Because I am an American

I went to a tea party today. It was a peaceful rally held in Southlake TX - for taxpayers who feel like they have been Taxed Enough Already. Because today is "tax day", hundreds of rallies are occurring throughout the United States. It is a grassroots attempt by people just like me to get their ever expansive government to pay attention to them.

I carried a sign. My father came with me. My 3 yr old son was by my side.

I must say, I left feeling even more proud to be an American. I was moved to tears as a prayer was said at the opening. The pastor prayed for our leaders. He prayed that they would have soft hearts and be receptive. He prayed for them to be guided and directed in good. He prayed for our military.

This prayer was said in a PUBLIC square, in front of SEVERAL HUNDRED people - I am not of the same faith of the pastor. I am not of the same faith of the person standing next to me. However, I was filled with such pride and hope and patriotism at that moment. The tears streamed down. I wiped them away. They continued to flow as we said the Pledge of Allegiance and sang "God Bless America". I love my country.

It brought to mind this scripture:

Alma 10: 22-24

Yea, and I say unto you that if it were not for the
prayers of the righteous, who are now in the land, that ye would even now be
visited with utter destruction; yet it would not be by flood, as were the people
in the days of Noah, but it would be by famine, and by pestilence, and the
sword.

But it is by the prayers of the righteous that ye
are spared; now therefore, if ye will cast out the righteous from among you then
will not the Lord stay his hand; but in his fierce anger he will come out
against you; ... and the time is soon at hand except ye repent.

And now it came to pass that the people were more
angry with Amulek, and they cried out, saying: This man doth revile against our
laws which are just, and our wise lawyers whom we have selected.

I went to a TEA party because I feel passionately that OUR government has gotten too big. I see similarities with the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia. I see similarities of the collapse of Russia (a SUPER POWER) after the Cold War. I see similarities with the French Revolution. I don't know what the future holds. I don't want to be condemned to repeat the past.

I want my children to have the same freedoms I was blessed to have.

I feel strongly that hardships BUILD character. Entitlements enslave the recipient. The biggest government handout I have ever received was in the form of a low interest federal student loan while my husband finished grad school. He has a job. I am a mother to our 3 children. When money is tight, we cut frivolous spending, and if it is still tight, I find ways to bring in some extra income. We have never gotten WIC, or been recipients of any government programs. We own our cars - they aren't flashy, but they are PAID for! We live in a house we can afford. We don't spend money we don't have to uphold an image we can't afford.

We are taxpayers, and I believe we are the forgotten man.

This is Me & Nate with Mark Davis - local talk show host. (see my poster?)

Snowboarding...

March

Wow... has another month come and gone?
We had a lot of fun this month. We started by going to the ranch. The excuse this time? Jeff's birthday. It was really cold outside, so we all pretty much just stayed inside playing games. The boys braved the gale force winds and even made a fire. Fun times.

Then, we went back and I found out I get to be behind the piano for ward choir. Practices to be back at the Robinson casa as well. Certain things just seem to follow me, but I don't mind. I don't think Joe will mind either (at least till football season starts back up again). YAY ward choir!!! ;)

I painted my walls... Joe actually helped!!! It was a tough day, but having color in the house REALLY warms up the place, and at least helps it feel like it is STARTING to become our home...

We went back to the ranch for spring break. This time, Dan and Richelle also came. The weekend weather was cold and rainy, so we pretty much stayed inside. The boys built a fire IN THE RAIN... the kids got to roast marshmellows... Sunday night, Joe and Jeff's family had to return to their obligations, so me and the kids stayed behind (along with Dan's family) at the ranch. The weather was beautiful on Monday and Tuesday. The kids rode 4-wheelers, and we all had a blast splashing in the mud puddles left behind from the weekend rain.
We went to the prison museum there in Huntsville... about 10 minutes of entertainment... then I took Jamie and Paul along with me and my kids to the Sam Houston monument for another 10 minutes of entertainment.
We woke up Tues morning and rode horses. I don't quite trust the horses yet... but nobody got injured or bucked off this time... Then, we went on 1 more 4 wheeler ride, and headed home to make it back JUST IN TIME for Aaron's baseball practice.

