The famous, Jodi Fulks, took fabulous pictures of these two little guys. It was a little tricky working with a baby only one week old, but she is a pro. It takes lots of patience, feedings, and diaper changes to get the perfect picture.
These two are adorable and melt my heart!
Sunday, July 12th, Mike reported on his mission. He did a phenomenal job! In the words of his Young Men's President, "he was bold, strong, yet tender and full of the spirit. It was powerful!" After the meeting, President Eyring talked with him, and told him how much he reminded him of his Dad as he was speaking. If you know Steve, that is a great compliment.
I am so amazed with the transformation that comes over these missionaries. I have seen it with Kate, and now with Mike. I don't think there is anything that can better prepared these young men and young women for the trials and events that will take place in their lives, than serving a mission.
We are so grateful for the love and support we received from our family and friends. We are truly blessed!
HE IS HOME! Elder Brown returned home with honor on Wednesday, July 8th. He was just as excited to see us as we were to see him. I'm sure he misses the people and the beautiful state of Alaska, but we think he is happy to be home, and we are thrilled to have him back.
We love him, and are so grateful for the amazing service he gave on his mission. We have heard he was one of the best missionaries, and I'm sure that it true. We are thankful for the love, and support he had from friends and family while serving in the Anchorage Alaska mission.
Stockton James Cottle, was scheduled to arrive in this world, Tuesday, July 7, 2015, the day before Elder Brown returned from his mission. Yes, it was scheduled between Meagan and her wonderful doctor to accommodate Elder Brown's return and homecoming. I was so surprised when I received a call early Monday morning informing me that Meagan was in labor. He was born at 8:03 a.m.
He is healthy and strong weighing in at 7.3 pounds, and 19.5 inches long. Thanks to Dr. Kastler for a great labor and delivery. What a blessing this cute little guy is in our lives. We are over the moon about this handsome little man.
It has been tradition since we dropped our two missionaries off on July 3rd, 2013, to spend the 4th up at Silver Lake by Brighton ski resort. With two pregnant daughters, the hike/walk around the lake is perfect. We had a wonderful picnic with KFC (a family favorite), before venturing out. This is the day that Ben usually catches his first fish of the season. We went to our "lucky" spot, but we got skunked, no fish today.
Although fishing wasn't great, we had a wonderful time spending time in the beautiful, cool mountains, and having fun as a family.
The 3rd of July, is almost as celebrated as the 4th of July in Bountiful. North Salt Lake City, puts on a carnival of sorts at Eagle Ridge Golf Course, as well as amazing fireworks. The Jacobsen's invited us to their amazing new home for a barbecue and to watch fireworks. Most of my kids, were off with their friends, so I was only able to round up Ben to come with me. When Ben saw the Jacobsen's new, indoor basketball court, I lost him for most of the night. I was so busy having fun, that I forgot to take many pictures of the evening.
The morning of my birthday, Kate and I woke up around 4:30 a.m. to go on a hike. I love to hike! Utah is such a beautiful place with stunning scenery, especially in our mountains. We got up early so that we wouldn't be hiking in the heat of the day.
Our destination was Mary's Lake at the top of Big Cottonwood Canyon. We enjoyed a brisk hike, with towering pine trees surrounding us, and flowering wildflowers. With Kate as a hiking partner, it is always an adventure. We laughed and talked the entire way.
At the top we ran into some fishermen at Mary's Lake. They asked if we had seen the mother moose and her baby along the trail. They had to take a diversion on their early hike to avoid the mom and her calf. I was very grateful we didn't happen upon any wild life, or worse….SNAKES!
When we returned home, Coulter, Kate, Ben and I went to see the Cokeville Miracle. It was a tender movie, with great meaning. It was a nice way to rest our wearing legs after an wonderful hike.
My parents stopped by for a quick birthday visit. They are getting up there in age, but still seem to be able to get around. I love to watch my Dad take care of my mom. It makes me smile, he is so tender with her.
In the evening we made fajitas and had Brent and his family over for dinner. It was a fun day!
Brent took me to a concert at the Sandy Amphitheater (on another night) to celebrate. Gordon Lightfoot was playing. Wow, that ages me! You know you are at an "old guy's" concert when in the middle of a song he sits down, stops singing, to take a break. Haha! It was a fun night under the stars, listening to music and relaxing!
What a fun birthday week!
