The Southern Potatoes

Blog Has Moved

2011-01-05T22:36:00.003-06:00

Our blog has moved. It is now located at southernpotatoes.wordpress.com. We've gone to this new layout that makes it easier to showcase our families photos and videos. Several more photos have been added to previous entries.

Flashback: Hello Noah

2010-12-28T12:36:00.005-06:00

We are getting ready to have our third child in May, and I was looking back at the videos from Noah's birth five and a half years ago on May 9, 2005, in Memphis. It's neat to look back and see how small he looked when he was born and how fast they grow up. Grandma Williams made the trip from Idaho to help out.

My favorite part of the videos is the one where Shelby meets Noah for the first time. She had just turned four when he was born, and her interaction with him is really cute.

It's funny how you remember a lot of the difficult times, but forget how adorable kids are at the different stages until you look back on it. I wish it was easy to remember that during the moment. Even now, I look at the kids as being a pain in the butt a lot of the time, but I'll look back on this moment and long to be there again. Time is always moving way too fast and it's easy to focus on the next moment in life rather than slowing down to enjoy what you have in the present.

Redbirds and Fireworks

2010-12-27T12:12:00.003-06:00

One of the summer activities we enjoy to do is attending Memphis Redbirds games, the AAA affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. We went with a couple of friends to a game on July 3, 2010, and ran into a bunch of other families from our ward in the game.

Even though our tickets are behind home plate, we still always go and sit on the Bluff. I can watch baseball, and Shelby and Noah can run around like mad men. The kids like to get cardboard and slide down the hill on the back of the Bluff.

After the game, we watched the fireworks, a prelude to the fourth of July. They were shot right over top of us, so we all had to shield our faces from falling ash and debris.

Atlanta Braves Game

2010-12-27T11:59:00.003-06:00

Here are a few videos from our trip to Atlanta Memorial weekend to watch an Atlanta Braves game. We camped two nights at a KOA outside of Atlanta and went to see the Braves play the Pittsburgh Pirates on May 30, 2010, at Turner Field. It was a lot of fun for everybody.

The day was designated as one of their Family Days, so there was a lot to do with the kids. All of the interactive games around the stadium were free on this day, so Shelby and Noah got to try their skills at pitching and batting. We also had the chance to meet former pitchers Rick Camp, Zane Smith and Hall of Famer Phil Niekro before the game and get their autographs.

While Tamara and Noah waited in the autograph line, Shelby and I went into the outfield stands to watch some of batting practice. We were standing along the left field fence, and one of the Braves bullpen relievers threw Shelby a ball that she was able to use to get autographs on.

The Braves won the game in dramatic fashion with Chipper Jones knocking in a couple on a pinch hit appearance. Jason Heyward also had a good game.

After the game, the kids got to run the bases. It was a long line, but Shelby and Noah had a lot of fun and received a free t-shirt that said "I ran the bases at Turner Field," and also received a certificate.

Christmas Morning, 2010

2010-12-27T11:50:00.003-06:00

Since we were up late on Christmas Eve, Noah and Shelby actually let us sleep in to 7:30, which was nice. Both were excited for what Santa had brought them and also for the gifts from Mom and Dad.

Santa gave Shelby the Epic Mickey game for the Wii and Sonic Colors game for her DSI. Noah got his own DSI so he doesn't have to keep taking Shelby's. Both of them also received a couple DSI games from mom and dad. They were both excited for their Pillow Pets, which I had never even heard about, but are pretty big this year.

Christmas Eve, 2010

2010-12-27T11:28:00.006-06:00

For Christmas Eve, our family continues a Kolditz tradition of having a small program and then opening up a couple of presents. We finished watching Michael McLean's Forgotten Carols that we had started on family home evening the prior week. Then we sang carols and read Luke 2 before opening presents from the grandparents.

After opening the presents, we all played games on the Wii and before we knew it, it was 11 o'clock and way past bed time.

I apologize for my singing, which almost drowns everybody out. Watch Shelby singing Hark the Herald Angels Sing. She doesn't know the words, so she oooohs nearly the entire song. Pretty funny.

2009 Memphis Volleyball Media Guide

2009-08-14T16:49:00.001-05:00

Open publication - Free publishing - More tigers

2009 Memphis Soccer Media Guide

2009-08-05T13:41:00.002-05:00

Open publication - Free publishing - More tigers

2009 Memphis Football Media Guide

2009-07-27T09:20:00.002-05:00

Open publication - Free publishing - More university

Vacation at Hot Springs, Arkansas

2009-07-12T20:00:00.003-05:00

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

2009-06-28T18:50:00.001-05:00

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

Shelby’s Baptism

2009-05-24T22:29:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-24T22:16:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-22T19:00:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-22T18:49:00.001-05:00

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?

