The Boys In Their Natural Habitats

I kid of course, but I was cleaning pics off of the camera in preparation for todays easter egg coloring activities and ran across these...

Well, truly, the one of Caleb is from this morning.  I had awoken at 4:30 and, unlike days when I have to go to work, I couldn't get back to sleep.

So I figured that I would get up, clean the kitchen a bit, do some accounting documentation for my work and otherwise enjoy a quiet morning.

Caleb got up about 25 minutes after I got up.  I asked him, "what are you doing up!?".  He replied, "I be up with you! Maybe we snuggle?".

Can't find fault in that!!

So anyway, I was finishing my kitchen stuffs and he was bored so he grabbed my phone and started playing a race game on it. His choice of seat?

In the coldest corner of the house. In the messiest room of the house...  Go figure.  A couch, love seat, and two recliners in the living room and that's the spot he picks.

The title of the post is a bit misleading, because since the football season has ended, Robby has been outside playing basketball almost every day.  He also got another smaller sized football since his last one blew up and he's been running routes while Dear ol' Dad is rehabbing a sprained foot/ankle.  Oh sure, I'd still be the QB even if I was 100% healthy as running doesn't really agree with me.

And last, I leave you with a snippet of an email my neighbor sent me yesterday.  They watch the boys in the morning on the nights when Lesley works 3rd shift and I go in early.  2 - 4 times a week.

She owns a later model convertable Trans Am that she's looking to maybe sell.  The boys get a kick out of being delivered to school in that car, as you might imagine.

So she asked them if she should sell the car and the following short conversation was had:

Rob- ‘No, you can’t do that!’ 
Caleb- ‘Ya! Do it!’ 
Rob- ‘Hey you shush’ 
Caleb- ‘you shush’ 
Rob- ‘you shush your face’ 
Caleb, nonchalant, head buried in his toast – ‘You shush your butt’… 
Rob about fell over in his chair… 


Robby's in trouble when that boy begins to start feeling his Cheerios!


Happy Easter weekend to ALL!!!

Vacation Post 15 - V & K's Randomness

So back we go to the vacation post. I'm almost done, which is a good thing because we're only about 3 months out from going on this summer's vacation! Wooo-hooo!!!

This post takes us back to where we lived for a few days over the Fourth Of July last summer; my brothers yard of their cabin in Spicer, MN.

We set up our tent and camped in the yard.  Molly and the boys slept in the bunks in the ice fishing house while my sister, her husband and three kids slept inside the cabin.  My mom and other sister slept at the other house some seven miles away.

This is my nephew Mike.  He looks thrilled that we're their and burning up his time.  Also note one of the last photos taken of Rosey!  She looks huge to me know after having Juno for two months...

My niece, Matti, sister of Mike above, and also looking thrilled  with the photographer.

My Mom, who looks a little grumpy as well...  Hmmm...  seems like a pattern.

Another niece, Leah, who oddly enough, looks absolutely delighted to be there!  Perhaps I should have showered?

Ah ha!!  Smiles!  This is another niece, Zoe, and my fabulous bride as she present little Zoe with a Hello Kitty.

Caleb RongBo with his Civic Crown made from a lovely willow switch.

And Grandma Schmitz with hers...

Me, looking a little bit more than "somewhat" portly with my crown.

And one of my favorite pictures!

That is my brother, Uncle Vince, and Calebber McCheese showing his uncle just how many cherry tomatoes he can eat in one sitting!

Another fantastic pic where I believe that pure joy was captured.

And last, but certainly not least, the elusive and inimitable Aunt Molly who appears to have actually posed for a pic.  However the more I look at it, the more it looks like she got caught red handed doing something nefarious!

The Quilt Has Been Built

Grandma Marlene requested any old, spent bluejeans that our family had.  The idea she had in mind was a quilt for Mr. Robert James Schmitz for his birthday.

Below is the fruit of her labors.

Robby loves it!  It's not only on his bed every night, but usually when I go to the basement, it's on the couch with him as well if he's been playing on the playstation.

She's does fine work if I don't say so myself!

Naptime

Raking rock out of the grass after winter is a job that no man should ever need to tackle...  I have been and I'm tired...

The dog is tired from being tied out and barking at me...

So waddaya do?   You nap!

Spring Break, 2015

Hard to believe it's Spring Break time again... doesn't help when our silly schools let out on noon Thursday, with the Friday before the full week off. A few years from now, it'll be a two week break and people will be complaining about how early the kids start and how late they finish. 

 It's super hard to figure out why...

Anyway, aunt Molly took our varmints up to G'ma & G'pas house in Crystal Lake.  From what I can tell from photos and text messages and stories and the whatnot, they had a pretty full 3 days of fun and adventures.   Not too mention the good food they've been talking about!

The critters eating some "green" St. Patty's day cookies.

Robby, eating one of Grandpa's "famous" egg sammiches, while Calebber is doing some homework.

A bowling tournament where Calebber just got three strikes in a row.

And later on, down at one of the parks down by the lake.

They look sweet, don't they?    Wish you could hear them currently as they're "brushing their teeth".

Why We Laugh, March 2015 edition

A couple of anecdotes for your enjoyment...

1.) Grandpa Jim and Daddy are downstairs playing pool and enjoying a few beers as we would normally do. Caleb is perched high atop an adjacent bar stool watching all the goings on.  He eventually turns to me and says, "Daddy, how many ages I have to be before I drink beer?".

Whoa, NELLY!  Funny as crap  but a little scary too.


2.)  The boys were outside playing some front yard football with the buddies Max and Jack tonight when their parents showed up to take them home.  Mom met them outside and told the boys that they should changed their clothes and get ready to head back up to school for the parent/teacher conference related book fair.  Robby petitioned that they shouldn't have to change their clothes just because they're wet and dirty, "because they're little boys and people will find that adorable!".  

Caleb, and I'm paraphrasing, said, "Adorable?  It hideous and I go change my clothes!"

And after he changed, he came out in his new duds looking like this!   Robby was pulling the garbage down to the road and went filthy...  I can appreciate both positions!

Happy Birthday, ROBBY!!

Holy moly, the lad turns 10 years old today!!  Seems like yesterday when everything went awry at the hospital and I thought the worst was about to happen.

10 years on and he has developed into a very caring, loving boy with a big heart. He's got a big mouth sometimes as well, but more often than not, he's polite and pretty considerate.

He's also got a nasty cough that has knocked him on his behind...  so much for a fun birthday.

This is Robby opening the first of his presents.  This was a pack of football cards.

The second was a Jamal Charles from the Kansas City Cheifs t-shirt.  It's a mens small and fits him nearly perfectly!!  Yikes!

"Listening" to the birthday card that Caleb picked out for him.  It has a yappy sounding little puppy barking the Happy Birthday tune, which makes it sound like another very yappy little puppy I know...

This was a Minecraft book and he also got a dvd of the Big Hero 6 movie.

This is the envelope for his Birthday card that Caleb wrote on.  It says, "I love you because you are the best".  Robby can't throw it away! 

And about an hour later, here's how the boy was celebrating.

Happy birthday to our little man!!   You are loved!