Husband and Father

Husband and Father
July 15, 1958 ~ August 25, 2008

Thursday, May 28, 2015

Kate's Birthday

Kate turned 22 this year! Her birthday fell on the Sunday we were leaving for St. George for Spring Break.  We had to leave her behind for a job interview at LDS Hospital. I wanted to wait until the next day to go, but she insisted that we start on our way.

Kate is "the boss"!  She keeps us laughing with her funny little voices, and tries to keep everyone on task and in line.  She has it all, she is smart, funny, beautiful, and has a strong testimony of the gospel.  We love having Kate back!

Sunday, her actual birthday, we decorated her room, displayed birthday balloons, and gave her birthday gifts.  Sarah and Jordan had her to dinner. Aren't siblings great!

After returning from Spring Break, the celebration continued with her favorite meal and cake.

We were happy when Kate got the job she interviewed for, and will start to work at LDS Hospital in Oncology in the near future.


Piano Federation

Piano Federation was held at the Libby Gardner Hall Building at the University of Utah.  Ben played Flying Away by Carolyn Miller. He got a superior plus, which I have never seen before.  Usually, you just get a superior, which is the highest score.  He was invited, by the judges, to play at the Honor's Recital.  Way to go Benny!

Asking to Prom

Lizzy got asked to Prom 5 times.  Kind of a record over here. It was so sad for her to have to turn down young men that were just an hour or two late.  Most of the boys asked on Monday. Late Friday night someone rang the doorbell.  Lizzy was home alone, scared, and called me to ask what to do.  I told her not to get the door.  When I got home, there was the cutest young man at the door with a guitar ready to serenade Lizzy.  He was number 5.  No one had the heart that night to tell him she had already been asked.  He played the guitar and sang a song asking her to the Prom on our doorstep.  How adorable!

Senate

The Senate Dance was girl's choice.  Lizzy asked Jaden Clark to be her escort for the night.  She had a fun time with Jaden, and her girl friends Avery, Kass, Kelsie, Bailey, and Jayne. The theme for the dance was All American.  The girl's had a great time shopping at Walmart for their matching outfits.

Senate was a casual dance at Bountiful High School.  The group dined at Inn and Out Burger.


Monday, May 11, 2015

St. Patrick's Day

Kate came to the rescue St. Patrick's Day morning. She had green waffles, green plate, green milk, and a "pot of gold" for Lizzy and Ben.  It's a good thing she was on board.  The "Mom" of the house (me) decided to forgo the festivities this year.  Sometimes I do that when my kids aren't cooperating with me.

Meagan, 5 months pregnant, has a UTI and is passing a kidney stone.  We were more than happy to entertain Mason for the day, and put Meagan to bed (in my bed).  She is one brave little momma, you don't hear complaining from her, and everything doesn't hurt that bad.


Cyclone Hits Vanuatu

Cyclone Pam, category 5, made a direct hit to Port Vila, Vanuatu on March 13th.  It is considered one of the worst natural disasters of Vanuatu.  Some of the areas hit the hardest were Port Vila, and Tanna.  Catastrophic damage occurred with an estimated 90 percent of the nation's buildings impacted by the storm. Telecommunications were down, and food and water shortages were abundant.

Foreseeing the cyclone, the Vanuatu Mission President, summoned all missionaries on Port Vila to the Mission Home.  There they sang hymns, as the torrential storm wreck havoc on the island. They were blessed to be safe as such massive distruction took place around them.

For days, missionaries on Tanna and other outer islands were not accounted for.  Kate, devastated by the destruction, believed that all missionaries were safe.  She told me that they had all been trained as to what to do in emergency. She knew that they could handle whatever would come their way.  Due to the communication systems being down, no one was able to communicate with the missionaries.  We were so happy when we read this article from the church a couple days later.

On March 16th, the church news stated, "All missionaries in the neighboring Vanuatu Port Vila Mission, including those serving on the remote islands of Efate, Santo, Malekula, Gaua, and Tanna, are all accounted for and safe.  According to Vanuatu Port Vila Mission president Larry Brewer, all missionaries were notified before the cyclone arrived, and moved to the safest location in each respective island.

The Church is chartering a small plane tomorrow from Port Vila to Tanna.  Two missionaries will be on board with food and other supplies to give much needed relief to those suffering from the effects of Cyclone Pam.  The plane will also be used to bring the 11 missionaries on Tanna back to Port Vila.

Many Church members and others on the island of Efate have lost their homes and are sheltering in Latter-day Saint meetinghouses.

Church leaders in Port Vila purchased food and other emergency supplies yesterday which are being distributed to Church members and others who are  sheltering at Church buildings, as well as others who have moved back to their properties in order to start rebuilding their homes."

We are so grateful to be members of such a wonderful church.  Kate's first area was on Tanna, second area was on Efate , third area Malekula, and finishing in Santo.  She served most of her mission on the outer islands of Vanuatu.  Tanna, the island that was hit the worst was one  of her first areas. 

On her mission she experienced several cyclones, earthquakes, fires, as well as other natural disasters.  None to the extent of Pam, and for that I am grateful.  Some areas, she lived in were more primitive than others.  The majority of the food on the outer islands was grown in their beautiful gardens.  It was very common to pick what you ate, thus making fruits and vegetables fresh and delightful. Clean water was limited, and plumbing was outdoors. On Tanna, she lived in a small house that would shake from the active volcano, Mt. Yasur, that is one of the Natural Wonders of the World.

