The Hamilton Rainbow

I'll always remember the day that we told the girls that we were having another baby. We purposely waited a long time to tell them. Things were really busy at the time because the older girls were wrapping up their last few weeks of school, we were preparing for the Halloween excitement as well as a mini-vacation with grandparents. We felt that it was best to share our news on a relaxing weekend after the girls had tracked out of school and the festivities were finished.

November 3 was the day. We both knew it but we both were dreading it because we just didn't know how to do it. I know we're both creative and dramatic people and I thought that we should be able to at least come up with one interesting and cute way to tell our girls but after several days of much thought, we had nothing! Finally, in the early evening, Bryan had brought the girls into the front living room and pulled out the pipe cleaners, all in different colors. He and the girls started forming them into little people. I was in the kitchen and I figured out his cute pipe-cleaner-plan of how to tell the girls. I quickly prayed that God would reveal His insight and wisdom as we approached this special revelation and instantly the story of Noah came to my mind.


As we finished our rainbow of seven little people, Bryan and I explained how much God loves us and how He showed His love when He created the rainbow promise for Noah. We pointed out how interesting it was that although God created a multitude of colors, He only chose those select seven colors to be put together for this special promise so many years ago. They served a specific purpose and they needed each other to fulfill that special, God-designed purpose for the world. We went on to say that God has done the same thing for our family. As we designated each little pipe cleaner person to a person in our family, we came down to the last one and declared, "So who is this one? They are with us right now! Where is this person?"

There were many responses. Tori suggested "It's God!" (Luckily we made a white character too and put it over our rainbow to show that He was watching over us and was the one who put us together.) Finally, Kayli guessed, "You're pregnant?!" But even though we smiled and nodded at her response, Tori still persisted on guessing..."Is it Molly?" (our cat)! We told her to listen to Kayli because she guessed the right answer. When Tori and Sydni figured it out they just sat there with a silly, half-dazed, trying-to-register-it look on their faces until at once they both sprung up and began chanting, "A baaaby, a baaaby, we're having a baaaby!" Needless to say, it went very well and everyone was excited.

Later, when asked if they all wanted another sister or a brother, they all emphatically agreed that a sister was definitely what needed to happen. Sydni even proclaimed, "Oh no, if we have a boy...I'll.....I'll call the police! I want it to be a girl!" I guess they knew the plans.

We're all excited to meet her! Now....just to figure out another girl name ending with an "i."

KTM Girls Spa

Kayli and her friend (and next door neighbor) Monique decided to start a fresh, new spa salon. Below is an advertisement for their spa services with extensive demonstrations of technique and reviews from their raving customers (Tori and Sydni). Call soon to book an appointment for similar treatment because after releasing this stellar announcement, available spots will surely be booking up weeks in advance!

Who is it?

Naomi has taken an interest in drawing faces, particularly in the bathtub with soap crayons. We discovered the other night that she's quite accurate in her depictions of people and I guess tonight she's gotten good at drawing sharks too.

You want me to touch that?!

We had a great time carving pumpkins this year. The girls each picked their own patterns and then used a template to poke holes along the lines of the printed template into the face of the pumpkin. They cleaned them out themselves and Mom carved them while Dad put together costumes. Here's the video of the festivities and Naomi's refusal to even come close to the icky innards of the pumpkin!

At the end of this clip is Naomi's most recent gimic: She now claims that she is 4, just like Sydni. She'll often argue the point for several minutes back and forth with Sydni saying, "I'm FOUR!" and Sydni will respond with, "No, you're ONE!" And they both giggle and say over it again and again.

The Girls

Here's a bonus clip of the other three hammettes!

Shake It Baby, Shake It!

Naomi has official joined her sisters in the quest for her own 10 minutes in the lime-light. She has much competition and it is rare to catch her performing all by herself. (It took me a week to get this clip of her and still she's accompanied by back-up singers!)

Enjoy this little glance into the window of Naomi Faith's adorable, sweet and fun-loving personality. I am so blessed to see this joy in her everyday as she grows more and more playful and fun to be around. She is such a sweetheart!

Tricks & Treats

The girls on our porch just before trick-or-treating!
(click it to see it better)

Kayli's - Lion, Tori's -Cat, Sydni's -Spider and Naomi's -Jack O'Lanturn

It sure was a trick trying to dress, paint, feed and direct four excited girls on Halloween night while droves of trick-or-treaters swarmed to our house. We were entirely unprepared for the amount of people and the fact that they would start coming by as early as 6pm, before it was even dark! Amidst eating their dinner and slipping into their costumes, the girls would clamber to the door every time the bell rang while shrieking, "Trick-or-Treaters are here!!" It took us nearly an hour just to get everyone dressed to go out! Half of our 3 bags of candy was already given out. Even then, while taking the pictures on the porch, people were waiting in line for treats behind the camera!

