May is the season of programs

One of the sad things about the boys getting older is that there are far fewer opportunities to volunteer in their classroom. My friend snapped this shot and I'm including it to make me feel better about myself with a little documentation of a good moment.

My cousin Taylor got married and we went to the wedding in Las Vegas. Both the boys spent the wedding dinner reading. I guess knowing their family that isn't all that surprising.

We stayed with my Aunt Karla. Her favorite game is Nertz and it ended up being the boys' favorite part of the trip. Brad helped Uncle Richard and when he said "find me a three" Brad did just that, oblivious to the rules of the game. Needless to say he was a great partner and they won several games.

 We were there on May 18th so we had a little family party for Brad and Seth.  

 Memorial Day. We visiting the gravesites in Preston, ID, had lunch in Logan, saw the site of the cabin and got raspberry shakes at Bear Lake. We drove home via Evanston, WY so it ended up being a mini road trip to three different states.

 Traditional picture of Brad at his Uncle Brad's grave.

 There were three school programs to attend this month. All the Spanish classes put on La Fiesta. The first grade spiced it up with a dance from Grease this year instead of something traditional. My only guess is that their teacher is tired of listening to Spanish music :)

 The first grade also put on a Grandparents program which ironically none of the four grandparents were able to attend, they were all out of town.

I only took video (which is too long for the blog), but the third program was the school dance off which they have the last day of school.

Easter

Being home on maternity resulted in some nesting. I bought a kitchen table and clock.

We went to the Children's Museum with the boys' second cousin Timothy. Claire was a dream and slept the entire time in the baby carrier.

We stopped at one of our favorite places downtown for lunch, Bruges Waffles and had a not so healthy lunch of french fries and Belgium waffles.

Brad with Claire.

Seth with his monster eggs

Brad

Uncle Mark was in town and made a monster of his own.

Our next door neighbor Tami hosted a Easter egg hunt.

 Easter egg hunt at Grandma Ogilvie's house

Brad and Seth had their first piano recital and did wonderfully, here they are with their teacher Gwen Hafen. They have one twice a year and this was their classical recital.

Spring Break

 The boys had a week off of school for Spring Break so we all went to Capital Reef National Park for a few days. Claire and I stayed in a motel and the Dan and the boys camped.

 Breaking for a bottle

 Dan is a good man and for his birthday we went to the zoo.

 Can you tell that Dan was really into the zoo? :)

A few of my favorite things- my children and beautiful spring flowers.

March and April 2014

 Our happy girl

 All wrapped up and cozy for her first run in the stroller with mom.

 Claire's first Sunday attending church. Our neighbor crocheted the booties for her.

Our little hipster, hat complements of Uncle Scott

I signed the boys up for a soccer camp last year and a photo of them made it onto the website for the camp this year. I felt famous for awhile.

Claire's Baby Blessing

We blessed Claire on March 22nd at our home.  I wasn't excited about doing it at home, but once I realized that it meant I could have it catered by Cafe Rio, then I warmed up to what an awesome idea it was. It really was great to have friends and family there.

Stapleton Grandparents (fear of spit-up meant we got her out of the dress in a hurry)

Grandma Ogilvie

Adjusting her bonnet, thankfully Robby knew how to put it on properly because I had it upside down and backwards to begin with.  It is beautiful lace from Belgium.

We are proud parents of this beauty.

Maxing out our Insurance

 Both Brad and Seth had a communicating hydrocele and hernias, so they had surgery up at Primary Children's Hospital in March.

 They got to decorate these great dolls. Seth's was the unfortunate victim of post-surgical throw up and didn't make it home.  Seth had a harder recovery than Brad.  When he woke up from the anesthesia he jump up on the bed and ripped off his gown, the nurse had to wrestle him down.

 Watching a movie post-up.  They both enjoyed the slushies they got to eat and all of the TV that we let them watch once they got home.

 Grandpa Stapleton came along to help Dan while I stayed home with this bundle of joy.

Grandma's Passing

Dan's Grandmother, Vila Brown, passed away just three days before she got to hold her namesake Claire Vila Brown.  Dan and I lived in her basement the first year of our marriage and I've always felt close to her as a result. You'll be missed Grandma.

Dan had a very busy week with this bundle of joy being born, preparing to speak at the funeral and driving to Idaho for the burial. Scott had the most exhausting weekend though, because he was flying home to Germany when Katie got the news and made arrangements for him to be able to hop back on a plane and make it back.

Our beloved mother, grandmother and great-grandmother Vila Rawlings Brown passed away on Saturday, Feb 15 in Sandy, Utah of natural causes at the age of 91.

She was born in Lewiston, Utah on Aug 25th, 1922 to Oscar R. Rawlings and Navella Wiser Rawlings. She grew up in Fairview Idaho on the family farm and attended Preston High School. She then studied shorthand at BYU where she met her future husband Robert J Brown on a blind date. They were married in Beloit Wisconsin on July 10, 1943 and were later sealed in the Logan Temple on Dec 20, 1955. They had four children, Jimmy, Susan, Janice and Nancy and raised their family in Brigham City, Utah until 1969 when they moved to Boise, Idaho. After her husband’s retirement they had the opportunity to live in Colombo Sri Lanka, Lahore Pakistan and Cairo Egypt while her husband was working as a consultant to foreign governments. They later served a LDS temple mission in New Zealand after which they finally settled down in Sandy, Utah.

Vila was a poet, world traveler, loving wife and mother and a wonderful grandmother. She was intelligent and loved to read. Besides being blessed with 4 wonderful children, she had 9 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren that brought her much joy in her later years. She is preceded in death by her husband Bob, her son Jimmy, two grandsons Brad Stapleton and James Gross and her siblings Clell, Retta, Elaine, Claire, Sheldon and Alice as well as her two adoptive siblings Faye and Richard Wiser. She is survived by daughters Susan Morris (Mountie), Janice Stapleton (Tim) and Nancy Brown (Jonathan), as well as her sister Donna and brother Arvin.

We express much appreciation to the wonderful caregivers at Sandy Atria as well as the many friends and neighbors who provided much care and compassion over the years.