X?

Once again here we are. That time of year in the countdown when the letter "X" comes up. X. Poor letter. Misunderstood. Rarely used.  Especially as the initial letter in a word. Not totally useless. I mean we wouldn't have foxes or boxes without it. Nor would we be able to fax someone or refer to our saxophones by their shortened diminutives. But to begin a work with "X"?  Well, that's just downright rare. And even when it's present it uses the sound from the letter "Z". Poor X.

Clearly I have no song in my collection beginning with this underutilized letter. A quick trip to Google returned a few examples. Xanadu by Olivia Newton John.  XO by Beyoncé. A few others. Yet I am unfamiliar with them. Sure I have heard of the two I just mentioned but they made no impact. So I cannot comment on them or provide you with guidance in finding a song beginning with "X". So I'll simply dedicate this post to the poor letter itself. For now unused in this month's posts. But, there's always next year!

All is well, X down, in Drosche Land. 

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!

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. 

Well Read

I love to read. I always have. Hey, it's a big reason why I teach and love my job. Amy and I have always been avid readers. For fun, that is. College textbooks?  Not so much.  But then life happens. Jobs happen. Kids happen. Dogs happen.  The free time in which to enjoy a good book seems to vanish into thin air. 

But I've decided recently to start reading again. Well, not that I stopped. But to make a more concerted effort to do so. To relax and unwind. Kind of like Amy and I are doing with running. Something for ourselves that we enjoy. 

Where to begin?  What to read?  I'm currently in the middle of several books. But I wanted to start fresh. Something new. So I decided to check out a book from the library. On my iPad. There's an app, Overdrive, that allows you to access libraries and their ebook database. You can then use your library card to check out. It's pretty awesome and I highly recommend it if you haven't done so already. All the fun of checking out a book without having to change out of your jammies and head to the library. 

Now, don't get me wrong. I still love an actual book. A real one you can hold and turn the pages. But I also embrace technology and the convenience of an ebook.  I think they can happily coexist. 

So the book I checked out is an Agatha Christie book, Hallowe'en Party. I love Agatha Christie and it's been ages since I read a book of hers. A good, old fashioned mystery. Ahhhhh. Sadly though my time with the book expires tomorrow and I cannot recheck it out since there is a hold on it. Thanks a lot random Houstonian for placing a hold on my book. Oh well. I plan on binge reading tonight. Who knows?  Maybe I'll finish?  

So. That's what's new here. What about you?  Reader?  Hard copy or ebook?  What are you reading right now?  Any good recommendations?

All is well, curled up with a good book, in Drosche Land.  

Hot Stuff

No, this post isn't about the Donna Summer song.  Nor is it Amy's nickname for me (or is it).  Nope, instead I am going to tell you about my brief encounter with the Houston Hot Sauce Festival.  With an emphasis on hot and brief.  

Now, I love me some spicy food.  Yum.  So when a Groupon for the Houston Hot Sauce Festival came up this past summer Amy bought it.  Festivals are fun.  We enjoy going to them.  This seemed like a great idea.  Flash forward to yesterday, the day of the festival.    We'd had torrential downpours all Friday during the day and night.  We were wondering if we would even be making it to the festival.  However, the rain stopped, the morning came, and the forecast cleared.  So we ventured out.  It was located at a convention center and when we arrived we thought it might be held inside, score.  But no, it was outside.  But hey, it's in a parking lot.  But no, it wasn't.  It was in the grass, or what was grass before the aforementioned storms, coupled with the setting up of all of the booths and vendors.  Now it was mud.  Lots of it.  With patches of muddy grass sprinkled throughout just for giggles.  No, seriously, it was muddy.  But we decided to brave it, give it a shot.  After all, we'd driven all the way there.  So in we went.

We squelched our way into the festival.  The boys spotted the jumpy houses right away.  Sadly, it was a pay-for-jump arrangement and I couldn't see spending a minimum of $2/per boy to have them jump.  Oh well, we moved on.  The first booth we went to had a sauce called, I kid you not, Death Nectar.

Well, rather than start off slowly (as my dear wife would later suggest that I should have done) with the milder sauces, and then working my way up to hotter ones, I opted for the Death Nectar.  It was hot.  Very hot.  But also very good.  The guy said it was rated 337.  That sounded high, but out of what, 1,000?  After sampling I headed to buy a water.  The fire was dwindling by now and I was doing well.  Then Amy suggested that we get the boys a snow cone, since there wasn't a ton for them to do.  On the way back from the snow cone vendor I started feeling funny.  A little weak.  Shaky.  Amy took one look at me and told me to go find a place to sit down.  Apparently I didn't look too good.  Pale.  Sweaty.  Yeah, I was feeling way worse, like I was going to pass out.  So I found a seat and tried not to pass out.

Well, I didn't pass out.  After about 5 minutes I was better.  However, given then events of our brief encounter with the festival we decided it would be best if we called it a day and headed home.  Thus ended our adventure at the Houston Hot Sauce Festival.  I don't think we will return.

