2 Years

Well, I have to admit I'm a bit embarrassed dear readers. I did know that my 2-year Blogiversary was coming up, but I thought it was closer to the end of the month, like sometime this week. Imagine my surprise and chagrin when I just checked back and find it was last week Monday! Yikes. So, I'm a week and a day late in wishing y'all a Happy Blogiversary! Oops! I think it's alright though and hope you don't hold it against me. I mean, after all, I didn't receive any cards, candy, or flowers so I can assume that y'all forgot the date as well! :)

Last year we stood at a little more than 200 posts, today this post is #333! Last year we celebrated 3,000 visits to the website, today (as I type) we are at 8,911! The hot topics last year included Margaux, the adoption, the moving/not moving adventure, and Amy's Scentsy business. Wow, have things changed. The biggest being the halt to our adoption adventure. Margaux remains, and always will, in our hearts and minds as does adoption itself. The idea of moving has reared its head occasionally throughout the past year, but it never gained enough of a foothold to get us serious about it. Amy still sells Scentsy, just not as aggressively as before, we still love it though and are addicted to it.

This year we are excited about Stella's birth and the preparation for her, my photo challenges, the A to Z blogging challenge in April (more on this later), and a few recent random posts! We also celebrated the completion of both Amy's and my Masters degrees, which was a major accomplishment! Another highlight was my trip with Adam to Las Vegas. We loved it and still talk about making it a yearly tradition for us, we shall see though. Many other adventures have taken place in the last year (and 8 days). That's one of the things I love most about blogging. It's like a journal/scrapbook for us. Looking back is always fun. Seeing how far we've come, the fun we've had, the things we've done, and anticipating the future. I can only imagine what it will be like in 10 years to look back. I have dreams/plans/thoughts of making a book out of these posts one day to give the kids. Something for them to remember their childhood by as well to remember Amy and I by. Good idea? What do you think? I could totally see it as a graduation gift of some sort. I'm a bit sappy and sentimental like that so the project is right up my alley! We will see what develops, luckily I've got more than enough time to plan it!

Looking into the future, Year 3 promises to be just as adventuresome as Year 2 was. Obviously first and foremost because Stella will arrive. But Year 3 also brings Braeden in 1st Grade with me (yikes!), Jackson in Pre-K, and who knows what other harebrained schemes/projects/ideas we come up with! So, join with me now as we buckle up and ride right into Year 3, or at least the last 358 (remember this is a Leap Year!) days of it!

All is well, 2 years in, in Drosche Land.

Holidaze / Resolutions Revisited

Seriously?! It's that time again?! This post is a blend of 2 separate posts I've been mentally working on over the past couple of days but have yet to get out so I've combined them here into one entry. I have a good excuse though for not getting the post done. We've been busy doing absolutely NOTHING these past few days. Nothing other than enjoying our vacation that is. This past holiday season was ridiculously busy and blew past us (hence the clever "Holidaze" portion of the title!). It seems as though I was just finishing Halloween candy and suddenly I'm baking cookies for the big man in red to enjoy after he brings us the spoils of our good behavior this past year. Where did November and December go exactly? The holidays were so busy I didn't even get Christmas cards out! That just killed me because it is one of my favorite parts of the holiday season. Luckily Amy helped me to come to the conclusion that I can send out New Years cards! So improvise I did and they are ready, anxiously awaiting me to address and deliver/mail them! I'd post a I true of them but I don't want to ruin it for all of the friends and family (you know who you are!) that are daily visiting their mailboxes, hoping to find the treasure of said card inside! Worry not, they are almost on their way! So, 2011 is quickly coming to an end and I cannot believe it. Professionally speaking I can't either, 1/2 of the school year is over?! Only 5 months left to fill the minds of my little Firsties with tons of phonetic and mathematical knowledge?! Anyway, back to the topic at hand. The past week was spent enjoying quality time with the family, our couch, and our DVR. We had the cousins over for a sleepover and that was tons of fun but other than that we have been working hard on relaxing, basking in just being. We definitely all need it here after the crazy past few months we've had in Drosche Land. Maybe 2012 will be slower? More even-paced and calm? HA! I'm sure it will prove to be crazy and fun as always though!

On to the second part of my post. This past week I suddenly remembered that my first post of 2011 was about resolutions. Really, I made them? What were they? I'll admit, like millions of others life got in the way and I quickly forgot about them. So, I hesitantly re-read that post, found here, hoping I hadn't failed my past self too much. The only thing I remembered was that I had made 10 (that's an awful lot past Dusty, nice going) resolutions because it would be easy to come up with an easy success/failure percentage. Honestly, it wasn't as bad as I'd feared. I'll revisit and update them here so let's see how I did!

1: "Lose the 4 (or 5 depending on the day) pounds I have put on this holiday season.". Success! I got back to my normal weight and I'm happy to say that this season I've managed not to put on only like 1-2 (again depending upon the day) pounds! Not to bad, granted I began the Christmas break with a wicked stomach bug which allowed me plenty of flexibility but hey, it's all good!

2: "Be a more active member in the financial freedom of our family (Amy stop rolling your eyes).". Um, fail I think. I don't think I did all that much better and I'm sure that Amy would agree!

3: "Be more patient with the kids, not everything has to be done my way (Amy, didn't I just ask you to stop rolling your eyes ;)!).". Um, success? I think so yeah, I mean we all have our days but overall? I think I'll count it as yes (we'll see if Amy agrees!).

4: "Finish the Bible reading plan I began last year (only about 2 months left) AND start a new one!". Success! I not only finished that one but 2 others! I love it and highly recommend it! I'm going to begin a new plan tomorrow, I need to peruse them and find one that I like!

5: "Begin praying for the adoption process and our daughter.". Hmmm. I did this, lots. Bt as you know we had to stop the process so I think this one no longer makes the list. Although 2011 taught me that everything is on HIS plan, not mine! We are eagerly awaiting #3 so it is a twist of things from this time last year, but all is well!

6: "Finish my Masters!  (Yes I know this will obviously be done, but it'll give me something to check off and provide motivation!).". Success! Yes I know it was a given, but I still think Amy and I finishing our Masters is a big deal!

7: "Take more pictures of the boys and document everything (should be a cinch with my new camera!).". Success! Thanks to Sunday Snapshot and my fabulous camera from Amy last year I think I've done a great job!