2009-05-22T18:31:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-22T18:16:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-10T23:52:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-10T23:48:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-10T23:44:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-10T23:34:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-03T22:36:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-03T22:10:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-02T10:29:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-02T10:10:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-02T09:56:00.001-05:00

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

2009-05-02T08:41:00.001-05:00

Women’s Basketball Guide Places Third Nationally

2009-05-02T08:34:00.001-05:00

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”

2009-05-02T00:32:00.001-05:00

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.

Shelby’s Eighth Birthday

2009-05-02T00:19:00.001-05:00

It’s hard to believe that Tamara and I already have an eight-year-old. Shelby turned eight on April 15. We got her a makeover game for the WII, some sunglasses, a couple books and some earrings. Grandpa and Grandma Kolditz gave Shelby her first set of scriptures, which she is very proud of. Her uncle and aunt Matt and Nikki got her a Hannah Montana purse that she now uses for her Digi game system and other personal items. Grandpa and Grandma Williams spoiled her with cash. Unfortunately, I was out of town traveling with softball, but Shelby had a very enjoyable birthday. Thanks to all those who wished her happy birthday and gave her gifts.

Chucky Cheese

2009-05-02T00:09:00.001-05:00

We let the kids decide where they want to go eat for their birthday, and of course they always want to go to Chucky Cheese. We had to celebrate Shelby’s eighth birthday a little bit early because I was heading out of town. Shelby and Noah always have a lot of fun and Tamara and I try to enjoy the really bad tasting pizza. Then we get to use the tickets the kids get from the games to get some overpriced junk .

2008 Family Pictures

2008-12-27T13:30:00.004-06:00

2008 Family Picture

Shelby's 2008 School Picture

Noah's 2008 Picture

Soccer Pictures

2008-12-27T13:14:00.004-06:00

Above are the individual and team soccer photos for Shelby and Noah. They both enjoyed their teams, but Noah especially got worn out by the end of the season. They had practice for an hour every Monday night and then a 1-hour game on Friday or Saturday. For the 3-4 year old groups, that was too long for the kids and too long for the adults.

They received their photos and trophy at an end of year award ceremony. They had so many teams that they had to split up the ceremony into three different times and of course Shelby was on one day and Noah was on the next. So we had to sit through the same presentation twice. It all went good on Noah's day which was the first one, but for the next day when Shelby was awarded, Noah was complaining of a stomach ache.

After Shelby had received her award, we were skipping out early since we had already seen it all once before. As I'm walking him from our chairs trying not to draw to much attention to ourselves and just made it to the aisle, Noah threw up everywhere. It was pretty embarrassing for Noah and for us. Luckily there were plenty of people that came and helped, but it was a mess.

2008 Memphis Football Bowl Guide

2008-12-09T18:03:00.005-06:00

Although we started the season 0-3 and lost three quarterbacks along the way, Memphis football still managed to win enough games to earn a bowl bid. The Tigers are going to play in the magicJack St. Petersburg Bowl in St. Petersburg, Fla. against South Florida on Saturday, December 20 at 4:30 (EST) on ESPN2.

It was a rush to get the bowl guide done, but we managed and the covers from the guide are above. I'll be travelling with the team leaving on Tuesday the 16th and will fly back after the game. It should be a lot of fun and their is several events planned for the week at the beach. The game will be played at Tropicana Field the home of Major League Baseball's Tampa Bay Rays.

Hiking at Arkabutla Lake

2008-11-26T14:31:00.003-06:00

The kids and I like to go hiking whenever we can and sometimes we're lucky enough to drag Tammy around. One of our favorite places to go is Arkabutla Lake, which is about 20 minutes from our home in Mississippi. There are a lot of good trails that we like to walk while we look for wild life.

One of reasons Tammy doesn't like to come is because of the fear of snakes. And it's funny that the only time we see them is when she's walking in front of the group and she about walks over them. On this trip, she almost ran into the snake below sun bathing in the middle of the trail.

Halloween 2008

2008-11-26T14:16:00.004-06:00

For Halloween this year, Shelby wanted to be a vampire and Noah wanted to be a Thomas Train. However, when Shelby got her vampire teeth and makeup, Noah wanted some too. So we made him into a monster Thomas Train.

I was in charge of getting the costumes together and getting them ready on Halloween morning. Shelby could wear her costume to school, so of course Noah had too. I guess you can kind of tell they were put together by me by how freaky they look. I'm sure Tammy would have made them nice and adorable, but I was going for scary.

Later that night, Tammy took the kids to the ward's Trunk or Treat where they got a lot of candy and had a hay ride. I had to work that night and couldn't attend, but they all had a lot of fun.

2008 C-USA Volleyball Championship

2008-11-24T18:02:00.006-06:00

We hosted the Conference USA Volleyball Championship last week, and I was thrilled to work all four days of the tournament. The photos above are taken in the fourth game of the first round after I had already been at the tournament for about 10 hours that day. Obviously, I was getting tired of volleyball. I produced the program for the tournament and served as the tournament's media relations director.

