Bum Bum Bum ..Here We Come...

So, In my family we are in great excitement this week! It is almost the beginning of our annual St. George Island trip. We are endlessly calling one another on three-way, discussing such things as , what we need to bring, activities, food, sun, piggly wiggly, and anything else we think of, sometimes I think, by the time we get to the beach we will probably run out of things to talk about....WHO AM I KIDDING? we are talking about the Robinson's here, in true Robinson fashion we NEVER run out of things/people(hehe) to talk about~!
We really can't wait to spend 8 days, 24 hours a day with each other. As soon as Robbie(because he is always first) wakes up, he will wake us up so there is not a moment of "alone" time. During this week, the cousins will be playing, laughing, swimming, sunning, and thinking of ways to make more money for their vacation.Last year the kids, had a massage spa, and we all participated, one hour massage for 2.00, you couldn't beat it, we all tipped though!!
I had to remind Regan yesterday,to come give me a kiss once in awhile, because I always miss her this week, she is totally consumed with her cousins, she forgets I am even there! Because our house is on a private beach, gated, there is no reason for us to be hording over them, they are all at the age,as long as Kendra is around, to roam freely, allowing them to feel their independence!
But as for Vickie, Robbie and I, there will be no moment without each other. I kinda feel sorry for our "better halves", we will include them, but alot of times they feel a little left out,of the inside jokes, the poking fun(sometimes at their expense) and the private, sneaking out, excursions, that we will plan unknowingly to them. Adrien and Bob are used to it, I think they almost welcome it, to have a break from all this sibling love! It's not that we do it on purpose, it just kinda happens. Robbie and I tried "ditching" everyone last yr,but Vickie caught us, and ran out the door with us. We had only bathing suit tops, and skirts on, but we saw a chance and bolted for the door! Its a little like being back in high school, sneaking out, except we're the parents! Our Spouses, our awesome, they know that we each are really close and have a unique bond, that needs to be fed!When we are together it seems that we grow younger, and a little reckless but much wiser!
So.. Bum Bum Bum.. Here we Come.. All the way from Wahington!!!

Kids say the darndest thing part 3

Thursday night as we were doing our night time ritual, the kids started singing and screaming "dance mommy", so right there is Regan's room, I started doing the moon walk(okay so this is aging me!) and they were like"what's that?" so I told them "back in my day, this was called the Moonwalk, and it was really popular"! Fast Forward to last night. I am laying with Regan in her bed and Nolan walks in laughing and smiling,hint:he is up to something. He says "Mommy here's my moon walk" Regan and I watch as he turns around,his bare butt sticking out and he parades around the room dancing backwards so we can stare at his butt!!! We all laughed until we were crying!!

Tuesday night, Bob,Nolan and I were laying in our bed tickling each other. Nolan made a reference to them (daddy and him) being he's. I said "how do you know daddy's a he"? he said "because he told me!" so I said, using that old cliche I swore I would never do, but we become parents and we do. "So if I tell you I'm a cow,you gonna just believe me?" I saw him thinking for a second, and so I was in anticipation of some scientific answer, and he said"of course not Mommy, cows don't talk"!!!!

That is one funny kid!

isn't he just precious!

Lemonade $.50 per cup

My little Entrepreneur! He made $17.00 with his Lemonade/water stand during my garage sale. He did have to give a cut to a few girls that helped him. Just like a true boss, he got to his business late, took a long lunch, checked his money often, left early and than kept most of the earnings for himself!! He is definitely a CEO in the making!!

St. George 2007 pic

These are the two most important men in my life. My husband,Bob, and my brother,Robbie!

Its a beautiful thing how they both are very in touch with their feminine side-oh the love, I can feel it~

