and apologizing when they argued. They did a lot of make believe dress up games and playing outside.
-We went to IFA & saw the cute chickies one day and Ireland & Kezi LOVED letting them nip at their fingers. They just giggled & laughed and laughed & didn’t want to go.

KEZIA:
-Kezia had parent-teacher conferences, too. The first thing her teacher, Miss Clara, said was “I love having Kezia in my class. She is NICE. She is smart, too, but she is NICE. And that is so important.” That statement just made mommy’s day. She loves how kind and loving Kezia is. One day at the park, mom watched as she helped other kids on the merry-go-round and then pushed and pushed them. She never even got on, but was happy to help others. That makes us SO proud of her. More even than the amazing reading, math and vocabulary skills that Kezia has. Kezia got registered this month for Kindergarten at South Elementary. We saw some of her friends there & she was able to test with Mrs. Ekker (Ireland’s teacher), so that would be fun if she had her!
-Kezi did a FHE about choosing the right and she did a great job! Also – she helped mom make a cookie cake with whipped cream and strawberries for afterwards. It was yummy!
-Kezia saw McKinley’s section about meals & she wanted to make sure that everyone knows that she knows how to make sandwiches, quesadillas, and macaroni and cheese. J
-Kezi had a lot of fun in SLC with her cousin Parker. They were so cute when they walked down the Ensign Peak trail hand in hand.
-At the Museum of Curiosity, the girls were playing in the playground & we couldn’t find Kezia. For 15 minutes we all walked around looking for her. Apparently, she was up in the playground, but no one could find her. She said she was talking to some boys!
-Kezia cavorted with Grandma & came up with an Easter egg hunt for mom and grandpa. It was so cute & sweet.
-We are so proud of Kezia – she got her CTR ring at the beginning of the year & she still has it almost 4 months later. Great job Kezia!
-Kezi was really good at helping mom this month. She was almost always around when there was a showing & mom had a lot to do to get ready. She was such a helper to be able to grab things & get out the door. She was also great at being flexible when we had to leave the house & go somewhere. Usually it was the library and a couple times we even caught story time! J

LINK:
Our sweet baby boy. It’s incredibly hard to accept that it’s been two years since you left this earth. We are so thankful for the gospel and the knowledge that you haven’t left our family, though. You are so much a part of us and we still talk about you every day. Mom started a Facebook page called “Link’ing Families Together” that is a family history page. On Tuesdays, she issues a family history question. On Thursdays, she posts a picture of an ancestor. Sometimes she gets a lot of response to her page. Other times, not. But there are over 100 “likes” and she hopes that it helps a tiny part of fulfilling your mission, sweet boy. We did get to do some family names this month and it was wonderful. We hope you know how much you are missed. How hard it is for us to go on without you. But most of all, how much you are LOVED. A couple tender mercies: When the girls’ went to Grandma Potts’ ward, McKinley said the opening song was “Give Said the Little Stream” (your song tune) and then she said a boy named Lincoln said the opening prayer. Also- daddy’s cousin again raised money for the Ronald McDonald House in your name when her son had his birthday this month. In addition, on your angelversary, there was a flock of geese that flew directly overhead – and there was a rainbow (of sorts – a sundog) in the sky as we drove home and sat at your grave. We LOVE YOU!

