2009 Memphis Volleyball Media Guide

Open publication - Free publishing - More tigers

2009 Memphis Soccer Media Guide

Open publication - Free publishing - More tigers

2009 Memphis Football Media Guide

Open publication - Free publishing - More university

Vacation at Hot Springs, Arkansas

For the Fourth of July weekend, we took a mini vacation to Hot Springs, Arkansas. It is about a 3 and a half hour drive from our home. We left on Friday morning and went straight to Magic Springs/Crystal Falls, where we would spend the majority of our time. We weren't expecting much since we had read the reviews and all of them were bad. A lot of the big thrill rides were closed. But at the affordable season pass price, and since our kids wouldn't ride those type of rides anyways, we decided it would work out.

The kids had a lot of fun going on their rides,a nd there weren't big lines, so they were able to go right on most of them. Shelby is our daredevil and Noah is the scaredy cat, but he started to warm up at the end. We even talked him into going on the boat ride that went up and then crashed down a 50 foot slide, sending a huge wave of water to those on the bridge and those in the boat. He was nearly messing his pants, but he did it and had fun.

They had a kid rollercoaster that he liked to go on. He was scared at first, but by the third time on it, I got him to lift his hands in the air (although I was holding them up). He said he liked having his hands in the air, but he'd rather have them holding onto the bar.

Shelby wanted to go on everything, but still was a couple inches too short to go on the big rollercoasters. I took her on the Tidal Wave and we sat at one of the ends. She freaked out during it and I had to hold on to her while she was shaking and looking at the ground. But she later went on it again, this time we just sat in the middle.

Her big accomplishment was going on the Hammer, which I hate, but went on it with her. I can't believe she did it and loved it, especially since it has you starring straight down in limbo as it slowly works up enough speed to flip all the way around. I hate feeling all my weight and trusting a drop down bar. Next time her mom can go on it with her.

We camped two nights at a KOA less than a mile from the park. This was our first time camping since our bad experience on memorial day last year. It was really nice and we had a good experience this time. The first night went well and we were able to roast marshmallows on a camp fire. But the second night a huge thunderstorm passed through around 1 a.m. and let up the entire sky for about an hour with lightning and thunder. It poured pretty good and rained most of the night, but our tent held up and we were able to stay dry. The kids slept through it all, which was good.

Saturday morning we went to Hot Springs National Park, which is pretty much a small area in the center of town. There is a large hill with a natural thermal hot spring at the base of it. It was believed that the water could restore one's youth and several bath houses used to line the area allowing people to bath in the water. The water was really hot to the touch. We climbed the mountain and walked around for a while. The town is really old and was neat to drive through and look around.

On the Fourth of July, we went to a Craig David concert at Magic Springs. It was really good and Noah put on a show for everybody in the surrounding area. He was dancing for the first half before finally crashing.

With our season passes, we are looking to make a return trip once or twice before the summer is over and spend a Saturday there since it's not too far of a drive.

Follow me on Twitter

I have created a Twitter account and am giving it a try. You can follow me at http://twitter.com/BrandonKolditz.

Shelby’s Baptism

Shelby was baptized on Saturday morning. The service went really well, and Shelby was very happy. Grandpa Williams gave a talk on baptism, and Grandma Kolditz talked on receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost.

The baptism went smoothly, and after Shelby had been immersed and we were walking into our dressing room, she gave me an enthusiastic thumbs up. After the baptism, we had a small barbecue at the house with some of Shelby’s friends.

Shelby then had her confirmation on Sunday in Sacrament meeting. A few of us had to leave right after the blessing because Noah was running a fever and needed to go home.

Hollywood Cafe

Saturday night we went down to Tunica and ate at the Hollywood Cafe. It is a local hole in the wall that has been made famous in the Walking in Memphis song by Marc Cohen. The restaurant is also prominently featured in the music video of the song. John Grisham also used to frequent the restaurant and included it in one of his books.

The Hollywood specializes in fried Southern food. We had fried green tomatoes, fried dill pickles and fried onion rings as an appetizer. My dad ordered fried frog legs with his meal and I was the only other one brave enough to try it. It actually was pretty good and tasted similar to a chicken wing. You just had to get over the fact that you were eating a frog.

Mud Island

Tamara looking at the flower of a Magnolia tree.

After going to the Pink Palace Museum, we went downtown to eat lunch at Silky O’Sullivan’s on Beale Street. From there, we headed to the Mud Island River Park on the Mississippi River. Amazingly, this was the first time we had gone there in the five years we’ve lived in Memphis. We’ve tried a couple of times, but it was always closed during the times that we went.

The park has a full scaled down replica of the Mississippi River. It’s about a half a mile long and the kids had fun wading through it as we walked down to the end. At the end of the river, they had paddleboats that the kids and I went on. Tamara poked fun of me afterwards because my side of the boat was nearly all in the water, while the kids’ side was almost completely out of the water.