Bad Habits are Hard to Break

When my one of my nails broke, yesterday,I started thinking,I have had these acrylic nails for almost 8 months now, and it costs me money and time to have them filled every two weeks. And of course every two months you need to get a whole new set,and if one breaks well that's extra!
So, I was in the car with Bob, picking at the broken nail and he asked "when are you gonna get that nail fixed?" I looked at him and decided right then, "you know what? I'm not!" Bob looked at me quizzically. "I am going take the rest off, and grow them on my own." That's right. I realized that I have never in my life been able to grow my own nails. I have always had a bad habit of biting them. But, now I decided I will do it.
This year I have been on a journey of self discovery, I have completed a triathlon, I have successfully home schooled my daughter, and now I am going to discipline myself enough to break a really bad habit of biting my nails. I can do this, I have done things this year I never thought that I would or could. Today, I set a new goal,to break this nasty habit!
Now, I realize you are thinking ,its just growing out your nails. Well, its not. It's bigger than that, at least to me.It's about ridding myself of a bad habit. It's about self discipline and determination. It's about setting my mind to make a change in my life. To decide that sometimes I will need to set boundaries, and stick to them. I will need to have a plan, so that when I feel like biting them, I have another outlet to feed that desire. Conquering habits that "stunt" my personal growth will allow me to be free from the bondage that any bad habit holds on your life. Bad Habits are hard to break, and sometimes we hold onto them out of comfort, security, stubbornness or pride. Whatever the reason the bad habit is a constant reminder of our failure,our weakness, our lack of control over our own life. Bad habits starve out our energy, and feeds us spoonfuls of guilt. Sometimes to the point of surrender,leaving us feeling empty or disappointed in ourselves.Bad habits come in all forms, this particular one for me is a visible one, so that I know I will be held accountable for by friends,who will take notice if I am accomplishing this task.It's the habits that are invisible that are the most dangerous,the ones we can hide from others, or the ones we even hide from ourselves.They become so deeply hidden in the crevices of our being, they become part of our description, part of our character, those are the ones we must weed out, get to the core of why we choose to continuously fall back into time and again, only then, when we are honest about what those habits are, how they are to limit our lives to be fully lived and complete can we choose for ourselves to not live in defeat. I have chosen to challenge myself, to look at myself in the mirror and start to break chains of bad habits, some that have been handed down to me from generations, but to face them head on,with perseverance and faith, and continue to make small steps towards the finish line. Will I fall back into these, most definitely, will I step backwards, yes,but I will push through,dust off and continue to move forward,slowly.
I will begin today, to rid myself of this bad habit. I will take this habit and use it, another way, to shape my character,to build myself into the woman that I want to be. I know that as soon as I rid myself of this bad habit,there will be more of them lurking in the corners of my life, trying to hide for survival, but I will be ready. I will always be a "work in progress", but that's okay, I am not trying to be perfect, I just want to be the "best" me there is!

Hero to Zero

I went to the gym today with Bob,alone. We left the kids at the grandparents, so we could work our leisurely and than hang by the pool for awhile, without interruptions.Glorious!! Love grandparents:)
During the early afternoon the pool is filled with swim lessons,and kid camps, so there were many children at the pool, but none of them mine! So I was enjoying my freedom, reading a magazine, when I hear these three kids, start screaming, "daddy, daddy" and they are jumping up and down running towards their father who had just arrived. He was a big tall man, dressed in a three piece suit(yes, some people still wear suits,who knew?)He didn't seem to mind that his kids were getting him soaked, from the knees down. I was watching and smiling thinking to myself, there is nothing sexier than a great dad, taking time out of his lunch to see how his kids swim lessons are going,it was special.
AND then, as he is walking toward the spot where his beautiful wife was, I catch him checking out the fifteen year old laying a few chairs from me! He went from sexy dad hero to Zero! Gross... I shook my head and was a little dissapointed in him.
Well, Maybe he was checking her out to see if she was getting too hot,or maybe he was just concerned that she needed to apply more sunscreen? I mean she did have alot of her skin exposed. So maybe he was just being a "concerned citizen",yeah right, maybe!

Three's a Crowd

I found myself in the shower today with three naked guys! No I have NEVER done this before, not even in my wildest days in college:) swear. But,today was a first for me. I tripped over one guy as I got in, "uh,sorry". He stared at me and said nothing. I started to wash my hair,I could feel all three of them staring at me with their piercing blue eyes. Every where I turned, I felt like their eyes were following me, all of them just staring at me with a dumb smile stuck on their faces. I noticed they each had a different color hair, but the same demeanor. I peeked through one eye as I began washing my hair,trying to catch a quick glimpse. They were still staring, not saying one word. They had a chiseled chest, sporting a six pack on their abs,arrogance at its worst. I didn't know their names, but could only guess.
As I was getting ready to rinse my hair, I see this hand grab a hold of the shower curtain, and fling it back forcibly, I let out a squeal and try to cover myself. Regan laughs at me, "Its only me mommy,", not even giving me a second glance. I watch her eyes darting back and forth, searching for something. She says to herself, "I knew I left you guys in here!", and she reaches for the three Ken barbie's that had been sharing the shower with me. In one scoop she picked them off the ledge. She turns, and runs away carrying them, leaving me alone once again.
Later, I tell Bob, "Honey, I just took a shower with three guys!" Bob says without flinching, "Me too!".

Y.M.C.A.

I really love to go to my gym. It is a family friendly gym where I think as soon as I walk in the door someone is going to belt out the "Cheers" theme song! A place where I can spend all day, participating in all the activities my gym offers.However, I do have a few,things that I wish I could change.For example......

