Our Layton House

Suzi, and I stopped by our old Layton House to see how the house looks. All the trees are growing up. Looks like the new home owner put a couple of trees in the parking strip too. Fun and strange to stop by. House looks great. I bet it looks fantastic in the summer! Good memories on that street. Great place too live.

It was anyhow. Suz and I connected with the Dopp's and the Kirkwood's for dinner our first night in town. That was fun. Anyhow, appearently just about everyone on the street has moved. Including the Dopp's and the Kirkwood's.

Vote for Summer! I mean Maya!

Have you voted for Maya today? See below. If the below text reads like it's somebody else who is pregnant that's because it is, and she is. I stole this text from my sister in law Angie Smith:

My niece, Maya, has been chosen as a FINALIST in the Gap Casting Call competition! Isn't that amazing!!! Out of 800,000 applicants, Maya was chosen! How cool is that?!?!? Maya and her parent's just got back from San Francisco, where Maya was interviewed and did a photo shoot with The Gap. I don't have too many details, but I will post them once I find out, as I am sure that it was amazing!!!
Now, I want to encourage ALL OF YOU to vote for Maya! Voting started yesterday and it goes through December 15. You can vote once per day and it only takes a second to do, so please vote! All you have to do is go to this link, http://kodak.eprize.net/gapcastingcall/?affiliate_id=2e, register as a new user (only the first time), and then cast your vote. There is also a link to this on The Gaps website (http://www.gap.com/) on the bottom right. There are four categories to vote on. Maya is in the Girls Category (3rd category) and she is the fourth girl on the list (Maya, Age 5). You can click on More Info to read a little more about her.

Mouth Wash

Sam and Hannah are a bunch of fun to listen to at times. They both really enjoy telling each other what to do at times. More so than any other combination of siblings in our family.
When we were at the hotel yesterday Sam asked if he could use the mouth wash. You know the stuff that sits on the counter in the bathroom with the soap, shampoo, etc. I told all the kids not touch the food items in the room, we would have to pay for those if they ate them. So he asked before he got into the other stuff. I explained to Sam the Shampoo, Soap, and other toiletries were our to use, and that he could keep it if he wanted to.
Hannah saw Sam stick the little bottle of mouth wash in his pocket, and says to Sam "You'd better put that back. We'll have to pay for it." Sam says "No we won't." Hannah replies "Well than that's stealing if your not going to pay for it." Sam "No Hannah, you don't get it. Ask Dad." I explain to her the how the bathroom stuff is ours to use. Hannah not wanting to lose this argument says to Sam while walking away "Well.....I wouldn't want to put that in my mouth after all the other people who stayed here before us did."
I liked this argument so much I decided to agree with Hannah "That's a good point Sam, I don't think I'd put that in my mouth if that were the case." Sam "Noooo. Nobody has used this.......right?"
That Hannah is a quick thinker. Gets it from her mom I think.

One Step Closer

Wow, I don't even know where to begin with all the problems I have with this judges decision. This article blows me away.

Hannah and Her Teacher

I can't spell Hannah's teachers name correctly, It sounds like Ross-toe-mel-ie, but they call her Mrs. Ross-toe. Hannah is having a great year with her.

Moses John Wadley

I've always loved the name Moses. I tried to talk Suzi into naming both my boys Moses. I have two Moses ancestors that I've discovered so far. Both on my Dad's side, and both from his mothers side.
Moses Payne 1581-1643. Born in Frittenden Kent England and died in Braintrain Norfolk Massachusetts.
Moses John Wadley was the ancestor that originally gave me the idea of naming one of my boys Moses.
I was looking at the 1860 Franklin Township, Missouri census tonight and I started to look at the dates and tried to imagine what life was like for him with the little bit of information that I had.
He got married in January 1860 to his wife Martha . He was 26, and she was 25. She was pregnant when the census taker came around in August. They were well along into pregnancy with their first baby due in November of 1860. They had a farm there in Franklin. The census taker valued it at 800 dollars, and they had 185 dollars worth of property belonging to their estate. A promising beginning.
Their son Leroy Sterling Wadley was born in November 4th. Moses died on November 15, 1862 at a ripe old age of 28 with one tiny two year old son.
Moses then Leroy then Jessie then Mary then Stephen then Sean then Patrick and Sam and Hannah and Georgia. One short life that has left so much posterity, but I would guess very few know anything about him. It's amazing to me.