Noah's Soccer Games

2008-10-28T17:04:00.003-05:00

We have Shelby and Noah both playing soccer this year in one of the local church's recreation leagues. This is Shelby's second year playing soccer and the first for Noah. Shelby has been doing a lot better this year, and Noah is pretty good when he is playing by himself. They both are still a little timid going after the ball when everybody else is fighting for it.

The video shows Noah in one of his games early in the season when he actually was trying to play. Since then he's lost interest for now and would rather sit on the side line. The season only has a couple weeks left, thank goodness. Practice every Monday for both of them and games on Friday and Saturday's have taken its toll on our already busy schedule.

High School Musical on Ice

2008-10-28T16:55:00.002-05:00

I received free tickets from work a little while back to High School Musical on Ice at the FedExForum, and the kids loved it. We had really good seats down in the corner, and the show went through the story lines of HSM 1 and 2. Noah even got a hat like his favorite character Ryan that came with the cotton candy.

This past weekend we took the kids to see HSM 3 at the drive-in. We've going to the drive-in several times, but this was probably the best they've ever behaved. I was bored out of my mind at both the ice show and the new movie, but Tammy loved it.

2008-09 Memphis Basketball Media Guide

2008-10-15T09:36:00.005-05:00

We just received a few of the men's basketball media guides in time for the Conference USA Media Day in Memphis on Thursday. The guide can be viewed online at http://gotigersgo.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/0809-mbb-mediaguide.html. The women's basketball guide is now online as well at http://gotigersgo.cstv.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/0809-wbb-mediaguide.html. I created a bunch of wallpaper for women's basketball from the covers and cutouts I had. They can be found at http://gotigersgo.cstv.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/mem-w-baskbl-wallpaper0809.html

2008-09 Women's Basketball Media Guide

2008-10-08T14:42:00.004-05:00

Here is the women's basketball media guide covers for this year. We have a knew coach, so we tried to create an image of going in a new direction.

2007 Football Bowl Ring

2008-10-08T14:31:00.005-05:00

It's been awhile since we've posted anything. Once the athletic calendar year started, it's been really hectic again. I've just finished the men's and women's basketball media guides, so now I have a little time to start getting caught up on our blog.

The football team receives a bowl ring every year it makes a bowl. This past year was the first time we've gone to a bowl since I've been the secondary media contact. The ring is huge. It takes up almost two fingers. Not bad considering we didn't even win the bowl game and it was the New Orleans Bowl against Florida Atlantic.

2008 Volleyball Media Guide Covers

2008-08-12T12:53:00.004-05:00

The 2008 Memphis volleyball media guide covers just went to the printer. That takes care of all the fall sport media guides. Now it will be looking ahead to the winter sports.

First Day of School

2008-08-07T20:36:00.005-05:00

Today was the first day of school. Shelby was super excited for first grade. Her teacher is Ms. Baron. Tammy took a couples hours off in the morning so we could all take her to her class. It was raining pretty good, and we weren't able to get too close to the school because of all the other people dropping off their children. So we got a little wet, but it was a good experience. Shelby went into her classroom and dropped off her stuff. She already is in the stage where she is too embarrassed to give us a hug goodbye. Noah wishes he could go to school too, so he had to take a backpack to his daycare. We even have to pack him some snacks, since Shelby takes a lunch from home and he wants one too. It will only be two more years though until he starts kindergarten.

Noah Singing High School Musical

2008-07-26T20:00:00.003-05:00

These days, Noah is just as much into High School Musical as Shelby. We caught him today doing one of his performances with his toy drum. He likes to think he is Ryan since he is the character that likes to sing and dance a lot and he has blond hair.

Tamara and the Cats

2008-07-19T22:02:00.004-05:00

Tamara has a magnet that draws everybody to her making them all crave her attention. If it's not Shelby and Noah fighting each other for who gets to be next to their mom, it's Lady and Tramp battling one another. As soon as the kids go to bed, Lady and Tramp come out and Lady always has to be sitting on Tammy's lap, while Tramp comes next to her and cries for some attention too. Tonight Tammy was working on her lesson for Relief Society and both cats had to make sure they were part of it. When we go to bed, Lady has to sleep not next to Tammy, but on top of her stomach. With the cats and kids all looking to get what ever attention they can get out of her, it allows me to be the lucky one that gets left alone.

Started New Cooking Blog

2008-07-13T21:25:00.002-05:00

We just started a new blog titled Kolditz Cooking at kolditzcooking.blogspot.com. We are posting recipes that we try with our comments and pictures. Feel free to post a comment to a recipe if you ever try one and let us know how it turned out.

