Thanksgiving

Well. It's nearly over.

The Thanksgiving Break. November. Both coming to an end very shortly. Time flew. It was a good break. For Amy and I it started with a conference on Monday and Tuesday.  Our Texas District always has a Lutheran Educators conference around this time of year. It was good and I learned some things and got some good ideas. It was located near NASA. I found out that Amy has never been to NASA. Ever. I was shocked. So I see a possible trip in our future?  I think the boys would love it as well. Who doesn't love the idea of space?  Being an astronaut. Weightlessness. Did you want to be an astronaut when you were a kid?  I did. But I also wanted to be an ice cream man for a while too so…. Dream big. 

Speaking of space we finally watched Gravity. Wow. Talk about anxiety attack. Major. Maybe I don't want to be an astronaut after all. We spent nearly the entire 90 minutes of the movie in panic mode. It's a wonder I didn't have a heart attack or eat myself into a sugar coma. But I loved it. Amy, not so much. Too much anxiety for her. 

Wednesday was spent relaxing and prepping for Thursday because we were hosting Thanksgiving for the first time.  Yep, the first time. Originally it was supposed to be my side of the family's yearly Thanksgiving gathering. But life got in the way and people couldn't make it. But we decided to host it anyway. Amy's mom and grandparents came over, as did my parents and grandmother. It was nice. Amy was an amazing hostess (I was not surprised) and the food was great.  It was nice to not have to travel over the holiday and spend hours in the car. The boys even mentioned this and how they liked being at home.  We also were able to start our day off by heading downtown to the Thanksgiving Day Parade, which has become a tradition of ours. That was fun and we enjoyed it. 

Thursday night I went out with Amy's mom for our annual Black Friday shopping. Yes. I shop on Thanksgiving evening. Yes. I do. I'm proud of it. We got some great deals and got much of our Christmas shopping out of the way. And I was able to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family. So the two can coexist in the world. Family and Black Friday shopping. 

Friday we spent decorating the house for Christmas and prepping it for Amy's Scentsy Open House. She also had 2 friends over who sell Velata and Plexus. This was to promote Small Business Saturday. They didn't have a ton of people come but it was a success. Amy has begin selling Scentsy again. Now that life has settled down and she has the time for it she decided to revive her business. That and we love Scentsy around here so we are always willing to promote that. 

Today we finished decorating for Christmas and prepped for next week since the holiday is over. Amy's made lunches and laundry is all done. There are only 3 weeks until Christmas Break, but those will be a whirlwind of activity and busyness. 

All in all it was a good break. We rested. We relaxed. We ate great food. We shopped. I can't believe November is over and another birthday month has come and gone.  This also marks the end of hurricane season; another uneventful one. That is always a good thing.

So. That's about it. Random thoughts and reviews of this past week. I'll throw in some pictures as well to highlight some of the fun. December starts tomorrow!

All is well, thankful, in Drosche Land.

We enjoyed the beautiful weather at the park this past week. Fall is here!

My beautiful girls at the Thanksgiving Day Parade!

Yum. Enough said. 

#blackfriday

Look who has returned!  Engelbert!

iNew

So, you know that my birthday was this month. Well maybe you did and maybe you didn't. But it was. My awesome wife got my family members together and got me an iPhone 6 Plus!  Sadly though it was back ordered for a while and I just received it about a week ago. 

But I love it. Love it. It's huge and I love it. You know I love a good Apple product and my iPhone is very near and dear to me, so this gift was perfect. It does many new and awesome things and I am still enjoying the newness of it all as I learn all about the new features available. 

One is the ability to record video in slow mo. Yes, I know this was technically available on the last new one, but it's new to me now. Who doesn't love a good slow motion sequence in a movie. Often it's a high action point in the plot and has some great music to go along with it. Now, my life is far from an action movie but that doesn't mean that my daily adventures cannot be documented in slow motion. Nope, not anymore. 

A trip to the park the other day (oh how I love Thanksgiving Break) was the perfect opportunity for me to try this out. Again, nothing super action packed. Just my little girl playing. But the video itself it cool and the fact that it is in slow motion makes it more fun. It's go me thinking of what I can have the kids do so I can record them in slow motion. Playing, running, jumping, acting silly. The possibilities are endless. 

What about you?  Apple fan?  Have you recorded something in slow motion?  Below is my first attempt!  Nothing fancy, but fun. 

All is well, slow mo and all, in Drosche Land. 

Game Over

Soccer is done!

Sorry, did you not catch the excitement in that last sentence? It's done!  Yes, the soccer season for both boys is over!  Now, don't get me wrong. It was great. We enjoyed it. The boys had a blast. But it is nice to have Tuesday nights and our weekends back. Maybe we can slow down a bit. Maybe. 