8: "Stop worrying/thinking about the move.  What is meant to happen will happen.". Success? Technically speaking I did stop, yes we took the house off the market and decided not to move but it was a big decision, I'm counting it!

9: "Start reading for pleasure more (I still haven't finished Breaking Dawn!).". Success! I have done this! I just finished The Winshaw Legacy but Jonathan Coe and am currently about halfway through The Help (I highly recommend both!). Funnily enough I still haven't finished Breaking Dawn so I need to get that done. I also have the Steve Jobs biography burning a hole in my iPad!

10: "Drink more water!  (Not instead of caffeine, I'm not cutting down on that, but in addition to!). Hmmmm. Ok, I'll concede with this and claim fail! I have gotten slightly better, maybe, but still a far cry where I should be. Oh well, I have enjoyed coffee and caffeine in all it's other forms though!

So, there you have it. Not too shabby huh? Take off the adoption resolution to bring me to 9. 7 successes and 2 failures gives me a 78% success rate. Could be better but it's not failing! Well, how did you do on your 2011 resolutions? Success? Fail? Mixture? I haven't decided about ones for 2012 yet, I'll be thinking and posting about that tomorrow. I'm thinking less than 10 though, mainly because I can't think of 10 things right now, we will see if divine inspiration occurs. Until then I'll be content with my 78%.

2011. Overall it was a good year I think. We had our share of ups and downs here in Drosche Land, but who didn't? We were, are, and remain extremely blessed. 2012 is already poised to be a big year for us and I am so excited! I'm entering the new year with positive thinking and anticipation. I hope that you enjoyed 2011 and are ready for a blessed 2012. We will see if I post more in 2012 (I hope so!), I think my overall post number was lower this past year than in 2010. So, I hope you are ready to join me for the ride! See you next year!

All is well, for auld lang syne, in Drosche Land.

Seeing Double

So, an interesting thing happened to me at the mailbox this afternoon.  The trip was going as it usually does - stop the car, get out (our neighborhood has the boxes groups every few blocks or so), open our box.  You know the drill.  However, it was when I pulled the mail out that things became different.  There was a large, white envelope inside.  Addressed to me.  From GCU.  It seemed quite familiar.  In fact, it seemed exactly like the one I received a few weeks back that contained my M.Ed. diploma.  What could this be?  My mind wondered and wandered on the short drive to the house.  An honorary doctorate?  A refund check?  When I opened it I found ANOTHER M.Ed. diploma, identical to the one I already have!  Yes, I know what you are excitedly thinking, "Just when he was done blogging about his M.Ed., there's more!"!  Yes dear friends in the blogosphere, there's more! 

Hmmmm.  I'm not quite sure what to make of this.  I don't recall putting in twice as much effort into my coursework.  Maybe it is their way of informing me that I am twice as awesome as I thought?  :)  My first diploma is at school, awaiting it's hanging on my classroom wall per Harry Wong, so I can't compare them and I don't recall any typos or errors on the first.  Compound that with the fact that there is no letter of explanation or anything in the envelope and I am bewildered.  Tomorrow begins our faculty meetings to prepare for the upcoming school year (and I am totally stoked!) so I am not sure if I will have a ton of time to call GCU and inquire about the twin diplomas.  We will see what happens when I get through to them.  Despite my high hopes in the symbolism behind the documents I am nearly positive that it will boil down to a simple error.  But at least I'll come out of it with a set of proofs that I truly am now a Master!  :)

All is well, twice as nice, in Drosche Land. 

Mastermind

So, you know the phrase - "Jack of all trades, master of none."  Well, I wouldn't say I'm a jack of all trades, maybe multiple trades.  But I can say that I am now Master of at least one, and I have the paper to prove it!  See, I just got my M.Ed. diploma in the mail!  Hold your applause please, you're much too kind.  Yes, I've been done for about 2 months, but now it's official, in writing.  Turns out they won't give you your paper until all fees have been paid, go figure.  Master or not, I was forgetful for a while regarding the fees.  But it is all taken care of now.  I am free.  Free to not worry about homework ever again!  Free to watch what I want, when I want on TV!  Free to read recreationally!  Believe me, I have been enjoying the freedom and I have no further plans to pursue higher education for the rest of my life.  Amy says I will give in and get another degree later in life, but we shall see about that.  

The best part is the fact that Amy is almost finished with her M.Ed. degree!  Then we can celebrate our freedom together and likewise will have more free time to spend together!    Ahhh, life is good and getting better.  I now need to get a good document frame for my new degree, and one for my original degree since I never have.  Harry Wong, education guru, says that teachers should display their degrees proudly in their classrooms, as a lawyer or doctor would display theirs in their places of business.  Who knows, maybe I will!  I do like the idea.  However, after my experience of personal and professional loss in New Orleans, I am hesitant to take something so valuable to school.  Amy is most likely against this for the same reason.  

Hopefully in a month or so I will be posting about another certain, much more beautiful, Mastermind!  I am so proud of her (I'm talking about you Amy!)!  It wasn't an easy road, long and tiresome instead.  But I made it, and Amy is terribly close to making it with me!  Lastly, I was only 6 months over my goal.  I always said I wanted a M.Ed. by the time I was 30.  So it technically wasn't before I was 30, but it was still accomplished during my 30th year.  Goals are good, making them is even better!  Oh, and in case you were wondering (and I know you were) you don't have to call me Master, but if you do, I'll answer!

All is well, masterful in fact, in Drosche Land.

  Isn't she beautiful!

DONE!

Well, as you may have surmised from the title of this post, I am finally finished with my M.Ed. program!  WOO HOO!  This past Wednesday was the last day of my final course.  I had submitted all of my work the day before just to be safe.  In order to celebrate I suggested via Facebook that people were now officially free to refer to me as Master, so far no takers!  :)  So, what to do with all of the free time now, other than bask in it?  Well, I think for at least one week I will do nothing, yes nothing.  Then I do need to get started on Trinity's 2010/2011 yearbook.  Luckily I've done this before with the same company at Memorial so I'm not too worried about it.  For now though, I am just glad to be done.  Not that it was difficult, just time consuming.  I have to say though, I am very glad that I did all of my coursework online.  I don't know how people do it when they have to go to an actual class.  That would have done me in long ago!