I woke up the next morning, and decided rather than unpacking, I wanted to spend the rest of the week down in Keller, so I just put the bags we took to the ranch back in the car and headed out to my mom's house.
Jill and Sean (Scott's brother and his wife) were out visiting. They were my old friends from back in the day when we lived in NJ so it was fun to see them. We went to 6 flags on Thursday. Joe took a half day at work to come meet up with us there. It was tons of fun. The kids had a blast. UNTILL... 10 minutes before the park closed, Joe and I decided to go on the TITAN. I used to absolutely LOVE rollercoasters. Officially, I am too old. I got off the rollercoaster and for the next 2 days, had a terrible headache and vertigo and decided that misery is NOT worth it!
Friday, Joe called asking if I was ever going to come home. So I did...
Saturday morning, I looked at my front yard and was competely MORTIFIED! I had weeds bigger than the pathetic bushes... Landscaping is DEFINATELY on the agenda... I spent all day Saturday filling 2 leaf bags of just WEEDS from the garden!!! FUN TIMES!!!
Only 3 people came to choir on Sunday. :( (besides Joe, me and the choir director)
I made valences for my family room and eating area! Very simple, but they TOTALLY help warm up the place... My mom was awesome and came up and spent the day shopping for fabric with me, and then helping me with the project - making dinner for my family while I tried to hurry and finish up... I am so lucky to have my mother!!!
Finally, we are to Friday. Joe and I checked the kids out of school at noon, and dumped them at my mom's house. Then, we went to UT - just the 2 of us!!! I was SOOOOO unbelievably excited. Friday night, we stayed at Lydia's house. Sam, Kat, Steve and Sarra, and Steph joined us there for dinner and games. It was so awesome to have Joe's brothers able to hang out with me and my sisters. Saturday, Joe, me, Sam and Steve headed to Snowbird. It was absolutely beautiful because the sun was out, it was warm, and there was good snow (because it snowed Thurs). A little bump in the day came when Sam lost a ski... then my binding broke, so I had to ride a broken board all over creation to find a screw... But, still the day was a LOT of fun. I am making a video because Joe got some great footage - I wonder why I have a headache.
Sunday was just a relaxing day. Steve, Sam, and Steph came over to Lyd's again, and we played games... Thanks for allowing the chaos Lyd. Then, Joe and I headed up to the Sheraton in SLC. He upgraded us to a suite, and Sam and Kat spent the night up there with us so we could continue playing games. Monday, Joe and I woke up and headed to Park City for another day of fun. It was a bit windy and cold, but still a WONDERFUL day (because it snowed Sunday). I ended up hurting my shoulder on a nasty spill... I keep forgetting I am almost 30... but, it was really nice to just spend the day on the mountain with my hubby. He humors me and does the runs I like just cause he loves me. I wanted to video him, but he preferred to stay behind the camera... although, he did do a couple jumps, and even some box rails... STUD!!! That night, we went to Cafe Rio and met up with Owen and Jen & Ted, and Lyd & fam and Steph & Nate. It was great to see Jen!!! I really wish she would have skiid with us - she used to be my skiing buddy... but I guess it is hard with 3 kids... I will excuse it this time Jen, but next time I am there, I FULLY expect you on that mountain with me!! Then, we went to Lydia's for another round of games... Alyssa finally graced us with her presence... I really think she is cute, and really hope she someday OFFICIALLY joins our family ;)
We got back to the hotel at about 1am, and slept in, went to a movie, bought some chocolate, ate some sushi, went to temple square, then got on a plane to return to our kiddos. It was a WONDERFUL trip. I am so glad I got to go with Joe. We don't do much with just the 2 of us, so it was nice to reconnect with him. I had a few anxiety attacks about the kids because I missed them terribly, but I got over it... They ended up ditching school Monday and Tuesday, but I think they will catch up... Oh gosh I hope they don't develop the same truency issues I had in highschool!!! ANYWAYS... Thanks mom for watching them!!! Thanks kids for being so good for grandma! I feel so lucky to have such a wonderful family that is willing/able to help with my kids. I am also so lucky that my children are so good. I really do have the sweetest and best children anyone could ever wish for.
Plane tickets: $0 (frequent flyer)
Sleeping accomodations: $0 (family and hotel points)
Babysitter for kids: $0 (grandma)
having the most wonderful family: priceless.
Thanks again Mom and Cherry for watching the kids.
Thanks again to Lydia and Dan for letting us not only stay with you and eat your food, but also for letting us bring MORE crazy Robinsons into your house!
Thanks Steve and Sarra for gracing us with your presence. And also for Sam and Kat! (Sorry you ended up buying 1 ski).
Thanks for Steph and Nate (hope you finished your assignment)... and Owen and Alyssa for the use of your snowboard (although, I would gladly have traded that for your actual presence on the moutain with us!) and also for FINALLY coming home and spending a bit of time with us... and also Jen and Ted for hauling out to Cafe Rio for a crazy dinner with a huge group of crazies.
FUN TIMES!!!

