The Stratton Family Christmas Letter 2010

“All I ever wanted, all I ever dreamed of, everything I hoped and all the things I prayed for couldn’t hold a candle to what I’ve been given. I’ve been given what I need.” -Constance, “The Forgotten Carols”Dear Friends and Family,

We have had quite the year here. It’s been full of stress, fun, family and love. We are so grateful for all the many blessings we have received and all the kind acts of service. We are surrounded by great people, with big hearts, who are willing to help in any way they can. We can not express how truly appreciative we are to those who have helped us in our time of need. Thank you!

With that said we would like to share our year with you.

Craig

Craig lost his job last December. It was a shock to all of us, and it was really hard to cope with at times. But in our time of need we came to realize we are as rich as kings when it comes to friends and family. We were amazed to see those we knew, and barely knew, reaching out and lending us a hand.

With the job loss Craig made a decision to return to school. He signed up for class at Utah Valley University immediately, and he got right to work making sure his family stayed a float.

During the summer Craig started a CNA(Certified Nurses Assistant) class with MATC(Mountainland Applied Technology College). He was gone every Saturday. We missed him alot.

Craig celebrated his 25th birthday this summer. He enjoyed having fun pool party and having his parents come up from Toquerville.

At the end of the summer Craig decided to switch school and attend Fortis College instead. They have a two year Registered Nurse program and Craig was really excited about all they had to offer.

In October Craig was finally able to attain another job. He work as a CNA at a care center in Salt Lake. It’s right by his school so he usually goes straight from school to work. He works 3 days a week and on the days that he works he is gone from 7:00 in the morning until 11:00 at night. It’s hard on all of us, but it’s a sacrifice we’re willing to make.

We love Craig. He is a wonderful husband and dad, and we don’t know what we’d do without him. He’s a hard worker who is willing to do whatever it take to keep his family safe and secure. Thank you for everything you do for us Craig!

Tricia

Tricia had to return to work in December. It wasn’t an easy task, since she loved being a stay-at-home mom, but it was necessary. It ended up being a great decision for the family.

One thing that made returning to work hard was being pregnant. It wasn’t always easy to get up and go, but luckily her boss is a good friend and a very understanding person.

Come summer Tricia was happy to be home again, and was looking forward to having the baby in September. Tricia loved being able to run the household again. It’s a great challenge and it has just the right amount of motivation.

The fall found Tricia recovering from another c-section, and apparently a few other illness’. She got through them all, and is hoping to find her patience restored one of these days.

Tricia enjoyed putting together Halloween costumes for the whole family. Always a favourite tradition for her. She loves Halloween. Craig went as McDreamy from Grey’s Anatomy, Tricia as Audrey Hepburn, Henry as a bear, Hyrum as a lion and Monty as a tiger.

Tricia also celebrated her 25th birthday this year. She was delighted to enjoy the company of so many friends and family, and is grateful to have shared that special day with everyone.

Tricia is always busy- chasing around three boys, cleaning the house, blogging etc.-which she both loves and hates. She has enjoyed spending being home with her boys and loves them more each day.

Tricia has also been trying to start up a cloth diaper business. Wish her luck.

Big H

Big H has grown so much this year. He celebrated his 1st birthday back in March- such a big boy. Big H loves to talk, sing and he is so good at repeating words mom says.

Big H learned so much this summer. He learned how to walk, climb, run, jump and spin. He’s always keeping his mom busy.

In the fall Big H became a big brother yet again. He didn’t know what to think of the baby at first, but he has since fallen in love. He is such a sweet older brother.

This fall Big H learned the art of using a stool. He drives mom crazy by dragging things around the house that he can stand. He uses them to reach light switches, the radio, the sink and more. He has also taught Little H how to do this.

Big H has been such a helper. He has learned how to get his own bib, how to pick up his dishes and how to wipe up his spills. His brother helped him learn these skills.

Big H loves to sing. You’ll catch him singing around the house sometimes, and at church he likes to hold the hymn book and sing with the congregation.