On the way home I did research the sauce I'd tried.  Turns out the 337 the guy was talking about, was 337,000 Scoville units.  If you are not familiar with the Scovile units, I suggest you look it up.  Especially if you are venturing out to a hot sauce festival.  For an understanding of the rating of the Death Nectar, it is about 400 times hotter than Tabasco sauce.  A jalapeño rates 3,000 - 8,000 Scoville units.  The ghost pepper, one of the ingredients in the Death Nectar, is one of the world hottest peppers and can reach above 1,000,000 on the Scoville scale.  Had I been better versed in this prior to our visit to the festival, I may have avoided the Death Nectar.  However, it makes for a good story.  Visit here to read more about or to purchase the Death Nectar.  I'm still working on Amy about getting some, it was good.  She just rolls her eyes at me!  :)

Grinder's Death Nectar

All is well, cooling off, in Drosche Land.
       

Blow Out

Clearly I'm not talking about a visit to the salon here people.

So, the above incident happened to me on the way home from work yesterday.  But, before I get into it all I have to give you some background information.  Just listen.  Trust me, it will come in handy later.  Oh, and this may be a long story.  Hopefully it's interesting, but long.  You might want to grab a snack.

Over Spring Break we had a little incident with the Trail Blazer's liftgate.  See, we were getting ready to head out to the drive-in.  I was getting our chairs and putting them in the trunk.  The trunk was open.  The chairs are at the front of the garage so Amy decided to back the Trail Blazer out a bit to help me get to them.  Yep, you guessed it.  The liftgate got caught on the garage door.  Luckily no major damage was caused to either the car or the door.  However, the handle to the liftgate was damaged and we cannot get it open.  I made the decision to wait on getting it fixed.  I thought, "Eh, we can just open the glass top and get in that way.  It can wait.  We'll save up the money and do it later."  Famous last words.

Ok, so you're filled in now.  On with the original story.

So, I'm driving home.  I'd just finished a phone call when I heard a funny noise from the rear of the car.  Also, it wouldn't accelerate as well.  No smoke.  No flashing lights.  The only thing was the tire pressure light had come on.  Crap.  I pulled over onto the shoulder.  Now, keep in mind I'm on the HOV of a major freeway here.  On the far right side, where the shoulder is.  With all 3 kids.  I glance out my window at the cars flying by me.  I'll be honest dear readers, it took me a minute to get the courage up to open the door and step out.  I immediately saw the driver's rear tire.  Crap.  Back into the car I go.  The boys know something is up.  I try calling Amy but she's not answering.  We're supposed to eat dinner at some friends' house and we're meeting there.  Crap.  Not going to make that.  Amy answers as a huge Toll Road Authority tow truck pulls up.  Awesome.  I get the kids out of the car and into this giant truck.  The boys are clearly excited.  Stella doesn't mind too much either.  Into the tow truck we go.

Stella and I riding in the front of the tow truck.

The boys enjoying their ride!

Now things get funny from here.  The air conditioning in the tow truck just went out and he was on the way to the shop when he stopped to help us.  Shortly into our ride the "Check Engine" light comes on.  I can't make this stuff up folks.  Since we have a full-size spare we decide to have the guy take us to the park & ride to change it.  Now, think back  to the incident from Spring Break.  Remember?  Good, here we go.

So we get to the park & ride only to find out that the access point to lower the spare down from underneath can only be reached when the liftgate is opened.  Ahhhh, now you see the purpose for the story within a story?!  Crap. 

Unloading

 

Now what.  Well, as it turns out, it is against his policy to take me to a second location so I'm stuck here.  Crap.  Troubleshooting via the phone with Amy begins.  Meanwhile the boys are collecting acorns from trees and running around while I hold Stella on my hip.  Amy has the brilliant plan to just remove the tire, take it to get replaced, and bring it back to put it on.  Great!  Saves us the wait time on another tow truck and the cost of one too!  

We begin the process when who should drive up?  Mr. Toll Road Authority Tow Truck Driver Man (note: not his real name).  He came back to check up on us.  Yes dear readers, there are still people like that out there.  Turns out though, he informs us that our jack (the one that came with the car) is crap.  And he's seen people lose a leg using one.  Crap.  So he uses his giant fancy one to get the car up and his drill-like tool to get the nuts off quickly.  We put it on my crappy jack and he leaves.  

The kids get loaded into Amy's van.  The destroyed tire gets loaded into Amy's van.  A tired me gets loaded into Amy's van.  Off to Sam's (literally across the street) we head.  I'll speed up the story here.  They get the new tire mounted and balanced.  We head back to the Trail Blazer and luckily it's still there and our crappy jack hasn't collapsed.  The tire is put on and we make a quick stop back at Sam's to get the nuts tightened before heading home.  Finally.  

Keep in mind that it is now 7:00 pm.  The tire blew at about 4:45.  We had one extra diaper.  No bottles.  No snacks, save for a few graham crackers that Stella ate.  However, God's grace was shining down on us as all 3, yes all 3, kids were very patient and well-behaved throughout this whole ordeal.  Sure there were moments here and there, but overall it was amazing.  The boys ask to eat out at La Finca, one of their favorite restaurants just across the street from our neighborhood.  Amy and I figure that it is a good reward for their cooperation but Stella is well past her bedtime and we didn't want to stretch our luck with her so Amy stayed home with her to give her a bottle and put her to bed while the boys and I went out to dinner.  It was nice to have some boy time, but the 3 of us were so exhausted that we didn't talk much.  We quickly ate and got Amy's order to-go.

Dinner.  Finally.