NOELLE:
-We really have to keep a close eye on Noelle now days as her curiosity, courage, and mobility increase. She can open drawers and cabinet doors and is getting REALLY fast at crawling. One minute she’s there & the next she’s gone!
-She took a couple steps this month! Her first steps were at Grandma Potts’ in her basement right before she turned 11 months. She still isn’t so sure about the walking thing, though. She mostly just sits down & starts crawling, but a few times she has ventured to take up to 3 steps, so if she can be convinced that walking is better than crawling, we know she’ll get walking SOON! In the mean time, her pants are filthy whenever we are outside :/
-Noelle is finally done breastfeeding and has done SO well! She transitioned to cows milk wonderfully and while mom misses the cuddles, it’s also nice to have freedom for both of us.
-She is really getting more into books & getting better & better at turning pages.
-Her new phrase: UH OH! So cute J Also- NI-NI! (Night-night) Her language is definitely getting more pronounced and distinguished. She will be talking a million miles an hour like her sisters soon!
-Noelle continues to love Signing Time & now knows “More” “Milk” “All-done” and “eat”
-Noelle’s cries have also transitioned. Instead of just crying when she’s hurt or tired, she’s started crying and yelling when she can’t reach something or she’s frustrated.
-Her Snuza alarm went off a couple times this month, sending mom into a panic. There have been so many issues with trying to order the “breathable mattress.” It has been so frustrating for mom, but FINALLY it came and is giving us lots more peace of mind.
-Some of Noelle’s favorite foods: Milk, German Pancakes, Mac n’ cheese, grapes, and cheese.
-Her sisters LOVE to make her laugh and can get her into quite the giggling fest!
-We’ve gone to the library quite a bit this past month with showings & Noelle loves to crawl around and play with the toys & puzzles. She also has really started people-watching and will just stare at someone as they go by.
-One super-cute thing Noelle has been doing this month is playing peek-a-boo! Give her a light blanket & she will bury her face in it & then pop out & give you a huge grin. Sometimes she even says peek-a-boo!
-Noelle had some real scares this month L Mom accidentally closed the van door with her foot in it. It wasn’t broken or anything, but was really bruised L The other really sad thing happened after mom took her to the instacare to make sure she didn’t have an ear infection or anything because she was acting in pain a lot. Mom took her out to the van and put her in her car seat. Then she threw the keys to the front seat (like she’s done lots of other times & shut the door. It locked. Noelle was inside along with the keys, mom’s phone, everything. All the windows were rolled up. She tried & tried to get in, but couldn’t. She used the instacare phone to call daddy again & again, but he wasn’t answering (he was talking to a potential buyer of our home), so mom had to end up calling 911 & the police had to open the van door. By that time, Noelle was crying & hot and mom was crying, too. It was a traumatic experience for both of us. Hope it never happens again!!

Return with Honor

My Dear Link-

Oh my beloved son. I am thankful you can know exactly what is in my heart without using words, because there are many, many times that this mortal language limits my expression.  For example, the words “I miss you” are completely inadequate. No number of accompanying adjectives could express the ache I have for you.

Only a few months after you left this earth, I was at church and the lesson was on missionary work. Mother after mother stood up and read letters from their missionaries. My heart was grieved afresh as I knew that I would not have the opportunity to read similar letters from you. I always dreamt of having a  son serve a mission and be able to share that same pride and delight as those mothers – reading your letters and learning of your growth and testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And my heart was crushed as the reality set in that I would not send my son on a mission.   And then, clearly and surely, words came to my mind. They were “YOU ALREADY HAVE A SON ON A MISSION” and acknowledging the reality of that statement almost took my breath away. Tears came to my eyes as my heart witnessed the truth of what my mind had just understood.  It didn’t take away all the hurt, but it certainly helped me as I realized that I, too, could stand up with those mothers and talk about my son on a mission.

Link, I know you have been busy these past two years. You have helped to bring your Grandmother to the temple and get her sealed to her parents and spouse. You have been the source of much work in our family to do genealogy work and help “Link” families together. You have given your sisters a strong testimony of the plan of salvation, family history, and missionary work. They love to share your story and remember you. You helped bring your sister to mortality and we know that you two share a special, eternal bond.  You also have worked on your Grandma Tew’s side of the family and we were surprised and overjoyed to learn of your 2^nd cousin getting to serve in Thailand. We know you are assisting him as well.  Your dad and I talk about what you look like as a missionary. We wonder who your companions are – Grandpa Tew?  Uncle Bart? What are your “zones”? Does Jesus head up your mission conferences? Most importantly, we wonder how we can help you. We wonder if we’re doing enough with making sure our own family is “Linked” together tightly, and if we are making enough progress with finding names. We seek your help, Link, with lines of our family where we seem to be “stuck” – especially your dad’s dad’s line and my dad’s line. We ask for and expect help and miracles as we seek for these names and try to learn more about our ancestors.

