Hare Today

So, I've been meaning to blog about this topic for a while now but I just haven't sat down to do so.  Honestly, it has been an ongoing situation so I was also just waiting to see how it would play out.  See right after we got back from our Arkansas vacation I (or rather Lucy) found that 3 small bunnies had made our backyard their home.  It was right after I'd finished our deck and I was outside observing it and on the phone with my mom when I heard a squealing/squeaking sound.  I thought the dogs had found a baby bird at first because right before we left for vacation Rex brought a dead bird into the house.  However, upon further investigation I found that it was 3 tiny, newborn bunnies in a hole under the boys' playscape.  

Clearly a mother was nearby and I immediately thought of the rabbit that we first saw in our yard last summer, read about it here.  We have seen her in the yard throughout the year.  Apparently, despite the dead grass and presence of 2 dogs, our backyard is a wonderful place to raise a family of rabbits.  Who knew?  So started the adventure.


The next day we had a day-long torrential downpour.  About an hour into it I began to worry about the bunnies.  They were so small and helpless.  I venture out, with an umbrella, to check on them.  Their little hole had flooded and they were huddled together shivering.  Awwwww, go ahead, you can say it with me.  So, not wanting their drownings on my head I covered them with a storage tub and gave them some food and water.  After some research on wild rabbits in your backyard (there are a lot more resources on this topic than one would imagine) I decided to let them be.  What else could I do?  So I kept the tub out to cover them when the dogs were out, lest I witness a hare-raising (HA) massacre.  I even named them, I mean why not?  Betty - the mother and the triplets - Beatrice, Bernard, and Bradley (I took a guess on their genders). 


About a week passed and they were growing.  My sister-in-law and her kids came over and we showed them.  By now they had ventured out into various parts of the yard seeking shade from the oppressive heat.  She, being the goof she is, picked one up and carried it around.  They had grown quite a bit by now and I figured that if they were out hopping around, literally, then it may be close to the time when they would bid Drosche Land adieu.  I took away the tub and hoped for the best.  Then they left.  Or so I thought.


Another week passed without seeing hide nor hard (HA) of the bunnies.  Betty came by once or twice but it seemed as though the adventure was behind us.  In my research I found that rabbits give birth in early summer so I'm wondering if this will become a yearly occurrence?  Who knows?  At least we can be prepared now for their return.  It was an interesting and quasi educational experience for the boys as we watched them and talked about them.  Just another great part about living out here in Cypress away from the city. 

Well, I wish the story ended here but it doesn't.  In fact it ends on a bit of a sad note.  Just when I thought they were gone, I find I was wrong.  So, I'm in the backyard grilling hamburgers (side note - Bubba burgers are AWESOME but that's a topic for another post, in the mean time find them at your grocery and try them - now!).  The dogs were out with me and Lucy began going crazy.  I immediately knew what it was.  I ran to her hollering, but I was too late.  She looked at me, bunny in mouth, totally saying "WHAT?!  I'm part beagle dude!  What did you expect?".  I took them inside and went back out but it was too late.  Bernard, Beatrice or Bradley was gone.  I briefly thought about a burial but both Lucy and Rex are diggers and that wasn't something I wanted to revisit anytime soon.  Obviously I didn't tell the boys about the bunny's untimely demise, they only know that the bunnies grew up and moved away.


Since the attack I haven't seen them anymore, although I assume they are still there.  Hopping around randomly and passing through.  Lucy occasionally starts up a barking frenzy at the back door and whenever she goes out she seems to be on the prowl.  But things on the rabbit front seem to have settled down here, for now at least.  We will see what next summer brings!  I did though take pictures of our furry tenants.  They were quite cute, even Amy would agree with that.  Although she did tease me for encouraging their stay in our yard by building them a "Rabbit Hilton"!  :)


All is well, hopping right along, in Drosche Land.

 When I first discovered the bunnies, they were well camouflaged!

 The triplets all snuggled up in their hole

 They were so cute!

 Betty came the evening I found them, one of her twice-daily (learned that online too!) visits

I love this picture of the boys on bunny watch!  Cute!

Sunday Snapshot - Life's A Beach!