So, my M.Ed. is finished and now Amy only has 2 more courses to go.  I will also be spending my free time encouraging Amy so she can power through these next 16 weeks.  Ahhhh, once we are both done, then the celebrating can begin!  Oh the freedom we'll have back!  Plus, finishing our M.Ed. programs is just one more thing we can cross off of our to-do lists that gets us closer to Margaux!  Now there's some inspiration!

All is well, master of one more thing, in Drosche Land.

Not So Lonely

So, you know the song.  One is the loneliest number.  Well, not here, not with me.  One is the freakin' happiest number here in Drosche Land.  Why?  Well, because that is the number of weeks I have left in my M.Ed. program!  Ok, ok, settle down the applause and cheering.  Wednesday I submitted my final paper for my last course.  This week I only have to tie everything together and create a resume.  Then I'm done!  Finished!  Finito!  No mas!  I cannot wait!  As you can tell I am slightly excited about it.  Amy keeps telling me we need to do something special to celebrate so I am trying to think of a restaurant to visit.  I'm just going to be so happy to be finished, anything will be a celebration!  :)  

I've had several posts working in my head over the past few days but we've been busy here so I guess I'll just cram them all into one amalgamation of a post.  First of all, next year I am not giving up sweets for Lent!  It's been rough people, let me tell you.  Yes, I know that it is supposed to be difficult but I didn't realize how many sweets I ate, or how much I would miss them!  Easter is just around the corner and will be filled with the joyous resurrection of our Lord and chocolate, lots of chocolate.

Braeden's first soccer game was yesterday!  I was probably the most excited out of all of us.  I won't get into too many details because I am planning a Sunday Snapshot post later tonight, but it was awesome!  I am amazed that I was ever worried about it all!  Silly me!

Lastly, it's Boys Only here in Drosche Land for the next few days.  This morning we dropped Amy off at the airport as she is flying to fabulous Midland, TX.  She is on the accreditation team for a center there and they are doing their visit/consultation/advice thing.  We miss her lots, not as much as she misses us though.  However, this time we had the glorious iChat!  Sweet!  The boys love it and it is nice to see her.  What did traveling spouses and long-distance relationshippers do before that?  We couldn't get FaceTime on the Macs yet though, we are one software update behind.  Hopefully we will soon though so we can download it.  The plan is to take the iPad to China when we get Margaux and leave my computer with my parents and Amy's computer with her Mom so we can chat with them via FaceTime while we're overseas!  Awesome huh?  It is one thing we are looking forward to during our travels.  

So, that about sums it up.  Nothing to major going on.  We are still flying high on the great news from Amy's blood work so life here in Drosche Land is pleasant once more!

All is well, minus one, here in Drosche Land.   

Addiction

So, it's pretty safe to say that I have a few vices in life. If you know me then you can probably name, in order, the things I am thinking/blogging about. Yes, coffee tops the list! I'm totally addicted to Starbucks, the Trenta size is the best thing to happen to coffee since Splenda. My current favorite is a Trenta iced coffee, without the syrup, 6 Splenda, and a shot of espresso. Ahhhh, just thinking about it brings me to giddy, caffeine induced joy! I also have a pretty strong adoration for my Keurig machines. Yes, that's plural, I have one big one at home and a small one in my classroom. We also get automated shipments of coffee every few months from Green Mountain. So you can see the love/addiction.

Another is sweets. Cake, cookies, candy, I'm not too picky. However, I made the decision to give up sweets for Lent this year and let me tell you it has been difficult! I've stopped counting the days left in Lent because it's too depressing. I didn't realize how much sweet stuff I ate throughout the day, but apparently it's a lot. Boy do I miss it though. I'm going to buy one of those ginormous chocolate bunnies, you know the kind I'm talking about, and bring it to church on Easter. I'll gnaw on that sucker all day, maybe I'll get two!

TV is of course another, although with the busyness of our lives lately and coursework (did I mention the fact that I only have 3 weeks left!) it has shifted slightly to a Netflix/DVR addiction. Streaming to my TVs, iPhone and iPad! Sure thing!

Why do I post this you ask? Well, it's a random train of thought stemming from the fact that I am struggling to muster enough motivation to do homework but instead have gotten lost in blog-reading, my latest addiction. Adoption blogs, teacher blogs (I've gotten some awesome ideas from these, and sometimes random blog wandering. See the connection? Anywho, that's what leads me to this delightfully random post/trip through my thought process! I hope you've enjoyed the ride. Now it's time to get back to my attempt at homework and bemoaning the seasonal loss of sweets! Wish me luck.

Oh, and if you're wondering, no, I didn't post a Sunday Snapshot yesterday. I didn't have material! :( it really bummed me out too because I love me some blogging and Sunday Snapshots! It's just been so darn busy lately. Bummer! I'm hoping the impending start of Braeden's soccer season will solve that dilemma! But that's a post for another time!

All is well, addictions included, in Drosche Land.

Countdown

Well, it's official.  My M.Ed. program is quickly coming to an end!  As of today, I have only 3 weeks left.  Yes, you read that correctly, 3!  Needless to say, I am stoked!  The problem isn't that the work has been hard, but rather that there has been work.  Yes, I know I have a strong tendency toward procrastination and slight bouts of laziness, but still.  Honestly, I think I'm lucky though since my coursework has been entirely online.  I have no clue how people take actual courses.  Juggling the boys, work, the adoption, life in general, and homework has not been easy.  I know I'm not really one to complain, but this is my blog after all!  :)  My poor Amy though still has a few courses left.  I'll need to focus all my energy that I would use on homework to motivate her as she finishes.  Admittedly it's not much energy that I put forth, but anything can help! 

So, what will I do with my new found free time when I have completed my coursework?  Well, I'd like to say that I will replace it with the bliss of nothingness, or maybe take up recreational reading again (you may recall the brief resurgence of this over this past summer).  Truth be told though, I will probably just replace it with something else, hopefully something with less work!  :)  Right now at the top of my list is Trinity's yearbook for the 2010/2011 school year.  I have done nothing, scratch that, I have only gotten the cover done.  There is plenty of time left since we have a fall delivery, but I will definitely need to begin devoting some attention toward that.  But it is hardly work, I've done it before at Memorial and I do enjoy it.  Then there is the reading thing.  Lately I have taken up reading again, occasionally though, every few days.  I am currently in Beaches.  I know, sappy and I'll admit the movie makes me bawl like a baby, but so far it is good.  I enjoy me a nice emotional dramatic book every now and then.