Now, I can’t say that I have always been a supportive “missionary mom.” I try, but I have to admit that there are moments when I truly wish I was a regular missionary mom. After two years, they get to welcome their sons home with hugs and kisses. I admit that my temporal mind reaches up to the heavens and wonders “Isn’t two years enough?” “Hasn’t he done enough good for you?” “Can’t I please have him back now?”    No… your mission papers do not have a return date on them and many days, it’s hard for my heart to accept. But there are moments of clarity and perspective, moments when I turn my eyes toward the heavens and my heart is filled with pride at all you are doing and knowledge that it has to be this way – that you cannot do what you need to do from this side of the veil. And in those moments when I am looking up, instead of awash in my dark sea of grief, you always seem to find a way to let me know that you are proud of me, too. And that you love me. It could be a brilliant rainbow that stretches across the sky. It could be your song coming on the radio. It could be a ray of light.  It could be the way your sister smiles at me and I feel you near. It could be a sweet dream of your face. It could be the powerful spirit when I am in the temple. It could be a butterfly that seems to linger, or just a sweet soft caress of breeze.  But,  if I am paying attention, you let me know. And those are my “letters” from my valiant missionary. They give me hope, peace, love and perspective. Please keep them coming, my son.

I know you have already "returned with honor" and it is now my goal to return to YOU with honor. 

“I love you” is another phrase that cannot relay the depth of my feeling. But you know. Thank goodness you know.

I’m proud of you Link. I love you. I miss you.

Love, Mommy.  

February Newsletter & Slideshow

https://picasaweb.google.com/103753336633055957263/2015_02_Slideshow

Hamilton Newsletter
February 2015

FAMILY:  February blew by! It came in like a lamb & went out like a lion! We’ve gotten quite a bit of snow the past week or so. On the 6^th, we headed over to Richfield & stayed overnight before Hayden’s baptism on Saturday, the 7^th. It was wonderful to be with family & we are so proud of Hayden for deciding to be baptized J The day before Valentines was a Friday & Jason went to North Elementary to be a watchdog.  The girls always get so excited that their daddy took the day off to go to their school. Mommy also went & helped with some Valentine’s games in Ireland’s class that day. February was a sad time for the Hamiltons as they had to say goodbye to their dear friends, the Bealers, who moved to North Dakota. We helped them clean & pack and it was sad to see their empty home where we’ve made so many memories. We will miss them so much, but are excited for them and are thankful for Skype, e-mail & FB to keep in touch! The Bensons came over the President’s Day weekend & we had a lot of fun with them – playing games, having a picnic at the cemetery, going to Discovery Park & Main Street Park, watching movies, and going swimming. Mindy was sweet to watch the girls so Jason & Heidi could go out for a Valentine’s Dinner.  The 20^th was Mahina Vogt’s birthday party at Brian Head & we were all invited! The girls had so much fun sledding, eating yummy food, getting warm by the fireplace, swimming, and having cake. That evening, the Reeds surprised us by stopping by & we had fun visiting with them. We signed up for a 5k at the end of April as a family & we have started training. We’re getting out about twice a week and are up to 2.5 miles without stopping! It hasn’t been easy, but we all agree that it’s easier than when we first started! We’ve been working hard on science projects this month as well – McKinley is doing hers on Addison Bealer’s eye condition – Retinosis Pigmentosa. Ireland is doing hers on the rate of freezing water (hot, cold, metal, etc) The rest of the month was spent doing finishing touches for our home to get on the market. Our appraisal came back higher than we expected, so that is the good news! It hit the MLS on the last day of the month & we’ve already had a few showings & one offer (though it didn’t work out). We are encouraged by the activity, though, and are praying that we find the right family for our wonderful home. We also put an official offer in with the Hatch’s home and are waiting to see if it goes through.

JASON: Jason has kept busy at work – they asked him to facilitate a workforce planning group and he did so well they wanted him to continue to be a part of the group. He also has kept busy at home getting it ready to sell – organizing our garage, building shelves, doing paint touch-ups, etc. Jason went night-skiing with the scouts at Brian Head this month & had a great time!

HEIDI: More hard work getting our home in picture-perfect condition for showing, but she’s glad that the really hard work is over and now it’s just maintaining it all J Heidi really enjoyed going out to the Little Brick House for lunch with Mindy when she was in town & visiting with her late into the night. Heidi signed up for a sprint-distance triathlon at the end of May at Sand Hollow so she is looking forward to training for that. Heidi also spent a lot of time spray-painting this month! She spray-painted the girls dresser and Aunt Al’s old (like 100 years old) bedroom set white. Though not perfect, they still turned out really cute!!

