The Firefighter Olympics in San Diego

The Firefighter Olympics gave us the excuse to go to southern California. Brian, Heather, and Peyton were my excuse to go to Huntington Beach first before making the trip to San Diego for the Olympics. So, Joe, Jody, Aiden and I flew to Long Beach on Saturday morning. Peyton was already ready to go to swimming lessons. I was lucky enough to watch he and Mommy and Auntie Carrie and Taylor swim to such favorites as row, row, row your boat and humpty dumpty. He LOVES the water and does very well. Joe and Tim came over to help Brian with his newest project...putting laminate on the floors in the hall and 3 downstairs bedrooms. They got the hall done on Saturday. I was able to visit with some friends and play lots of games with Peyton before we took off Tuesday morning to go to San Diego.

Joe, Jody, and Aiden went down with Tim and Betty as he had to go to a team meeting earlier. We met them at the field where they beat L.A. City and one of the San Francisco teams. They looked good...an omen of things to come. We spent the rest of the afternoon at the pool with all kinds of firefighter families. The babies went swimming and met new friends. Peyton was able to show off his swimming skills...everyone was very impressed. Aiden swam with Daddy and Mommy and loved splashing.

On Wednesday, their first opponent forfeited, so after a quick dip in the pool, we were off to the field for the second game. They played one game and won. After that we took off for the zoo. We saw lots of animals, but I really liked the hippopotomas display. You can see through a big window the water in which the hippo is standing. Watching him move around is a trip. That was a fun day; we walked 5 kilometers at the zoo..according to Peyton's stroller.

On Thursday, we were back at the field at 9 am. At this point we were out of pool play and into the medal rounds. We won that game to stay out of the loser bracket, so were able to spend the afternoon at the pool with all the other families. Peyton learned to share his goldfish with Becky Whetlan (sp) and she learned that boys are not so bad. Aiden even snoozed poolside.

Friday was a long day at the field. We were getting deeper into the medal round and playing the better teams. Can little Millbrae keep up with the likes of San Francisco Red and L.A. City? Yes, they can! Millbrae Fire, who should be in Division 3 due to the size of their department, won Division 1 gold. And Joe, lucky boy that he is, can say that he has played with the newer generation of Millbrae softball players, but can also say that he has played with the legends...the Millbrae legends, including his Uncle Ron, who have now won gold medals in every division of the Firefighter Olympics. Thanks for the memories!

Vacation in Wisconsin

Well, I can now say that I have been to Wisconsin. It is a beautiful state, and it was a wonderful time to go there. The weather was beautiful...warm but not too humid. The scenery is gorgeous. I loved the big red barns with silos. It is very green and there are lakes everywhere you look. We were very cordially welcomed into Judy's sister and brother-in-law's home for the first and last day, and in between we stayed in a cottage way out in the beautiful country. We had a wonderful time playing cards, visiting, throwing softballs and frisbees, going pontoon floating, shopping in Hayward and Rice Lakes, and eating...boy did we eat. Every day a new couple was responsible for meals. All the meals were planned by the couples in advance and the shopping lists were sent to Judy's sister Robin. Once Judy and John got to Hudson, they went shopping with Robin's family. For instance, my partner in crime was John and we cooked eggs benedict for breakfast, chile hamburgers (barbequed by John out in the pouring rain) for lunch, and spaghetti with sausage, garlic bread and salad for dinner. I met some wonderful people and they can all play pedro now. Aiden turned 5 months old while we were there. He went on his first plane ride to get there and what an experience that was for his Mommy and Daddy. He had his first boat ride on Big Lake Chetak, and met his great grandparents, and lots of aunts, uncles and cousins. And he celebrated his Daddy's first Father's Day there in Wisconsin. Barring the airplane flights, a wonderful time was had by all.