The best part of being enrolled in my M.Ed. courses has been the fact that, with continued education, my student loans have been on automatic deferment!  This was also done for Amy's loans and has come in super handy as we whittle down our debt snowball and begin paying for Margaux's adoption.  Even better news?  I know, there has been a lot here already, but wait, there's more.  Amy and I both just got letters stating that our loans will remain on deferment until February/March of 2012!  That's just around the time when we will either be traveling to get Margaux or (hopefully more likely) we will have had her for a while by that time.  Pretty awesome coincidence huh?  Guess HE does know things better and plan better than we do right?  :)  

So, not major news, but good nonetheless.  Things here are (somewhat) calm right now.  We are though smack in the middle of considering the potential purchase of a second car.  But that's an adventurous post for another day, maybe tomorrow.  

All is well, 3 weeks left!, in Drosche Land. 

Catch Up

Call off the search, bring in the hounds and give them treats, alert the authorities - I'm back!  So yeah, it's been a week since the last post.  Far too long.  I have hated not being blogging but things have been super busy here in Drosche Land.  I'll quickly try to catch up the past 7 days and inform you of our latest adventure.  

Last week was National Lutheran Schools Week.  Basically we just celebrate how awesome Lutheran schools are by offering great education plus the opportunity to share God's love and great message.  What better way to celebrate than with fun, themed dress up days!  My favorite of course was Pajama Day, I rocked some fierce Smurf jammies!  I did end up getting good news regarding my course work.  Since I am in the middle of a weekly tutoring plan for my class, due dates for my assignments were pushed from Wednesdays to Saturdays.  This is nice and brings some ease to the craziness.  I am 3 weeks down, just 5 more to go!  Wednesday was Ash Wednesday and Amy and I took Lent seriously this year.  She gave up Mexican food (gasp!) and I gave up sweets (double gasp!).  Needless to say we have been struggling with maintaining discipline with our choices but so far so good.  The week flew by quickly despite being busy.  Friday night we went to the Rodeo with my parents.  Tons of fun as the boys rode the carnival rides and we enjoyed carnival food (no yummy Pappasito's for Amy or funnel cakes for me though!).  The boys love the Rodeo action, the roping, bucking, wrestling, and general Western fun.  Then then promptly fell asleep when the concert (Lady Antebellum) began!  

Saturday we were zonked from a late night but then realized we had yet to decide on a home improvement project for Spring Break.  See, we always take on some project around the house.  Last year was painting the entry and living room.  This year we decided to take it up a notch and try our hand at flooring!  Yes, we ripped up the carpet in the living room and the vinyl tile in the entry.  The demo part was surprisingly easy, although quite disgusting as we took  the carpet up.  We knew we were getting a less expensive carpet/pad when we built the house, we always had intended on replacing it.  We just didn't know how nasty carpet could get, even in 3 1/2 short years!  Yuck!  We have made the choice to, over time, replace most, if not all, of the carpet in the house.  We are currently about 3/4 of the way done.  Amy had to go back to work today so I will be tiling alone this afternoon, hopefully finishing laying all of the tile that does not need to be cut.  We are saving that part for last!  I do finally understand though why people say your house is a wreck when you remodel.  All of our furniture is stacked in the dining room and there is dust everywhere, I mean everywhere!.  Our hands are sore to say the least, as are many other parts of our body!  But, we are loving this and having a lot of fun!  It is beautiful and we cannot wait to be finished and enjoy our new floors and of course our clean and settled house!

So, there you have it.  We have been tiling the past few nights past midnight so there has been no time to blog, even though I have wanted to badly.  I also missed a Sunday Snapshot so I am going to try and get that out later.  Thanks for missing us, I missed you too!  It's good to be back!

All is well, cluttered/sore/improving, here in Drosche Land!   

8

As in weeks.  That's how many weeks I have until I am finally finished with my M.Ed. in Reading!  Tonight I finished the last week of this course and tomorrow begins my final course.  Needless to say, I am quite excited about the rapidly approaching end of this.  All I have to say is that I am DONE with school after this.  I used to think that I would get 2 Masters or maybe one and a Doctorate.  HA!  Silly naive little me.  That was before jobs, kids, houses, cars, and life in general got in the way.  Now it is one more thing that has been added to my heaping plate.

Now, don't get me wrong, I have enjoyed it.  I have learned a thing or two.  And I am glad that I did it.  It wasn't hard, it wasn't all new stuff.  Yes, I know I procrastinated quite a bit and have become very adept at finishing my work in a day or so at the end of the week.  But that doesn't mean that the work wasn't always there, mocking me.  Taunting me.  But alas, I will have the last laugh.  I won't shed any tears over the passing of my continuing education.  Quite the opposite.  I'll get my piece of paper and relish in the fact that I have pursued, and triumphed, over higher education.

I'd like to say that my plate will lighten a bit once this has come off of it, but let's get real.  It will just be replaced by something else.  Margaux's adoption.  The yearbook (which I have yet to begin but am super excited about).  Planning for next year.  Coming to grips with the fact that Braeden will be in Kindergarten next year.  The list goes on.  I'm just hoping that the fact that the aforementioned things do not come with weekly homework or discussion posts will make them less of a chore and more of a habit.  Know what I mean?

So, 8 more weeks.  That's it.  As this final course begins I must apply for graduation and get that squared away so once I am finished I will have my much-desired paperwork in my hand.  I'm hoping the last course goes smoothly and I am able to breeze right through it without losing what little motivation I have left.  I feel for Amy though as she still has 3 courses left, two more than I do.  I'll focus my energies on helping to keep her motivated and on track so we can both celebrate in our victories over our Masters courses!  I can't wait for that point toward the end of this upcoming summer!

All is well, counting down, in Drosche Land. 

Sit Down, Relax, Stay A While

Well, you can tell from the lack of posts this week that vacation, in all its forms, is finally over.  School resumed on Monday and our courses began again on Thursday.  Although it was a nice and smooth week to ease back into things, it was busy nonetheless.  Luckily though, all is well and we have remained sane despite the end of a wonderful vacation.  Which brings me to the title of this post.

