Hangin' with the Marks!

I have been MIA lately - sorry about that...
I'm still live and kickin' though. We had the best weekend this weekend (and we still have tomorrow to go)! Yesterday morning I loaded up the car with a million bags and all three kids and headed to Manhattan (Kansas, not New York - do you really think I would get on a plane with three kids?). Anyway, getting out the door with all the kids and all their "junk" was quite a task, but I was out the door and on the road by 8:30am!! The kids were awesome road trippers (thanks to the DVD player) and we only had to stop once. I had to pee. As I pulled up to the gas station I debated...do I take three kids into a public restroom with no help? Do I lock the doors and leave them in the car? hmmmm. I decided for choice A and took them all in with me. I put the kids in the corner of the bathroom - told them to hold hands, not to touch anything and don't move. I must have scared them or something because they actually listened. Eventually all of us emptied our bladders and we were on our way again. Ashlyn made it the whole way with no accidents (by the way she is truly potty trained - hasn't had any accidents, doesn't even wear a diaper at night or nap time - LOVE IT!!) So, we get to Manhattan and head straight for Callie's house! Callie has three little boys that are just adorable. We got to hang out all day and play and we just had the best time ever. I don't know that we even had to say 2 words to the kids - they were so happy to play together, they just played and played. Cal and I got to catch up and just relax while the kids destroyed her house. The Toby (Callie's husband) and Shawn drove up to Manhattan after work and got to the house around 6:30. We put the kids to bed, which was hilarious. Chandler, Andy, Carson, Austin and Ashlyn all went to bed in the same little room - they were all exhausted and slept awesome - they looked like a little litter of puppies. We got them all off to sleep and enjoyed amazing food - courtesy of Callie and some great beers and wine. We had such a great time - we may just have to do it every Friday. The kids thought it was so cool to have a sleepover together. The only bad thing is that it made me miss Callie, Toby and the boys more than ever. We miss them sooo much, but I definitely see some more road trips and sleepovers in our future.
Hope you are having the time of your life!
ST