Yesterday we ventured out to the beach with the boys, Amy's sister and her kids, and Amy's Mom.  This has become a yearly (although it should be more often during the summer months) excursion for us.  Rather than travel down to Galevstion we head to Quintana Beach near Freeport.  Same Gulf waters, maybe a little more seaweed, but way less people.  The first time we went was last Memorial Day.  It was such a success that we knew we had to come again.  Yesterday proved to be the same as the cousins had a blast digging in the sand, splashing around, and riding some waves on their new boogie boards.  We had so much fun that I didn't get a ton of pictures.  But as Amy (who happens to be the subject of one of the best ones) pointed out - it's not about quantity, but quality.  And (although I'm slightly partial) I think I got some great ones!

 Told you it was a good one!  

 I LOVE this one of Jack!

My little surfer dude!

 

Another favorite - all the cousins together!

Connectivity

Ok, so you know I love me some TV. However, life doesn't revolve around my TV schedule, as much as I'd like it to (stop rolling your eyes Amy!). That is why I have broadened my TV love to include the technological wonder that is DVR! I mean seriously, what did we do without it? How did we get everything done AND see every must-see show on every network at the exact same time? I have no clue. Luckily I don't have to ponder this too often because of the aforementioned DVR. Since we have long since dropped cable service to knock out our debt snowball my DVR of choice is our trusty TiVo box that Amy got me as a gift many moons ago when we were still living in the apartment and had just one itty bitty baby. Luckily she had the incredible foresight (as often is the case with her) to purchase the box outright rather than rent it. Flash forward a couple of years and that investment has more than paid off!

Said TiVo box is housed in our bedroom so we can relax and watch everything we didn't originally have time for at our own convenience. Due to the lack of cable and the age of our TiVo box a digital converter was needed when we connected it. This resulted in problem-free recording and hours of blissful, commercial-free programming on demand! However, things have taken a sudden turn for the worse. Sometime Tuesday something went wrong. Very wrong. It appears as though the connection between our converter and television has been lost. Now, I consider myself a pretty techno-savvy person. My kryptonite though, is connecting televisions, DVD players, Blu-ray players, the Wii, etc. For some reason I have extreme difficulty in this area. Enter Amy, she's a wiz with the cables, cords, and connections. I did give it my best shot though, to no avail. The connection is still lost and I am clueless. Luckily it has nothing to do with our network so I can still access Netflix via the Blu-ray (I'm totally addicted to the original Melrose Place right now but that's a post for a different time) so not all is lost. Also luckily it didn't affect any of our previously recorded programs so we can watch those, we currently have 5 episodes left in this past season of Grey's Anatomy so that was a blessing. Oh and one last luckily - it's summer so there aren't any new shows to record and our schedules are slightly easier and more accommodating.

So, tomorrow I will once again try to reestablish the connection of the two once inseparable companions an save the day. I have a while until the fall season begins so I have pretty high hopes still of figuring it out. Worst case scenario - we learn to live (gasp!) without a DVR! But I'm not even going to give that horrific thought another moment. Who knows? There's still time for a miracle right?

All is well, attempting to reconnect, in Drosche Land.

Sunday Snapshot - Vacation

Well, a lazy Sunday at home that included some incredible burgers from the grill, a 3 1/2 nap, and lots of lazing around pushed this post to this morning!  As you remember I took tons of pictures during our vacation and had trouble narrowing the hundreds down to the few I posted previously.  The perfect compromise?  One last post to celebrate the awesome vacation.  After all, it did deserve it's own Sunday Snapshot right?  Enjoy!

 The boys at Beaver Dam.  Love how Braeden is scratching his mosquito bite, but it's still a cute one of them!

 Braeden always knows how to stop and smile for me!

 Jack enjoyed taking pictures on top of rocks, a power play!

 Isn't she beautiful?

Down I go!  Fun nonetheless!

Deckhand

No, this post isn't about sailing.  Think back to last Sunday's post.  You can scroll down or find it here.  You have probably already guessed though given my photos and shamelessly obvious hints.  Yes, I went to the "crazy place" as Amy and I call it and began yet another home improvement project.  Although, I am happy to say that I did finish this one, and in record time - 2 days!  Had I charged my drill overnight it would have been just a 1-day project.  Ahhhh, go ahead, bask in my awesomeness!

