A Schneider Family Christmas...

The Schneider trio of Scott, Betsy, and Cassie (oh and Gus too) made it safely to Indiana for Christmas.  It was different for everyone this year because we did not look out the window to see a lake, but it was great that they were willing to forgo the lakeside Christmas to allow us to stay home, for we (mostly my pregnant-ooh-the-road-trip-summer-memories-are-still-a-little-too-vivid self) had already met our traveling quota for the year. :-)  haha

The fun began with a chili dinner.  The Summers and the Armbrusters came by to relive the 2010 Lake Buchanan shenanigans.

Rylee was really impressed with my mirror tricks.  Russell captured quite a picture here.

Armbrusters minus the baby (because I stole her).

Three generations of fun!

The Schneider gals.

 We hit up the Christmas Eve service at Emmanuel and then stopped at Monical's for some Christmas Eve pizza.  In between the two hot spots, we had to stop by the Bush household to borrow a pan for our Christmas dinner the next night.  haha  We are so with it.  While picking up the pan, we convinced Carson to pose for a picture.

Yes, we stole another child for a Christmas photo.  It's a good thing we are having our own pretty soon...this is getting a little awkward.

 

Christmas morning...really the only picture I have of Scott and Gus.  I need to get better at this picture taking thing.  I should take some lessons from my sisters and my mom. :-)

Addie did well this Christmas.  This is Russ modeling the cute booties that the Camps got for her.

We had a great time with the Schneider clan, and we will see them soon when Addie decides to make her appearance.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Gantz Family Christmas...

Carson was excited about our present even though he didn't have a clue what was inside.

Russ and Ali playing the infamous Snowman game that we call Snowman Bingo for some reason.

Oh Russell...you are a talented artist.  Notice the triple chins that he added for effect after he realized the snowman was only allowed to have two parts instead of three.  Cute little cowboy hat though. :-)

Yah, I totally won an 18 ounce beer during the actual bingo game.  I believe this beer was used in Russ' chili a few days later.

And there's Moose...what a stud.

Apparently those are all of the pictures that I took at the Gantz family Christmas.  Woops!  Good times were had by all, I am sure of that.

Crossroads Classic

 Russell and I were able to see both of our alma maters in action at Conseco Fieldhouse, and they were actually playing each other.  Things were going well for the Boilers for 35 minutes, but then the last five minutes of the game happened.  The Bulldogs ended up winning, which is great for the Butler alum in me, but not so great for my Boilermaker basketball obsession and obviously not for Russell either.

Russell was a good sport about it.  He even laughed when Carson greeted us at the Gantz family Christmas by saying, "Oh my goodness!  Can you believe it?  We thought Purdue was going to win, but then Butler came back and beat them."  Ahh...the innocence of a soon to be five year old.  :-)

Anyway...I captured a few pictures (this was three days before we received our new camera, so the quality is substandard).

Starting for the Boilermakers...from Valparaiso, IN...Robbie Hummel...

 Game time...huh.

 I still have yet to master the let-me-hold-the-camera-and-take-a-picture-of-us technique.

Go Dawgs and Go Boilers! 

It's Almost Christmas Time...

Christmas card 2011 preview picture

We should take an updated picture...Russ with beard...Annie with belly.

It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas...

We have been decking the halls here on ole Echo Bend as we prepare for a Christmas at home this year.  Russ' parents and Cassie will be joining us for a good ole fashioned Greenwood Christmas.

Last year we found what we thought was a big tree.  This year, however, we really found a big tree...12 feet to be exact (yes, we measured it).  As you can imagine we quoted Christmas Vacation over and over as we loaded, unloaded, and set up the tree.  Good times.

Hello tree...

Russell sizing up the tree...

Did I mention this was a big tree?

Decorated and ready to go...

And you thought you had seen it all...

Spirit day at CPMS always brings out the inner cheerleader in us all...right?  Well maybe that can only be said of the English teachers. :-)  We wore the "retro" uniforms for the entertainment of many of our students.  (just so you know...the "retro" uniforms are from when I was in high school...I am apparently retro now)  We had a great time all day making jokes...especially about me being the pregnant cheerleader.

Save the Drama for your Mama....

After all of the "drama" we encountered during the first months of my pregnancy, we joked about how we were probably having a girl.  

Well it's official...we are adding another GIRL to the Schneider/Gantz family.  The ultrasound pictures are pretty funny because she is definitely doing a little spread eagle action to which Russ responded, "We will need to talk to her about that one."