The Derby In Lodi

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Well we made a good showing again this year. Sam and I always build a contender. We've won a some, and come real close on others. We won the Rain Gutter Regatta one year, came in top five in the Rocket Ship racing, and last year we finished in a controversial 3rd in the derby.
Sam thinks the guy who finished in second may have cheated. So does Sam's mom. So does a lot of other kids, but from what I heard it wasn't the boy that cheated. It was his parents that were running the race. It still burns Sam, whenever he sees the kid someplace he tells me the story. It's kid of funny. I was out of town unfortunately on race day last year.
This year we our car ran really well. We finished 3rd again. It was a close one too. Within a car length.
A couple of other races were really close! There is a photo of one race where it was a photo finish. Without the picture it was too hard to tell. It's a gold car, and a black and white striped car.
Anyhow good year. Sad part, that was my last year. Boy Scouts don't race, just Cubs. Sam will be a boy scout next year, and I've got no more baby boys.
This was my favorite car on looks. Sam and I did a good job. (And Suz, she did the paint.)

Valley Day Continued

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Lot of square dancing! Hannah talked about it for about 20 minutes straight without taking a breath. I think she likes it.

Valley Day

Hannah had pioneer day today at school. Not at school it was a day away from school. Sort of, they replicate school at a park here in town in a "old town" type of thingy. I'd explain it to you, but I don't know much about it. Except that they do a lot of old time stuff, and their lunches can't have any pacaged food. Patrick loved it when he did it. Sam loved it when he did it, and Hannah loved it and said "Dad you blew it. This is a once and a life time chance to see how it use to be!" She felt rather strongly that I should have been there. I explained that actually I have one more child who will go through 3rd grade, and maybe I'll catch it that year. "You better!" Good gravy, as if I don't have enough mothers already.

Spooky Fountain

Suz got some dry ice to stick in the fountain for Halloween.

Halloween 07

Remember Summer?

Da Gang

Lake Tahoe

Who's Driving?

Don't worry I think Suzi has an emergency brake pedal.

It's like the fireworks

I love being at the beach and watching the waves crash againts the rocks. I could watch it all day long and never get tired of it.

Puffy

Patrick told me that a buddy of Georgia's told him today "I like your spots." I like spots too.

Save The Rhinos!

Save the Rhinos. Just not that one. I don't like the way he's looking at me. Shoot him.
I read a bit of this article titled: "Hunter who trekked to Africa to bag rhino for BYU says trophy will help conserve the species."
I was confused by the title, confused by the first couple paragraphs, gave up, and thought I'd post a blog about it instead.
Not that I don't think knowing how to hunt, and butcher aren't good skills to have; just not that into to it I guess. Not like Josh Litchy. Now there is a guy that like to shoot stuff that moves. Kidding.
The article didn't really confuse me, I just found the logic a bit fuzzy.

AHHH! Children!

I came home from work the other day and Georgia said "I got the cops called on me." I laughed and asked her "what are you talking about?"



She talked at a million miles per hour, and I really didn't follow much of the story. I got some of the key facts, and then I asked Hannah "what's she was talking about?" So Hannah says "yeah we got the cops called on us!"



The first time through the story I didn't hear (and I'm sure it wasn't stated) that there were other kids present. So I asked Hannah the story, and I was still a bit confused. I kept thinking they aren't telling me something.



So then I asked Suzi "what the heck they are talking about?" She explained that, yes, in fact the kids did get the "cops called on them."



I love that all my kids refer to the police as "cops." What a bunch of hoodlums. I'd really be concerned if they called the police the "po-po." Then I'd be certain they were involved with the criminal elements in Lodi.



So here's the jist of the story after speaking to multiple sources. Suzi was having a meeting at the house with her counslers, and secratary for the primary at our house. There were too many kids so she sent Patrick, Sam, Hannah, Georgia, and a few other kids to the school around the corner to play at the play ground.



There appearently was an "old lady" (I wonder how old this lady was, I think it's a lady in her mid 50's who constantly walks for fitness purposes around the neighborhood while talking on her cell phone) on a walk and she saw the kids playing outside and asked Hannah "where do you kids live?" Hannah said "we live around the corner and we play here all the time." The lady appearently responded something like "well you kids seem lost/ aren't being watched." Hannah replied "My brother Patrick is over there, and he's watching us." Appearently Patrick was playing soccer out on the grass, and the "old lady" didn't find this response satisfactory. So she told the kids that she would call the police. She did, and then left.



The po-po showed up within a 10 minutes or so looking for lost children, and Patrick told him the story and explained the kids are with me. He said great, and off he went.

Rock On Sam

I had to play him a couple of Kiss tunes before I sent him out on Halloween as a member of the band. I don't think he's ever heard one single song of theirs.