McKINLEY:
-Apparently, in 3^rd grade, it’s frowned upon if you don’t have an official “Valentine” on Valentine’s Day. So… McKinley was originally going to ask Orlando, but apparently he had already been asked, so she decided to ask A.J. instead. When mom asked what he said when McKinley asked him to be her Valentine, she said that he said “Umm… fine.” And apparently what it means to have a “Valentine” is to make them a special card. So – McKinley found out that AJ liked airplanes so she spent quite a while making a Valentine for him that said “You’re just PLANE awesome Valentine!” with hand-drawn planes & tanks inside.
-McKinley wanted to make personalized Valentines for everyone in her class this year, so she sat down and made over 30 Valentines and sealed them into letter-sized envelopes with a chocolate inside J
-We have been very impressed with McKinley’s 5k training. She was excited at first, and did very well that first time, but after that we really had to work hard to get her to come out to go for a run. It’s still not easy for her, but she’s now gone 2.5 miles without stopping and she is doing great!!
-When the Bensons came, McKinley had a good time with Zach. One night, they both were reading their scriptures together before they went to bed.
-McKiney has been bringing a little notebook to church with her & writing what she’s learned in it. We love to hear all about it at the dinner table. She also has been very good about fasting & know she is strengthening her own testimony as well as helping those she’s fasting for.
-McKinley still enjoys going to 4H and activity days!
-McKinley is already missing her friend Addison a lot. She’s already sent her a letter with some pictures inside.
-McKinley read “Magic Half” and “Magic in the Mix” by Annie Barrows this month & she LOVED them! She passed them on to mom to read & she was able to read the Magic Half & loved it, too!

IRELAND:
-One day, Ireland started saying the name of the Lord in vain L Mom asked her where she heard it & she said from the Alligator show that they were watching at Grandma Devinish’s. Unfortunately, it took a while to break her of the habit, including cayenne pepper & soap L
-Ireland is getting lots of lime tickets at school & even got called down to the office to get a treat!
-MIRACLE! Ireland went to the Discovery Park with Mahina one day & lost the jacket part of her coat L The next week, we went there & lo & behold, it was just sitting there on a post!!
-Ireland was so sweet this year. She made Valentines for each member of our family – including Link, Tundra, and each miscarriage and put it in sealed envelopes.
-Ireland always has so much fun when she gets to sleep over with her friend, Sienna. Wow! They are gigglers, though! It usually takes them till late at night before they finally calm down J
-Ireland had fun making a Home Depot boat that dad picked up for the girls. She is very good at following the directions and hammering the nails J
-It was Ireland’s month for a lunch date & she really wanted to go to Arctic Circle, so she & mom got to go while the other girls had lunch with dad at his work.

KEZIA:
-One day Ireland was cuddling with daddy when she said “Eww Dad! Your armpit smells like victory!!” (Mr. Peabody & Sherman reference) J
-One day Kezia said “Do you know what BMF” stands for? Mom said no. She said “Best Mom Forever” J
-Kezia had fun playing with her preschool friend Gabe & wanted to ask him to play at our home, but one day she came home & said he didn’t want to be her friend anymore L (apparently, he’s said this to 4 different girls in the class)
-Kezi found a Valentine’s craft book and kept us all busy doing secret crafts for everyone. She had dad help her make paper flowers for mom. And she had mom help her make salt dough hearts for dad.
-Kezia says “I always laugh when Grandpa tickles me.”

LINK:
We loved going to your bench & having a picnic this month, baby boy. We miss you & love you. We were able to do sealings in the temple & thought of you!!

NOELLE:
-This 10-month-old girl is MOBILE!! She does this kneeling/scooting thing and is now everywhere & into everything, including (but not limited to) dog food and water, cords of every kind, batteries, and dog bones. We really have to watch her near the stairs, too, as she seems interested in them.

