Wings of lightening...and all

Two years since the last post? Really?

Much has happened in that time, not much earth-shattering, as far as the three of us are concerned.

AMY
...is two years older and two years more beautiful.
...Still teaches 1st grade at Timpanogos.

GRACE
...placed fourth in the Junior division at the National Old Time Fiddle contest last year.
...with her twin fiddle partner, Alina, took Twin Fiddle Champ honors at the same contest.
...has started singing, first in the A Capella Choir, then with the Jazz band, and next year with the Madrigals.

KENT
...after four years is leaving Certiport to go work for the LDS Church.

sad news for the daytons in june

The last part of June was very dramatic and sad for our family, when my oldest brother Scott passed away unexpectedly. He had been sick with a cold for about a month and it wasn't going away. When he finally went to see a doctor, he was diagnosed with pneumonia, for which he began treatments. After a couple of weeks, when his condition hadn't improved much, Dad took him to his doctor. That was on Thursday. He was sent to the emergency room at American Fork hospital and was admitted to the cardiac intensive care unit. The next morning, he was taken by ambulance to the Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo. That afternoon he was taken by Life Flight helicopter to the Intermountain Medical Center in Murray. Shortly after that, one of the doctors called with the alarming news that Scott was not expected to live very long. There was some concern that he would not survive the night.

We all rushed to his side and were told that his heart was failing - it was enlarged and not pumping only 5-15% of its capacity (normal is about 60%). By this time, his liver and kidneys were so badly damaged by the lack of bloodflow that he was ineligible for transplant (even if a donor heart were available.) We stayed with him through the night and the next morning he was still stable, so I brought Mom and Dad home to freshen up and get a little rest. I was about ready to lie down for a nap, when the hospital called and asked us to hurry back because the surgeon wanted to try a procedure that would help Scott's heart pump more blood. They wanted Mom and Dad there to give their approval. So we rushed back up.

After the procedure, his heart rate and blood pressure dropped a bit but remained stable throughout the day and through the night. The next morning (Sunday) the doctors consulted and gave Scott the sad news that they had done all they could do. The choices were 1) stay alive indefinitely with no chance of improvement or 2) disconnect all of the medications and equipment and make him comfortable (in which case, time would take its course.) Scott chose the latter.

We called all of the family together: Steve and Barbara, Drew and Emily, Cameron, Mariana, Amy and Me, and Grace. Olivia was in Washington, D.C. and would not be back until Wednesday, but she joined us via speaker phone as we all said our good-byes.

Everything was disconnected around noon and Scott passed away peacefully at 4:43 P.M. on Father's Day, 21 June 2009. (I told Dad that was a pretty lousy way to spend Father's Day. To make things worse, the next day, was Mom and Dad's 58th wedding anniversary.)

Scott's memorial service was held the next Saturday and the following Monday, we laid him to rest in the Wilford Cemetary in Wilford, Idaho. Scott is missed by all of us.

You can read his obituary here.

grace and alina in the church news

The Church News published an article about Grace and Alina's success at Weiser. You can read the article here.

grace at weiser 2009

Grace had a great trip to the National Old Time Fiddle Contest in Weiser, Idaho in June 2009. She competes in the Junior division (ages 13-18). This year, the Junior division had 74 contestants. Grace placed 7th overall (she missed the top five by four points – there were 2 points between 6th and 7th place.) This is the best she has ever done. In the Certified contest, Grace and her friend Alina took Best Dressed honors.

The huge news is that Grace and Alina are the Grand Champions in the first ever Twin Fiddle competition. They also took 2nd Place in the audience response category. They played "Josephine's Waltz" and "Nicaraguan"

Check out their Twin Fiddle round on YouTube. (Thanks to Rob Pinder for posting the video.)

jack freed

Jack, the cat was finally paroled from his cell in the downstairs bathroom. The first week he had his cast on, we let him roam around the house while we were there. He started to slip the cast off, so we had to take him back after a week and the Vet re-wrapped and reinforced it. He gave us strict orders to keep Jack isolated in that room and we could only take him out to hold him. After another two weeks, one night he removed the cast completely. This time, the Vet didn't put the cast back on but said we still needed to keep him cooped up for another week. At the end of that week, Jack went back for an X-ray and the doctor said he wanted him isolated for yet another week. We were so glad when that week was up and we let him out for good. Jack was/is glad, too.

grace wins at state

On Saturday, September 27, we made our way to the Utah State Old Time Fiddle contest in Richfield, Utah. Grace competed in the Junior-Junior division (ages 9-14) and was awarded the first-place trophy. As the State Junior-Junior champion she will represent Utah in the Certified Division at the National Old Time Fiddle contest in Weiser, Idaho in June. In regular competition, fiddlers play three tunes (a hoedown, a waltz, and then a tune of their choice), with a four-minute time limit. The judges sit in another room while the contestants play. The Certified contest is for entertainment. Contestants play and sing whatever they want, wear costumes, and get the audience stirred up. The judges sit in the audience and see how the crowd reacts. Awards are given for Best Entertainer, Best Costume, and Fanciest Fiddler. Grace has played in the Certified contest at Weiser three times, with her friend Alina, and has won Best Female Entertainer twice, and Fanciest Fiddler this year.

Video will be posted before too long.

kent's little buddy

After months of longing and weeks of waiting, Kent finally took delivery on his Genuine Scooter Company Buddy 125 three weeks ago. With the price of gas being what it is, it seemed a decent attempt at frugality. Working only 4.5 miles from home makes it an ideal commuter vehicle. Also, it's the first step toward something bigger, safer, and cooler. I've been averaging 93 MPG and it sure is nice to gas up once a week for $4.00.

My new Buddy. It's not a Harley, but it's a start.