Mia loves her framed board with pictures of all her friends & family!
Peanut butter cheesecake with brownie/resees pb cups, PB cheesecake, PB ganache, chocolate ganache! Possibly the best dessert to date!! Cheesecake Factory has nothing on the Hamiltons!!
And fat free, too!!:)
Nay drinking from the hanging plants!
George Fox Men's Basketball end of season zoom banquet!
Virtual story time!
Creating their own volcano!
Erupting the volcano!
Volcano eruption!
Minute to Win it Family game night!
Mommy & Daddy face off!! Who is the winner????
Family walk!
Mommy-son date! Tropical smoothie and a walk in the sun!
Our sweet nephew, Miles, almost 2!!!
Caught on camera! Boys and Nay dancing to Frozen!
Mia made Nutella popsicles! So yummy!
Just chillin' on the pot!
Mia never got to celebrate her birthday with friends due to Covid, so her friends surprised her with a zoom birthday!
Maco was the baker this time with blueberry muffins!
Kid #3 is the most destructive! This week was Vaseline all over herself, the carpet and floor! The next week was nail polish all over the carpet!
Another one of Mia's selfies I find on my phone!
Ice cream!! First time we have been in Sittee's or anyone's house in almost 3 months!
Copycat cinnamon rolls!!
Reading Nay my favorite book from growing up! I loved the oil paintings, and it was given to me by Grandma and Grandpa Cusack for my 10th birthday!
Kyrie's birthday parade was featured in the Camas Living magazine!
Puzzles #10-13! I've slowed up a bit now!
Creating Covid-19 memory books!
Kyrie was moving out.....see his room pic below! He was packing everything to take with him!:)
Mia made double choc Frappuccinos for everyone!
Pool fun!
GFU b-ball team trick shot challenge!
Because Cannon Beach opened up, and we had a girls' trip planned for months, Sheila, Jeryln and I escaped away for a couple days of a social distancing relaxation!!
Haystack Rock
Love that Maco continues the schedule when I'm gone!
Walked from our house to town and stopped at the childhood house we used to stay at! Sitting on the same back bench that we used to sit on as kids!!
Loved this house! So many great memories!
We missed our other friends, but had a fabulous time relaxing!
Waterfront with Sittee & Daddy while Mommy is away!
Feeding the ducks!
Celebrating cousin Mason's 15th birthday with a BBQ!
Kyrie participated in Journey's first ever virtual foundations of voice class!
Kyrie also participated in Journey Theater virtual Lion King Kids! He auditioned and was cast as Young Simba! Each week he had to submit vocal and dance recordings for the final show and participate in blocking each Saturday for his speaking parts! The kids and directors worked so hard on this, and it turned out way better than expected!
Lion King Facebook watch party with our fam and Sittee!!
Here is a link to Kyrie's Lion King Kids virtual performance! It's 38 minutes long. It's in google drive, so hopefully it works for all!
One of Mia's only outings during the stay at home order, to the orthodontist!
Family badminton!
Mia made us all breakfast!
below is a link to an online interview Maco did during quarantine. Thought I would share!
We were gifted a bike trailer from the Hollands, and Nay was so excited to go for a ride!
First time writing a scooter!!
PJ flower picking in the new development!
Kyrie wrote a great story with lots of voice and flair, but his teacher couldn't read it due to the sports balls all over the slide!!:)
Finally entered into Phase 2 and got to celebrate Miles' zoom 2nd birthday with a BBQ at Auntie's!
Happy 2nd birthday, Miles!
Happy 2nd birthday, Miles!! We love you!
Black Lives Matter Protest sign making on facetime with his good buddy, Bryson!
Over 250 people came out to the BLM protest in downtown Camas last weekend!
Our neighbors!
Jeryln is doing amazing work with the CSD Equity team and getting the word out to everyone she can about the 8 Can't Wait, a project launched by Campaign Zero to end police violence. Check it out here:
and email your mayor encouraging them to take action and sign Obama's mayoral pledge!
8 Can't Wait policies
No Justice, No Peace!
The kids' friends supported the peaceful protest, too!
Super humbling..... The black barbie is holding an "I can't breathe" poster......
George Floyd's last words at the peaceful protest at Pioneer Square in Portland. A friend sent me this, and it really put this all into perspective. Very hard to listen to.....
For the past couple weeks Maco has been in very deep thought and reflection on all that is going on lately. I wanted to share with you his profound thoughts that he shared on Facebook last week for those of you that aren't on FB.