I think the main reason he hasn't heard any Kiss tunes is due to the fact that most of their music stinks big time in my humble opinion. Besides "Rock n Roll All Night" I couldn't think of one song of theirs.

Patrick was a Kiss member too. It was kind of funny. The five of us were out together, and you would not believe how often I heard this phrase or a version of it from the women who answered their doors: "Oh you two look beautiful (speaking to the girls),....... you two.......not so much." It was a good laugh every time I heard it. I think my clean cut boys loved letting their hair down for a night, and by the time the night was over, tired of taking a verbal beating by every woman who opened their door.

Patrick On Stage!

Why, oh why, do we continue to torture our children by forcing them to perform in "Roadshows?" Because it fun for the adults, that's why. Loved every minute of it. Well, loved every minute of Patrick's groups production. Some of the other wards were a little slow, but Patrick's Rocked.

Hannah, and Georgia said they couldn't wait to be teenagers to that they can be in the Road Show. Love it.

Someone Gave Me A Scare

The following is from a couple of different medical education websites.

• Choking is an emergency. Call 911 emergency medical services. Do not attempt to drive a choking person to a hospital emergency department. Choking is a blockage of the upper airway by food or other objects, which prevents a person from breathing effectively. Choking can cause a simple coughing fit, but complete blockage of the airway may lead to death.
• Choking is a true medical emergency that requires fast, appropriate action by anyone available. Emergency medical teams may not arrive in time to save a choking person's life.
• The brain is extremely sensitive to this lack of oxygen and begins to die within four to six minutes.
• In adults, choking most often occurs when food is not chewed properly. Talking or laughing while eating may cause a piece of food to "go down the wrong pipe."
• In children, choking is often caused by chewing food incompletely, attempting to eat large pieces of food or too much food at one time, or eating hard candy.
• Someone who cannot answer by speaking and can only nod the head has a complete airway obstruction and needs emergency help.

The family was at Patrick's soccer party at Rick's Pizza here in Lodi. Great Pizza, on the same level as a "Pie" in SLC (almost). They do have something in common, and that's the cheese.

I was sitting with some of the families, and I heard someone say "she's choking." I turned around and it was Georgia. She was on her feet next to where she had been sitting, Suzi was standing behind here, and Georgia had both her hands at her throat with her mouth wide open. I popped up, and asked her "Are you ok?" She didn't answer me, hear me, or make a sound. She reached into her mouth with her fingers and tried to pull something out.

This took about 5 seconds, and I was panicked. Suzi didn't seem panicked. She maybe had a few more clues than I did, she had been sitting next to her. After the fact Suz said she thought she was breathing. I never heard anything.

I grabbed Georgia, and turned her upside down so that her head was facing the ground. I think I had one leg, and Suz must have had the other. Still I didn't hear a sound. No crying, no cough, not even a gagging noise.

She was clearly panicked, and that was what had set me off. Once I turned her upside down I began to hit her upper back with the heal of my hand, and she kept trying to reach into her mouth to grab the object she was choking on. I stuck my finger in her mouth, and fortunately a friend who was a dentist was right there and he said to me to take it out. Later he told me he was worried I would push the object back into her airway. Finally after maybe, 3-4 seconds of beating she made a squealing sound. It was a panicked squeal, but it told all of us that she had an opening. Finally she pulled out the long strand of cheese, and said something like "I got it." She made a brave face for a second, or two and then started crying, and then Hannah started crying.

When I had Georgi upside down, that was the same exact moment moment I had when Patrick was born. The same thoughts, and same feeling rushed through me. The thought was "I don't want to lose my baby like this," and the feeling was that I thought "this might be it." It's really a hopeless feeling. So empty.

I felt the same way when Patrick finally took that first breath, and Georgia cleared her airway. It's a strange feeling. It's not like "Yeah I won!" It's more like "I just got punched in the head so hard I can't see straight."

Not a very comical moment. Except Suz, "I think maybe you over reacted a little."

She's so calm, and I'm so charged in moments like that. Like I said before, we saw that event a little differently. She thought Georgia was breathing, and I didn't. Anyhow, as Georgia would say "Don't talk while your eating." And as I learned from my own choking eating at the Pie, you might want to be careful with the Cheese there too.

The Creators of the Pumpkins!

Barefooted Ghost!

I took a picture of the kids pumpkins last night after Suzi, and the kids carved them. If you'll notice on the right side of the picture there appears to be a ghost with no shoe on standing just to the right of the pumpkins! Creepy.

We Are The Champions!