So, as you know, there has been zero, zilch, nada, nothing, no interest in the house since it was listed almost 3 months ago.  Yes I know 3 months is relatively short, especially given the housing market.  And yes I know it was the holidays.  But seriously.  Nothing.  No showings, a failed Open House, and no inquiries from the website or the sign out front.  This has caused Amy and I to reevaluate our plans right now.  Since around Christmas/New Years we have been discussing whether or not we want to keep the house listed, or move at all for that matter.  After a couple of weeks of heavy discussions and looking closely at our lives and plans for the current and near future, we have decided to un-list the house and stay here for a while longer, a few years at least.  

See, apparently you can only proceed forward with one major life change at once, if you want to keep your sanity at least.  Right now we have 3 major adventures swirling around - the adoption, moving, and possibly buying a 2nd car.  Financially, mentally, emotionally, logistically we can only do one of these at a time.  Once we looked at the situation in this manner the answer to the question was clear, the adoption is far more important to us at this time.  Having made this decision now, we can begin saving up and planning for the adoption, so once Amy turns 30 in August there is a strong chance we may be ready, or very close, to beginning the actual process.  This means that by this time next year we would be fully into the process and possibly (fingers-crossed) have a picture of our daughter as we prepare to travel to her!

So, although it sounds easy it wasn't.  After much praying and thinking about it I truly do believe that this whole process was God's way of getting us to prioritize our life and get everything ready, finding out what was most important.  I'm comfortable with that thought because then all of the work we put in wasn't for naught.  Another silver lining is the fact that the house is immaculate and well-organized.  We have been able to purge and organize our house and can now work on keeping it that way.  Also, we will be able to do some of the minor updates to the house we have always talked about - flooring, lighting, etc.  On the downside, Spring Break will bring the back-breaking work of reclaiming the garage and unpacking and sorting everything in there, deciding if we truly need it or not.  Eventually, in the future, we do plan to move.  But that will be when there are 5 people residing in Drosche Land!

So, this will most likely be the last post with the tag of moving for a very long time.  All in all it was a fun and educational process.  I'm happy with the decision, I cannot wait to have our daughter join us finally and making this decision has just gotten us closer to her!

All is well, staying put, in Drosche Land.
 

Over

Vacation that is.  And with it the Christmas season officially ends.  I'm posting about this early in the day so I can spend the rest of the day wallowing in self-pity on my new couch.  I wish for just one more day, a few hours at the least.  Last night I insisted on staying up as late as possible in order to maximize my vacation time.  Ironically I was tired earlier than usual and turned in around 11:00 p.m.  Tonight I think I may stay up late again, just to make a stance against the end of vacation.  We'll see how well I do.

It's not that I don't love my job or miss it, I do very much.  But this has been a great vacation and I am always sad to see Christmas vacation end.  This year is flying by so I guess before I know it we will be celebrating the beginning of summer vacation.  But then I'll be mourning the end of a school year so I guess it's bittersweet all the way around.  Oh well.  It was real, it was fun.  I got a lot of good TV watching in so you know it was a success.  We watched 3 full seasons of Keeping Up with the Kardashians and Kourtney & Khloe Take Miami.  I am totally addicted to Kardashians now and cannot wait for Netflix to add more seasons for instant viewing.  We also watched 2 seasons of Deadliest Catch and I gained new loves in Hoarders, American Pickers, and Dexter.  Then there is always Nip/Tuck and I am almost done with that series.  What can I say, I'm addicted to reality television.  Thanks to Netflix, Wii, and Blu-Ray, I now have multiple options to feed my addiction!  

The only thing that makes the end of this vacation slightly bearable is knowing that I have 3 more days of "vacation" until our Masters courses resume.  I suppose I'll really hit rock bottom on Wednesday night.  Until then I will eat up any second of anything that can be termed as vacation.  On the couch of course!

All is well, in mourning, in Drosche Land. 

Year In Review

Well, 2010 is rapidly coming to a close.  A little over 8 hours left, depending upon your time zone of course.  With it ends another decade as well.  So, I thought what better way to end the year via blog than to revisit, review, and update some of the information covered in the posts of our blog's inaugural year.  There were 181 (182 counting this one) posts this past year.  Not too shabby for my first year if I do say so myself.  So, on with the review (yes, I have anally put it in alphabetical order of events).

Adoption - This was the big reason that we started this blog really.  We wanted to keep everyone informed with all the happenings of our lives, but it was also our intention to document our journey to our daughter.  We have extensively discussed this and we know that this is how we are going to expand our family.  We have looked through the lists of special needs and have noted the ones we are capable of  accommodating.  We are still fully into the adoption, but with our current lives it has gotten pushed a bit further back.  Right now we plan on fully entering into the process no later than next January 2012.  With the possible move in the future and the financial aspects of the adoption, we feel this is the best choice for our family.  We are super excited about the process, especially the trip to China, but we have to be realistic about it all and do what is best for us all.

Amy - Of course there is the big news about Amy's gastric bypass surgery this past summer.  It was a big decision she made for herself, her health, and our family.  Honestly I could not be more proud of her.  She has done remarkably well and has lost 80 lbs thus far.  She looks amazing and we are both super excited to see how well she continues to progress over the next 6 months until she hits her 1 year anniversary.

Dave Ramsey/Debt Snowball - This was a big year for us financially as well.  Thanks to Amy (and Dave's program) we are happily on the road to financial freedom and being debt free!  It has not been without some bumps and setback here and there, but we trudge forward knowing the pay off is going to be totally worth it!  The biggest victory possibly came this Christmas as it was a totally "Cash Christmas" here in Drosche Land.  No credit was used for anything and we are super proud of ourselves.  2011 will undoubtedly bring further success in this adventure!

Lady Gaga - Of course I had to include this event!  Amy scored me tickets to the concert and this summer traveled to Dallas for an amazingly fun concert.  A mini road trip and kid-less fun was just what the doctor ordered for the adults in Drosche Land.  She comes to Houston again in the spring of 2011, we will see if I have any luck with the radio contests that are sure to happen!