This morning as I was reading, I came across a message about “courage.” In this book it outlined the Webster’s definition of courage, which is “the attitude of facing and dealing with anything recognized as dangerous, difficult, or painful instead of withdrawing from it; quality of being fearless or brave, valor”
As I read this I couldn’t help but to reflect about the state of our country, and my own personal lived experiences as a child until this present day. I look at courage as the positive force that fights against “fear.” Fear is something we all constantly face at different points of life in our collective journeys. I don’t believe it’s inaccurate to say that most white people in America have at some point felt fear in the presence of a black or brown skinned person, in particular a male. In this moment, you have probably felt the need to model ”courage.” Let me tell you from my personal experience, that we as people of color, minorities in a country that is the most diverse in the world, face fears EVERYDAY. Webster’s definition of courage is what people of color have to muster up every day. And it goes beyond life or death, its losing relationships, opportunities, livelihood, and the perceptions of who we are.
The book goes on to say “moral courage is doing what you believe is right, even if others disagree; doing what is right in the face of ridicule, rejection, criticism, and retaliation.” In other words STAND UP. I reluctantly admit, that I as an African-American man, am too silent in standing up. I’m silent because I’m afraid. I’m afraid of the response and the rejection. I was raised that I have to be BETTER than white people around me if I want to progress in life. So yes, I’m afraid that by standing up, I will be pushed down, and I will lose those things which I have so tirelessly worked for.
Well in light of the recent events, and the heighted response to racial injustice, I have decided to take a stand. No longer will I be silent, and no longer will I live in fear. What’s happening in our country has been happening since it’s foundation and goes deeper than police brutality. It’s a system that has been affecting the black community in all aspects of life; incarceration rates of innocent black & brown men, pushed out of our communities due to gentrification, lagging educational opportunities in our schools, being blocked for opportunities to progress professionally, miscast, stereotyped, and more.
The book goes on to say, “the best way to develop moral courage is through modeling, teaching, and providing opportunities to make moral choices.” We can all do that by taking time to pause and listen, read something, have a conversation even if you don’t feel adequate; who cares, show courage! White people too often look the other way, ignore, or justify the plight of people of color. It’s okay to examine yourself and your circumstances, and be willing to grow. The book continues, “it is in the face to face encounters that you gain the courage to not turn away and to fight for the rights of others.” I’ve been asked by many of my white friends, what can I do? This is it! Demonstrate courage by not walking away in fear of black and brown people, but by walking with us in love! Ghandi said “courage is not necessarily knowing the correct answers but seeing the suffering of the world and taking action.” STEP UP!
As for me. I too will no longer allow fear to stand over courage. I will not be afraid to speak up! I might lose a friend, offend a family member, or change someone’s perception of me. But you know what? That doesn’t change how I have approached my 42 years of life. I know I can’t be average or even, I have to be better, and I will continue to work hard, like my mother has done for her 69 years of life. Like my uncles, have done through hard labor occupations, like my grandparents, who endured the heart of segregation and laid a foundation for their families to achieve greatness. I will continue to model examples, and provide opportunities for my little brown babies.
I have felt numb, because I don’t see how our world changes. I have felt angry, because I’m sick of the way MY race has been treated in a country that professes freedom and a faith in a GOD of ALL people. I have felt hopeless, because this is far yet so close to me.
I am convinced a step, no matter big or small, is a positive. But we have to keep stepping. We can’t stop in a few weeks once protests stop, and we get back to what we’ve been doing. I have to keep stepping and standing for what is right! Step in courage every day, not because you are afraid of someone, but because you care about humanity! And as we have learned, although we were all created to be equal, we’re not equal. The Bible tells us we were ALL created in God’s image. That is a reminder that no one should be treated unfairly, not if our Creator loves us unconditionally, as we are, as God made us!
Peace & Love
Maco
Good ole relaxing in Mama and Daddy's bed!
Reading Naomi one of Daddy's books given to him by Auntie Eileen 30+ years ago!
Our princess is getting married!!
I attended a joint Camas/Washougal protest. Both towns rallied at their respective Safeway store, and then we marched 1.75 miles to meet at the Washougal/Camas border!
What beautiful artwork this man created to memorialize and remember George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.
Camas/Washougal border rally- There were 550 people participating! While we realize the risk protesting during covid, we felt the risk was worth it!
It was pretty powerful seeing the Washougal citizens walking towards us and both towns meeting in the middle!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h--xW9g0V6M&t=4s
Link to some footage from Lacamas Magazine that covered the protest.
Mia's fun hairdo she did herself!
Miles using our birthday gift of all natural play dough and accessories! This play dough is absolutely the best! It smells amazing and is natural! Click below if you'd like to check it out!
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