City of Lodi Boys U14 Champs! Front L to R: Anthony Fugazi, Casey Rea, Patrick Kelly, Steven Fernandez, Tommy Burnnet. Middle L to R: Clayton Silva, Calin Moore, Brandon Calderon, Brent Snyder, Paul Lurma, Miguel Segura, David Baker (behind Miguel), Ryan Bingham. Back Row L to R: H.C. Kelly, Ryan Vandenburg, Chris Rea, A.C. Baker.

What a great season! I thought we were going to be competitive, but I thought we were a little young to win it all this year. We will return 10 of our 15 boys next year. We are going to be tough next year too.

The Championship game was great. The other team (light blue) knock off the number one team in the tournament to be in the game, and we knocked off the number two team in the tournament to be in the championship game.

I watched the team we beat tonight (light blue) beat the number one team. Light blues game plan worked great against the number one team. The number one team had two players that could score. Light blue played those two players man on man, and would drop 10 guys to defence when the other team was attacking. The other team would, as a result of so many people playing defense, take a quick poor shot. The goalie would pick up the poor shot kick it to mid field, and hope their one forward could make something happen on a fast break (transition). Light blue scored one goal, and the other team scored one goal. The over time was scoreless, and it came down to a shoot out. Apparently this coach plays for this, and never loses in a shoot out, and he didn't in that game. He won.

In our game he ran the same game plan. Our team scores from multiple players, and we move the ball well. We also have four guys who play defense who on any other team would be on offence. The three fullbacks are my size or bigger. Nobody can out run them. So when they are on the field no one scores against us. Tonight I never took them off, and we never had a goal scored against us. Our mid field, and forwards move the ball almost perfectly at times to spread out the defence. Back and forth until someone makes a mistake. They made a lot of mistakes, but we only scored three times on them.

We also play a stopper. He's a guy who plays typically behind the half backs, and in front of the fullbacks. He's our Mr. Endurance. He was to shut down their one forward before he got to our defence. He did most of the game.

We had three different kids score tonight. Patrick had an assist on the first goal.

Great game, these don't happen very often. We win 3-0.

Scary!

"Hold This!"

We had been on a long walk through the Redwoods there in Gualala. Very quite, with the wind blowing in the trees and not much else to be heard except our own conversation. We were on a trail that very often we ride on with the four wheelers, and every now and then we stop at this location. Since we were on foot this time I think the stop here we took a little more time than usual. We talked a little bit about what we had been told about the prior owner who's ashes had been spread at this location. As you can see there is a headstone, and a little vase for flowers.

The owner of the ranch prior to the Bryson's was a Physician from San Francisco, and he loved to come up here on the weekends. He died relatively young, and we were told that his ashes were spread there in the middle of the trees. It was one of his favorite spots on the property. I was told that he loved the circle of tree that seem to go up forever. I love it too, and it really is beautiful to see and hear.

As we stood there and talked about it, we parents thought it was a very peaceful thing. The kids all thought it was creepy. If you look at the first photo there is a stump right behind the head stone. Sam was standing on the stump rocking back and forth while we were talking. The stump was rocking with him. Sam stopped rocking, and turned even whiter than he already is. He said "did you hear that?" I said "what?" "I heard a clanking." Yeah I heard it too. I said "Yeah, Sam maybe you should get off the stump." He got off, and all the kids got really tense. Instead of leaving the stump alone he bent over to lift up a edge to peek under it, and the edge did come up, and he did see an urn, and He SCREAMED " A POT! IT'S A POT!" And sprinted right by Suzi, and I! Two of our other three kids followed him sprinting back to the trail all three of them screaming like they'd seen a ghost. Except one 6 year old. As the others took off in the other direction, one immediately handed Mom her sweater and said "Hold This!" She went right back to where Sam had seen "THE POT!" to investigate. I half heartedly encouraged her to not mess with the stump. I hadn't seen anything either, so I wasn't really sure what was there either. She lifted up the stump, and there was the urn inside the hollowed out stump.

I loved Georgia's bold fearlessness. We all laughed, and laughed as we retold the story. "Hold this!" became the catch phrase of the trip.

Don't worry we had a little talk about being respectful, and they were all on board.

Goodnight Moon

It took me about 10 minutes to get this shot almost the way I wanted it. I took it from inside the house.

Can I be honest. I took a couple outside, and got freaked out. I was afraid to stay out on the back deck to take this photo. Everyone was in bed. It was about midnight, there is a racoon that lives some where around the deck, and I needed the lights out to shoot this picture. I'm certain big foot lives under the deck too.