Masters - We are almost done, the end is near, there is a light at the end of the tunnel!  I have just 2 courses left, Amy has 4 (sorry Am!).  While it hasn't been hard work we are definitely done with being students.  Let's just say that I will not be pursuing another Masters, or Doctorate for that matter, any time soon.  I cannot wait until we graduate and one thing is removed from our over-crowded plates!  On a positive note we did get some postcards from GCU in the mail the other day stating that graduation was near and we should log on for more information about getting ready for the big event.  I think I'll do that once this is posted.

Moving - The latest adventure here in Drosche Land.  We made it 3 years into our planned 5-year stint here in beautiful Cypress.  The house has only been listed for about 2 months but we have had no interest whatsoever.  You may recall the showing that never was or the Open House where no one came.  What's next?  Well, after much debate Amy and I have decided to keep the house on the market until Spring Break.  If it sells before then, we will obviously make the choice to move.  However, if March rolls around and we are still here in Cypress struggling to maintain a clutter-free home we will have to make a decision to stay or go.  Right now we are combining the wait & see and prayer stances on the move.  Amy thinks that we will have no offers or interest in the house at all, I am working to remain positive that something will happen.  We will see what God has in store for us concerning this adventure though!

Scentsy - Amy started her own adventure this year as she became a (quite successful) Scentsy consultant!  This started quite innocently when she was introduced to this awesome product by some friends (Thanks Taryn & Dedrick!) and quickly turned into something super fun and super rewarding.  Amy has already enjoyed success as she moves up the ladder and builds her team.  2011 should be very exciting as she is going to be traveling to shows and conferences to run a Scentsy booth and spread the scentsational joy that we have come to love.  *Shameless Plug Alert* Remember you can always visit her website here.  I personally am proud of Amy for doing so well and I cannot wait to see how she continues to amaze me this coming year!


30

Does that cover it?  I think so.  Those seem to be the biggest adventures from the past year here in Drosche

All is well, bidding 2010 adieu, in Drosche Land.

Pay Off

So I thought that the Christmas vacation would bring with it tons of time to blog and catch up.  However, I have found it more important and rewarding to just relax and hang out with my wonderful family.  Awwwwww, right!  So here I am to blog a bit.  So, on with the post.

You may be thinking - "What 'Pay Off'?"  You might also have noted that in the previous paragraph I mentioned the word "vacation".  You might also have put two and two together to surmise the topic of this post.  That or you are just frustrated with me for not getting to the point.  Ok, ok.  So, I don't know if the higher-ups at GCU read my prior blog post (here), if God answered my prayers, or if it were always in the cards and I just didn't know.  Regardless of the reasoning (although I like to believe that my venting post had something to do with it!) Amy and I actually have a BREAK FROM OUR COURSEWORK!  Yes that is right.  Ironically, beginning the day after said venting post, we began a 2-week break.  Yes, 2 weeks!  That means that as of today we still have 1 week left in our break!  WOO HOO!  Let me say, it has been AWESOME!  I have loved not worrying about posting replies to discussion questions, putting off work, working last minute, etc.  Ahhhhhh!

Obviously I am enjoying myself.  We have not done much during the break so you know it's been good.  I think it might just be the break we have been needing to revitalize ourselves, at work, with coursework, and as a family.  It has definitely been a great way to end a good year.  One of the best parts may be coming tonight as Amy and I send the boys off to spend the night with my parents so we can have a relaxing date night!  We've picked out a new restaurant to try and are ready to have a relaxing evening together.

All in all we have been thoroughly enjoying our vacation and it's not even over yet!  What's up for the rest of our vacation?  More of the same!  Just family time, relaxing, watching TV, and a whole bunch of nothing!  The only thing I have planned is to do some much-needed laundry so we will be able to leave the house (fully-clothed) once the vacation is over!  But since I seem to have an odd affinity for laundry, it's not really that much work!  :)

All is well, ON VACATION, in Drosche Land.

Grrrr! Argh!

I'm here to vent.  You've been forewarned.  

Ok, so it's the Christmas break right?  Vacation right?  Right.  Apparently no one told Grand Canyon University or my professor for this course.  They must have missed the message.  That or maybe it hasn't been on their calendars for the past 2,000ish years.  Regardless of the reason, the coursework continues, despite the holiday season being in full swing with the big day rapidly approaching.  I have another assignment due tonight.  To top it off, I have a discussion post and responses due by Saturday, you know Christmas day!  Enter the grrr and argh from the title.  

Now I do take some responsibility for the frustration since it is due in part (albeit a very tiny part) to my habit of procrastination.  However, I shouldn't be procrastinating or not procrastinating any homework this week, in my humble (and valid) opinion.  I mean seriously?!  It's Christmas.  A break would be nice.  Especially considering we haven't had one since last Christmas when we had a one-week break in between courses.  Since then it's been nothing.  Nada.  Zip.  No breaks!  While this does bring the benefit of finishing early, it does bring the frustration of never having a down moment from it all.  Not that the work is hard, it's just always there to be done!

Ok, so I think I am done venting now.  See, it wasn't that bad was it?  Who knows, maybe a Christmas miracle will arise and my professor will bestow upon us a break of some sort!  Until then I will just stick out my lip and stomp off to do my homework.  I'll try to make the most of being home all day and get it finished early so I won't have to do any (or much) tonight!  Ok, I'm better.  Thanks!  I'm off to (grudgingly) do some homework!

All is well, grrr argh, in Drosche Land. 

Back!

Ok, so I haven't blogged in a week!  I know you've missed me and hearing the random ravings and antics that go on here in Drosche Land and I am sorry for the brief hiatus.  Fact of the matter is, it's December.  December is to teachers what April is to CPAs and others in the tax industry.  Holidays, rehearsals, performances, shopping, decorating, etc, etc, etc.  You name it we have to cram it all into 3 weeks that fly by at blazing speeds.  But enough about that, you get the point - we're busy.  This past week, the first of the season just hit me hard.  

So, I know what you're wondering.  What has been going on in Drosche Land this past week?  Funny you should ask, I was just going to tell you.  Despite all of the busyness, not much interesting actually.  Pretty much the usual - work, meetings, homework, you know the drill.  Pretty boring, also a possible reason for no blogging - lack of topic!  The biggest event was probably today when we met up with Amanda and the cousins to take Christmas pictures.  A friend of ours is starting up a business and we have been serving as guinea pigs/practice.  We bought great coordinating outfits for the boys, Amy, and myself this past week.  I must say, we looked good!  :)  So we took pictures of all the kids, just Braeden and Jack, the 4 of us, just Amy and I, just Amanda's kids, and Amanda and her kids.  All in all it was about an hour and a half and I just heard that about 800 pictures were taken!  Looks like I will have plenty to choose from to make our card for this year.  Oh, that's something else to add to the growing to-do list: finish the Christmas card list!  