1. You don't have to match from head to toe when you are going to the gym.It is not a fashion show people,you really can get the same great workout with a pair of shorts and a t-shirt.
2.You don't have to wear make up and style your hair perfectly when you are going to the gym. You are there to sweat.
3. This is not an after work happy hour lounge,if you want to pick someone up, go to a bar, not my gym.
4.when I am on the treadmill and there are 25 open ones, why do you insist on picking the one right next to me? you must think you look better than me, you don't.LOL.
5.wear deodorant.even though Julia Roberts and Mathew McConnehey don't think they need to wear it, you are not them, not even close, so put some on. You stink.
6.After you have used the treadmill or stair climber and you have sweated your non-deodorant stink on it, use the damn cleaner to wipe it off! I don't want to touch the machine after you, or use my time to clean up after you.
7.Because my gym is like going to a WP school reunion, please just come by and wave, I don't like to carry on a full conversation during my workout,plus I don't know where the hell "Bobby" is!?
8 Please put a towel around you in the locker room. I don't want to see your boobies or your a**, especially if it looks better than mine or you are over 70 yrs old, now that really scares me, to think that no matter how hard I work out that is what is going to happen to them.
9.which leads me to, do not blow dry your hair naked,do not get in the hot tub naked or the steam room, GROSS.
and
10. Men, I don't care how good you think you look, if you are over 40yrs old, do not ever wear a speedo,nut huggers,banana slings, whatever there called, honey that ship has sailed and sunk like the titanic!

Love and Marriage

Yesterday, we had a party in our home. Friends and family gathered together to celebrate the 55th wedding anniversary of Memaw & Popop!(my in-laws). What an awesome reason to have a party. They brought their wedding album, and shared stories of their wedding.Popop loves to tell the story of how they met, and why they got married.(I believe he embellishes these!)
I was truly blessed with some of the best in-laws a girl could ask for. They have been an example to me of what a Godly marriage looks like. During the age of "drive through divorces", theirs is a testimony to all, that marriage does and can work.
To know Memaw and Popop, you see the love and respect they have for one another. You see the friendship that has sustained them throughout the years. You see that they continue to have a strong commitment for their marriage and family. But above all their commitment to God is always first.
To them the last 55 years has flown by,they have experienced all gamuts of life together. Memaw has probably heard Popop's stories a 1000 times(we all have), but she graciously still laughs when he tells them.She still cuts his hair(for the past 30 years)! They have watched their children grow and become parents themselves. They are a constant in their grandchildren's lives. How awesome it must be when they sit and talk together about their past, and the memories that they created, together, side by side.
I am sure that they have had their share of hard times,challenges, but they persevered through them and never lost their focus that marriage is much more than a commitment to each other, but a covenant with God.
I have been blessed to be a part of their marriage, to learn from them. Their marriage gives hope, encouragement, and faith. Hope that there is such a thing as happily ever after, encouragement that we do have strength to endure this long road of commitment(yes, even in happy marriages we need encouragement),and faith that marriage does last forever.
Memaw and Popop I love you with all my heart. It is an honor to be your daughter-in-law. Thank you for your marriage, thank you for your faith in God, and thank you for loving me.

Cell Phone Etiquette 101

Hey I love my cell phone as much as the next person. I will be the first to admit that I could not live without it, and I don't remember what I did before it. But there are some rules that need be followed.So I came up with a few things that irritate me about cell phone use.So I thought I would share.
1.Don't answer you damn cell phone when you are out to lunch with me.(I mean that is my time, and if you don't want to talk to me, than don't ask me to lunch).
2.I don't want to know all about your husband,your kids,your mother, your boss ,that friend you can't stand,your money problems, or your sex life. (If you are in a bookstore and can't walk outside to have this VERY private conversation, just shut-up. I don't know you, but I may know that person your gossiping about, and I promise I will tell her what you said.)
3.Drive your damn car.(If you can not turn, push the gas pedal, stop, or any other basic road rules while driving with your cell phone, put it down.
4.If you are at a park with your kid, why don't you put the cell phone down and actually spend time playing with them. It does not count as "quality time" with your kids if you sit and talk on your cell phone the whole time.Oh. and when your conversations over, its time to go home.
5.If you are at your kids sporting events. Put the cell phone down, and watch the damn game. I don't care if your employee couldn't get the copier fixed, but I do care if my kid makes a basket.
6.Do not answer your phone in these places. Church, funerals, weddings,library, or any waiting room. That is what texting is for!
7.If you want to order food, hang up your phone. I can't stand to be in line with someone who is trying to order food and have a conversation at the same time.Its annoying and you don't look cool.
8.At any point you come in contact with someone you need to talk to in person, get off your phone.Show some respect.

And BTW , these cell phones may be little, but I am not deaf, I can hear you just fine, you don't have to talk at 100 decibels, a normal tone will do.
Thank you for your consideration.