-Noelle is so cute when she claps her feet! She loves to do it in the bath, too, and it splashes water everywhere!
-Another super-duper-adorable thing she does is the scrunchy face smile, where she scrunches up her nose and shows those cute bottom teeth. SO SO CUTE!
-When Noelle is SUPER-excited, she just shakes all over. A few things that get her this excited – Sydney the dog, Rainbow Truck the bunny, small flying helicopters, and bath time J
-Even though she still eats baby food sometimes, she is eating pretty much everything we eat now. She LOVES beans especially! Now, we just have to break her of the habit of feeding the dog, too.
-Noelle has REALLY gotten into Signing Time this past month. The minute the song comes on, she is paying attention and smiling. We are using the signs with her & think she will start to sign soon!
-She had a really hard time sleeping for a few weeks once she started getting mobile. She would roll all over & sit & stand. Finally, she seems to have figured out getting to sleep. Staying asleep took a little more work & we had to let her cry it out a few times. She is doing much better now, though and sleeping pretty much from 7pm to 7:30am!! Yay!
-She usually naps from about 10-11am and again from about 2-4pm.
-She is almost done breastfeeding – she was so distracted and would turn her head and move around & even bite. Now, we’re just down to right before she goes to sleep and right when she wakes up. She has had regular cows milk & seems to really like it!
-Her hair is really getting long! We have to pull it back into pigtails just so it doesn’t get all over & in her face! It’s also lightened up quite a bit!

January Newsletter & Slideshow

Hamilton Newsletter

January 2015

FAMILY:  Happy New Year!! 2015 sounds so futuristic, doesn’t it? For the second year in a row, we had sickies on New Years & so we couldn’t hang out with friends :( And – we all went to bed at midnight New York time to get some much-needed rest! Daddy took the girls ice skating on the 2^nd and they had a lot of fun – they LOVE to go ice skating! The older girls headed back to school on the 5^th and afterwards, we went to the park to try and soak in some vitamin D. On the 8^th, we headed up north for the 3^rd time in a month J It was all worth it, though, when we reached the amazing cabin by Bear Lake. It is a gigantic home with 9 bedrooms, a theater room, a gorgeous view, about 6 tables in the kitchen, indoor slides to each floor, and an enormous play area on the bottom floor, complete with a basketball area, an indoor trampoline, and a playground. The girls got their own room with 2 bunk beds and pink bedspreads. The next few days were spent playing, watching movies (Box Trolls, Fault in our Stars, Guardians of the Galaxy), sledding, playing games (Tiffany’s biggest fear is getting killed by a sloth) ;), doing puzzles (we stayed up till 1am one night!),playing air hockey, snowmobiling, drinking LOTS of hot cocoa, eating yummy food, going to church, doing sticker pages, watching the boys play pool downstairs, going on a 5-mile sunrise run (okay – that was just Grandpa Potts & mom), painting nails, and grabbing raspberry shakes on the way out of town! All-in-all, it was a wonderful, fabulous Potts family retreat. There was plenty of room for everyone and we all enjoyed being together. The only downers were Adam & Tiffany getting stuck on the snowmobiles (Maddy & Grace weren’t happy, either, missing their parents) :( and Ireland & Kezia not liking the raspberry shakes! The girls had a fabulous time and couldn’t stop talking about it. Mommy & Daddy had been slacking on lunch dates the past few months, so we made up for it this month! One week, daddy took Ireland to Denny’s & then DQ. Another week, mom took McKinley to Zaxby’s (a new restaurant in town), and then another week Kezi got to go with daddy to Denny’s & DQ! Whew! Glad we’re all caught up J We always have a wonderful time on our lunch dates. On the 24^th, Keeley was so good to watch the girls while Jason & Heidi did sealings for family names at the temple. It was a wonderful, educational, spiritual night! Thanks Keeley! On the 30^th, the girls had a late-over. McKinley had Lindsay Jordan over & Ireland & Kezia had Isabella & Emi. They had fun playing & watching movies. We really want to get healthy as a family this year, so we decided to sign up for a 5k at the end of April. We’ve already gone on a 2-mile run as a family & look forward to working toward this goal! We’ve been reading the book Heidi for the past few months, here and there as we can. It has been a lot of fun – Ireland is the one who picked it and she loves hearing the story of the girl of the alps J  

JASON: Jason went back to his gs9 budget analyst position this month & moved his office back to the S.O. He has worked very hard on organizing the house – building shelves in the garage and hauling things to the dump and the D.I. Jason spent a good week or so going through all our music files and making playlists to put on his new micro SD card that he got for Christmas.