So, there you have it.  Just another little adventure here in Drosche Land.  Never a dull moment.  Lucky for us, we have once again begun to follow Dave Ramsey's plan.  Thanks to an emergency fund, we can handle this little mishap and it is no longer a burden for us.  Yes dear readers, we are back on track to financial freedom, but that's a topic for another post.  The events of yesterday have just cemented in us the need for financial freedom and have motivated us more to keep it up!  So keep it up we will!

All is well, re-inflated, in Drosche Land.   

            

Not Yet

Not yet. As in Stella's not yet ready for milk products. As in we learned this the hard way today.

See, you might remember that she has an allergy to milk protein. Or maybe not. Either way you now know/remember. Well, we thought that since she's now 7 months old, she might have outgrown it. I mean, it happens. But, how are we going to know if we don't try? So today she had some yogurt for a snack. Just 3 ounces. She loved it, but really she loves to eat most anything (except green beans!). Just 3 ounces, not much. But those 3 ounces were also too much.

She seemed fine for a while. We looked for the usual signs: fussiness, spitting up, gassiness. Nope, nope, and nope. All seemed fine. Until dinner.

She didn't eat too well but, eh, she was super tired so we thought nothing of it. Lo and behold about 5 minutes after dinnertime it happened. She got sick, if you know what I'm getting at. And a lot. A lot. So that answered that question. Not yet.

After the explosion she seemed fine. She had her bedtime bottle as usual and went to sleep. All was well for a few hours. Then, yep you guessed it, it happened again. Luckily this time was far less and not nearly as bad. Back to sleep she went.

Then about an hour ago she got restless. Nothing came up. Waiting it out didn't work. We decided she was hungry. So, we're braving another bottle. Hopeful this one stays down. And yes, I'm blogging while feeding her. I started the post before while I was waiting it out but that didn't work.

So, here I am. I can't remember the last time she was up for a bottle in the middle if the night. We've been so lucky that she's been sleeping through the night for quite awhile. With the very rare exception like tonight.

Well, that's our adventure for today. Messy, but lesson learned. Not yet. All a part of the adventure of parenthood. Well, she's almost finished with the bottle. I'm hoping all goes well for the rest of the night. Keep you fingers crossed!

All is well, fingers crossed, in Drosche Land.

Pay It Forward

So, the topic of this post happened a while back but I have still been wanting to write about it.  Here goes.

Remember last week, before Thanksgiving, when Amy and I took Stella and headed for the conference in Austin?  i thought you did.  Well, after dropping the dogs and the boys off at their sitters we drove to Starbucks for a little treat to kick start our mini road trip.  Now, you know I love me some coffee, and I love me some Starbucks.  Plus, it's the holiday season which means all of their wonderful holiday flavors are finally available (pumpkin spice latte anyone?)!  For my birthday a few weeks ago I got some gift cards.  I loaded them all onto my main card and have been using Passbook on my iPhone to pay.  Side note - love this!  No more carrying cards around and it's simple!  Awesome.  Back to the post.  So we order our drinks, a salted caramel mocha for Amy and the aforementioned pumpkin spice latte for me.  We also threw in a few edible treats because why not?  We get to the window and I'm all psyched up to show Amy how to use Passbook and finally redeem my free birthday drink.  The barista tells us that the car in front of us had already paid for our order, we were the 8th car in a pay it forward line!  What up!

Now, I have always wanted to do that but have never done so.  Why?  Well, I'm not sure.  I could say I've never had the funds to just blindly pay for something but I'm sure I have.  I could say that I've forgotten, and I'm sure that's true too.  It's probably a combination of the two really.  Anywho.  Amy and I were pleasantly surprised and immediately told him to pay for the order of the person next in line.  I was stoked to keep the chain going and it was fun!

Now, I will admit that Amy and I felt slightly guilty because our order was about 3 times the cost of the one behind us.  What if they only had the money for their order and not a larger order?  Well, I guess they could just always accept the free drink and call it a blessing.  But it did make me wonder how long the chain went on.  Just the car behind us?  A few more?  It's totally not about the amount you didn't have to pay or the amount you ended up paying.  The fact of the matter is that you are in some way part of a larger, positive action.  Something to show that people still do care and show love to strangers for just no reason other than, as we've been told in church and Sunday School, because we love because He first loved us.

So, since that day I've vowed to start my own chain the next time I visit Starbucks.  I haven't been yet but I really do want to do it.  Even if that person accepts it without passing it on, maybe they needed a free coffee.  Maybe they will pass that blessing along to someone else throughout their day in a non-caffeinated way.

So, I just thought I'd share that fun little story with you dear readers.  Maybe it'll make you smile.  Make you think about something nice someone did for you.  Maybe inspire you to do something nice for someone else.  Who knows.  Regardless, I think it was a good story!

All is well, paying it forward, in Drosche Land.