Tammy started weight watchers a couple of weeks ago and she is really watching her daily point intake. I have also been keeping track of what I am eating and was surprised how fast Mountain Dew and fast food really add up in calories. Just from keeping track of my calories, I have lost more than 10 pounds in the last month.

We bought a new cookbook called Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook. For the past month, we've been planning our weekly meals and trying not to eat out very often. I've also been getting up early to cook everybody a good breakfast in the morning. It's amazing how much energy we all have throughout the day just from that. Hopefully, this new blog will help us keep track of recipes we have liked and don't like as well as sharing with our family and friends some different meal ideas.

Summer Vacation - Day Six

2008-07-08T06:20:00.015-05:00

We finally made it back home at around 10 p.m. on Monday. Everybody was ready to be back, but we all had a good time on our vacation building lots of memories. We went out our hotel room before 9 a.m. and already the heat and humidity was almost unbearable. We took a walk down the River Walk along the Mississippi River.

We then stopped for breakfast at Cafe Du Monde. It is well known in New Orleans for its coffee and beignets. The beignets are like fried scones covered in powdered sugar. They are really good but very messy. The kids had fun eating them though.

Afterwards, we walked through the French Quarter with all of its little shops and narrow streets. This picture of Tammy, Shelby and Noah is at Jackson Square with a statue of Andrew Jackson in front of an old Catholic church.

Here's me and Shelby with a narrow French Quarters street in the background and the buildings showcasing the typical style of the town with its balconies.

We were going to go to the Aquarium downtown, but it is closed on Mondays. So instead we went on a Swamp Adventure in Westwego, about 15 minutes from downtown. We took a guided two hour tour through the swamp and saw several alligators, birds, turtles, jumping giant fish and even a big crab. It was really pretty and a lot of fun. Before the tour, they showed some of the animals you could see. Tammy went up and held a big snake that Noah touched.

They had a baby alligator that Shelby got to hold.

And Noah got to pet.

Shelby looking for alligators in the swamp. It took a little while for us to find our first one, but after that, we saw several of them.

Shelby looking at an alligator swimming by the boat.

The tour guide would throw marshmallows out when we saw alligators and they would eat them all. The alligators could hear when one hit the water and quickly turn to snatch it up. The guide also put a fish on a string and held it above the water saw we could see the alligator jump up to grab it. It was pretty neat. Another time there was a six foot gator and a four foot and the guide threw a marshmallow in between them. They both went after it, but when they got close, the bigger one whipped its tail to show the smaller one not to mess with him. Below is a slideshow of all the tour as well as a video of one of the alligators.

Summer Vacation - Day Five

2008-07-06T21:16:00.007-05:00

After saying our goodbyes to Jon and Corianne's family, we left for New Orleans, Louisiana at around 11 a.m. We arrived at our destination at around 5 p.m. at the downtown Hilton on the Riverwalk. We'll stay here overnight and walk along the river as well as touring the French Quarters district tomorrow. There is a free Ferry that takes you across the river to the old section of the city that we may do tomorrow as well. Then we'll head home to complete our six-day vacation.

We stopped at a rest area at the Texas-Louisiana border. They had a short boardwalk through a swamp that we walked. While on the trek, we saw the biggest grasehopper we have ever seen. It was huge. It was probably 10 times the size of the largest grasshopper we are all used to seeing.

Tammy and Noah waiting in line outside the Acme Oyster Bar near Bourbon Street in New Orleans.

Shelby, Tammy and Noah after eating at the Acme Oyster Bar, a cajun restaurant. We were all stuffed. We ordered fried oysters and shrimp, a beef poboy and sausage withe rice and beans.

Here is one of the street performers on Bourbon Street in New Orleans.

Tammy, Shelby and Noah after seeing all they could handle of Bourbon Street. Tammy said it made Las Vegas look like a family oriented city.

Summer Vacation - Day Four

2008-07-05T22:19:00.016-05:00

We went to Stewart Beach today in Galveston, Texas, today. It is about an hour and a half outside of Houston off the Gulf of Mexico. The beach was as much fun as we had expected and more. The kids had a blast in the four hours we were there, and the water was really warm. Shelby and Kydan played most of the time in the waves and loved trying to ride them. The surf was a lot more than I had thought it would be and was a lot of fun. Noah, Paysen and Ceanna played mainly in the sand and in the water a short distance from the shore. The weather was perfect with it being overcast and temperatures only in the high 80’s to low 90’s. Even with the overcast weather and plenty of sun screen, we still all came back with sunburns and a lot of sand in our shoes. All of the kids are getting along great and it will be hard to leave in the morning. They’ve really been well behaved, for the most part, playing with each other.

Summer Vacation - Day Three

2008-07-05T08:26:00.016-05:00

We went to the Houston Space Center on Friday. There was a lot there for the kids, so they all had a lot of fun. We spent about four and a half hours there. When we first arrived, we went into one of the theaters and watched a 15 minute video about the space program. Afterwards, you were allowed into a room that had some of the original space capsules and moon rocks.