Pink Palace Visit

Grandma and Grandpa Williams are here from Idaho for the weekend for Shelby’s baptism. We took them to the Pink Palace Museum in Memphis on Friday. It was our first time going as well.

The museum had a lot of interesting exhibits depicting the the history of civilization as well as the history of Memphis. The museum is in a mansion that used to be owned by the founder of the Piggly Wiggly grocery store chain.

I had a lot of fun scaring Noah while we were there. Noah has watched too much TV and has an imaginative mind. Plus the movie Nights at the Museum didn’t help. He was scared of the dinosaurs and all of the exhibits that had people in it. I would tease him that they needed to work on him next, which would send him running. He was happy to leave at the end.

Shelby’s a Gifted Child?

Shelby had her last day of first grade on Thursday and is excited for the summer. In this photo, she’s wearing the Hawaiian dress I got her when I was in Hawaii.

Shelby came home with a letter last week with a permission slip that needed to be signed by her parents. The letter said that she has been recommended for the gifted program at school. At first, I thought it was referring to a program for the academically challenged. We held Shelby back for another year of first grade last year to help her after she was struggling .

But we were surprised to find out that the gifted program was for smart kids. Amazingly, Shelby ranked in the 97th percentile on the OLSAT intelligence Test. The Group Intelligence Test requires a minimum of 90 percent for further assessment. She has met the preliminary qualifications for the gifted program, and the next step is a formal I.Q. test to be administered by a psychometrist from the county office, hence the need for a permission slip.

We are really proud of the improvements Shelby has made in the classroom. She went from not being able to read simple sentences last year to reading Junie B chapter books. She also went from getting D’s and F’s in everything last year to getting all A’s and B’s. She was excited to come home this week with a bunch of certificates honoring her academic achievements, including being on the Principal’s list all four semesters.

However, I still think, if she’s so gifted, how come she has a hard time learning to be obedient to her father. She’s still the same trouble maker, but at least she’s showing signs of brilliance.

Frogs and Toads

We found our first tree frog in our yard the other day. You can hear them at night chirping, but we’ve never seen one. I think they’re pretty cool and would love to give Shelby and Noah another pet, but Tamara won’t let me.

Of course, a toad had to join the picture. We have toads all over our yard. When I mow the lawn, I find about two or three every time on the side of the fence jumping away from the mower. At night when I go jogging or for a walk, there are always a few on the sidewalk collecting the heat from the concrete.

Mother’s Day

For Mother’s Day, we gave Tamara what she really wanted. A day to relax and do nothing. The kids and I cleaned up and made her dinner while she got to lay on the couch and watch Twilight for the 100th million time. Noah even took a nap, which is rare these days. The picture shows the funny way he likes to sleep with his hands behind his head. I made Tamara some stroganoff with chunks of beef that was really good. You can check out the recipe and a pic at our cooking blog – Kolditz Cooking.

Future Football Star

We got Noah a mini football for Christmas and the other day he was throwing it back and forth in the house. We thought it was pretty cute and had to get it on camera. He always tells us how his muscles are getting bigger and we got him to show them to us in the tape.

Noah’s Birthday

Noah turned four years old on Saturday, and he’s been talking about it for weeks now. He thinks he’s a pretty big boy now. We went to Incredible Pizza for his birthday for lunch and then he opened his presents from us in the afternoon. That night we had his birthday cake – chocolate chip, his favorite – and ice cream. It was a big day for him, and he really enjoyed it. Both Shelby and him are growing up so fast, and it’s fun to see how much they are changing and become more independent.

Noah’s birthday cake. I thought I had turned the camera on for the lighting of the candles and the singing, but I must not have and we didn’t get it on camera.

Me and the kids with Noah’s new Spiderman scooter. It was something he really wanted. We also got him a Sponge Bob coloring book and story.

Noah opening his presents and singing the Sponge Bob songs.

Noah’s Birthday Party at Incredible Pizza

We went to Incredible Pizza in Memphis for Noah’s fourth birthday party. It was a longer drive for us to get there, but we wanted to try it out since we’ve always just gone to Chucky Cheese. It is similar to Chucky Cheese, except they have a pizza buffet and bigger activities such as bumper cars, 3D simulations, miniature golf, bowling and go carts.

This is Noah when we first arrived at Incredible Pizza and were finishing eating our lunch.

They had a miniature bowling alley for the kids that Noah and Shelby enjoyed.

Noah and Shelby riding the merry-go-round

 

Playing air hockey with the kids

Noah riding a rocket ship

This is Noah and Shelby on the ride home from Incredible Pizza. It’s quite a difference from the beginning. They were both ready to get home and take a nap.

Hollywood Casino Buffet

Every once in a while we head to Tunica to eat at one of the casino buffets. It’s about 30 minutes from our house, and although nothing like Vegas, cures the buffet crave we get every once in a while. The Epic Buffet at the Hollywood Casino is one we go to every now and then. They have a lot of movie props inside the hotel and the kids wanted to pose in front of all the cars.

