Oh so worthy

Vacation was a success! We were able to catch up with many friends...although short, GREAT to see everyone. I don't even know where to start. I asked a few packing trivia questions in the last post, I would like to report the final tally. Packed clothing...bad. I over-estimated- the amount and the weather....turns out after being away from the intense humidity of Kansas City and Omaha...the nighties I brought were all too hot, so didn't even need em. Plus, laundry at mom's helped out a lot. There were 4 shirts peed thru during the naps, 3 pants, and one outfit bombed out at dad's. That was funny- he was holding G up by one leg cause Garrett was laughing and trying to spin all over the place while dad was trying to get his shirt off without smearing poop all over his head. Hahahaaa. wish I got a video of it. Diapers= about 65 would be my guess. i brought too many. Formula= I totally ran out on Sunday. Horrible. Good thing Nebraska has STORES, unlike some Mich people say to give us a hard time. =) Gas budget for May= blew past it not knowing it would be a whoppin $4.20 by the end of the month here. Sheeeesh. Pictures of the weekend= 550!!! Three cameras, three days, three million photo opportunities. So when we got home I had to go thru and delete like 250 of em cause some were blurry and such....SO...there are many to choose to put up here to recap the weekend. I'll do my best.

First of all, the car ride to and from was AWESOME. Thanks to these incredible inventions....bottles with a straw!! Worked like a charm! Makes a GREAT gift for people who like to travel or use the stroller or whatever...LOVE IT. And the boys looked so cute holdin on to the little straw part. hahaha


A little cards, little grillin out, little chillin on the couch with some Guitar Hero, all the usual events of the semi-annual hang out in KC...just decided to throw everyone for a loop and bring some babies along this time. =)




And then some family fun at mom's sweet new apartment. Of course you have to get the 4 generation pic in there. haha. We had some fun eating 2 huge amazing meals, watchin the little dudes roll around on the ground, the jumpster, feeding them rice cereal, you know...all that fun stuff.


And a short but sweet visit to see Carissa and Scott's baby girl...adorable. Didn't think it was possible, but she's even cuter in person. Erin, the boys and I had a fun time hanging out at the Martin's with the Martins, Eidams, Ritters, Eigstis, and Bobby. =)


And a day out in the BEAUTIFUL weather on Monday with the fam, and grandpa!! Another 4 generation pic...awwww. And look at the HUGE family. Everyone minus Levi. Seriously. Perfect timing to go to Africa on a mission trip, I mean really. So 6 of the kids, dad and beth, grandpa, two twinnies, two husbands, and two girlfriends. Thought maybe the deck was gonna break. WOW! Love it!


Even showing all these pics doesn't even scratch the surface of all the pics and memories of the weekend. It was so much fun for me to be able to introduce the boys to my grandparents and to let them get some Nebraska lovin from all the family and friends that love us from far away. I decided that there was waaaaay too much to write about in one post, so I will have to do some followups and hit on a few highlights in depth! Thanks to everyone for making our weekend so special!

To Be Continued!!

3 hours and counting...

I haven't had time to do anything. (see previous post) Anything is a pretty strong word...let me rephrase: I have had NO extra time. =) Today we leave for KANSAS CITY followed by a few days in NEBRASKA!!!! Woooo hoooooo!!! I pretty much have been doing laundry and planning for a few days now, not a spare moment wasted. Maybe. haha. But really, our first trip back since last September, Dad and Beth haven't seen the boys since they were born (!!), Grandpa Schweitz hasn't EVER met them. Wow that's crazy. My Mom hasn't been here since January, and her mom, Grandma Garton hasn't ever met them either!!! I-YI-YI. (how do you spell that??) I just hope the boys can keep everyone straight, you know.

Here's the skinny...today leave in 3 hours when Ry's done with work. Arrive in KC (Kansas City) pretty much really late. Hope the boys survive the 9 hours. hope I survive the 9 hours. Stay over night there tonight and tomorrow night...Erin and Josh come meet us tomorrow morning...Sunday Erin and I leave early with the boys to stay at mom's for the day...possibly meet little Eva Martin in Elkhorn Sunday night (YESSSS!!!) Stay overnight in Elkhorn Sunday night, hang out ALL day Monday visiting family and friends and celebrating dad's 54th bday Sunday. Josh and Ryan come up Monday morning from KC (Kansas City) to meet us for the day. stay over Monday night, drive back to Mich on Tuesday. WOW. Hope I don't forget anything.

Needless to say, packing for such a trip has been a trip. haha. How many outfits do you bring for two infants, 4 days, 4 nights? How many diaps? How much food for them? (BTW, we started Rice cereal a few days ago...WOW- that's hilarious. Pretty much oozes right back out of their mouths...don't think they like the spoon- even though it's really cute) At any rate, I only have 3 hours to pack the car by myself- since Ry's at work...and the boys are starting to wake up as we speak. Crap. Only time will tell if I get it all done....

WOOO HOOOO VACATION!!!!!

Where do the days go...

I feel rushed. Every day. Why is that? I wake up, feed the boy...then I start thinking of all the things I need to get done before Ry gets home - 9 hours away - and I think thru the next few nights and upcoming weekend and see what I need to plan and get done before then. Talk about being wiped by the end of the day....and I know ALOT about wiping. haha. Ryan's exhausted by the end of the day, and then he gets to come home and help me! =) It's been a LONG time since we've had nothing to do after he gets home from work. (I like our evening activities with friends...) Pretty sure there's nothing we could cut out, so I guess we'll just have to morph further into non-sleeping yet functional individuals.