Big H is mom’s little sweetheart. I wish the world could be how he see’s it: as a perfect beautiful place that is full of fun, laughter, love and adventure. I wish I could keep all bad things from him because he’s just to sweet to ever have to learn of them. Big H is always bringing mom flowers that he picks outside, and he is also mom’s snuggle bug- well the closest thing she has to one. He loves to carry around blankets and stuffed animals for comfort. He’s such a big, tender hearted, little boy, and we love him.

Little H

Little H has grown so much too. He also celebrated his 1st birthday back in March. Little H loves to explore and figure out how things work. He loves to help mom around the house, and he loves to be the big brother to the baby.

Little H also learned how to walk, climb, run, jump and spin this summer- in fact he was usually the one showing his brother the ropes. He drives mom crazy because he likes to take of to the neighbours and play with the cars.

Little H became a big brother, for the first time, in September. He was instantly in love with the baby and wanted to take care of him. He is always looking out for him, comforting him when he cries and loving him when he smiles.

Little H has learned a lot this fall too. He loves to use sign language. He signs like crazy. He has just now started to say the words as well.

Little H is mom’s big helper. He loves to help! He helps unload the dishwasher, throw garbage away, put dirty clothes in the hamper, wipe up messes, get the baby it’s binkie and bottle, you name it. He’s been such a blessing in that way.

Little H has become fond of shoes this year. We can’t get them off the kid. He wears them every waking- and sleeping- moment. I finally got him to get in the tub without them. Because of this love of shoes he likes to bring everyone their shoes. He’ll grab your shoes, say, “shoes” and then sign it.

Little H is a wonderful little boy. He’s a go getter and extremely feisty. This can be good, but it also means that he is a busy boy and the sole biter in the house. He also has a big heart- just like his dad. He loves to take care of people. He is so friendly too. He says, “Hi” to everyone and blows them kisses whenever he gets a chance. He’s high spirted, fun and full of love. We love having him in the family.

Baby M

Baby M joined us late in the year. A scheduled c-section brought him to us on September 1, 2010. He weighed 6 lbs 15 oz and he was 19 inches long. Baby M has been a challenge for his parents. He has problems with acid reflux and that usually makes him an unhappy little guy. But when he is happy he is just the sweetest of babies.

He asks for so little. All he wants is for you to sit and talk with him and it makes his day. He also loves it when his brothers play with him.

Baby M has a tender little heart, and a very distinctive “You Hurt My Heart” cry. I think he may be even more tender hearted than Big H.

Baby M has a sweet spirit, and Craig and I enjoy the few moments out of the day that we get to know him. We hope one day he feels better, so we can have more time to get to know him. So far our attempts, to make him feel better, have been: gas drops, an acid reflux prescription, Maylox and Tylenol. Sometimes we have to use them all at once. We had to play the formula game with too. We went through all different kinds of formula and ended up right back were we started with Regular old Similac. We also started giving him rice cereal when he was six weeks old to help settle his stomach a little.

We love our Baby M, and we can’t imagine life without him. I wish he could have gotten off to a better start- and I wish his mom could handle it better- but we work through it and try our best to appreciate every little moment we have.

The Family

We made some financial changes. We switched to cloth diapers, and started using a clothes line. And Craig started to make our dishwasher, laundry soap and baby wipes. So far all these changes have worked really well for us. We try everyday to think of ways we can pinch our pennies, so that we don’t have to go head over heels in debt to put Craig through school.

As a family we’ve gone through a lot of changes this year. We welcomed a fifth member which was exciting and stressful. The boys have started to turn into toddlers which is fun but kind of sad- they’re not my little babies anymore. And our love for one another has matured and grown stronger.

Our family has gone through a lot, but it has brought us closer together. We are each other’s prized possessions and we try our best to appreciate what we all bring to the table.

We’d like to express again our gratitude to all those who have helped us out during these hard times. We love you all and we hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

P.S. If anyone wants a hard copy sent snail mail- or hand delivered- just let me know.