Leopard Tori & Martian Kayli
The treat of the night was seeing all the girls, including Naomi, race from house to house. Naomi insisted on carrying her own bag and running along beside her sisters. She was so cute and at each door she'd say, "Treats please!"

It was also a treat to see all of the different kids and costumes. The lights in the streets were just enough to see everyone. The girls really enjoyed seeing so many other kids dressed up. This was the first year we were able to see that in our own neighborhood!

Minnie Naomi & Sleeping Beauty Sydni
The night turned tricky again when we returned home after an hour of walking most of our neighborhood. First we discovered that someone had stolen our cute spider candy bowl which we had left out for kids to take the rest of our candy while we were making our rounds.

Then, we wanted to see one neighbor's decorated house in an area we had not yet visited but we were all tired and cold. So we decided to drive down to check it out. It was really neat with blow-up spiders and monsters, signs and music playing. We drove back home with the girls munching candy in the back seat, tired from their adventures of the night.

Sydni, Kayli, Tori and Naomi
Everything went fine until we tried to open our garage door. I think the trick was not to lock your garage door opener from the inside before leaving to go somewhere! Or maybe the trick was not to leave your house key inside the house and relying on the garage door opening before leaving. Either way, it was not a nice combination of tricks to play on two tired parents on Halloween night! We were thankful for the good weather last week, the treat of discovering an unlocked side window and Tori's climbing abilities! She really saved the day.

Falling Leaves...Painting Leaves

Maddie, Naomi, Laura and Sydni

The girls had such a fun time this year with the fallen leaves. They really have never been able to experience true fall because of hot and non-deciduous Florida. It is so beautiful here with the leaves changing into so many shades. I had forgotten just how spectacular the changing leaves can be because I have not seen it for such a long time. We are also blessed to be in a neighborhood filled with trees. It is breathtaking to be able to sit at our kitchen table and look out at the multicolored scenery from outside our sliding glass doors.

Naomi and Laura

Maddie and Sydni

When the trees began to loose their first leaves, I took Naomi and Sydni (and the two girls I babysit) out to collect some leaves. We got the idea to make some fall pictures and they had a great time painting the leaves (and themselves). Later, the older girls took the dried leaves and glued them to make a fall picture. Everyone had a great time. All I have to say is thank goodness for washable paint, warmer fall weather and a spray nozzle on the hose!

Naomi Faith

Smithsonian Zoo Monkey

Tori, Kayli and Sydni (click to see it close-up)

During a recent family vacation to DC, we spent some time at the Smithsonian Zoo. It's become our favorite closest zoo considering the North Carolina Zoo is located about an hour and a half from us and once you get there you basically need to walk outside for another hour and a half to actually see any living animals.

While at the zoo in DC, we were fortunate enough to capture some rare documentation of a monkey in the primates exhibit building. We are told that this species of monkey can have sporadic behavior and it is hard to know what to expect when in the presence of such a rare species! After observing her for a while, I'd have to say that assessment is correct! :)

Naomi Faith - 19 months
(click to see the close-up -she's such a character!)

Welcome Oreo!

Bunny love at first sight!

After much research, many months of parental convincing and anticipation, Kayli has adopted a new friend, Oreo the bunny!

Oreo is a year-old Holland Lop Bunny whose previous occupation was as a class pet in a first grade classroom. Unfortunately, Oreo needed to make a career change because of the change in the school policy which no longer allows pets in the classrooms. Fortunately for us, we snatched her up as soon as we saw her posted on Craigslist!


Oreo is well loved and is successfully performing her current role in our home of thoroughly entertaining my girls and their friends. She is quite lovable, soft and cute. She enjoys eating flowers, bananas and paper towel rolls. Her favorite pastimes are rearranging her cage contents, upsetting her food bowl, overturning her litter box, munching flowers, hopping around outside on her leash (yes, she does have a little rabbit harness and leash of which I will need to post pictures of later as it is quite humorous, especially when Bryan holds it) and of course, being loved and cuddled by Kayli!

Friday Night - Movie Night

Last week's feature film: Chicken Run

Tori, Naomi and Sydni

I don't know about anyone else, but after a week of school, work, babysitting, etc. we're all really zonked! Friday nights are our time to unwind, relax and hang around the house. Ultimately, each week we've developed the tradition of the "Friday Night Movie Night." This is the part of the night when we scramble into some jammies, dim the lights, grab a big bowl of popcorn and while cuddling up with a big blanket, we pop in one of our favorite movies. The more recent titles include, "Ella Enchanted, Wizard of Oz, Princess Diaries, Chicken Run, Finding Nemo" or as in last night, "Labyrinth." Sometimes we have friends over (like we did last night) and sometimes it's just us girls; either way we have a good time laughing with the funny times, cuddling during the sad times or shaking and squealing during the spooky times.