Rock the Vote

Now I'm far from a politically active person. I'd love to be, and every year I aspire to become a fully informed voter. Someone active in politics who follows the goings-on in our government. But then I get bored and it all begins to sound the same. So I do the best I can. I watch the news and read a little. I try to stay somewhat in the know about the major issues. And I vote. Of course I vote. Even though I'm not a political person, voting has always excited me. When I turned 18, it was the thing I was looking forward to the most. I've been a registered voter ever since.
This year was no different. I braved the early voting lines last week in an effort to avoid the craziness of Election Day voting. 45 minutes, not too bad. Especially considering some estimates for tonight's lines were like 3 hours! Yikes!
I taught my kids in class all about voting and the election process today also, I always do. It's always so fun to see their thoughts and reactions, especially in a presidential election year. You'd be surprised by the politically heated things a 6-year old can say!
So tonight I've gotten all caught up in the excitement of election coverage and we've been watching since we got home. I'm getting tired but can't think about turning it off. What if I miss something? What if my viewership changes the outcome? Is my vote that important? I like to think so. It makes me feel better, especially since I didn't get an "I Voted" sticker! I know, right?! I mean I turn out, do my civic duty, exercising the rights my forefathers fought for and I can't even get a sticker for my vote! Oh well, what can I say, I teach 1st Grade, stickers are a hot commodity when it comes to rewards!
But I'm still happy I voted, sticker or not. It's exciting to be an American. It's fun to watch the country come together for a single cause, even if we have major differences. Freedom is good! So, I hope you voted too. If not, it's too late now but maybe you'll spend the next 4 years planning your political involvement. Hey, maybe I'll finally become politically active?! Stranger things have happened! :)
All is well, rockin' the vote, in Drosche Land
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Oh Happy Day

So today is my birthday. Another year gone by. I must say though that this past one was quite eventful. I can't believe I'm a year older. I also can't believe my age. 32?! When did that happen? Well, today obviously, but you know what I mean. It seems like just yesterday I was dreading 30. And before that I was living it up in my 20's. So I sit here tonight shocked that I have somehow entered my 30's. I mean, I don't feel 32. Or do I? Maybe this is what 32 feels like. If so, it feels a lot like 20-something. These are the things I think about on my birthdays, deep and insightful I know. Must be the wisdom that comes with age. How about you? Do you find yourself surprised on your birthday?

Well, anywho. Today was a great day. I couldn't have asked for a better birthday. The celebrations actually began Saturday when we had my birthday dinner with Amy's family. Then Sunday was with my parents. So, by today I was in full-on birthday mode! Amy and the kids had been sneaky and hard at work in presents and a card. I think the boys were more excited than I was this morning! Just another fun part about having kids.

School was great too. My kids knew it was my birthday and again, they were so excited. All day I received hugs and well wishes from them. Of course I brought cupcakes to share. Amy made them last night and the kids couldn't have been more excited. One of my students also brought brownies in so we had those too. It's my birthday so why not sugar it up a bit huh?

For dinner tonight I decided to go easy and low-key. Simple and fun. I requested breakfast for dinner. I mean, who doesn't love breakfast for dinner? One my my favorites! We had bacon, egg, and cheese biscuits. Yum! For dessert we had an old favorite of ours from when Amy and I were first married. A simple chocolate pie. Not only was it delicious, but it brought back so many fun memories. The rest of the night was spent relaxing with the family. Like I said, nothing spectacular, but a wonderful birthday nonetheless.

So, I sit here blogging for watching ALF on Hulu. ALF! Come on, classic 80's sitcom! Anywho. My birthday today served as a reminder that I truly am blessed. With a wonderful wife who will do anything to ensure I have a happy birthday. With 3 awesome kids who make everyday, birthday or otherwise, an adventure. With family and friends to offer love and support. Yeah, it was a great birthday. Even if it means I'm officially 32! :)

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



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Sunday Snapshot - Instant

Ok so the above picture is a preview of Stella's Halloween costume. I just couldn't resist. I was going to save a picture of her in it for next week's post or a Halloween post, but come on, can you blame me?

Anywho. Things have been busy around here, especially on the weekends. Sports will do that to a family I guess. Thus I've not been as diligent about Sunday Snapshot posts as I'd like to be. But that doesn't mean I'm not taking pictures, not by any means. It just means that actual, planned photo shoots are few and far between. But, thanks to my iPhone and its awesome camera, I'm always ready to snap something.





As you know, in addition to taking pictures, I love me some social media. Hobby/addiction, it's a fine line really. Throw pictures into the mix and you've got Instagram. Not only can I share pictures, but I can crop, add filters and effects. Combine it with other iPhone photo editing apps and the possibilities are endless.





One little Instagram/photography hobby I have is the Photo-A-Day fun from Chantelle over at fatmumslim.com. I'm kind of addicted to it, but not crazy or anything. It's fun. Sometimes I try to be all serious about a prompt, other times I just take a picture of something. I may miss a day here and there, but I try to get it all in each month. But not all of my Instagram shots are part of the challenge, not by any means.





Basically my Instagram pictures fall into 4 categories really: Amy and the Kids, Food, Random, and Artsy. About half are for the challenge and half are just because. Right now I have 620 photos, and yes I checked. Because why not right? It's a fun and easy way to enjoy photography and document life. Maybe one day the kids will look back in wonder at it all, in awe of my photo skills. That or they'll just marvel at what a nut job their Dad is. Either way they'll have something to enjoy right?