Noah and Shelby next to a Back to the Future replica car

Shelby and Noah with a car used in one of Elvis’ movies

Noah with the Bat Mobile

Spencer Loses Manhood

We took Spencer to the vet this week to get neutered, front paw declawed and receive his shots. He handled it pretty well and was the clinic’s favorite pet during the visit. Everybody told us how much they loved him and how friendly he is with people. They said that whenever they put him in the cage he would cry until someone picked him up and held him.

The vet said he did really well with the surgery. When he woke up afterwards, he didn’t act any different like some of the other cats do. He had to wear the ring at first to keep him from licking the areas of the surgery.

Right now we can tell Spencer is still in a little pain and he’s hobbling around. He slept the the entire first night back with Noah in his bed. I went in there once and Noah was using Spencer as a pillow. Later I went back in and Spencer was using Noah’s head as a pillow. It was really cute, especially since Spencer doesn’t usually go to Noah’s bed.

Shelby’s First Grade Performance

 

Shelby’s first grade class performed their musical, Bugz. She was a chorus member. Shelby was really excited about it and has been singing the songs all the time.

New Trampoline

 

We got the kids a trampoline for Easter. I never realized how much of a pain in the butt they are to put up, especially the netting around it. It didn’t take Shelby long to figure out how to do flips, and Tamara had to try it out as well.

Noah’s New Friend; Beehive

Noah immediately made a new friend in our new neighborhood who lives next door. His name is C.J., and the two have immediately hit it off and spend nearly every evening playing together.

Tamara caught them racing their bikes, which are exactly the same, down the sidewalk. Of course, Shelby being the entertainer that she is, fills in the commentary of the action.

At the end of the clip, Tamara zooms in on a beehive we had formed on a bush in the front of our house. It was the size of a pineapple, and we later found out it was actually just a huge mass of honey bees.  It wasn’t there when we moved into the house a couple of weeks ago.

We found a local beekeeper who was going to meet us at the home to take them away for free. I came home to meet them and when I went to look at the hive, it was gone. The only trace of them were a few lost looking bees flying around. I thought maybe the beekeeper had came before I got there and saw the hive and took it away, but he came a short time later. They said when bees are starting out a new hive, they sometimes leave suddenly to go somewhere else. We thought it was funny that they left the day we called someone to get them after they had been there for at least a week.

Spring Media Guide Covers

Women’s Basketball Guide Places Third Nationally

The Memphis women's basketball media guide has been judged third in the nation by the 2008-09 College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Publications Contest. The guide was selected as one of the nation's best among 85 entries.

The 202-page publication, which finished second in District IV, was written and edited by Assistant Media Relations Director Tammy DeGroff and designed by Assistant Media Relations Director and Publications Coordinator Brandon Kolditz. Cover photography was provided by Joe Murphy.

National Results

University of Kentucky (Susan Lax, Kim Troxall, David Coyle)
University of Oklahoma (Jared Thompson, Scott Matthews)
University of Memphis (Tammy DeGroff, Brandon Kolditz)
University of Kansas (Katy Longergan, Beau White)
Virginia Tech (Torye Hurst, Allison Jarnagin, David Knachel)
University of Connecticut (Randy Press)
Duke University (Lindy Brown, Duke Sports Information)
St. John's University (Rachel Constantine, Mekale Jackson, Athletic Communications)
University of Notre Dame (Chris Masters, Cynthia Lemcke)
UNLV (Mark Wasik, Paul Palmer)

Best Cover: University of Kentucky (Susan Lax, Kim Troxall, David Coyle)

Spencer aka “Butthead”

We had a new addition join our household in February. The kids call him Spencer, but me and Tamara refer to him as Butthead. Shelby and I were out for a jog, and a couple of blocks from our house a small stray kitten started chasing after us. When we got home, the kitten ran right inside and made himself at home. He’s been a part of our family ever since.

Butthead is a lot different from our other two old cats. From the very beginning, he let them know he was the Alpha Male. Butthead hogs the food and water dish and chases them away from our bed so he can get the prime spot. The other cats, even though they were bigger than him, were too afraid to fight back.

One thing Butthead does that drives us nuts is he likes to play with the water dish. Whenever we fill it up with water, he splashes it around with his paws until there is nothing left. It makes it frustrating trying to keep water out for the other cats.

He also likes to hop in the sink and shower when we are in the bathroom. He makes himself at home laying in the sink, and he’ll come and peak in when we are taking a shower. Quite often he has fallen into the tub, but the water doesn’t seem to faze him that much.

Noah had a hard time at first because Butthead liked to pounce on our feet when we walked by in the morning. We all could handle it, but every morning we would hear Noah screaming because the cat was biting his ankle.

As evidenced in the picture with Tammy, Butthead likes to sleep on his back and sprawl out. We catch him in this pose all the time in our bed.