In the brochure, there was an attraction called Blast Off. The description said that you would experience the spectacular sensation of a Blast Off. You would see and feel what it is like when over 7 million pounds of thrust push a 4 ½ million pound vehicle skyward. After your launch, you will go into the theater for a live update on the current shuttle missions as well as future explorations. It sounded really cool so we went to it. There was a big line for it and everybody was entered into this dark room with three screens on the wall. The Blast Off lasted less than five minutes and consisted of the screens showing a blast off and some smoke entering the room. It was nothing like the description. Then we had to go into the other room and listen for 30 minutes as some guy in a monotone and quiet voice talked about the current space shuttle missions. The kids kept asking if we were going to blast off pretty soon. They really tricked us into going in that one.

After the disappointment, we decided we wouldn’t go into any more theaters and we just let the kids play in the kid zone. They had a slide area with balls that you could shoot up that Noah and Paysen played on most of the time. Shelby, Kydan and Ceanna went to the adventure area. The kids went on an obstacle course where they were attached by a harness and had to go through a balancing areas such as rope steps and walking across a rope. Shelby was pretty nervous, but did all right even though she said her knees were shaking the entire time.

From there they went to this swing where they climbed up to a tower and held onto a bar to swing out and drop onto a soft cushioned area. To the surprise of us all, Ceanna actually did it after the working coaxed her into it at the top. She hadn’t made it through the obstacle balancing course previous to the swing and had to be carried across by a worker. The kids then went on a trampoline with a harness that allowed them to jump pretty high.

As we were going back to the car, we found a bunch of really tiny frogs jumping by the sidewalk. It had rained a little bit during the day, and the frogs were in the puddles. The kids were catching a bunch of them with Noah and Paysen squishing them in their fingers when they tried to hold them.

After the museum, we went swimming in the pool for a little while and then went to a parking lot across the street to light a couple fireworks we bought. When we asked the firework stand what some good ones would be for small children he had given us this no light fireworks that you struck like a match. All I had heard him say was they smoked, so I struck one and was holding it in my hand. Well, after it had smoked for a short time it exploded like a black cat in my hand. It scared Noah and Tamara really bad and burnt the crud out of my fingers. I don’t know how those were supposed to be good for little kids. I was a lot more excited about the fireworks than everybody else.

Today we are going to go to the beach in Galveston. The kids are all really excited to go. Jon took the day off, and as long as the weather cooperates, it should be a lot of fun.

Summer Vacation Day Two

2008-07-04T10:39:00.018-05:00

Thursday was the day we were going to take the kids to their first major league baseball game. The Houston Astros were playing the Los Angeles Dodgers at 1 p.m. at Minute Maid Park. They have an outfield section that tickets are only $7 for adults and $1 for children, so we could take our whole family to the game for only $16. You can’t beat that. Plus the Astros were having a $1 hot dog promotion at the game. Everybody was excited. Noah had his baseball hat on and couldn’t wait for the game.

By the time we made it to downtown, parked and got into the ticket line it was about 1 p.m., and they were just starting the national anthem. It took us about 20 minutes to get through the ticket line, and I had assumed there would be plenty of tickets. Corianne had gone to the game before and the section always had plenty of seats. Corianne had told me that maybe we should buy the tickets online, but I said there would be no need since I’m sure there would be plenty of tickets since it was a midweek day game and it was only the Dodgers.

Well, when we got through the line we found out the cheapest seats they had left were $15. Instead of $16 to see the game, it would have cost us $60. We weren’t going to pay that much, so we didn’t get to go. When we told the kids, Noah started to cry. I asked him why he was so sad and he said he was upset because he had wanted to get a hot dog.

We were going to go somewhere to eat downtown, but there really isn’t much as far as family oriented affordable restaurants. So we got back into the car and were going to go to a pizza buffet. In the car, Teegan became upset and was crying most of the way back because he was hungry and Ceanna started to throw up in the back so we just headed back to the apartment and ordered pizza and went to the pool for the rest of the afternoon.

For dinner we went to Pappasitos Cantina, a place I had gone to with the softball team and really liked. They are famous for their fajitas. It was pretty busy and it took about three hours for us to be seated, served and get our bill. The manager came and gave us half off all the adult meals and all the kids meals free, plus we came home with a big bag of every desert they had. That was all a bonus because the food was great and the kids were fine playing with each other. We were outside away from most of the people, so the three hour wait wasn’t too bad for us, but paying more than half of what you had expected and getting free desert was a bonus.

On Friday we are going to the Space Center and then watching some fireworks in the evening. On a side note, I found a Wii Fit at the Wal-Mart here and couldn’t pass it up. They had just got a shipment of eight and I snatched the first one.

