Posted on by John

Christine and I have really enjoyed the last two weekends at home. It’s been a big change from all of the traveling I did last year for work, and the last two months worth of traveling we did as a family during the holidays.

On the 7th, we took Jack and Wesley to Patterson Park, around the corner. It was a gorgeous clear but crisp cool day, and I was on a mission to take some photos. We did pretty good with the photos, and Jack and Wesley had a blast.

We let Wesley run loose without a leash, and he had a blast playing with the kids from the surrounding neighborhoods that were there with their parents:

We took this photo of Jack while he was climbing up one of the playscapes:

We think that photo is easily the best photo of Jack we’ve had since Marc took the black and white of him in the air almost a year ago.

We also got this photo of Jack swinging. I love the action in this shot:

See more photos of our day at Patterson Park here.

Then, just this past weekend, after playing with Jack and Patton inside (you have to admit Patton is a pretty kitty), I decided to rake the leaves off the front lawn finally. About half-way through putting the leaves into paper bags, Christine and Jack joined me, and Christine took over raking and bagging. So I took Jack, and ran inside to get the camera.

Jack and I had fun walking around the front yard, and in the little red wagon.

And we even got to see the day lillies that are coming up in our neighbors yard:

When the day was all said and done, I’d fertilized the front lawn, watered half of it, and Christine had finished raking 8 bags of leaves and putting them on the curb for pickup later this week:

See all the photos from Saturday the 14th, here.

If you can’t tell, I’m really enjoying this photography thing.

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Posted on by John

Jack started walking in December, right after we went to Houston to hang out at the annual Teaff Christmas Party at Debbie and Raymond’s. Christine and I are convinced that he saw all of the other kids walking around, and he decided: “Screw this crawling business, if they’re walking, I’m gonna walk to!” Because on Monday after returning to Austin, he started walking:

Sorry that it’s 8 minutes long, I just couldn’t edit it down any more… enjoy!

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Posted on by John

Got this as an email tonight, figured I’d post it here, so you all know where I’m from:

39. I’ll take Shakespeare for 1000, Alex.
38. Duct tape won’t fix that.
37. Lisa Marie was lucky to catch Michael.
36. Come to think of it, I’ll have a Heineken.
35. We don’t keep firearms in this house.
34. Has anybody seen the sideburns trimmer?
33. You can’t feed that to the dog.
32. I thought Graceland was tacky.
31. No kids in the back of the pickup, it’s just not safe.
30. Wrasslin’s fake.
29. Honey, did you mail that donation to Greenpeace ?
28. We’re vegetarians.
27. Do you think my gut is too big?
26. I’ll have grapefruit and grapes instead of biscuits and gravy.
25. Honey, we don’t need another dog.
24. Who’s Richard Petty?
23. Give me the small bag of pork rinds.
22. Too many deer heads detract from the decor.
21. Spittin is such a nasty habit.
20. I just couldn’t find a thing at Walmart today.
19. Trim the fat off that steak.
18. Cappuccino tastes better than espresso.
17. The tires on that truck are too big.
16. I’ll have the arugula and radicchio salad.
15. I’ve got it all on the C drive.
14. Unsweetened tea tastes better.
13. Would you like your salmon poached or broiled?
12. My fiance, Bobbie Jo, is registered at Tiffany’s.
11. I’ve got two cases of Zima for the Super Bowl.
10. Little Debbie snack cakes have too many fat grams.
09. Checkmate.
08. She’s too young to be wearing a bikini.
07. Does the salad bar have bean sprouts?
06. Hey, here’s an episode of “Hee Haw” that we haven’t seen.
05. I don’t have a favorite college team.
04. Be sure to bring my salad dressing on the side.
03. I believe you cooked those green beans too long.
02. Those shorts ought to be a little longer, Darla.
01. Nope, no more for me. I’m drivin tonight.

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Posted on by John

Christine came and grabbed me out of the office at 5:00 today, and we headed to Central Park here in Austin (it was 79°) and we had a blast. Here are three choice photos from the day:

A Window on Jack:

Don’t mess with me:

Running down the hill (about to face plant):

See more from the evening here.

Now that Jack is really walking on his own (there’s a movie coming soon, I just haven’t had time to edit it) we figured the park would be lots of fun. And boy, was it!

After playing at the park for an hour and a half or so, we ate dinner at the Central Market Cafe. I had Rustic wood-fired pizza. Christine and Jack had fish, veggies and mashed potatoes. I got to watch the 3rd quarter of the Notre Dame vs. Ohio State game while sitting on the patio with my family.

What a great afternoon!

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Posted on by John

Watch this video from Google Video:

redneck urfing

Totally reminds me of something my buddy Josh and I would have done back in highschool. And probably isn’t that different from some of the stuff Brad Patak did in highschool in Ennis to hear his buddies talk.

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On Christmas morning, we all woke up in Bellville, at Evan and Shadel’s house.

After breakfast we noticed that Santa had brought gifts to Bellville too, so… we started unwrapping them.