Unlike other missions, it would be common not to hear from her each week. Communication systems in the more remote areas were far away from their area. 

As I read about the islands that were hit worse by cyclone Pam, they were the exact islands that she served on. Kate's heart broke for her dear families in her areas that were hit by this awful storm.  She knew that this amount of damage would have a very long lasting effect on these people. My heart is full of sadness for the people of Vanuatu, but I am definitely rejoicing in the safe return of my sweet daughter.  She arrived home January 14, merely 7 weeks before the catastrophic cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu.  My heart is breaking for these sweet Ni-Van people.  Kate describes them as, " the happiest people on earth." 


Destruction of Cyclone Pam

Tanna - Before Cyclone Pam



Saturday, May 9, 2015

The Grandparents

Grandma and Grandpa Brown invited my girl's and I down for a visit and lunch.  They wanted some one-on-one time with Kate, and to hear about her mission experiences.  It was a week day, so we weren't able to get Sarah or Lizzy to come with us, but we had a wonderful time.They made a delightful lunch for us, as we talked.  They are so cute and so kind to our family, they melt my heart.

Later in the month, we had a dinner at our house and showed pictures to all of the Brown siblings and their kids.  I love seeing pictures of where Kate lived for 18 months.  It is such a testimony to me, that  those that choose where missionaries serve their missions are truly inspired.  I would never have picked Vanuatu for Kate.  She grew so much, not only spiritually, but became brave and courageous as well.  She truly loved the people she served, and was an outstanding missionary. The Ni Van people became her family away from home, in her words, "they have definitely stolen my heart".

On another week day, Kate and I also visited my parents.  We took the lap top computer to show them mission pictures.  They took us to Cafe Rio for lunch.  They served a mission in Yap, which is quite similar to Vanuatu. We enjoyed spending time with them sharing island stories.



Friday, May 8, 2015

Spiritual Dog

Bella likes to join in for family scripture study!

BHS Sweetheart Dance 2015

Liz was invited to the Sweetheart Dance at BHS by Ethan Roundy.  She borrowed (thank heavens) a dress from a friend, and looked beautiful!  They enjoyed a group dinner hosted by his Ethan's mom.  It was wonderful!  The dance was at the State Fair Grounds, where they danced the night away!


Valentines Day

We celebrated Valentines Day a little after the fact. Since Valentines fell on a Saturday, I let the marrieds spend it with their spouses. Meagan and Quinn went to St. George for the weekend, so we got to spend extra time with little Mase.  We had our traditional Valentine's party with heart pizza's, cutler cookies, and of course little gifts.

There is nothing in this world I love more than this crew (and the ones that are missing)! Happy Valentines Day!

Thursday, May 7, 2015

Twinning

Great minds must think a like.


Grand baby Number 2

November brought wonderful news of a new little Cottle baby headed our way!  Mason announced it at Sunday dinner wearing a "Big Brother" shirt.  When they arrived, Mase had just woken up and wanted his mom to hold him, so it took awhile for us to notice his announcement.  We couldn't be more excited!

Early on, Meagan had an ultrasound that indicated it may be a girl.  However, with an ultrasound at a later date it was definitely determined that it is a BOY!  Mason came over with blue balloons, and an ultrasound of his little brother. Cottle baby boy coming July14th!

Yay for boys!


The Spelling Bee

Ben has asked to participate in the Valley View Elementary School Spelling Bee held on February 6th. They take the top spellers from each grade.  Ben insisted that he was not participating, and I insisted that he was.  Needless to say, I went to the Spelling Bee not knowing whether or not he would be there.  I was very proud of him for not only showing up, but taking 3rd place and moving on to Davis County Semi-Final Spelling Bee.


The Davis County Semi-Final Spelling Bee, happened to be the same night as the Ute's were playing Stephen F. Austin in the NCAA Tournament.  If you thought it was difficult to get Ben to participate in the Spelling Bee a month ago, imagine what it was like trying to get him to go with a great basketball game in progress.

Thank heavens for technology!  We were able to stream it live at Woods Cross High School, (where the Spelling Bee was being held),  on our cell phone.  We gave updates to those parents sitting around us (maybe just Dad's) that had to leave the game for the Spelling Bee.

I'm so proud of Ben!  He is such a great speller!


Super Bowl Sunday 2015

This year's Super Bowl teams were The New England Patriots, and Seattle Seahawks.  These two teams seemed to be evenly matched, and played in a very exciting Super Bowl Sunday.  At the end of the first quarter both teams went without scoring.  By half-time, the score roared to a whopping 14-14, still tied.  It wasn't until the 4th quarter that the Patriots beat the Seahawks 28-24.  Emotions were running high amoung the team members, with fights, and rumors of bad calls.  It was definitely a game that kept your attention the entire time.

The Carling Family and Ash joined us for food, fun, and football! We enjoyed playing Football Trivia (applicable to the Super Bowl only) with monetary prizes.  We even threw in a few questions about the half-time performance for those not-so-super-bowl-friendly viewers.

What a fun night!  In the end, it was a good day to be a Patriot!