Me and my new best bud Teegan

We had to run to the store to get Paysen a new birthday present since we forgot it at home. He gave Noah and Shelby a hug to thank them. Shelby didn't know how to react.

Summer Vacation - Day One

2008-07-02T23:15:00.010-05:00

Today we began our summer vacation with a trip down to Houston, Texas to visit Corianne and Jon and their family. They are there for the summer while Jon is selling security systems. We loaded up the van and left the house at around 6:30 a.m., which was a good start for us. The kids were both very excited. This is the first long distance trip we have taken with them in the last two years. We made the drive in about 11 hours and arrived around 5:30 p.m. Everybody handled the drive really well, and Tamara had to get after Noah only a couple of times.

The kids posed for a picture in front of a big Texas monument at a rest area in Texarkana on the state border. This pretty much marked about the half way point of the drive. We drove across Arkansas to Little Rock and then down through the state and down through Texas. It was all interstate travel up until about an hour past Texarkana and then it was highway until about 100 minutes outside Houston, which meant a lot of stopping and going through the different cities. On our way back we will go across Louisiana and then up the entire state of Mississippi.

When we arrived at Jon and Corianne's apartment, Noah and Shelby warmed up fairly quickly to their cousins. They haven't seen each other for two years. Kydan and Noah played together for awhile with a marble construction set.

Here's Tamara with Teegan. He looks like he's happy to be held by her, but really he's only smiling because he sees me. Teegan and I get along really well. He's the only Adams that isn't afraid of me.

I tried to get a picture of Ceanna with Shelby and Noah, but as soon as I pulled the camera out she ran back inside.

Here's a couple more shots of the smiling nudy-rudy Teegan.

Today we also got to take part in Paysen's birthday party. He turned three yesterday. A couple of Corianne's friends from the apartment complex came with their young children. I think they have a small branch here in the complex with just Rexburg people. It was funny to see so many 1M Idaho plates in the parking lot.

We also went swimming for about an hour in the complex's pool. Shelby, Kydan, Ceana and Paysen are all the little swimmers, but Noah clung for dear life onto me. He liked it, but it took him awhile to finally loosen his grip. He was shreiking the whole time in a really high voice. Although, it could have been because the water was a little cold.

Touching Them All

2008-06-26T06:12:00.002-05:00

I read about this story when I was at the C-USA Softball Championship in Houston. These college softball players carry an opposing player around the bases after she hits a home run and gets injured. It's a really good motivating story that shows a lot of character from the opposition.

2008 Soccer Media Guide Cover

2008-06-25T15:15:00.005-05:00

Pictured are the covers for the 2008 Memphis soccer media guide. It's been fun watching the two programs grow in the last couple of years. When I first came to Memphis in 2004, I handled media relations for the men's soccer program. The team won its first conference tournament and went to the NCAA tournament. That year was also the first year the program was ranked in the national top 25, and it has now been in the top 25 off and on the last four years. The women's program earned its first conference tournament and NCAA appearance last season. We'll have three games on national television this year on CBS College Sports. The women play Rice at home on TV, and the men will play SMU and Tulsa at home on the network.

Golf Tournament

2008-06-11T16:46:00.003-05:00

I just finished my fourth year as a volunteer at the Stanford/St. Jude PGA Championship last week, and I am pretty sure it will be my last. One of our assistant athletic directors at Memphis has been the media coordinator of the tournament for the last 30 years or so.

At first glance, it may seem like a really fun job to be working in a PGA golf tournament. But unlike other jobs working in sports like basketball and football, golf isn't as glamorous since you don't really get to watch the event unfold. At the tournament, there is a media center indoors with a bunch of works stations that have computers with live stats, shot-by-shot, of the golfers. The only golf you really get to watch working in the media center is the television broadcasts of the tournament. It is a lot of sitting around all day long.

My job was primarily to answer phones, which don't ring very often anymore because everything is now live on the Internet. I got to escort Boo Weekley to the Media Center for a press conference after he was leading the first day of the tournament. I then brought a microphone to media members with questions during some of the press conferences, including the interview with Justin Leonard after he won the tournament.

We didn't have Tiger Woods in the tournament and Phil Mickelson withdrew last minute. Vijay Singh was in it as well as Sergio Garcia, Bob Estes, Padraig Harrington, Kenny Perry and John Daly. BYU alumnus Dean Wilson was in the lead until the last two holes on the final day when he double bogeyed. Somebody brought in to the media center two clubs he had broken during his melt down.

Tammy and the kids before church on Sunday.

This picture is of the kids and me in my full volunteer uniform on Sunday, the last day of the tournament. The final day of the tournament they did something different and called it Seersucker Sunday. All of the volunteers received these ugly seersucker shorts to wear and the tournament winner was presented a seersucker jacket. Seersucker is a type of material made popular in the South. It is white with thin blue lines and the material feels a lot like a paper bag.

