life as an ostovic

Well, I have been in Florida for almost 6 weeks now and here is what I have to report . . .

1. I have yet to see an alligator.  Are they just a myth?
2. I have seen many hurricanes. They are definitely not a myth.
3. SEC fans are the craziest (or some might say dedicated) fans I have ever met.
4. It is always humid.
5. I never knew there could be so many lizards.
6. palm trees are. . . . nice
7. I love being 5 minutes from the nearest Chick-Fil-A!!!
8. Waffle Houses are still awesome!!  (But people down here hate them)
9. Dirt roads are really sand roads.
10. People drive better here than in Michigan.
11. Floridians have no concept of what cold weather is really like.  ; )
12. What the heck are boiled peanuts!  Torture, that is what they are!
13. The sweet tea flows like honey and I love it.
14. Most Floridians order unsweet tea.  huh?
15. Grits are awesome
16. Still have not seen an alligator
17. Rain and sun really do go hand in hand down here.
18. Sunsets are still awesome!!
19. You can always find amazing people no matter where you go.
20. I think I am going to love the winters!

Till next time,

Derrak

Recently I started some contract work for a really awesome video production company called Epic Motion, owned by a my friend Ryan Koral. 

He has become a great friend and teacher of video editing and all the skills that come with it. 

Epic Motion does many different kinds of event driven projects, which includes a lot of weddings. Now, these are some the. . . no they are the best wedding videos I have ever seen.  Absolutely amazingly done, very creative and professional.

Anyway, I recently edited a video for him that he calls a “Love Story”.  This is a video of the couple that tells their story, and is usually played at the wedding or reception.  the video I worked on was for a couple that had one of the most powerful stories I have ever heard.  You have to take a moment out of your day and check it out. You can watch the video by clicking right here. Then come back and tell me what you think.

While your there, check out some of the other stuff at Epic Motion.

Derrak

I made a post on my blog circuschurch about a church in Simi Valley, CA that is taking seriously what the bible has to say about what it really means to be a Jesus follower. This has drastically effected their understanding of what a building campaign should be and how they should be as a church.  Interesting stuff. YOu can check the post out by clicking here.

Derrak

This beautiful small mouth bass was my first catch of 2008 after only about 8 casts! It was a great way to start the season off.  My good friend Bruce James took me out in his boat on Lake St. Claire this past Saturday morning.  We fished for around 3 hours and caught 15.  Not a bad outing if I say so. 

Bruce loves to mess around with this little video camera he got, and made a little video commemorating the occasion.  Check it out by clicking here.

Derrak

melanie and evan just before we left the hospital.

derrak and jack enjoying supper in the park this summer.

jackson hanging our at our friend jana’s house in october.

evan growing so big so fast!

click on an image above to see a larger version

Evan Michael Ostovic
born July 23, 2007 @ 4:21am
8 pounds 6 ounces
21 inches long

(Click on any of the pictures below to see a larger version.)

After many attempts to get the labor process going (including a visit with the midwife Sunday afternoon) the only results were painful contractions 5 minutes apart that were not dilating Melanie at all. She had been steady at 1.5 cm the past three days.

Late Sunday night (or rather very early Monday morning) the contractions had become so intense that we called the midwife who suggested that we head to the hospital for more monitoring. As we expected labor was still not progressing.

It was 2am and with a c-section already schedule for 8am, we had two options. 1. take some pain meds a sleeping pill and wait, or 2. have the c-section right then. The only advantage to waiting was the potential for rest. However Melanie was quite certain that she would be getting none no matter what. So we went ahead and had the c-section then. Melanie went into surgery around 4am and Evan was born at 4:21am.

The surgery went like clockwork and now we are doing very well recovering in the maternity unit.

Some observations:

1. The initial poop still looks like you could tar the parking lot with it!
2. He is very sweet and does not cry much at all.
3. He is very cute, as you can see.
4. Many people initially think that he looks like his big brother. What do you think?
5. When you text message 30 or so people, you get a lot of text messages back. (which is good)
6. We are blessed to have so many great friends and family.
7. Wireless Internet in our hospital room is Awesome!!!!
8. When you have not slept much it is easy to switch numbers. This is why the 30 or so people you sent text messages to think that he weighs 6 pounds 8 ounces instead of 8 pounds 6 ounces.

Well that is it for now. I will keep posting things in the coming days. Tomorrow looks to be exciting because Jackson is going to meet Evan for the first time!!!! Give us a call or drop me an e-mail if you would like to visit, we would love throw Evan in your arms and share him with you.

Derrak

It has been a long time coming but I finally have a new guitar!!! What is even better is that I had this custom made by Mike Franks a guitar maker here in Michigan. He has only been making guitars for three years, but has an amazing talent! His guitars have gotten rave reviews and people cannot believe he has only made 30 or so guitars. I am very lucky to have meet him and had this opportunity to have him build this guitar. It was so much fun going over to his shop and picking out every aspect of the guitar from the wood to the pickup. You can find out more about Michael Franks Guitars by going to his website. Click here to do that.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to my guitar fund over the past two years. The wait has been well worth it.

You can see more pictures by clicking here.