So, given the lack of photoshoots recently and my love of taking pictures, I thought I'd share some of my recent Instagram favorites and sing my praises of this fun social network. I'd link up to my account here if I weren't on the iPad and/or I had the energy to figure it out. Plus, I think it might be on the sidebar somewhere? Search me if you want to and follow along for the fun! I could post many more pictures here, 615 actually, and go on but I'll spare you. I think I've gotten my point across. Plus it's late, I'm craving Halloween candy, and I few I've begun to ramble! 😁

Oh and yes, the first picture is Stella in her Halloween costume. I was going to save it for next Sunday's post or a Halloween post but I couldn't resist. I mean, how cute is she?

All is well, picture perfect, in Drosche Land.

Up & Catch Up

So, it's 12:32 am and I'm up.  And I've been up for about an hour.  Don't get me wrong, I like to stay up late and all, but today was a long day.  I turned in early, long ago.  However, Stella decided a midnight snack was called for.  Huh?  I know right, I've mentioned before that she is, and has been, sleeping through the night.  Not tonight I guess.  She woke up and I tried to move her to her beloved swing.  No dice.  Fever (gasp!)?  Nope.  Needs a new diaper?  Not at all.  Amy was up with me by now and suggested the bottle.  I was trying to avoid it since she hasn't had/needed on in weeks.  But oh well, there's a random time for everything right?

So I get one ready, as she decided to lose her mind.  And I mean lose it!  I had a flash-forward to some crazy toddler tantrum y'all, and it wasn't pretty!  Luckily as soon as the bottle found its way to her she was fine, I told you the girl loves her some food.  6 quick ounces later and she's passed out.  Hopefully she will stay that way until morning and tonight will have been a fluke.

So, I know you're wondering why today was a long day.  Well, I was just getting to that.  Plus I'm up and all.  Anywho.  Today was the boys' soccer pictures.  So we headed out early for Braeden's.  I'll mention here that our long-awaited cold front came in Friday night so this morning was quite chilly.  After Braeden's pictures I took him and Stella to his game while Amy stayed with Jackson for his pictures.  She then met me at the soccer fields and we decided to have her bring Stella home due to the crazy wind and cold weather.  I mean, who needs a sick baby?  Not me!  So the boys and I braved the cold and enjoyed the two games, which were luckily scheduled back-to-back.  Then it was home just in time to send Amy off to a meeting with her coworkers.  By the time she came home it was time for dinner.

Whew!  I'm tired just remembering it all.  Or maybe it's because I'm up in the middle of the night?  Anywho.  So, it wasn't crazy busy, just go, go, go.  But that was busy enough.  Plus it came on the tails of a busy week last week.  It was Red Ribbon Week for me which means fun dress-up days.  Fun dress-up days mean sillier than usual kids in the classroom.  Pajama Day, College T-Shirt Day, and the ever-popular Wacky Day (which lived up to its name!)!  Throw in a Field Day for good measure and a No School for 1st Quarter Conferences Friday and I was one worn out teacher.  But worn out in a good way, it was a great week but wow!  Oh and Friday night was Trinity's Trunks & Treats so that was another fun thing to add on.

Amy also had her first set of conferences last week and I am so proud of her!  They went well, as I knew the would.  She is doing an awesome job and it shows with the kids and their parents.  I may be slightly biased, but I know I'm right!  :)

So, I think that catches us up dear readers.  Now comes the hard decision I have to make.  Do I move Stella back to her crib and go to bed, or do I leave her in the swing and sleep/watch TV downstairs.  I mean I'm already awake and have Netflix and Hulu at my disposal.  Hmmm?  Decisions decisions.

All is well, up and caught up, in Drosche Land.  

Shot Through the Heart

You're totally rocking out to Bon Jovi now aren't you?  Finishing the line of the 80's classic song?  Maybe playing a little air guitar?  I've never been one for the air guitar, not my instrument, but I do love me some 80's music. But I digress.

So this post is about a shot, or shots, but not through the heart. More into some chubby baby legs. Yep, I'm talking Stella and her 2 Month immunizations. Now. I'll have to preface this post by stating that I was not at said doctor's appointment. My wonderful wife takes the kids to get their shots. If you've ever done so you know it's not an easy job. Definitely one that I cannot handle. I think I've done it once, when Braeden was a baby. It didn't go well. There was crying and pain. He didn't take it well either. So Amy takes the kids. Such was the case with Stella's appointment last week.

Now, there's always a debate raging on the topic of childhood immunizations. Should you or shouldn't you?  Do they work or don't they?  Do they have horrible side effects or not?  Well, to each their own, but we've always gotten them. Do I think that some people have negative reactions to them.  If I didn't before I do now!  Stella's didn't go well. She got sick, if you catch my drift, after the oral one. All over the place. Then of course she ran a low-grade fever, as the boys always have, for a day of so after. But she's also been super congested and snurgly since then. Yes. I made that last word up but it describes it very well. You know what I mean. Snotty and gurgly and stuffy.

Now, is this related to the immunizations or simply some bad coincidental timing for a cold?  Who knows?  All we can say is that we'll be proceeding with caution at her next shot appointment at 4 months. In the mean time we wait for her to get over her congestion and snurgly-ness. Hopefully that ends soon.

Oh and forgive any spelling errors as I'm writing this at 2:14 am via my iPhone and sans glasses. I'm waiting for a certain little snurgly girl to fall asleep after her bottle!  Thanks for understanding.  :) Oh and you can get back to rocking out to Bon Jovi now too!  Shot through the heart, and you're to blame. You give love a bad name . . .