HEIDI: Heidi worked hard as well – cleaning and organizing the house. That was what much of January was spent doing J She really enjoyed being with her family this month – especially seeing Tiffany who she hadn’t seen in a YEAR! Heidi did another freezer meal swap this month & she made 25 meals in 4 hours! It’s always a lot of work, but she’s so happy to have her freezer full again! The only casualty was her fingernail. She sliced the top of it off when she was using her food processor to slice potatoes. Ouch!

McKINLEY:

-McKinley has really gotten into indexing this month! Sometimes, we really have to pry her off the computer to go to bed! We know her brother is so proud of her when she indexes – and we are, too!
-At school one day McKinley asked the lunch worker a question and she got yelled at. It really hurt McKinley’s feelings and apparently, this one worker seems to yell a lot. Mom, dad & McKinley discussed it and we suggested she write a letter to her. So – McKinley wrote her a letter, thanking her for all the work she does for the students, and politely asking her to stop yelling.  She was very brave and gave it right to her. We are so proud of her and love seeing how she truly is a leader at her school.
-McKinley had SO much fun at the Bear Lake House. She said her favorite things were seeing Aunt Tiffany and riding snowmobiles.
-McKinley’s tablet just wasn’t charging this month, so we went ahead & used the warranty we bought for it and got her a new one. She was bummed that she had to re-download all her favorite apps and start over, but she’s thankful this one works so much better!
-For all of January & February, McKinley has Activity Days every Tuesday. An SUU student is helping out and McKinley has had fun seeing more of her friends from the ward!
-McKinley has REALLY loved her new CD, 1 Girl Nation. It’s got such a fun tune, and she has almost all the lyrics already memorized!

IRELAND:
-Ireland was in time out one day and she started just crying loudly. Mom came in to see what the matter was & she sobbed “I threw the boot at them & it didn’t even hit them! And so then they laughed at me!” Hmmm – mom had a difficult time trying to find empathy for that one!
-Ireland went to Isabella Daniel’s birthday party this month. They went ice skating, played games, and ate cake and ice cream. She had so much fun!
-Ireland has really been excelling at school – she’s done so well on her spelling tests. Usually over 100% & her math tests are also coming back with 100% - SUCH an improvement!!
-We are wondering just what to do about Ireland’s teeth. We met with Anderton Orthodontics and Wilson & Whetton. They both have different approaches as to what to do about the severe crowding. They also have different pricing, so we will need to make a decision soon, but we are so thankful for insurance to help with the costs!
-One night, Ireland was in a sad, difficult mood. She went off about how it wasn’t fair that Kezia could stay home and she couldn’t. Then it went to it wasn’t fair that mom and dad spent more time with Link than her while he was here and why couldn’t she be in the hospital with him. (then she started crying) Then it wasn’t fair that Link died. Then – she said it was her fault that he died because one day she said she wondered what it would be like if he died “and then I got the answer and I didn’t want it.” . Then – she said there WAS a way that we could have saved Link “by taking out someone else’s heart and guts and moving them over to him.” (this has a little bit of background since we’ve been praying for a family whose little boy finally just received a heart transplant) Then – she expressed guilt about not thinking about him very much – pushing away her feelings and guilt.    Wow. It was a lot to take in at the time. Mom tried to just let her talk and reassure her that it wasn’t her fault at all. There were tears and hugs. Ireland seemed very relieved after talking – it seemed that she had been bottling that up for a while & we are thankful that she finally talked to us about it.
-One day we were talking about Golilocks & the three bears. We said mom could be the momma bear and dad could be the daddy bear & Noelle could be the baby bear. We asked what McKinley & Kezia would be & Ireland said “They would be the illustrators!”
-Ireland was standing on Noelle’s ride-on toy behind the couch – moving around. She said “look at me mom!” – then she busted out “I got the moves like Jagger!”
-We were watching a youtube video one day and the guy was talking and we asked where they thought he was from (the answer was India). Ireland said “Texaco?”