Bike Riding

2008-06-02T19:22:00.005-05:00

It finally happened!!! Shelby has been riding her toddler bike for the past few year without the training wheels trying to learn her balance. A few months ago we took the training wheels off her big bike. She wasn't ready. Lately, she's been giving it another shot now and then.

Today it happened. Tamara was fixing dinner and Shelby came in with a huge grin on her face and said, "Mama! Come See!" So Tammy walked outside and she was riding her bike in our neighbor's driveway all by herself. What's funny is she can ride in circles better than riding in a straight line. Shelby's still learning to use her brakes, but it will come.

Noah Stuttering

2008-06-02T19:15:00.002-05:00

Wha-Wha-Wha-What's up with Noah? In like the last two months, he's developed a little bit of a stutter. We hope he eventually grows out of it. Tammy thinks it is because he has all these words in his mind, but he's not able to get them out of his mouth quick enough. Noah has a pretty big vocabulary and can talk in sentences really well. He particularly struggles with WH words like What and Where.

New Swimming Pool

2008-06-02T07:23:00.007-05:00

Tamara and I finally caved in to the kids desire for a swimming pool this weekend. We kept telling Shelby she maybe could get a pool in the summer, so she has been constantly asking us if it is summer yet. It's a small pool that the kids are a little too big for, but they had a lot of fun with it and it keeps us from having to monitor them too closely.

2007 Soccer Media Guide Places 2nd Nationally

2008-05-30T10:29:00.004-05:00

The 2007 University of Memphis soccer media guide that I designed placed second nationally in the 2007-08 CoSIDA Men’s Soccer Publications Contest. Among 38 Division I entries, the guide finished behind Indiana.

The Tiger publication finished first in District 4, which is comprised of DI schools in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama.

UNLV came in third followed by Wake Forest, Connecticut and Saint Louis. UNLV’s publication was selected for the best cover.

This is the second consecutive year the soccer guide has been honored. The 2006 edition was named Best in the Nation in the multi-sport category.

Toad in the Yard

2008-05-29T19:28:00.007-05:00

I was mowing the lawn tonight and found a big toad in the backyard. I don't know if it's all the same one, but this is the second time this week we have seen a toad in our yard. We also saw one twice last year. Noah is scared of the toad, but Shelby loves to play with them. She spent a good 20 minutes in the backyard playing with it and only stopped because we made her come in.

Camping at Trace State Park

2008-05-24T13:10:00.008-05:00

We took the kids on their first camping trip on Friday. We were going to leave on Saturday, but I got off work early and decided I couldn't wait. So I loaded the van and we left as soon as Tammy and the kids got home.

We went to Trace State Park in Mississippi near Tupelo about an hour and a half drive from home. It was rated as one of the top 50 state parks in the U.S. and one of the top 25 fishing state parks. We arrived about 7:30 p.m. and were able to set up camp.

Shelby told us all some scary stories in the tent. She had to use the flashlight shining up on her face to tell the story. It ended up being a recap of the movie version of Little Red Riding Hood. Noah decided he needed to tell some scary stories too.

Surprisingly, after the scary stories, the kids went right to sleep. Noah was the first one to go, crashing as soon as he laid down. Shelby took a little longer because she had trouble adjusting to the wildlife noise. It was loud until midnight from all the frogs and bugs in the area.

Once the bugs quieted down around midnight and the kids were asleep, Tammy and I were just about to fall asleep ourselves. But we became wide awake when we heard a woman in the camp site near us scream for somebody to call 911 she was getting beat up by her boyfriend. That began a domestic dispute between the two yelling and screaming at each other. It sounded to me like the lady was crazy and drunk. This went on for a while, and then we heard windows being broken. The woman was bashing the guy's truck windows in.

I finally called 911 since we were getting worried about the situation and was told two deputies were already on their way. Another camper had already called as well. It wasn't too much longer until the cops came and arrested both of them, and then a tow truck came and hauled away their vehicle, which made a lot of noise. Amazingly, the kids never woke up during it.

In the morning, I talked with one of the other campers in the area and he had gone over there to find out what's going on after also calling 911. He said the woman was crazy and had slashed the interior of the truck with a long pair of scissors and was threatening to kill the guy in his sleep. Her boyfriend had said he never touched her, she had just gone crazy all of a sudden and threw the keys to the truck into the bushes. When the cops came, they already knew the lady because they had arrested here several times before.

Needless to say it was after 1 a.m. before Tammy and I were able to go to sleep. Of course, the kids woke up about 5:30 a.m., and they had slept great.

After giving the kids something to eat, we tried to go fishing in the lake. Shelby and I were getting pumped up to try cooking one of the fish if we caught a big one. We were unsuccessful though. The lake had a lot of moss and vegetation growing near the shore, and although there were probably a lot of fish in them, we couldn't keep our lines from getting caught in the growth. There were a lot of boats in the water that maybe were having more luck than we were.