All is well, snurgly, in Drosche Land.

Criss Cross

Will make you jump, jump!

Ok, so that's Kriss Kross, not exactly what this post is about.  But maybe now you've got that song stuck in your head and you're contemplating wearing your clothes backward.  Ahhh, the joys of 1992.  But on with the post.

So, you know how to cross your eyes right?  I mean who doesn't.  To make fun of someone, to make a silly face, to see the tip of your nose.  Whatever the reason, you know how.  Well, turns out I can't!  Say what?!  Trust me, you can't be more surprised by this fact than I am.  I spent 31 years of my life thinking I could.  Imagine my surprise this past week when Amy pointed out that I couldn't.  The shock.  The horror.  I mean, how did I go 31 years without this quasi-valuable piece of knowledge about myself?  Did no one see fit to tell me?  Did they notice and feel bad for the kid who couldn't cross his eyes?  Did they notice and mock my futile attempts to do so, me not realizing the joke was on me?  Regardless, I just found out.

See, you may remember me mentioning that Braeden has a slight strabismus in one of his eyes.  Well, maybe it's genetic?  I've always known that my left eye was a bit of a "lazy eye", although I think strabismus sounds so much more official.  It's barely noticeable unless I'm tired or occasionally in pictures.  It's better now that I have glasses.  Apparently though, it's this little medical tidbit that keeps me from properly crossing my eyes.

I know what you're wondering.  "How did you come to find this out?"  Well, dear readers, I'll tell you.  See, as Stella is working on focusing on things and looking around she often makes silly faces.  One of which includes, you guessed it, crossing her eyes (accidentally of course).  So one day I was doing it back when Amy burst into uncontrollable (but I'm sure totally loving) laughter.  Once she caught her breath she was able to explain to me.  I used the forward facing camera on my ever-present iPhone to snap a picture.  A picture that would prove her correct.

Who knew?  Granted it's not technically life-changing information and my inability to do something so trivial and simple will likely never affect me.  So why post about it?  Well, in my defense this post is labeled as "Random".  But it's also a perfect example of one of those things you find out as an adult and surprises you.  Remember when I found out corn wasn't a vegetable?  That still shocks me!

So yet another surprise that life has thrown my way.  You never stop learning.  Speaking of eyes though, I finally got new glasses and I love them!  I didn't realize how scratched my old glasses were until I put the new ones on!  Ahhh, a new look just in time for the new school year!

What do you think?

All is well, uncrossed, in Drosche Land.

And just in case you can't get the song out of your head, here's the video!  Rock on!  Jump, jump!

The Dingo & The Drainpipe, Revisited

So yesterday I'm outside doing some much-needed yard work (finally).  As I'm mowing I notice something at the mouth of the front drainpipe.  Upon closer inspection it was clearly the remains of some small animal.  Worry not, this post does not include a picture.  I guess the readers here and people on Facebook were correct, it wasn't a mental illness or pica-fueled craving for metal that caused that stray dog to mangle my drainpipe.  It was pure animal bloodlust.

I can envision the scenario now.  Small woodland creature (likely a mouse) innocently scurrying around, midmorning.  Along comes the stray with this little buddy.  A chase ensues, there's nowhere to go but up (my drainpipe).  The stray, now crazed and maniacal vigorously attacks the innocent drainpipe until the confused homeowner (me!) appears out of nowhere and chases him away.  The mouse either mortally wounded or trapped in the drainpipe meets his/her end.  Flash forward a week or so and the heavy rains we have washes the evidence out.  The saga is finished.

I'm really glad that I had not started the disassembly and replacement of the drainpipe, that would have been an extremely unpleasant surprise.  It would appear as though my procrastination has come in handy for once (Amy is now rolling her eyes).  Woo hoo!  So the mystery is solved and I felt it my responsibility, dear readers, to share and update.  I know you, as I,  were still baffled and racking your brain in a Sherlockian attempt to figure it out!  :)

All is well, one less mystery but still one more busted drainpipe, in Drosche Land.

105

Well, as June winds down (can you believe tomorrow is the last day?) I thought I'd finally get around to a post I've been meaning to write.  See, June has always been special to me, long before Stella came along and made it even more so.  June is the anniversary of my weight loss.  This year marks 10 years.  A decade.

You've probably already put 2 and 2 together to realize that the title of this post tells of the amount of weight I lost.  Yes 105 pounds.  40.3% of my entire weight.  I'm not one to toot my own horn, but (toot toot!) I'm still pretty impressed.

Flash back to June 2001.  Amy and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary of being together and I was getting ready to transfer colleges in the fall and move to Austin.  I finally tired of being fat.  Well, I guess I'd been tired of it for a while, but I finally did something about it.  So, I began Weight Watchers.  Not the meetings and all that jazz, that's not for me at all.  No, I did it at home.  Counting points, eating less, eating better.  As it turns out counting points to lose weight was right up my alley.  Pair that with my OCD tendencies and voila!  It was destiny.  By the time the end of summer rolled around I had already lost about 40ish pounds!  Ahhhh, but that's when it got harder.  Moving away to college means dorm life.  Dorm life means meal plan.  Meal plan means lack of control over every morsel of food that went into my mouth.  However, my perseverance and OCD habits won over and I continued losing weight.  By the time summer rolled around again, I was down 105 pounds!  I'd made it to my target size and weight!  It had been a long journey, but it had been more than worth it.