In recent events, Brandi Roeber was here visiting from NE. One of Ryan's teeth buddy graduates of '07, currently in the middle of her Pedo Residency...with one year remaining. We had a BLAST. SO today, I'm feeling the loss of her assistance. WOW, with her here, I showered before 10:30 every day, was out and about, laundry done, kitchen clean, cookies made, friends visited, beach visited, hung out on the bluff in the sun, babies were clean...the list goes on and on. And today, boys are crabby and won't take a nap for more than 45 minutes. Sheeeesh. Brandi come back!!! Hahaha....and again, with our slow camera, most of the pics were with hers, so here's just a few.



THE JUMPSTER!!! This is pretty much hilarious. They LOVE it...I also love it if I need to get ready. =)


An action shot of the boys' dedication on Mother's Day.

And one of Ryan and Heather's son, Hunter, and their dog, Buddy. Hunt sleeps with Buddy every night, Heather checked on him and found them sleeping like this, took a pic cause it's SO DANG CUTE and then made Buddy get off of him so he didn't suffocate. haha.

And now I'm off to run errands. Only have an hour. Time me.

woooohoooo Bonfire time!

I haven't written much since Heather and Richard left last weekend...we had a ton of fun. Time went really fast...we got some good card playin in, walks on the beach, baby holdin, dining out, time at the office, and the Thomas waffle! Turns out, we took most of our pics with their camera because it was sweet. Dang it!

Richard was going out of his comfort zone with this shot...he wanted to make sure we got the drool running down his arm in the photo. Way to go man, you look so natural! =)

and we were dog sitting for our friends, Josh and Emily, for the weekend. We used them for their great table for cards, the 90s music channel on the tv, and their fun fluffy pup that likes to chew up the directions sheet they left for us. good news, Tackle lived thru it! (Ryan and I confirmed once again we should NOT get a dog for a long time. Two boys that poop are enough for right now)

boys had a pretty good time. =)


Thanks Clabaughs for a GREAT weekend! See ya in two months on the beaches of HAWAII!!!


Moments ago, I went out in search for some good dry wood to burn up tonight on the beach! Turns out I'm quite the gatherer. Heather and Ryan Schoonveld are comin over to hang out, I think it's the perfect evening activity after we grill some serious beef. Lesson learned from last summer's bonfire with Carissa and Scott...DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT bury your feet into the sand which invites thousands of little critters to bite the crap out of you and leave your feet looking diseased. I'll see if I can get some pics to turn out! mmmmm smores...

A weekly prize.

Happy Mother's Day to me! =) I did have many happy day wishes from friends and family...thank you for making me feel special!!

Also, if today wasn't already special enough, we pegged it in our brains to be remembered forever. Ryan and I had the privilege of dedicating our boys at church...Grandma and Grandpa Thomas came to photograph the event...it was fabulous. Even more special, Trish Smith (Dr. Neal's wife) is the children and family pastor at our church...she is someone that I respect a LOT and has taken so much time out of her busy schedule to invest in me and our family...she did the service today and it was awesome! Ryan and I pray we can raise our kids so they love and serve Jesus and would like to invite you all to be part of that process with us! If so, say 'we will.'

"WE WILL."

Thanks!! What a great day!

The more the merrier!

So, time for a quick post...yesterday the boys and I took a trip to Chicago to pick up our good friends Heather and Richard Clabaugh. They will be our guests until this Sunday...there is much to do and see, as this is their first experience in Southwest Michigan. Woah. I'll just say they're havin the time of their life. =)

Richard will be starting his senior year of dental school...he's been hanging out with Ryan, went to 'take-you-teeth-buddy-to-work-day' and had a great time hanging out with the staff and watching everything in action. Then we went out to eat with Dr. Neal and his wife, continuing their 24+ hour discussion about teeth. Recently, Heather and I saw this happening.


*SIGH*

Another fast weekend.

WELL, Heather and Amber have been safely deposited back into the good ol' Nebraska after a fabulous weekend here in Mich. I can't say how awesome it was to see them again and to hold them in my arms. =) Some of the highlights include some outlet mall shopping, meet the twins, Southbend shopping, twins come along, Hong Kong Kitchen, chick flick, the Thomas Waffle, a day of haircutting, some of Ry's amazing grill magic, a Larry Kohler movie, and the horrible drive back to Chicago to end our time together. We photographed a few of the main attractions, Heather might post a bit about it too, but now that the boys are down for the night I have a free moment to fill in my loyal readers.

the girls with the boys...


shopping for Bama and Scipp = a success
shopping for me...not so much.

mmmm....chocolate chip cookie bars...I could eat the whole pan

what a hunk. he's irresistible

awwww. Look at G's head. hilarious.

AND I got the best haircut I've had in a LONG time...years. It's awesome. I needed a fixer for sure! That girl can CUT!! I've said it before and I'll say it again. Anyone needing a good trimy, you know who to call! Thanks Bama!!


There were so many fun moments crammed into our four days...time goes so fast. I can't even scratch the surface of the funness. It was great to have two of my fav's here to hang out and check up on me and love my boys. My soul is revived. Heather and Amber you will always have a place to stay in our home. Like the aero bed.


On another note, my sis, Erin, had her heart catheter (what?! how do you spell that? I hope you all know what I'm talkin about cause I don't know the details) and it went well!! Praise God! They go up thru a vein in her leg with a camera to check out her heart and make note of what's happenin so they know how to plan for her upcoming surgery. She's recovering under the wing of her hubby and will be ready for the real world on Wednesday. If you think of it send a little note her way, I'm sure she'd appreciate it!!

Hope you've all had a great start to your week!