First up was a Tonka Truck:

What little boy doesn’t need a Tonka Truck?

Ella danced in her new shoes and shook her maracas:

After opening lots more presents inside, Jack and Ella headed out onto the back porch to play.

Nothing like a cheesy looking Jack to brighten your day.

They rode around in the little red wagon, and Ella helped Jack walk around the back yard, which turned into both of them rolling around in the leaves.

Then we went over to Grandma’s house to see the Christmas decorations and pick up Debbie, Josette and Peggy who’d all come with Raymond to visit.

We finished off the day with T-bones the size of Montana, which Ella helped Jack eat, and a few more photos.

Evan and Shadel headed to Katy to see her family, and Christine and I stayed in Bellville and watched a movie before driving home Monday morning.

I got the flu somewhere along the way, and my gout started acting up Monday morning, so I couldn’t walk, and had a hell of a sore throat.

But it was a very Merry Christmas this year!

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Posted on by John

Last weekend, we drove down to Houston for the annual Teaff family Christmas Eve, at Debbie and Raymond’s house.

It was a blast. We got to see lots of family, though there were a few family members that didn’t make it this year because they were sick (we missed them). Greg stood in for Uncle Roland and said the prayer before dinner.

The party was supposed to start at 4:00, so around 3:00 people started showing up. Peggy and Payton and I played basketball with Greg and Patrick, and Jack got to try and dunk the ball…

I took some really cute photos of the babies at this year’s Christmas party out on the swing in the backyard:

We ate dinner starting around 4:15, and man was it good. We had turkey, and stuffing, and dressing, and mashed sweet potatos, and gravy, and squash, and green beans, and rice casserole, and … and … and lots of other stuff. My plate was full when I started, and I ate most of what I put on it… but man was I stuffed when dinner was done! Great food again!

Santa showed up shortly after dinner, and some of the kids were a little freaked out about him showing up, some weren’t.

We all took our turns on Santa’s lap:

Jordan, Matthew, Todd, Paige, Peggy, Payton, Raymond, Jack went from screaming to ok when Santa gave him a gift, Patrick, Christine, Jack and Ella, John, Ella, Josette and Matthew, Shelley, The Kay family, Matted Dog the Reindeer, John, Jack and Christine.

And I snapped this cute photo of Ella looking up in awe at Santa (little did she know).

After Santa left, we all opened presents!

Christmas in Houston is always fun… lots of fun to see family that we just don’t get to see often enough.

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I sent a photo of Jack in to the Austin American-Statesman, as a submission for their “Holiday Photos” extravaganza, and they accepted it:


Click for larger image

Cute eh?

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A long time ago, my mom gave Chrsitine and I a bunch of old photos from my family. Old Teaff and Engler photos.

As a follow up to the Daron photos I scanned in a couple of weeks ago, I figured I should scan these old photos in, so we have them in the future, and, so you all can see them. I also cleaned up most of these photos… some of them had tears in the prints, or stains on them.

There are two photos of my Dad, John Fischer Engler, Jr. from when he was a kid: here and here.

There’s an old photo of Jessica Ann Teaff as a baby.

Mary Jane Cato Teaff was mom’s mother, and here’s a photo of her as a child.

James Joseph Teaff was my mom’s father, and here’s a photo of him as a child.

Here’s a photo of my mom, my aunt Josette Cato Teaff and two uncles, James Joseph (Jimmy) and Roland Louis Teaff:


Click for larger image

And this is where it gets cool folks.

This old photo is: (I’m not sure who is who)


Click for larger image

My Great Uncle Morgan Teaff, Great Uncle David Ulerick Teaff, my Great Great Grandfather David Solmon Teaff, my Great Uncle Kirby George Teaff, my Great Uncle Sphonie Elmore Teaff, my Great Great Grandmother Clair Robertson Teaff, my Great Uncle Roland Paul Teaff, and my Great Grandfather Joe Teaff.

And lastly, we’re gonna take you way back here folks. These are some of those folks above, but a lot younger: (again, not sure what order these folks are in)


Click for larger image

Jim Teaff, Great Great Grandmother Claire Teaff, David Teaff, Daisy Teaff, Roland Teaff, Kirby Teaff, Great Grandfather Joe Teaff, and Great Uncle Sphonie Teaff. Notice none of them except Great Grandfather Joe are wearing shoes, but their clothes are nice. Tough days back then.

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Posted on by John

Christine, Jack and I went to Dallas on Saturday last weekend. Since then, we’ve taken lots of fun photos:

Steven’s Graduation Ceremony from ITT (he graduated with Top Honors, which means he had a GPA above 3.8 out of 4… and he totally downplayed it. We’re all very proud of him, and are really glad we made the trip up for his ceremony). [Proud parents and student]

Then, last night, before heading back home to Austin, we had a nice big family dinner at Granddad and Grandmother’s house. Jenny, Steven and Michael were all there, and dinner was fun. After dinner, we took a family photo that turned out really good I think.