Lastly Amy and I are entering the final week of another course!  After this Wednesday I will have only 2 courses and Amy will only have 4!  I cannot wait until we are done!  It will be weird, but totally awesome, to have all of that time back!

So, there you have it.  The missed week in a nutshell.  Now all is well that we are all caught back up.  I hope to not go so long between posts so frequently.  I can't believe it is already December 5th and this is the first post of the month!  I was starting to miss it and go through withdrawal (I know you were feeling the same way!).  :)  Ahhhh, but all is better now!

All is well, and current, in Drosche Land. 

Course Grind

Well, if you haven't guessed by the (I think pretty clever) title of this post and its labels, this is about the coursework for our M.Ed. adventure.  Now, don't get me wrong.  I'm all for being a life-long learner, staying on top of what's new, and furthering my education; but I'm about done.  It's not that the work is hard, just time-consuming and cumbersome.  I shouldn't complain though I know because this has all been free to me through Trinity (I LOVE my job!).  But still.  I have forgotten what it is like to not have homework or have to submit an assignment.  To just be able to come home and now worry about what discussion questions I have to answer, papers to complete, or journals to write.  Maybe I am partly (ok largely) to blame since I have become quite the accomplished procrastinator when it comes to my homework.  Much of it, ok like 99% of it, is done on Wednesday night right before the deadline.  That is unless there is a predetermined due date for something.  As tiresome as Wednesday nights have become, it works for me and allows me to almost (and I stress almost) forget that I have coursework to do.  Until Wednesday that is.

As of right now I have 2 1/2 courses left.  That fact is a double-edged sword in itself.  On one hand I only have 2 1/2 courses left.  But, on the other hand, I still have 2 1/2 courses left.  Catch my drift?  I used to think I wanted a doctorate of some kind.  I mean, how cool would it be to be Dr. Drosche?  Um, yeah, that idea is long since gone.  I'll be content to go by Master Drosche.  Yes, I said it.  Like I mentioned before, this is all free to me through Trinity.  That fact, and the fact that I am borrowing books from a co-worker who previously got her M.Ed., is more than enough blessing to not complain.  But I don't want to do my homework!  Ugh.  Speaking of, this week is a group project so that's good at least.  I need to get started on reading my portion of a 65 page article.  Instead I decided to vent/whine via blog.  Thanks for listening.  

So, I've had my say and I'm done.  I've gotten it out of my system and am (somewhat) less frustrated.  Ahhhh, I love the therapeutic benefits of blogging.  Thanks for attending my pity party.  Be sure to wrap some cake in foil and take it home with you.  Guess I'd better go get some homework done.   :)

All is well, of course it is, in Drosche Land. 

 

One More Week

Until what?  I know the anticipation is killing you, so I will go ahead and tell you and then move onto the post.  Listing the house.  Yeah, so it was supposed to happen this weekend, but as it turns out our realtor is out of town.  Bummer.  But, the house is technically not totally ready so I guess it's for the best.  Although I have to say I busted my butt to get it closer today.  

I stayed home with Jack today because he was still sick last night with a fever to go with his throat infection.  Amy took off yesterday and took him to the doctor.  Luckily today was his recovery day and all is well.  Trust me, he is totally back to normal!  So, he will be returning to school tomorrow.  So I missed a day, which I hate, but that is the joy of being a parent!  Not everything is on your time.  A tough lesson to learn (stop smirking Amy!).  :)  But, it wasn't a total waste because I got a lot done around the house.  Last weekend we finally decided on a paint color for the boys' bathroom.  Did I mention that last weekend?  Anyway, since not everyone is pro bright yellow paint with big blue and orange dots (I know, go figure!) I started painting today since I had the time.  

I will take a moment now to pause and plug one of our favorite products - Behr paint.  Not just any paint mind you, the primer and paint in one.  Ahhhhh, colorful happiness in a can.  So wonderful I almost forget what a chore painting can be (almost).  But in all seriousness go get some.  If you were thinking about painting something, buy this paint.  If you weren't planning on painting anything, find something to paint, and buy this paint.  It nearly covered our circus-bright bathroom in one coat!  Joy!

Ok, back to the blog.  So I gave the bathroom its first coat.  I also began to touch up the paint downstairs where we filled nail holes in the wall and tiny, grubby hands touched and dirtied everything.  I still have the stairway to do but that will have to wait when the aforementioned tiny, grubby hands aren't around.  I am not going to plug the Sherwin Williams paint KB uses (seriously, don't buy it).  I mean who uses flat paint!  I also knocked out a couple of loads of laundry because I love doing that.  Lastly, I  had to deep clean the bathrooms.  They weren't too bad, but needed to gleam for the pictures for the listing.  

I will pause again to plug another favorite item - SOS pads.  I mean I know I have blogged about these little wonderful pads of joy (here) but they warrant another mention.  I mean is there anything these little scrubbers can't do.  Don't waste your time trying to think of something, because I don't think there is anything.  I again used them to attack the shower.  Mind you, it wasn't as bad as before but I still wanted a deep scrub of everything.  These little guys do an amazing job.  Leaving everything with a fluffy Smurf-blue foam.  Rinse that away and you are left with shining cleanliness!  Ahhhh, joy!

Ok, back to the blog.  So today was quite productive and I am ending it pleasantly tired and fulfilled.  Somewhere in there I also found time to get my homework for this week finished.  One more course down and only 3 more to go!  I cannot wait to be finished.  But that's a post for another time.  So we have to wait a little longer until we take the next step in selling the house.  Oh well.  Guess I'd better learn patience with this process now since I am sure I will need it often throughout the coming months.  Amy is off on Friday so she will most likely finish all the painting (she's great like that)!  Plus she has the carpet cleaners coming to do the entire house, per the realtor's instructions.  After those tasks are completed, we have just a little more tidying and staging left until we are ready!  I'm excited to get the show on the road.  6-9 months.  Seems long, but at the same time incredibly short.  I spend most of my time on HAR looking at homes and dreaming!  Ahhhh, Jersey Village we can't wait to get to know you better and call you home!

