The past few weeks have been filled with great memories. We had a very fun and very much appreciated visit from my Mom and sister. Here are some highlights of their time with us.
My sister (the self-proclaimed Queen of Everything) attracts royalty wherever she goes!
We visited Hampton Court (home of King Henry VIII) and Windsor Castle. Ashley hoped to have a personal tour from the Queen, but she was away that day.
We played 'Who's that Statue of?'.
Mom learned how to make collect calls.
We took a tour of the Houses of Parliament.
We took 3 kinds of tours through London: by car (we survived my driving!), on foot (with me as an amateur tour guide), and by boat (I happily let the professional take over).
I had fun showing off some great sites to Mom and Ashley. Good memories were made!
But, the best memories were made while Jon, Lizzie and I were in California and Mom and Ashley took care of the girls.
The week could not have gone better and I've had fun talking to the girls about all the fun they had with Granma and Aunt Ashley! Not only did my Mom clean my house (thanks!), make meals, get the girls ready for school, get them ready for bed, do the laundry, help with homework, and dry lots of tears, there were also: sleepovers, homemade cookies, movie night, special treats brought from America, walks, visits to the Model Village, picnics, reading books and playing with impossibly small Polly Pockets! No wonder they're looking forward to visiting Granma in August!
And what did Jon, Lizzie and I do in California?
Well, we enjoyed the sunshine while looking at close to 100 houses. And although 99% of them did not make it to the final list, we only needed one. We close on our new house the middle of July!
A few hours after we flew back to England we went to Family Fun Day at the girls' school, where Ray got her face painted like a cat.
But wait! There's more! We still have to celebrate Hannah's birthday! Hannah's been talking about Granma coming for her birthday for at least 3 months! Hannah was ready for her cake and presents as soon as Granma walked through the door her first day here. After much patience, her big day finally arrived.
For her birthday, we visited a Safari drive-through park where the animals roam free.
She made it almost all the way through the park before getting sick. Totally, completely, utterly SICK. It was a long one hour drive home with a lot of clean up afterwards. She barely held her head up while we showed her the birthday cake and all the presents that had to wait until the next day (the day that Granma and Ashley flew home!)
Thank you, Mom and Ashley, for helping make a big task possible! Thanks for everyone's prayers, especially my sister's whose faith is as big as her heart.
9 comments:
Such great adventures! Your new house looks really nice. Your kids have been living quite the fairy tale life for the past year. What will they think when they have to come back to the boring US. Your creativity will have to stretch to new heights! You won't have a problem though. You manage to keep them entertained quite well.
Congratulations Hamiltons! What an exciting time for you. Your new house looks gorgeous!
Let us know if you're in gurnee.
Your new home looks beautiful. All the best to you during the move and the transition back to the States.
Beautiful home. I'm so glad you found something. I am also thrilled that your mom and sister came to England and got to experience another country with you! Getting so excited to see you!!
Wow! Your year went fast for me! What exotic adventures will I read about without you in England? Your Cali- house looks awesome! (Actually the SUNSHINE looks awesome...) Hope all goes a little smoother than the last move.
Your new house looks FANTASTIC!!! I love it. The yard is beautiful. Congratulations to Jon on his new position - that is really great. So fun that your mom and sister could come and visit. Your family deserves all good things. Good luck with all your upcoming changes, and welcome back to $4 gas. :)
Love the house. Where is it. It looks adorable (and not small at all.) I can't wait to hear details.
Congratulations on the house!!! We can't wait to visit you there!!(Sent's the last time we came to your house was when you lived in Provo:)
We couldn't be happier for you guys, and after talking with Jon tonight, it sounds like everything is just falling right into place. The house looks beautiful--especially that kitchen! Good luck getting EVERYTHING done these next two weeks. I can only imagine all you have to do.
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