After our failed attempt at fishing, we went to go on a hike. At the entrance, there was a sign showing some of the wild life in the area that I stopped to look at. However, I didn't notice that I was standing in a fire ant hill. The picture above shows my footsteps and all those specks are little ants that started swarming all over the place. I started to feel something biting my leg and looked down and both of my feet were entirely covered in ants. They bit pretty hard too. Noah got a few on his leg as well and started crying from being bit. He's now terrified of ants.

Tammy decided she wasn't going to go on the hike now, even though she wasn't the one suffering from the ant bites. Noah still wanted to go, so Shelby, Noah and I went on about a mile hike through the forest along the lake. The kids really enjoy hiking and looking for animals.

When we got back from our hike, Tammy was in the van reading her book. We all called her a wimp, and then we came home.

2008 Memphis Football Media Guide Cover

2008-05-22T16:27:00.005-05:00

I’ve just completed the covers for the 2008 football media guide. We are still working on the inside of the 206 page guide and plan to have it sent to the printer before we head to Idaho the beginning of July. Last year’s guide placed fourth nationally in the College Sports Information Directors Association (CoSIDA) football publications contest. Out of 42 Division I entries, it placed behind Notre Dame, UCLA and Florida State. It also placed first in its district, which is comprised of DI schools in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama.

Dinner with the Missionaries

2008-05-21T21:56:00.002-05:00

The four missionaries in our ward came over for dinner today. The kids always get hyperactive when they visit, but the Elders are very good at keeping them entertained. We cooked hotdogs and brauts on the grill and while they were getting ready Shelby and Noah played softball in the backyard with the missionaries.

We’re able to have them over every once in a while, usually a lot more frequently in the summer when work is a little slower for me. It brings back a lot of memories from my mission since we usually had about four Elders in a ward and would all go to member’s houses together for dinner. There’s a signup sheet that goes around Relief Society on Sunday, so the missionaries get fed pretty regularly.

After dinner, one of the companionships taught us two of the principles from the first discussion as if we were investigators. This is the second time they have done this as their spiritual message, and both times have been neat to hear the way they are now delivered.

When I was on my mission the discussions were memorized, and they were pretty straightforward and guided. Now they have six main topics that allow them to move the discussion in whatever way they feel directed. There is a lot more room to individualize the message toward whoever is being taught.

Shelby's 911 Call

2008-05-19T21:37:00.001-05:00

Shelby continues to throw curveballs at us and never ceases to find ways to cause trouble.

Tamara leaves a little before seven in the morning to get to her work by 7:30 a.m. When I got out of the shower today at around 7:15, somebody was at the door knocking. I hurried into the bedroom to put some clothes on and was surprised that Shelby wasn’t running to the door like she normally does when someone is there, especially since if anybody is knocking that early, it’s usually one of her friends wanting to walk with her to school.

Shelby and Noah were in our TV room watching cartoons, and I headed that way to look out the window to see who was there. As I was heading toward the room, I heard Noah start yelling, “Hi Policeman! Hi!” Three cops were at the door on the verge of busting it down.

When I opened the door, the cops asked me if anybody had called 911. They said they had received a hang up call from our address. I invited them in and called Shelby who was hiding under a blanked in the TV room. She didn’t run to the door because she knew what she had done and thought the cops were there to take her to jail.

After apologizing to the policemen, I was able to have a talk with Shelby about the importance of 911 and only calling for emergencies. Hopefully, she learned her lesson and doesn’t do it again.

Tamara and I were talking tonight about whether we remember ever doing anything like that when we were growing up. Tammy said she never did, but I remember doing it when I was in elementary school. It was me and probably Corianne that made a prank call to 911 and told them our house was on fire before hanging up. They immediately called back the number, and my mom told them there was no fire. When asked why I did it, I remember saying because I wanted to practice so I would know what to do if there was a real emergency. I don’t remember getting into much trouble after making that comment.

I guess I still need to teach Shelby how to talk your way out of trouble.

Fishing

2008-05-17T14:24:00.006-05:00

We took the kids fishing for the first time to the Southaven Rodeo at Jim Saucier Park. They had just stocked up the small lake with fish and children 4-12 could fish for free from 8 a.m. to noon. We got there about 8:30 and it was already packed. Everybody's lines kept getting tangled with each other. The people next to us had caught a bunch of large catfish.

Noah was happy to get his Spiderman fishing rod.

Shelby was the first one to catch a fish. Brandon was helping Noah get his line untangled from somebody else's line, when all of a sudden we see Shelby reeling in a fish. She never even said she had one on the line. She caught the largemouth bass with a cricket.

After having enough with the large crowd at the Southaven Rodeo, we went to another lake at a park in town. Shelby caught the first fish at this lake as well, hooking a Bluegill with some power bait.

Noah caught his first fish, a small bluegill.