PS- Oh,yeah, If and when I do all of these things , take out your cell phone and call someone who gives a damn!

Cup of Joe

Bob and I were hanging out in our favorite bookstore,Borders tonight. We got there in time to hear some live music and participate in a coffee taste test. Who knew? Books stores have come a long way!
After the taste test,I went up to get two cups of Joe,(yes,I cheated on DD,the guilt is killing me!). Borders recently went from selling Barnie's' coffee to Seattle's Best. I go up and placed my order with the coffee connoisseur wait person(I think this is politically correct)I say "your coffee is strong for me so I need something mild." He looks at me, "most people don't think its that much stronger than Starbucks." I say "well,I am a Dunkin Doughnut die hard,so to me it is." He says "no problem, dude, I'll just add some vanilla flavoring to sweeten it up,check it." He than proceeds to pour gobs of vanilla flavoring in my coffee. He goes to get Bob's next. "Oh, yeah I almost forgot the vanilla." I said "no, not in that one.My husband is a die hard Starbucks drinker, he'll like it." He stares at me,shakes his head smiling,"Dude, like a die hard Dunkin Doughnut drinker married a die hard Starbucks drinker, dude if you guys have babies than they'll be Seattle's Best!" Now I stare at him, I let out a huge laugh,I mean I snorted, this guy was serious.He had this big goofy grin on his face, in dire need of a good haircut, little black glasses,a goatee, and glazed over eyes. I think he had been sneaking the coffee beans out back and eating them! Anyway, coffee sucked, but whatever...DUDE.

Wonder Works

Okay, so we had Regan's birthday party 3 months late, the cake fell sideways and we had to kind of mash it in place, and at the last minute three little girls could not come:( but,we still had the best birthday party,ever! And as a mom I got one of the biggest compliments that we all want at the end of the party from the other mom's. They said, "you always have the best parties and think of the best places to have them!" score.. this is like the ultimate compliment that every mother planning a birthday party for their kid wants.
Yes, we want the kids to have fun, we want them to feel special, we want them to enjoy being with their friends, but honestly, we moms want the accolades, I mean every year you have to think of something new, something different,and something no one has done that year, and if your really lucky, something that has not been done in the previous years.
Hey,I am competing with kids whose parents can and have closed down a
go-cart/fun park in "O"town. (yes, that was two yrs ago when they were 8!).Gone are the days of backyard parties,playing pin the tail on the donkey, neighborhood parties are unacceptable. If you do this, than you will have just committed "social suicide" for your kid. You must have themed parties, pony rides,limo rides,spa days, concerts. So when The other mothers said that to me, I have to admit I literally started glowing, I wanted to hug myself, pat myself on the back. Yippee,I have made it through another birthday party celebration! and here is the cost:
Birthday cake $30.00
Invitations $10.00
Thank you cards $10.00
Goody Bags $55.00
Candles $3.00
Cost of Wonder works w/laser tag $187

Accolades from the other moms: Priceless

You see you can still have an affordable birthday party, something unique!Until next year when I may have to rent out Disney World!! right

What were they thinking????

I help out at my church once a month in the 18 months-2 year olds. This past Sunday was my day to help. We had quite a few kids this time and it was just two of us as the teachers. We had some rowdy boys, and they were getting into everything,destroying anything in their paths.We had the usual kids, and some new kids that I had not met yet. One particular boy was very busy, and at one point I couldn't find him. I looked to see what his name was on the sign in sheet and I started saying his name. Assa,where is Assa? I asked my helper where is Assa? She stared at me. I jokingly said, he is a pain in my assa! My helper says, Brenda his name is Asa(pronounced long A Suh)apparently not assa. I was so apologetic! I felt so stupid.
So it reminded me of names that parents give their kids, that I am sure they will get beat up on the playground for. So I looked up names on the US National Census of birth registry and thought I would share a few.
Langina -(pronounced lan gina)
Asswipe(pronounced as weep ey)
Shithead(pronounced shi thead)
Noe(pronounced NO-ee)
orangejelo(pronounced oran gelo)
and then there are names that are just funny, also courtesy of the US National Census Birth registry. If you do not believe me, you too can look them up. There were many more,but these were some of my favorites!
Harry Pitts
Jus-n-Thyme
Wanna Towell
Paige Turner
Fanny Large
Tiny Hooker
Cherry Gran
For the record Asa was one of the nicest boys in the class! And I will never mispronounce his name again.

Kryptonite - Grace Fellowship Orlando - 6/1/08

can I just say "Our Church Rocks!"This is the staring of our Man Series at our church this past Sunday. The music was awesome and so was the message.

They Say It's Your Birthday

Happy Birthday Vickie!I hope you have a great day!
Love,
Me