Wishing Upon A Star

It was MAGICAL from start to finish.

It was Beautiful waking up to this each morning.
It was Deliciously good.


It was Surreal.

It was Relaxing at times.

And Exhausting at others.

It was Memorable.

It was Lucky we had such patient family members who rode on Small World

again

and again

and again.

It was Charming.

It was Exciting.

It was Thrilling.

It was Wonderful.

It was just plain Fun.

We are so glad we had this Magical, Beautiful, Delicious, Surreal, Relaxing, Exhausting, Lucky, Charming, Exciting, Thrilling, Wonderfully Fun trip. Thanks to Papa who is the king of planning amazing trips for his family, he made "Our Dreams Come True"!

R.O.S.I.E

R- EADY to help at anytime, Rosie is defiantly Mommy's helper. She is such a charming companion, I love taking her places....even if that place is just the laundry room. Rosie is the first to offer help and don't worry, SHE CAN DO IT "MYSHELF".

O-WIES seem to plague Rosie! She loves to wear "Bam-Baids" and will find the smallest bruise, cut, scrape or scar just to put a bambaid on it. Whenever it is time for bed, these owies magically flair up, making it impossible for her to sleep. At which point, she must have a new bambaid over the old one, hugs, kisses, cuddling, another story, a drink, a phone call to Nana (you get the jest).

S-WEET beyond compare, Rosie melts every one's heart she knows. She says the sweetest things, here are a few she said this week:

To Max: "I LOVE YOU SO BAD MACKY MACKY!","You are so 'bpecial bpecial' to me"

To Nana: "I love you at my house!"

To Me: "Mommy, you're the BEST Mommy", "I Love you're pretty pony-tail Mommy"

I-LA! Anyone who knows Rosie, also knows "Ila" (Rosie's baby). Rosie is such a nurturing soul and really needed someone to Mother. Ila goes just about everywhere with us and is never far away. Conveniently, when Max is hungry, so is Ila. When Max is tired, Ila needs a nap too. And, when Rosie wants another cookie, Ila is starving. Ila is even naughty once in a while and has to go to time-out. I have so enjoyed watching Rosie care for Ila. I realized quickly that it is a reflection of how I mother. Needless to say, I have changed my tone on more than one occasion after I hear Rosie correcting Ila!

E-NERGETIC to say the least, Rosie seems to be going all of the time. She yearns to be bigger and can't wait for her birthday in December (in fact, she has been telling us that "my birthdays tummin' up" since May). She gets so excited about the simple things in life and makes day to day stuff fun. I feel so blessed to have this beautiful, fun, sweet and spicy girl as my companion throughout the day. Thank Heaven For Little Rosie's!

Go UTES

Recipe for a Successful Football Game with Children:

yield: 3 1/2 hours of mostly fun

3 servings of well rested children

1 group of very patient seat neighbors

1 pair binoculars (travel size)

3 tasty beverages

2 red & white pom-poms

1 hot dog

1 package Red Vine's

1 BBQ chicken sandwhich (with chips)

1 package cotton candy

1 serving of Aunt Cindy

4 skydivers who land on the field

3 bathroom breaks

1 peppy marching band

1 soft & cozy Utah blanket

Mix above ingredients and serve with 78 degree weather with a pinch of cloud cover.

note: does not guarantee a win for the Utes.

JUST MARRIED

Congratulations to Uncle Patrick who married the very beautiful and charming Camille on September 7th!

Here is some martial advice guaranteed to bring you years of happiness:

Steal a kiss whenever possible.
Show love and affection for one another often.

Mom & Dad are usually always right (and are the best grandparents EVER).


Take time for personal reflection.

Never fight on an empty stomach.

Take turns leading and following.

Remember, two heads are better than one.

And always get plenty of rest!

We love you Pat and wish you nothing but the best; you truly deserve it! Welcome to the clan Camille, we are thrilled to have you!

9

Max is 9 months old! It's hard to believe this little guy has only been in our family for that long-It seems like he's always been with us. Max has many tricks, and we are fans of them all, here are a 9 "MAX FAX"' for your reading enjoyment:
1-Max can wave-he waves hi, bye, to music, when he is mad or to express excitement
(Max waving "hello" for himself & baby Owen)
2-Max is HUGE! He is off the charts for his height and 95% for his weight, which is one of the reasons we named him Max. At a 10 pound 2 ounce birth weight he was defiantly the Max and has lived up to his name ever since.
(Max at roughly 5 minutes old...already selling tickets to his gunshow)

3-So naturally, MAX loves to eat....anything. He seems to favor sweet things (no idea where he picked that up from).

(he thinks I am going to give him more cookies)

4-Max has two sisters who love him....sometimes a little too much! They are his other mothers' and think they know what's best. At first, I thought he was growing tired of their constant attention. When my Mom took the girls for a little Nana Trip and it was just Max and I, he was depressed. For the first day or two he would look for them, call for them, not knowing where they were. He eventually grew to enjoy his parent's constant attention, and was excited at their return.

5-Max is a climber. He finally got the crawling thing down and now nothing will stop him. Like most new explorers, he is in to everything. He will not rest until every drawer, cupboard, basket, closet, or staircase has been properly surveyed.
6-"He's a Tiger", "WoW! That kid knows what he wants", "Is he always this active?", "Your gonna have your hands full with that little guy", "He's All Boy" and the list goes on and on. Even as a young baby, MAX has been determined. We remind ourselves daily that we really do like that about him, even when he is throwing a total fit because he isn't getting his way.
(Max really wanted a piece of that pinata!)
7-MAX loves the great outdoors. He lives for the swing and loves to cruise around in his wagon.
8-MAX has always been all smiles. He will smile at anyone and has a special way of making all of us feel loved. Ladies at church will brag about the way they can get a smile out of Max (I don't have the heart to tell them that he smiles at everyone). He even smiles (and hums) in his sleep.

9- Yes, it's true, We love Max! We are blessed to have this smiley, slightly mischievous, all boy baby in our home. Happy 9 months Max Lee Hamblin!

Slip Slidin' Away

Summer is near it's end and I have to say it's been a fun one! We have swam ourselves silly-


Tubed, played on wave runners, Tubed, played on the beach, Tubed, rode on the boat......

Celebrated the 4th of July in style in Park City at the Annual Halliday Family Summer Reunion,

Hosted many delightful backyard parties in our new house,

And simply enjoyed those lazy summer days of blowing up the inflatable swimming pool and consuming way to many "uncle pops" .


Yes, I am mourning a summer that is "slip slidin' away" as Paul Simon wrote; but it's more than just missing popsicles and swimsuits. I am mourning because it's the end of a wonderful chapter in our oldest child's life. At the end of the month, Elizabeth will be starting kindergarten.....life will be different. I know it will be fun, new and exciting; but it will never be the same. So, I plan on soaking up these last precious days of summer bliss! Happy Summer Everyone!