This week's feature film: Labyrinth
Left to Right: Kayli, Jack, Sydni, Hanna and Tori, Monique (in back) and Naomi (in front)

A Cousin at Last!

Presenting the beautiful Ella Ruth

Kayli, Tori, Sydni, Naomi and Ella

Ella Ruth was happily welcomed by our girls for a visit last month. They couldn't keep their hand off her! Seeing Uncle Jason and Aunt Laurie was great too and we're so proud of the awesome job they are both doing at caring for their sweet baby girl. It is a relief to know that we're not the only ones in the family to have girls!

We were so thankful to see our new little niece. It was a great time and we look forward to another family reunion soon. Just think, this time next year we might just have another little girl to add to the line. (That is if Uncle Nathan and Aunt Ann follow through with the Hamilton tradition of only producing girls!) ;) Yeah girls!

Bunny Ears

Ella - just can't get enough of her!

How strong?

Snippets of a conversation with Sydni in efforts to reassure her of safety at bedtime last night:

Sydni: "Mommy, are you really strong?"

Mommy: "Yes, Sydni, I am really strong."

Sydni: "Is Daddy stronger?"

Mommy: "Yes, Daddy is even stronger than me! But do you know who is the strongest?"

Sydni: "God!"

Mommy: "You're right!"

Sydni: "God is strong all the way to the sky!"

Mommy: "Even farther! He's stronger than everyone on the earth put all together!"

Sydni: (long thoughtful pause...) "God is strong all the way to heaven!"

Mommy: "Even farther than that!"

Sydni: (another long thoughtful pause...) "God is strong all the way to Africa!"

Mommy: (laughing) "Yes, Sydni, He's strong all the way to Africa...and farther!"

*I think it's so awesome that God can remind us, even through our kids' eyes, how infinitely strong and powerful He really is. I'm glad His strength protects me too!

The Law of Chocolate Attraction

It's the law of chocolate attraction; for every adorable outfit, there is an equally proportioned chocolatety mess to wreck it.
*Note: this is the same outfit previously potentially ruined in our last chocolate escapade.*



So you ask, "How did she get so messy?"

Yes, that's a family-sized bottle of Hershey's chocolate syrup being used as a little artistic TV snack for Naomi.


And yes, I did get it all out with the steam cleaner. But I had to take the pictures to save myself from anger. Good thing I did because after I stripped her and washed her up, she ran upstairs and decorated her legs with markers (sigh).

Chick-Fil-A Party Animals

I love Chick-Fil-A! They are the best fast food option around and honestly, the only fast food option that actually stays down!

I went to meet the girls after school one day by the pool. Tori, Kayli and her friend Monique ran up to the car excitedly and they were trying to communicate something to me. It was difficult to understand because they were all talking at once and they were eating something at the same time. Between the ramblings of a large cow, free food and their munching, I was able to figure out that a brave (or well-paid) Chick-Fil-A employee had clambered into a cow suit for the last hour of carpool time at the school. There he or she stood, outside in the searing July heat, waving to cars, hugging released and excited kids and handing out free chicken strips. You couldn't have paid me enough!

The girls had brought with them an invitation to the restaurant's "kids week" events. They were especially interested in a party they were hosting later that week featuring the well-known and widely-adored Webkinz giveaway! The girls were beside themselves to think that they could actually win a Webkinz just by going to this party. Each one had themselves convinced that they would be the lucky winner. Tori was guessing which ones would be given away, Monique was counting the ones she already had and making room for more, and Kayli was already picking out name possibilities. After all, how many kids in Garner could really convince their parents to take them to a Chick-Fil-A Webkinz giveaway?!

A whole lot. I've never seen so many exuberant children packed into that tiny Chick-Fil-A! Thank goodness I lured the girls inside when we got there as the party was just beginning. We fell right into the 5-kid-long face painting line just in time because as I stood there with Naomi in her stroller piled with the already-adopted Webkinz of the 4 girls, picking out which exotic look Sydni wanted for her face, dozens (with no exaggeration) of children piled in line behind us! Of course, the older girls were immediately filling out the forms to register for the five Webkinz drawings that would take place over the course of the evening. We were in for a night of fun!