See, now that we have decided (well for a while now) not to move any time soon it has been on my mind to do some of the things we always said we would do since we built the house.  Our back yard has always been at the top of my list.  The worst thing about building a house is the lack of trees.  Sure we have the oak tree in the front yard that came with the house (although I swear it hasn't grown an inch in 4 years!) and the pear tree in the back yard (which has grown quite a bit but is nowhere near the size to provide shade) but they leave much to be desired, namely shade.  Full sun makes it extremely hard to grow anything or fully enjoy the back yard.  When we first moved in we put down pavers and stones to make a large patio but it was rushed and we were very inexperienced.  I have been dreaming of creating a fun outdoor space, complete with shade.  Well, that dream has finally become a reality.  

It started with a simple conversation Amy and I had on the way back home last Sunday from the wedding.  We mentioned getting a pergola or something added on.  A quick stop by Home Depot enlightened us to the harsh reality of the cost of that dream.  So we adapted it into something more doable: a gazebo.  You know, the metal frame kind with the covering.  Quite honestly I'm not sure how it got from that to me building a deck, but before I knew it I was heading to Home Depot to purchase the gazebo and building materials!  I'll pause here to give thanks and props to my wonderful wife for putting up with me and my harebrained schemes.  Supportive doesn't even begin to describe her!

Luckily I had been planning and thinking about this for so long that I knew exactly what I wanted and despite my limited (i.e. NONE) experience building things, I was stoked to begin.  2 days and 3 extra trips back to Home Depot (due to my underestimation of the number of screws I would need!) later and we have a deck and a gazebo!

Now, I am no contractor or construction worker, but I must say I am pretty proud of myself and my new found deck-building skills.  I'm sure it's not absolutely perfect, but it is all mine and was built for a fraction of the cost of anything else!  Below of course I will provide "before" and "after" pictures for your viewing pleasure.  The only thing I have left to do is to stain/seal it, get some trim for around the base, and we need to find the perfect patio furniture.  I'm already envisioning all of the outdoor meals, cups of coffee, glasses of wine, and relaxing that will take place on our new deck.  Ahhhh, it's going to be great!

Look at me, first laying tile and now I'm building decks.  Who knew?  :)

All is well, decked out, in Drosche Land.

 Before: Unappealing and not too functional

After:  Totally super awesome!

   

Home Sweet Home

I'm back!  Home!  Well, we've officially been back since Sunday afternoon, but as usual life picked right back up where we left it and things have been busy.  I have tons to post about but I think the most logical way to get back into the swing of things is chronologically!  So, without further adieu, on with the vacation post!

Beaver Lake, Arkansas.  That was our destination.  It had been a long time since we had a vacation.  The last time actually was about 6 years ago when we went with Amy's family to Colorado.  The boys have never, nope never, been on a vacation.  Sure we went to San Antonio for my 30th birthday but that was just an over-night trip so nothing too long.  This was a 10-hour car drive followed by a week-long stay at the lake followed by another 10-hour car drive!  Long story (and drive) short they did fantastic!  It is amazing the wonders a DVD player in the car can make!  The drive up was remarkably smooth and they did very well.  In addition to the DVD player snacks are a must!  That is a key to helping tame Jack, he loves to snack and his weakness are fruit snacks!

The vacation was spent mainly relaxing, which we needed a lot of (remember that no vacation in 6 years thing?).  Amy's entire family (sans Adam who is the BEST dog-sitter ever!  THANKS!) went on the vacation and it was an awesome time for us all!  Amy and I got to go hiking, one of our favorite things.  We were ecstatic to find that the boys seem to enjoy it as well.  They successfully completed a 1 1/2 mile hike with nary a complaint!  This only helped Amy and I enjoy the hike even more and it was truly a great family day.  It even resulted in one of the best family photos we have ever taken (see below) thanks to my awesome camera, a timer feature, and a perfectly placed rock!  We have already begun to daydream about future hikes and camping trips with the boys based upon this spectacular day!

Seeing as how we were staying at a lake house we of course spent tons of time in and on the lake.  There was the first day scare when there was a snake in the water with us all but we put aside the willies and continued to have fun.  Braeden is water-loving and will jump (figuratively only as he is not a fan of jumping into water) at any chance to swim.  Having to get out of the water produces the exact opposite (pouting) effect!  Another favorite activity of ours when at a lake is skiing and tubing.  It has been a long time (again think 6 years) since I have skied, but I gave it my best shot, 6 to be exact.  I came super close several times and you could stretch it to say that I got up once before wiping out.  I do love it and wish I had the opportunity to do it more often.  I (Amanda actually for me) got some great pictures of my skiing/attempts.  The tubing was a huge success with all of the cousins, well with the exception of Braeden.  He did his obligatory run on the tube but declined every offer after that, instead choosing to just relax and ride the boat.  Jack on the other hand (not at all surprising) loved the adventure of being pulled along on the tube behind the boat.  His favorite parts - the bumps!  He went several times and only loved it more each ride.  I (again Amanda) have some great pictures of the two of us laughing and riding together.  Sadly though I didn't have my camera on the boat for Braeden's ride, but who knows, maybe he'll venture out again next time (whenever that may be) and become a natural!