So, here I sit, 10 years later and so much has happened in life.  I've graduated college, gotten married, went through Hurricane Katrina, changed jobs, had 3 kids, built a house, received my Masters.  Yikes, that's a lot.  Through all of that though those 105 pounds have stayed away.  I'll be honest, it hasn't always been a piece of cake, mmmmm cake.  I love food and, as you know, have a massive sweet tooth.  The hardest part was when Amy was pregnant with Jack, I put on 20 pounds!  Apparently having a one-year old, one on the way, building a house, and moving is stressful.  I thought I would die.  But I reached deep down in and channeled everything I'd done before.  It wasn't so hard really, it's always there and probably always will be.

I still count points every day, all day.  It's just that I don't need a book, I know a lot and can guesstimate everything else.  The OCD tendencies still come in very handy when maintaining.  I have a 5-pound window that I allow myself, to maintain sanity.

I know what you're thinking, "Where's a picture of fat Dusty?", and I can't blame you.  I'd be thinking the same thing if I were you.  Honestly though I don't have one, at least not with me.  I keep a picture at school though.  Partially to remind myself and partially to show others because they find it hard to believe.  It was taken on our 1 year anniversary and was the last photo taken of me before I began losing weight.  It is always funny to see people's reactions to the picture though, even I find it shocking.  I basically look like myself, only overinflated.  Imagine me as a Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade balloon.  You'll get a good image that way.  I'll have to remember to grab the picture the next time I'm at school and post it here.  That'll keep you checking back!

I'm obviously proud of myself for having done it.  I'm glad I'm not the same size.  I'm healthier, happier, and I get to share my story with others.  Maybe inspire them?  Am I even that influential?  I'll also get to share it with my children so hopefully they will not travel down the same path I did, hopefully they will have healthier eating habits early.  Yeah, I'm proud for all of those reasons!

All is well, lighter for a decade and counting, in Drosche Land.    

It Can Wait

My name is Dusty, and I'm a procrastinator.  It's probably one of my worst faults and definitely one that drives Amy crazy (she's nodding now).  I don't know why I put off until tomorrow what should be done today.  More often than not it creates more problems than it's worth.  I also tend to hang out with procrastination's first cousin, laziness.  The two of them work together to do a number on me.

Why am I (finally getting around to) writing this post?  Well, ironically it's a post I've been meaning to write, but have had to postpone because of prior procrastinations.  See, I'm in charge of creating Trinity's yearbook.  A task I love and thoroughly enjoy.  I've been working on yearbooks since middle school and it is one of my favorite things.  However, this year it didn't come so easy.  With the busyness of the year, I kept putting it off.  The deadline is June 15, tomorrow (or today depending upon when you're reading this).  Theoretically it should be done before school lets out for summer.  Theoretically.  That didn't happen.  Then it was supposed to be finished before Stella's birth.  That didn't happen.  However, I am happy to say that I am, finally, finished!  2 days ahead of the deadline! Although I can't take total credit for it, I owe a lot to Amy for prodding me along to get it finished, ASAP.

So now I can enjoy my summer as my work is finished.  But procrastination doesn't seem to take a holiday.  Tomorrow I tackle another thing I've been putting off for a while, installing a baby gate at the top of the stairs.  Or should it say re-installing.  We bought it a few months ago and, against the better judgement of my beautiful wife, I neglected to properly find a stud to mount it in.  So, I've put off not only properly installing the gate, but also patching the holes created by my first attempt.

These are just two of the most recent examples of my tendency toward procrastination but I'm sure if I thought about it I could give many more (Amy's nodding again).  Maybe I'll make a list, later that is.  All of this procrastination is to blame for my lack of blogging as of late.  That and a new baby in the house!  Stella is doing very well, as is Amy!  She is adorable, amazing, and had me wrapped around her finger (all that nodding is going to hurt your neck Amy).  I have a whole other post dedicated to her homecoming in my head, but I'll post it tomorrow.  There are also other goings ons here in Drosche Land that I will tackle in upcoming posts.  That's not procrastinating, just a side affect of the yearbook procrastinating.  But I thought I owed it to you dear readers to explain my brief hiatus here this past week, and to share more about myself.  Even if it is a fact about a bad habit I'm not too proud of.

So, that's it.  A dirty little secret about yours truly.  Do you suffer from procrastination?  You don't have to tell me now, we can talk about it later.  Hopefully everything you're putting off won't pile up on you!  Before I go, and because she's just so darned cute, I have to share a picture of Stella!  More to come on her!  Hopefully tomorrow!

We took a picture of ourselves, relaxing!

All is well, I'll get around to it eventually, in Drosche Land.

Y is for Yearbook

Pictures.  I love them.  Taking them and looking at them.  They can help you to capture a moment in time.  Remember an event, a person, a place, an emotion.  Looking back at them allows you to relive that moment.  Being a teacher, the yearbook is naturally something that comes to mind when thinking about pictures and memories.  The year goes by so quickly, for both the teacher and the students.  If it weren't for a yearbook we might forget many of the highlights of the year.