These days I am feeling good, eating multiple meals a day, and heading to bed earlier than ever...and I love it!  Russ just laughs when I decide it's time for another meal even though I might have just eaten a few hours before. :-)  I keep reminding myself that this is what a pregnancy should be like!

It's been great to be back at school; however, I didn't realize that I would have to explain (or try to avoid explaining) the whole pregnancy process.  My students are a tad confused as to why I am not toting around a ninth month belly yet.  They simply do not understand that this whole thing takes nine (err...ten) months, and that you don't have the big belly the whole time.  Oh the children...I told them to just wait...I will be Big Belly Nelly before they know it.  

We just had Fall Break last week, and we were able to hang out with some good friends of the Boilermaker variety, play in a golf outing (Russ), head to Brown County with the Gantz/Bush/O'Leary ladies (me), enjoy a finger-licking good tenderloin at The Bulldog (Russ), and also cross a few items off the house to-do list.  

Our main project was the basement.  Little did we know our project would include watching 4-5 inches of water drain out of our basement (after realizing the sump pump plug was not entirely connected to the outlet).  After a little mess we were back on schedule, and the basement is looking and smelling better than ever (thanks to Russell's bleach scrubbing extravaganza while I stayed away).

Wow...I wrote more than I thought I would.  I would love to add pictures, but I didn't take any...hah.  We have decided that it is time to upgrade our camera, so come Christmas time maybe I will have some actual pictures to post.   


Oh yah...if you are still reading this post...Addie is the name we have decided on for the aforementioned Schneider bambino...Adelynn will be her full name.

Picture post...I am now ready to look at the pictures from summer...

 Russell turned 28...

 Russell's reaction to my saying, "You need to show a little more excitement!"

 What a ham.

 What up, Annie O?

 Attempting to pick George's nose, but I am instead poking him in the eye.

 Just one of the guys...

 Ten years ago little Russ left this building...Happy Reunion!

 Russell turned 28 again...

Annie on a couch...and to think this was only the beginning of my two month couch stay.

The answer to: What did your July look like?

If I were to answer that question before the summer began, my answer would have been completely different than what has actually transpired the last six weeks.

Long story short:

I am pregnant...due March 7. Hooray! However, the last six weeks of our life have been more eventful than we ever expected. After three trips to the hospital (in three different states, for we traveled out to Montana, North Dakota, and Minnesota during July), I was finally able to be hooked up (literally) at home with an IV and anti-nausea pump. I have had some ups and downs since we have been home, but overall I am feeling much better than before. I have not been able to go back to school yet, but I know eventually I will start feeling better and be able to return to society.

The great part is that the baby is doing well.

I am so thankful for the love and support that everyone has shown us over the last month or so. Russ' family was so great while we were there. I was either on the couch or head over the porcelain throne the entire time we were on "vacation." I am thankful we were in such great hands.

My family has taken over the laundry, cleaning, and food responsibilities. Even Carson got in on the fun...when the washer was done, he hopped up and said, "Oh. I'll get it," and he proceeded to unload the washer into the the dryer. Wow!

The flowers, candy, frozen cokes, and more have been much appreciated, and every little thing and visitor has brightened my day.

Also...even though he doesn't read the blog, I have to give a shout out to Russell. All along I have kept saying, "Poor Russ," because he has had to endure the good, the bad, and the downright gruesome. Every morning he packs a cooler for me so that I will be able to eat all day without really having to get up. Words can't describe how grateful I am for him. Nothing shows you love someone like waking up in the middle of the night to switch out the trash bag and carry the "used" bag out to the garage. I would hope that I would do the same thing...but I think I would have a limit to the number of times I could be around upchuck city and not do it myself. :-)

I will have to wait until Russ gets home so that I can post my first picture...that's right...it will be a picture of me and the IV. Get excited!

Eat Your Heart Out, Von Trapp Family...

Uncle Russ and Aunt Annie were on babysitting duty while Chris and Amy celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary. Carson was super excited to come over because as he kept saying, "I am going to Annie and Russ', and Russ is going to stay home with us." haha I see how it is. Not too excited about me, but Russ gets all of the love.

Carson seemed to have a good ole time playing with Russ' old toys, eating hot dogs and applesauce, and convincing Russ to dust off the guitar and play some music.

I captured a few pictures of the two playing and singing. I am pretty sure we are ready to start a family band. I will be driving the bus, for I would offer no musical abilities to the group.

The music lesson consisted of Russ teaching Carson the different chords.

Russ: "This is the C chord. C is for..."

Carson: "Carson!"

Russ: "This is the D chord. D is for..."

Carson: "Daddy!"

Russ: "This is the A chord. A is for..."