KEZIA:
-One day we went to Walmart. Mom was trying to get a cart, but they were stuck together. Mom was pulling hard & finally it broke free, but it came forcefully & unfortunately Kezi was standing right behind it and it whacked her right in the forehead! :(
-We all enjoy Kezia’s prayers. One night she prayed “And please bless that she will choose the right by inviting me to her birthday party…” Also – every night she prays “for Link, Tundra, and all the babies, toddlers, kids, and adults and animals to be resurrected soon.” :)
-Heavenly Father must have heard her prayer, because Kezia DID get to go to a birthday party for a girl in her preschool class – Audrey.
-Whenever we have soda (rarely) or chocolate milk or any drink other than water, Kezi likes to save a bit of it & pour it into popsicle molds. We have all kinds of yummy experiments currently in our freezer :)
-Kezi got a little tiny ball maze from the birthday party that she went to. She dropped it and the ball came out. She exclaimed “Oh no! What have I done??”
-Kezia had her Kindergarten shots this month and she was SO brave! The nurses were so impressed and kept saying “Wow! She didn’t even make a face – not a peep!” She was so excited to tell her daddy & sisters how brave she was.

LINK:
Aunt Deb was so sweet and bought a 12x12 original painting of a rainbow, here’s what she said about it:
There was a little Laotian man selling a few of his paintings in a family restaurant that Larry and I were eating at. They were all landscapes with trees, trails, etc., but when I saw the one with the rainbow I immediately thought of Link. He said that he hadn't been painting for long because when he lived in Laos, he didn't know that he could paint. He had just recently started to paint rainbows and this was his favorite because it showed the entire rainbow, except that he asked if I knew that rainbows were actually circles. He said that if we were in the water, we might be able to see the entire circle, without beginning or end. Pretty awesome, and meant for your family. Love you guys!
Heidi also wrote a blog that was well-received & was able to share some ideas about how loved ones could bring up our angel children & let us talk about them. Had a few people tell us how much Link’s story means to them, which was very sweet.

NOELLE:
-9 months old!! Her 9 month appointment went well. She is growing & progressing well! :)
-She is still quite a mommy’s girl. It’s so cute when mom is around someone Noelle doesn’t know, she will just put her head on mommy’s chest and just kind of suspiciously glance over at the stranger.
-Noelle fully has 2 little teeth out and tall! They are sharp chompers, too!
-She definitely has been gravitating toward “real” food & not liking the baby food as much. She loves mac n’ cheese, tortillas, and rice.
-Another favorite of Noelle is the dishwasher. If she’s fussy, just stand her up by the open dishwasher & she will usually calm right down. She loves pulling things out and moving the utincil container up & down.
-Mom has to keep Noelle’s fingernails pretty short – she loves to scrape mommy’s face!
-Noelle is getting to be a strong stander. She can stand all by herself for 10 seconds! And she’s soclose to taking  that first step. She still doesn’t love her tummy. She will get up on all fours, but she doesn’t really like to go anywhere & soon she’ll go down to her tummy & start crying.
-She did go down the sledding hill a few times at the Bear Lake cabin – so fun!
-She also got to hang out with her two cousins that will be in her grade – Grace & Caden.
-After we got back from the cabin, mom decided it was time for Noelle to graduate from the Guardian Sleeper to the sleep sack. The first few nights were rough – she woke up a lot & wasn’t used to not being strapped in. Also – the Snuza kept falling off with all of her movement all over the crib until Anna suggested that we fold her diaper down & that’s helped a lot. Now, she is pretty used to the sleep sack & likes to sleep on her tummy. That was hard for mom to get used to for a while, but she sleeps better that way & with the Snuza on, it gives peace of mind.
-Noelle has pretty much given up her 3^rd nap for the day & goes down usually about 9:30 and about 1pm.
-She still loves talking and makes the “t” sound a lot.
-If there is something she’s really excited about, she will just kind of squeal & shake all over – like McKinley’s tiny helicopter she got for Christmas. It’s hard to tell if she’s scared or excited, but it’s so cute!
-She is liking Signing Time more & more. When the song comes on at the beginning, she is definitely paying attention – and will usually watch one whole 30 minute DVD without complaint :)
-Mom spent a LOT of time going through clothes for Noelle last month – we found 2 containers of 12-18 month clothes & it took a while to go through them all, but thankfully the cutest ones are now in her closets and drawers & she has a LOT of them! The fun ones are the ones that all the girls have worn. It’s so fun to see her in them.
-Noelle is a momma’s girl, but she LOVES seeing her daddy when he gets home & she just wants to go to him immediately. It’s so cute.
-Mornings are so fun with Noelle. After her oldest sisters head to school, mom & Kezia get to sing songs, read books, and do finger games with Noelle. We LOVE our Noelle-my-belle!