Of course we also took multiple photos of Jack playing, and laughing, and helping Granddad cook, and playing with the Christmas tree in Dallas.

Then tonight, Jack was helping in the kitchen. At first, all he did was help unload the dishwasher (never mind that the dishes were actually still dirty). He also helped the dog eat (though all I could get was a photo of him holding the dog food… the dog ran off before I got the camera out). He also ate one piece of dog food… yuck! He didn’t like it too much.

And we finished up the evening with some photos of the bath. He just loves it when we blow bubbles for him in the bath tub.

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On Sunday night, Christine and I visited Santa’s Village with Jack and his Grandmother.

Santa’s Village is remarkably close to their home in Richardson, not at the north pole, in case you’re wondering. That, or maybe the north pole is in Richardson, Texas, not in the Arctic like we’ve all though prior to finding it in Richardson…

Either way, it happens to be on the grounds of the Richardson City Hall, and it’s remarkably warm this time of year (compared to the Arctic that is).

Santa’s Village was really cute. It had lots of little shops and stores, just like you’d expect to find in Santa’s Village. There was a Pet Shop, a TV Station: KELF-TV, and a police station.. There was a house for Clifford the dog, a fire department, and lots of other little buildings. All of the buildings had “little people” sized doors, which were the perfect height for elves, or kids. The city fountain was very pretty, and so were all of the lights in the trees, which Jack loved pointing at. Jack also really enjoyed playing with the lighted reindeer that were in the yard.

We all had lots of smiles and lots of walking around.

Towards the end of the evening, we had lots of fun running up and down a hill that was right by the fire department in the village.

Around 6:30 pm, it was time to go home.

Average Rating: 4.4 out of 5 based on 169 user reviews.

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Posted on by John

Jack got his first haircut today.

And he was great.

We got his haircut at this little children’s only haircut place: Hair’s Lair, by Margo, the owner.

Jack was much better than poor Liam, never cried out, or squirmed one bit. And he looked much more sure of himself and what was going on (actually he was ignoring the hairdresser) than little Jaiden. And the funny thing is that his hair wasn’t as crazy as Riley’s was before her first haircut.

More photos from the first haircut session here.

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Posted on by John

When I was growing up in Bellville, we lived in “a 100 year old house.” (It was built in 1910, so it wasn’t quite 100 years old, but it will be in 4 more years). That house had virtually no insulation, and no central air or heat.

We had gas heaters throughout the house, and a wood-burning stove in the dining room.

When it got really cold one winter, I remember my mom, my brother and I sleeping on the floor in the dining room with the wood-burning stove going full blast all night… and it was still cold in the house, but the stove kept the chill off, and my mom got up dutifully to keep it stocked all night.

We also kept the gas heater that was mounted in the wall running almost constantly that winter (and most winters for that matter). There’s nothing worse than stepping out of the bath or the shower onto a frigid floor in frigid air, freezing your frigid %@#&! parts off!

I remember getting out of the bath and then running over to the wall heater one time, and schooching up to the gas heater as close as I could get… and since I was soaking wet, I was cold… and, well…

I got a little to close, and burned my behind.

I think I was about 6 or 7 when that happened.

I can safely tell you that I haven’t burned my hiney on a gas heater since that time I did when I was young.

It’s with fondness that I remember those gas heaters, as they were our only source of warmth in that house, and we stuck to them like glue when it was cold. Sometimes we’d use them to warm up the insides of our jackets right before we put them on as we were heading outside to play.

There’s nothing like the heat that comes off a gas heater.

So, tonight, while Jack was taking a bath… I started up the gas heater in our bathroom, hoping that someday, Jack will have the same fond memories I do of gas heaters.


Our gas heater

Man I’m glad we bought an old house.

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Posted on by John

I’m reminded of the old Dinah Shore and Johnny Mercer tune tonight:

Yes, “Baby, It’s Cold Outside“.

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Christine’s cousin, David, or as I call him “Sergeant Major David” sent home this email from Iraq:

From: “Redmon, David CSM, 1BSTB 10MTN DIV, BN CSM”
To: The Family
Date: December 7, 2005 2:57:57 AM CST
Subject: A Couple of Pictures

All,

Martha sent me a small digital camera last month. I took a couple of
pictures before a mission yesterday to let everyone know that we have
plenty of gear. If I left someone off the list above, please forward to
them.

The one photo is off the sign in front of the Battalion Headquarters on
Camp Liberty (Baghdad). The other two reflect what we wear for every
mission outside of the Forward Operating Base. It does not matter
whether it is 45 degrees or 135 degrees. Without adding the ruck sack,
the gear shown adds only about 50 pounds.

I’ll send a few pictures from time to time.

David


Some Heavy Shit! – click to see a larger version

If you’d like to email David your support, thoughts and well wishes, let me know, and I’ll send you his email address.

Also, Bob Beurlein is over there this Christmas too. I have his email address and real address, if you’d like to send him a care package.

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