Carson: "Amy! That's my mommy's name."

What a smart little guy. He definitely entertained us during his visit.

Annie Get Your Gun...Err...Spray Paint

I decided to "renovate" a few items. Did I take any before pictures? No, of course not.

Item #1: Bistro set--formerly white (with paint chips galore) with red seat covers...the "new" table and chairs... (if you really look at the grass, you can see the spots where I sprayed before the rain came and I was forced to head to garage and breathe in a few fumes).

Item #2: Podium from school--formerly black (metal) pole with silver (metal) feet and a wooden top...pretty janky if you ask me :-)...Operation school spirit in podium form created this masterpiece:

I have decided that I cannot be a graffiti artist, for my fingers ached for two days after "painting."

Cooperstown...say what, say what...

Living the spontaneous lives that we live (haha), Russ and I decided to add an extra vacation to our summer. We packed up the truck and headed....no not north...but east to Cooperstown, New York to visit Russ' grandparents. We had a great time on our short little venture. We spent time with his grandma, grandpa, mom, and cousin, hitting up the Baseball Hall of Fame (well, Russ actually went in while Betsy and I visited the gift shop and surrounding shops in town), swimming in the pool, and returning with a sweet grandfather clock.

Overall, we were really fortunate to be able to take this trip.

Russ in front of the museum


My kind of store...I walked in, and I heard Christmas music in June!!! Wow! I wasn't aware my version of heaven existed in Cooperstown, NY.


Not sure about the eclipse happening in this picture, but here we are with Russ' grandparents.

Here is the "load" we brought back...Russ wanted to put "No, it's not a body" on the back of the truck just to relieve the anxiety of anyone behind us on the road. We decided they wouldn't mess with us, considering the coffin-shaped box we were transporting. I named the clock Bernie after Weekend at Bernie's (minus the Hawaiian shirt and ability to dance I thought it was a great comparison). Russ asked me why I would say, "Sorry, Bernie" whenever we hit a bump. Once I informed him that I had nicknamed the clock, I think he was sorry he asked.

Bernie in action...the clock looks great in our living room.
Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Chilton!

COMING SOON: Yah, that's right...our version of coming attractions, blog style.

We have decided to paint the laundry/bathroom. We pulled off the pegboard that covered one and half walls in the laundry. Much to our surprise, the pegboard was acting as the drywall...yikes. Therefore, we did a little drywall and mudding action, and we are almost ready to paint. Woo hoo!
Here's a sneak peak at the goings-on:

Hello hole in the wall.


Drywall going up...

Minnesota knows how to party...

Well, we have already completed one of our road trips for the summer of 2011. During our trip we checked out the Wisconsin Dells...still not sure what really goes on there, but it seemed very Pigeon Forge-y to us. Our time in the Wis Dells (as Russell likes to call it...even more so when he is referring to Wis Rapids..seriously...the signs actually say Wis Rapids) was short...aka...we simply spent the night there, but we did enjoy some Canadian cuisine at the Moosejaw Pizza and Brewing Company. We were thinking about quitting our jobs in order to become delivery drivers for the restaurant...check out the cars they get to drive.

Cute, huh? Now check out the backside (literally) of the cute little cars.


Oh those Canadians. :-)

I did convince Russell to don the moose antlers with me even though I continued to call them moose ears. :-)

Next up...Minneapolis...the Schneider girls (Betsy, Jen, Cassie and I) headed to Chanhassen Dinner Theatre for Jesus Christ Superstar. We had a great time, and I even walked away with a souvenir cup.
After receiving a new windshield (State Farm is on speed dial apparently when I get in a car), we were set to begin our lakeside portion of the vacation. I really wanted to get a picture of the new windshield as it was put on the car, but I wasn't there, and I am pretty sure Russ wasn't going to be taking any pictures of a random windshield repair man. :-) A little awkward.

Betsy and Scott celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary over the weekend, so it was great that we all could be there to celebrate right along with them.

Jen and Matt sporting their matching Mario Bros t-shirts. Matt received his for his birthday, and we gave Jen one as a consolation prize. ;)

The famous family picture...this one definitely turned out better than last summer's feeble attempt at looking good in a picture at 8 AM after the infamous pirating night.

Random pictures

Russell fishing...

Russ and Jennie were wearing matching shirts too.

Russell banned to the back porch...I actually don't remember why he was out there, but it
turned out to be a funny picture.

And finally...I really thought I was in this picture...apparently my focus was a little off.

All in all this was a great trip, and we can't wait to go back in July on the last leg of our western tour.

Annie on a boat saying this trip was "Awwwwwwe....some."