All is well, with a fresh coat of paint, in Drosche Land. 

Done

So, it's official.  The Drosches are tired of living out in Egypt and making the 65 mile round trip every day to work and home again.  So, as if our plates weren't full enough with our Masters courses, Amy's new Scentsy business (which is soaring off!), planning and working toward our adoption, and everything else, we have decided to add moving into the mix.  You know Amy and I, when we decide to do something we jump, head first, into it without looking back (think building this house, buying a van, and countless other decisions!).

We have been mulling over the idea for a few weeks now.  As the area we live in grows the traffic getting home is growing as well.  It now takes us at least an hour to get home, regardless of when we leave (up from about 50 minutes at most) and at least 50 minutes to get to work (up from 40-45 minutes).  With the boys getting older, and getting closer to nightly homework, we realize there is no way our family can continue to make the drive in.  There is too much strain on our schedule.  We love us some Cypress, but it has just gotten about 15 miles too far away from everything. 

So, yesterday Amy was at home with a sick Jack (think back to the last post found here).  We took him to the doctor yesterday and found out he had strep.  So we have him on medicine and I stayed home with him today.  Luckily the fever is gone and he will be returning to school tomorrow.  But i digress.  Anyway, Amy was at home with Jack and called Bank of America, who has our home loan now, to ask about what we could qualify for.  We got great news!  While we can't get a loan right now, due to no down payment, we could get a great loan, for the amount we were hoping for, at an incredible interest rate, far better than what we have now!  Long story short, we can afford a more expensive house (a must since we are moving in) and will actually pay less than we do for our house now!  Hold your applause, really!  We owe it all to Dave Ramsey and his Financial Freedom program!  Well, and Amy too for kicking into high gear with our debt snowball and knocking so much debt out!  So, we will divert debt snowball money into a down payment savings and should have our amount saved up by the end of this year!  Then we will be able to fully proceed with looking for a house!  

So, until we have that money we are cutting back on all extras, what little ones we have since we have been so strict with our program.  I will forgo my Starbucks and iTunes allowances (let me get a tissue) and we will begin to tighten the purse strings even more.  But we can do it!  The next step is to get our house listed and put up for sale.  We pray that we will be able to just break even, we have no high hopes for making money off of the house.  I also hope we don't have to do too much to get the house ready.  The biggest thing I'm worried about is the boys' bathroom.  But I mean who doesn't want a bright yellow bathroom with orange and blue dots?  All you naysayers grab a brush and head on over!  But if paint we must to I'll roll up my sleeves and do it.  I also know some work will need to be put into the back yard to get it more presentable.  But it is all worth it if we can squeeze every penny we can out of this house!

Since we  are moving before we originally planned we can't afford the neighborhood we really love, but that is ok.  We have been doing quite a bit of research and have found several ones that have great houses, needing minimal updating, in our price range!  It is exciting to begin the process even knowing that we may not be moving anytime in the near future.  Best/worst case scenario is our house sells before we can buy a new one and we have to either rent an apartment or move in with parents.  But that would be a minor inconvenience that would allow us to save more money.  So, time will tell.  For now we are excitedly beginning another adventure here.  Busy busy busy as ever, but that's how we roll!  Buckle up and get ready for the next ride!  Here we go!

All is well, movin' on up, er in, in Drosche Land.

 

Shredded What?

Get it?  Like Shredded Wheat, the cereal!  HA!  Which, coincidentally, is my favorite cereal of all time.  Both the mini, frosted kind and the large, un-frosted kind (I have a thing for old people cereal!).  But I didn't mean to get off on a cereal tangent, although you now know another small interesting fact about me.  Consider it a bonus.  On with the post.


So, obviously financial freedom is the biggest payoff to the Dave Ramsey program.  We are successfully whittling our debt snowball down and soon (by next winter at the most recent estimate) we should have everything but the house and student loans paid off!  Which is good for our adoption/moving timeline as we will then be able to kick those things into high gear!  Woo hoo!  But there are other side affects to the program, namely the paperwork!  As we pay off credit card after credit card we are left with all of the old statements, bills, and whatnot associated with them.  Once we get the letter of confirmation stating that the account is paid off and closed we have no need for any of it!  The bill box's waistline is getting trimmer as we eliminate cumbersome files!


So this morning Amy and I got into an impromptu cleaning/purging spree.  In its path - the bill box.  Amy hadn't been through this in a while so it needed some attention.  Before we knew it we had a good pile of paperwork that needed shredding.  Now, I will admit to the inner nerd in me yet again as I confirm my excitement at that prospect.  I LOVE shredding papers.  I mean, it is fun!  Just ask Julie in our school office.  I get such delight at sitting down to the school's heavy-duty shredder and just going at it.  So, needless to say, I was all to willing to help Amy out with this new found dilemma.  Trash bag in hand I sat about my task.  About half-way, and one container dump, into the process the shredder begins to make a very high-pitched squealing sound.  A cross between brakes in need of some replacement and a pig being tightly squeezed.  Let's just say, it wasn't pleasant.  Amy and I shared a worried glance along with the comment that we hope it made it through the job.  FAIL!  Shortly after acknowledging the fact that we have had this shredder for like 6 years, it squealed its last.  Uh oh!  Upon closer inspections, after a hopeful cool-down period, I found a piece of plastic, somehow hidden in an envelope.  The culprit!  That small plastic something, and the squealing sickness were too much for our old, budget paper shredder.  I briefly, like 2 minutes, tore paper by hand.  That sucked.  I mean, what did people do before paper shredders?  It was boring and tiresome, nothing like the thrill of running a paper shredder.  Plus I have a nonexistent pain threshold so it was best I quit before the inevitable paper cut came! 


Now we wait, with a pile of to-be-shredded papers, until we can work a new shredder into our budget.  Bummed that I couldn't finish the shredding?  Yes.  Excited about a new, more advanced shredder?  Oddly yes!  So, Dave Ramsey's intensive program may free us financially, but it was a burden too great for our shredder to bear.  Small price to pay in the long run.

All is well, partially shredded but paper cut free, in Drosche Land.