Think back to your time in school when you would receive your yearbook from the previous year.  Remembering everything that happened.  Maybe you missed friends who had moved.  Maybe you counted how many times you appeared in the yearbook.  Maybe you tried to collect as many signatures as possible.  Whatever you did with your yearbook I am sure it was special.

I've obviously always loved my yearbooks.  But more than just getting them, I've always enjoyed creating them.  I was on the yearbook staff in middle school and high school.  We didn't have one in college and that is still something I'm bummed about.  Luckily my own love of taking pictures makes up for the lack thereof.  My yearbook from my one year at St. John was lost in the flood after Katrina.  Something that still saddens me.  I was able to salvage my class picture from that year, but I would love to look back and remember.  Again, I'm lucky to have some pictures of my own.  I once again got to create the yearbook when I began working at Memorial and quickly remembered how much I loved it.  Last year I again picked up the task at Trinity.  I am actually just beginning working on this year's.  Yes, I know it's late.  Procrastination has gotten the best of me once again, but I have a little more than a month.  I'd better get crackin'!

Having worked on yearbooks since 7th Grade, I have seen many changes in techniques and technology.  From the humble beginnings of the cropping tools and orange colored pencils to the introduction of computer software.  Now it is entirely done online and I can work on it anywhere.  It's amazing how many things on that end of the yearbook have changed over the years.  But the purpose of the yearbook and the joys it brings remain the same.  As I'm sure it always will.

I still have my grade school and high school yearbooks and occasionally look at them.  Do you still have yours?  Did you look forward to "Yearbook Day"?  What was your favorite part of the yearbook?

Old yearbooks I'm about to pore over yet again!

All is well, remembering, in Drosche Land.

 

U is for Umbrellas

Ok, so this is somewhat related to my Sunday Snapshot so I'll try not to be repetitive.

The boys are addicted to umbrellas.  They always have been.  I've never been able to understand their fascination with them.  Rain or shine, inside or out, they beg to play with them.  Constantly.  I'll be honest and even divulge that many a fit have been thrown over umbrellas and their inability to play with them whenever they want.  Now, I blogged in my Sunday Snapshot post that I loved playing in the rain but I never had the love for umbrellas that the boys have.  So I don't even know where it comes from.

The more I think about it though, it could be written off as "boys will be boys", to an extent.  A closed umbrella very closely resembles a sword/lightsaber/rifle.  And yes, the boys have used their umbrellas as any combination of the aforementioned weapons.  They also just enjoy running around with them open, swinging them around.  I've long since stopped trying to explain what they do and why.  I guess that's part of the fun of being a kid.  Just playing.  Anything.  With anything.  Simple joys.  Sometimes I wish adult life could be so easily solved and enjoyed.  Alas, it can't but I can get enjoyment out of watching them be kids.  Regardless of rhyme or reason!

Jack and his umbrella!

All is well, under our umbrella ella ella eh eh eh, in Drosche Land.

  

R is for Recycling

Well, I'll start of by saying that this is the 2nd time I am posting this today.  I didn't get around to scheduling it so I wrote it this morning.  My first post to not be scheduled.  I know I wrote it and I know I published it.  Somewhere along the way though something happened because when I just checked on it to schedule some posts it wasn't there!  Well, it was there, but it was blank!  I'm bummed.  A whole day gone with no "R" post.  Luckily I caught it in time so I can still make it, but I'm still bummed!  :(  On with the post!  I can't remember it all but I thought it was good so I'll have to make do with what I can remember and what comes to me now!

I've always wanted to recycle.  You know, help the earth out and all.  But honestly, it was a lot of work. Our neighborhood didn't collect recyclables and I am too lazy busy to collect, store, load, and transport things across creation to drop it off.  Sorry earth, it just wasn't happening.  Luckily though a few months ago our neighborhood announced that they would begin picking up recyclables!  Woo hoo!

Who knew there were so many different kinds of plastics?  Who knew you couldn't recycle a pizza box?  Well, now I do.Turns out there is a ton of stuff that's recyclable.  Before we were taking out a bag of trash about every other day.  Overflowing trash cans were then left at the curb twice a week.  Such is no longer the case here in Drosche Land!  I'd say well over 60% of our trash is recyclable.  We now only take the trash to the curb on the weekend and it's only ever half full at most.  The recycling trash can though?  That's always over flowing.

Now don't get me wrong.  I'm all supportive of going green, but I'm not always perfect at it.  We don't do all we could/should.  We recycle, use better light bulbs, use ceiling fans, a programmable thermostat, turn of the lights.  Basic stuff, we do what we can.  But I do have weaknesses.  I leave the water running when I brush my teeth.  I'm very particular (remember the "O" post) about how I sort laundry so I run small loads, but I do adjust the load size (when I remember).  But hey, I'm a work in progress and any little thing helps right?

We're about to embark on a whole new level of green here in Drosche Land though.  We will be using cloth diapers (gDiapers) with Stella.  With the boys we used the regular disposable.  But we're older and wiser now.  We've possibly also blissfully forgotten all about the amount of diaper changing.  So we've decided to inch a little further into the green.  I'm excited.  I feel helpful.  You're welcome earth!

Do you recycle?  Have you gone green?  Totally or, like us, partially?  Used cloth diapers?  Well, whatever you do, congratulations!

Our recycling bin!  And proud of it!

All is well, going green(ish), in Drosche Land.