2015: A Year of HOPE. 2016: A Time for HOPE.

If there's one word that carried me through 2015, it's hope. Thinking back on this time last year, we were so ready for a new year after a year of losses of loved ones and our first baby. New Year's Eve is not usually a favorite time for me - for some reason it makes me sad to say farewell to a year and be nostalgic - but saying goodbye to 2014 was easy to do. 

Fast forward a year. 2015 is coming to an end in a few hours, and it has been a a good year and a year of hope for many reasons. We entered the year praying God would provide a way for us to become parents, and He did. We prayed that this pregnancy would "stick", and it did. And although we have had so many ups and downs over the last 15 weeks, we focused on different verses of scripture that centered around one recurring theme: hope. Through all of the trials lately, we have remained hopeful. The Lord has great things in store for us and for our baby girl, and 2016 will be incredible - I just know it. 

So with that, I'll leave 2015 with the announcement of our baby girl's name: Hope Annette. Because we can all use a little HOPE for 2016!

Blessings and hope to you all in the new year! 

The Hamiltons  

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

- Jeremiah 29:11

Showered with love!

I still can't believe I had a baby shower...for a sweet baby girl, no less...but that's exactly what happened on Sunday afternoon! My cousin Heather, best friends Lesley and Lindsey, and cousin's wife Megan hosted the most beautiful, Lilly Pulitzer-themed shower for me and our baby girl in my hometown in Florida. And I got to see so many friends and family members on top of it all. It was perfect!

One excited mama-to-be before the shower! 

The decor was gorgeous, especially those flowers!

The guests signed the mat around the Lilly-themed invite, which will go in the nursery.

Shower hostesses and my cousin's daughter

Me and my mommy!

This darling garland Lesley made of Lilly fabric will go in baby's nursery!

Lilly-esque cake! And the top layer was gluten free = perfection. 

High school friends!

Three generations (four if you count baby!)

We got a LOT of cute loot! 

So many people who love us. Delicious shower goodies (including GF cake) and punch. Too many adorable pink things. Old friends, family who drove hours to be there, and multiple generations in one room. It was the perfect day! We are feeling so, so, so blessed in every way. 

Next up: get this stuff home to South Carolina! :)

xo

KH

Chomp chomp: a day at The Swamp

Living in South Carolina the last 6 years, I've only had a few opportunities I make it to a home football game in Gainesville to cheer on the Gators. This past weekend was one of them, and for a very special reason: my grandfather was the honorary captain for the homecoming game against Vandy!

Baby's first trip to The Swamp!!!

It was the 30th anniversary of the Florida Dairy Farmers sponsoring Gator Athletics - the longest running sponsor - so the athletic department made a big to-do and honored the organization, including my 91-year-old Grandpa (who is still "dairying") and my Dad, who is currently serving on the board. I couldn't miss this so it was well worth the 6 hour drive from Columbia to Gainesville!

Grandpa on the field for the coin toss

My dad and the rest of the board were honored during the first quarter (that's them in the corner of the field)

It was SUCH a fun day in one of my favorite places in the world! I got to see the majority of my cousins and their kids, my aunts and uncles, dad and stepmom, brother and of course, my Grandpa. I even got to sit in the box with my Grandpa for most of the game, which was special :)

And of course, no trip to Gainesvegas would be complete without a stay at my bestie's house! I got to hang with Lesley and her husband Chris and kiddos, and we had a blast. Catching up in person is so much better than FaceTime or the phone!

A special treat was seeing my college roommate Grace on Sunday morning for breakfast! I haven't seen this girl in at least 5 years and she made a special trip from Orlando to Gainesville to see me. It's even more fun because she is also pregnant and our babies are due just 5 days apart! It's a race to see who will deliver first! 

My old roomie! And our babies got to "meet" for the first time :)

Just like old times in Gainesville!

Sadly, all fun weekends come to an end and I had to make the long trip home Sunday afternoon. Lucky for me, my brother rode back up with me to give this pregnant lady a break from driving!

Such a fun weekend of celebrations, family and old friendships!

xo
KH

Five on Friday: National Lampoon's Texas Adventure

A few days after Christmas, the hubs and I trekked to Texas with my entire family on my Mom's side.  Our family business in Florida purchased a ranch there a few years ago; we have beef cattle on it, but also host hunters who come for paid deer hunts. I'd never been to the property before - which is about an hour and a half into the middle of nowhere from Abilene - so I was excited to see our investment and spend time with the family (20 people staying in 2 houses on the ranch).

Let me begin by saying that this trip was planned to celebrate my Papa's 85th birthday, and that we did do. However, there were a lot of things that made this family vacay memorable...thus why I've dubbed it "National Lampoon's Texas Vacation."

One. The numbers:

4: number of generations
20: number of family members

85: oldest

7: youngest 

8: number of toilets (thankfully) 

3: nights we planned to stay

5: nights we actually stayed 

1: number of winter storms that came through while we were there 

8+: honestly I lost count, but at least 8 deer were killed

16: number of coyotes killed

Two. When you've got four generations under one roof, what's a better way to pass the time than cards and pool? Seeing my 85-year-old Papa play with his great-grandchildren was a great memory.

Three. Shooting predators (ahem, coyotes) from a helicopter. Yep. You read that correctly. I didn't do any shooting other than with my camera, but the ride and views were ahhh-mazing.

Four. I like big bucks and I cannot lie. The deer on our property are HUGE. I'm not a hunter myself but I love to watch these guys in their element. Though plenty of family members left with trophies, if you catch my drift.

Five. Nothing like a good, old-fashioned winter storm - named Frona, which I swear should have been a character in Frozen - to mess up your plans! We were supposed to fly home on the 31st and ring in the new year in Florida. But we ended up getting stuck in TX until the 2nd. And during those two extra times, a few critical things happened: we ran out of bottled water. Then we ran out of well water. No showers for a day until the well could replenish itself. (Twenty people with no showers trapped in a house...dangerous). Then we ran out of vodka (help!!). The closest grocery store was 40 MILES away and we couldn't get there because the roads were so bad. Luckily, the resident taxidermist (doesn't everyone have one of those??) brought us the essentials - bottled water, eggs, bread and vodka - when we stopped by. Gotta love that Texas hospitality!

It's truly amazing that no one killed anyone, we didn't run out of food, the kids never got super bored and we all managed to generally have a good time despite being stuck inside for a few days! We finally got home late on the 2nd (to Florida) and drove back home to South Carolina on the 4th. Even with the delays and bad weather, it was a family trip I'll treasure forever. I know time with my grandparents is fleeting, and to have four generations all together for six days? Priceless.

xo
KH

Linking up with

 April, Christina, Natasha and Darci!