Campfires were, of course, the other beloved activity on vacation.  On the drive up we were nervous about burn bans because of the severe drought we have been having.  However, the drought has not reached Northwest Arkansas, quite the opposite in fact since many of their rivers and lakes are well above level.  This meant the nightly chance to gather wood, light a fire, relax by said fire, and of course make s'mores!  Yes, we make these often at home but they are just so much better when done over an open flame at night!  Braeden really enjoyed roasting his marshmallows.  Well, I loosely use the term roasting because his never had the slightest hint of color on them and looked to always be fresh from the package.  But this is true to Braeden's plain/vanilla culinary tastes.  Nonetheless he managed to inhale multiple s'mores each night.  Jack enjoyed making them but never finishes one full s'more, although you would never guess it by the sticky mess he makes of himself!

It really was an awesome (have I said that several times already?) vacation but Amy and I both will agree that it was a blessing/curse that we left 2 days earlier than everyone.  See a good friend of ours from college was getting married on Saturday (great wedding, thanks Tiffany & Justin!) so we drove back Friday.  My Mom & Dad watched the kids Friday and Saturday nights for us while Amy and I briefly relaxed at home for  one short night before heading to Giddings for the wedding.  Anywho, I digress.  Amy's family left Sunday morning but ran into a series of mishaps beginning with a dead car battery and ending in a 3-hour delay due to the wildfires here in Houston shutting the freeway down!  Their 10-hour car trip home ended up being 14 hours!  Amy and I followed it all day Sunday via text and phone calls, grateful that we were not there for this last portion of the vacation!       

On a side note, who knew Northwest Arkansas was so beautiful?  Well, we didn't and it is!  If you are ever in the area stop by!  Some notable places we enjoyed included Durant, Oklahoma: home to the World's Largest Peanut (who knew?),  Eureka Springs, Arkansas: tourist trap and home to the World's Largest Tuned Windchime (again, who knew?), and possibly our favorite excursion Devil's Den State Park in Arkansas: 1 word BEAUTIFUL!

Well, I think that about covers it in a nutshell.  It was an awesome, much-needed, and relaxing vacation.  We have already begun to make plans with Amy's family for next summer's trip to Colorado and the likelihood of a resurrecting their yearly family trip!  1,500 miles and 310 (down from 560 thanks to the weeding out of closed eyes, out of focus, and numerous multi-shot feature captured) pictures later we are back home fondly reminiscing our adventures in Arkansas.  Aside from the relaxing and photos we knew it was a successful trip when both Braeden and Jackson asked if we could go to Arkansas again!  Enjoy some of the pictures below (so hard to choose when there are so many)!

All is well, post-vacation, in Drosche Land.

 The aforementioned favorite family shot!

 Our favorite of Jack, it's his personality exactly!

 My boys on the boat!

 Hey look!  I'm (almost) skiing!

 Turns out Braeden loves fishing!  Who knew?

 I had to put a worm on his hook!  With.  My.  Hands.

 My beautiful wife!

 Jack and I tubing!

  He didn't like the water at first, but warmed up to it throughout the week!

Braeden loving the water!

Sunday Snapshot - Project

Well, vacation is over and we are all back home.  We had a great time, but that's another post (literally, I'll tell you later).  I have tons to talk about after missing a week of blogging, and boy did I miss it!  Now that we are back home it is time to enjoy summer the only way we know how to enjoy a break - by starting a project!  What adventure are we up to now you ask?  Good question, follow the photo clues below in this Sunday Snapshot and see if you can figure it out!  

 "Wood" you like to know what project we are starting?

I personally have never done it but I "saw" it done on television a time or two.  I love me some TLC & HGTV!

I hope I don't "screw" it up or anything.  If I do, Amy might "deck" me since this crazy idea was ALL MINE!

Give up?  Figured it out?  Stay tuned to find out!  :)