Jackson did a great job and really grew as a player. His favorite positions was Goalie and in his last game yesterday he did a great job. This is a good position for him because it meets all of his needs. He gets to sit and watch the game, analyzing it all and following along. But at the same time, he does get the action and can throw himself, literally and figuratively, into the game when needed. He hadn't played soccer in a few years but quickly got right back into it. It also helped that we played in a league through his school, so nearly all of the boys in his class were on the team. They all get along so wel and practice at recess every day. This was good for him and helped him to build and strengthen his friendships since he is new at SML this year. I really hope that all of the boys want to play again next fall in 2nd Grade.  All of us parents want to keep the team together and I think it's a great idea. 

There weren't enough classmates in Braeden's grade that were interested in playing through the school league so we had to venture out into our area to find a place. We found one. It came highly recommended. They have leagues all around the city and had just recently expanded this season into our area. While Braeden had fun, especially since he got to be on the same team as his cousin Austin, we were not really impressed with the league. It was pretty disorganized and communication was lacking to say the least. We just don't roll that way here in Drosche Land. Braeden enjoys soccer, and every other sport for that matter, and it pretty good. But this season he didn't grow as much as we'd like and overall we were disappointed. Luckily though he had fun so that was good. Next time we will seek a different league where things run a bit better. 

It was a good season though. The boys enjoyed themselves and Amy and I firmly believe that soccer is the sport for them. So we are taking the winter season off and will play soccer again in the spring hopefully. We'd rather do that than put them in a variety of sports every few months. They both have some good skills in soccer that we'd like to hone. It caters to Braeden's natural athletic ability and is a great outlet for Jackson's extra energy, thanks ADHD. Plus it is fast-paced so he doesn't get bored or confused. 

So we've reclaimed some time and hopefully can slow down just enough for the holiday season to speed life up a bit. Plus, these past few games were super cold as we are getting hit early with some fall/winter weather. I love the cold weather but not every Drosche is as much of a fan as I am!  Oh well. 

All is well, off season, here in Drosche Land. 

Happy Day

Birthday that is.

Today was mine. I traveled further down the 30ish road. I'm still getting used to being in my 30's despite having entered a few years ago.  It still amazes me that I am that old. 

Anywho, it was a great day.  Amy busted it to make my favorite foods for dinner and dessert. The kids made beautiful cards for me. And then there was my present. Amy got my family members together to get me an iPhone 6 Plus!  Holla!  However, despite being ordered a while ago, it has yet to ship so I am eagerly awaiting it.

School was more of the same awesomeness. My Room Mom, who also happens to be a friend and coworker, got the parents all together and spoiled me with gifts, lunch, treats, and general pampering. It was great. So nice to be thanked and appreciated. Definitely made the day. 

So here I sit now. Everyone in the house is asleep and all is quiet. Tomorrow is just another regular day. Back to normal. Now is that peaceful, yet slightly melancholy, time when it is all calmly coming to an end. Sort of like Christmas night once the presents have been opened, food eaten, and kids tucked in. Everything is over and you are thankful for your blessings, but still it is all slightly sad that it is over. Do you feel that way on your birthday?  Christmas?  Just wondering. 

But all good things must come to an end and today was definitely a good thing. I was spoiled by my beautiful wife and wonderful kids, family, friends, coworkers, parents, and my dear little students. Great gifts. Great sweets. It was quite the day. I'm very blessed and lucky. 

That's it I guess.  Tomorrow begins another adventure of a year in my 30's. What lies ahead?  What does He have in store?  Who knows, but I can nearly be sure that, if history rings true, there will be many adventures along the way. 

All is well, one year older, in Drosche Land. 

Vote

Happy Election Day!  Did you head out to the polls today to do your civic duty?  Did you early vote to avoid long lines?  Yeah, I didn't make it out for early voting, but I made sure to get out there tonight. 

I love Election Day. Love it. I'll be the first to admit that I am not the most politically active person. Nor do I always know the ins and outs of what is going on in our government. But I try. And I vote. It's just such an awesome opportunity and responsibility to have here in America. 

It's also one of my favorite things to teach my students about. Since their only in First Grade, we don't spend too much time learning about Election Day and its history, just the basics really. But on the big day I am sure to squeeze in as much knowledge about it as possible!  We go through valuable vocabulary such as candidate, poll, and ballot. We make little voter registration cards.  We discuss the importance of taking an active role in the government. And of course, we vote. This year it was on which cheesy snack was our favorite: Cheez-its or Goldfish (thanks to Amy for the idea).  They made little campaign posters telling why they wanted their candidate to win (thanks again Amy) and then we voted.  Chez-its won by a landslide, so Friday they will be serving their one-day term before we eat them. 

All in all it makes for a fun lesson. One that I hope at least begins a basis for their future learning and understanding of the concept. Who knows?  Maybe someday one of these little 6-year olds will grow up to run in an election of their own and the tables will turn with me casting my vote. That would be cool. 

Until then though, I vote. I educate and advocate to First Graders about voting. I do my part.  Do you? Tomorrow morning will bring fresh faces and new ideas into the spotlight of our country. That's exciting. New ideas. New causes. Change. It's not always so bad. 

All is well, ballots cast, in Drosche Land.