After 3 butterflies and 1 penguin were painted, we turned to go to the outdoor activities only to find that the line now reached from one end of the store to the sidewalk outside. Outside was much more refreshing and had a little more space. There were about 6 mock-carnival activities (beanbag toss, soccer ball kick, baseball throw, etc) but since no Webkinz prizes were involved, neither were the older three girls. And then it happened - the first announcement of the Webkinz winner! The excitement drained from each face as the winner's name was announced. Sadly, we played another round of toss the beanbag.

The girls began enjoying themselves a little more when the DJ started to play some kids dance songs. Kayli and Tori got right up and jived with the few confident people brave enough to dance. They cut the music after a while and alas - the next winner! This time they gave away 2 Webkinz; neither one went to my girls! I thought it would be a good time to grab some food so we burrowed through the crowd again to the lines at the registers.

I have to say that if it weren't for the incredibly fast and most obliging employees at Chick-Fil-A that night, I would not have carried so much as a French Fry out of that place. No one could move and I was getting claustrophobic. I opted for the only system that worked: I ordered and they delivered. We sat at a table outside and everything went very well as we ate and watched the people dance. The fourth winner was called at 7 after we finished eating. Again, no luck. So, I made a collective decision and called it a night. They would have had to wait around for another half hour with nothing else to do just to hear that last name (out of hundreds of names). Also, although I was impressed with Naomi's patience in the stroller up until now, I was not willing to take any more of a chance on her for that last half hour.

The girls shared in their disappointment about not getting a Webkinz but yet they agreed that the night was enjoyable in other ways. They loved their new looks and we have pictures to prove it. I just wonder what would have happened if one of them won a Webkinz? Collective contentment or deeper disappointment? I guess we'll never know.

The Hamilton Princesses

Naomi Faith on July 2, 2008

Kayli Joy & Naomi Faith

Tori Grace & Naomi Faith



Sydni Hope & Naomi Faith

"Fun" in the Sun

It all started with the long, cumbersome expedition of picking up a new but used bedroom set for Kayli. After making several silly assumptions, we realized we should really never again assume anything, even basic previously established facts, when picking up used furniture on a hot, hot, hot day in July with four daughters and two vehicles.

Assumption #1: When picking up furniture, we will be able to retrieve all items from a nice lady's storage unit in a timely and somewhat effortlessly manner. (She neglected to tell us that the queen bed, mattress, dresser and nightstand were located with in a unit which was inside and upstairs and through a winding maze of hallways.)

Assumption #2: Taking furniture out of storage should be easy because after all, "It's all in the front of the unit..." (except for the mattress which was, you guessed it, in the very, very back behind every last box she owned. I guess the responsibility to move and replace every item in the unit in efforts to retrieve the mattress was just a bonus for buying the furniture at such a great deal. And yes, this was all accomplished while also attempting to entertain our girls. I guess our superhuman strength and talent are no longer a secret!)

Assumption #3: When placing furniture in the back of a sinfully large SUV, it will fit! (Well, at least the main pieces fit and we just ended up tying the mattress to the top! Note: The idiocracy of this assumption should be solely absorbed by me (Teresa); no part therein should be attributed to my more-realistic and better half .

Assumption #4: After hoisting an impossibly heavy queen mattress and box spring to the top of a sinfully large SUV, an industrial-grade ratcheting belt should hold it steady until we arrive home safely. (We only had to stop once but the bad news was that the mattress slid off and we had to muster enough strength to hoist it on top once again. And when I say "we" I mean "Bryan." I guess only one of us has superhuman strength!)

Assumption #5: Our children will be the epitome of patience and appreciation while we perform our parental duties of provision. (This was entirely accurate. We have awesome, fun-loving, make-the-best-out-of-it girls who looked after each other during this whole process with the most minimal of correction. This day made me proud of them.)

As a reward for us all, we stopped by Cook Out for some shakes on the way home. Naomi shared the remainder of her sister's chocolate chip shake and basically dressed herself with it for the last 10 minutes of the ride home. (Bryan was thrilled as she was riding in his car which he just had washed the day before.) While she finished donning the remaining chocolate chips, we swung her car door open and left her buckled in the now brownish, gooey seat so we could get the new furniture out of the SUV.

Naomi was as happy as a puppy playing in the mud, and that is sure what she looked like when she was done. We approached her carefully, in case she felt like sharing, and I unbuckled her seat from the car. Bryan took one side and I took the other side and we carried her, still buckled in the seat and grinning ear to ear, over to the hose outside. I didn't realize how easily the chocolate would come off such a messy seat and girl with the jet control on the hose nozzle. She was so excited about being sprayed that we just had to hook up the pool too. And this is how we ended our grand adventure.