Charity's Art

Tonight, we got to go to an ART SHOW! After gymnastics, dinner and baseball practice, we ran over to the career institute in Frisco and it was a ZOO. All the local schools sent over artwork to be displayed. It was kindof cool to see the different kid artwork - some of it (by the middle schoolers) was quite good. The best, however was over in the Tadlock Elementary section. Apparently, they selected about 5 student's art from each grade to display... Charity was one of them! She was so proud. I asked the teacher how they selected them (It had to be random for the Kindergarteners - right?) but the teacher said they actually "chose" them... Joe thinks it is because Charity is just so gosh darn cute that everything she does is "art show" worthy. ;)
Anyways, way to go Charity! Way to draw mountains with chalk!

interesting piece of information about me: When I was in college, I really REALLY wanted a tatoo. However, I knew if I was going to have something painted on me FOREVER, I really wanted it to be symbolic of me and my philosophies on life (not just some generic tribal or random pic). I wanted to get the tatoo of mountains. I drew and drew and looked and searched, but the only picture that would do justice to how I felt about mountains would seriously take up my whole back (not just the tiny 1" area I wanted it)... Needless to say, I never got the tatoo. I just thought it was interesting looking at my daughter's rendition of mountains. If I had a 5 yr old back then, something like this might have ended up painted on me!

Its another long one...

Let's begin with the Super Bowl... We had a few new friends over that evening, and it was pretty fun. Nobody was too involved with the game (until the last few minutes), so it was just fun to visit and eat junk food. The kids had a blast. We played games, and Joe found a friend to remind him of people he knew in high school in Virginia. I mostly appreciate Kimball reminding him of that one girl who was incredibly beautiful...
ANYWAYS, Nate must have been very tired. After people left, I began my walk-through to begin putting things away and children in bed. I got to the media room and happened upon this - evidence of how much of a "SUPER MOMMY" I am:
Did I forget that I still had a 2 yr old? He was so tired that he fell asleep playing (well, thinking he was playing) rock band, in a LOUD media room, FULL of children with CHOCOLATE all over his face!
Moving on...
I helped decorate the stage (new school... somehow the same job finds me?) for the 2nd grade program. My friend knocked on my door with gloves in hand asking me to dumpster dive with her. HECK YA! I'm always up for fun like that! It was recycling day, so we were able to find TONS of milk jugs - all in an effort to build this awesome igloo. The performance was just how I like them - short and sweet and over and done within 20 mins. It was about a "Tacky Penguin". It was a really cute show. Good Job Aaron!

Who remembers playing these in elementary school?

Wow, what a cute stage! Notice the igloo made from milk jugs...

Charity had her last soccer game. It was an indoor league. She apparently scored a goal the 1st game. The reason I signed her up for this particular team was because it was just a repeat team, and they weren't going to practice at all through the season. However, their team never practiced. So rather than getting better, they just got a little worse as the season progressed. Oh well, she still had a lot of fun.

Aaron's basketball season is winding down as well. I really enjoy watching my kids try so hard and RUN so hard. I sat next to a lady who was having a conniption fit because we were losing so bad in one game. Yes, I am competitive, and inside, it would just be awesome if Aaron's team was the BEST... However, at the same time, I am just happy to seem him play and learn. Really, does it matter how well they do in 2nd grade basketball? PS I saw Michael Irvin at Aaron's basketball game... I think his kid was on the team that was playing before us... kindof cool if you are a Cowboy's fan...

Oh, I meant to do a whole post dedicated to Friday cleaning. I love cleaning my whole house top to bottom on Fridays. It really is relaxing - it is my meditation. Each week, I do sweeping, mopping, vacuuming, sanitizing bathrooms, laundry, changing sheets, laundry, dusting, and laundry - all day Friday. Also, on top of the regular cleaning, I add something special - like the baseboards, or getting scuff marks off walls. This week, was polishing and dusting banisters and my absolute FAVORITE: cleaning ot the vacuum. Just kidding. I was dreading this, because the last time I did this was before our apartment. So, it was full of strange apartment hairs, and also strange new home junk. However, I must admit, I am always so much happier when I feel like my vacuum brushes are clean and can pick up more junk. (Am I weird?). Anyways, here is a word of advice: when cleaning the brushes to a vacuum - don't chew gum, or simply put - keep your mouth CLOSED!

Usually, on Friday nights, I keep my house virtuous and clean and go out to eat (my reward to myself and my kids for helping). This last weekend, the kids were not very good at cleaning, and we did not get their toys and rooms picked up and their laundry away without me having to raise my voice. Needless to say, we were all punished, and I had to make dinner :(. Maybe this Friday will be better.

Saturday, (Valentine's Day) Joe took Aaron to his basketball game (of course they won because I wasn't there). I went to Richelle's house to pick up Emma. Christine had come into town, and Charity was SO excited to have her cousin here! Well, Emma expanded into Emma, Jacob, Jamie, Paul and Kody. I took them all to my house, and they just had a blast. The Branns ended up stopping by, and we did an ever so classy "manicure" for the little girls - of course, the nails lasted 5 minutes or less, but they had a fun time, so I guess that is all that matters.

Emma, Marissa, and Charity! (of course, Nate wanted in on the action)

Christine came later in the afternoon, and we played games, and she took all the kids home, but I kept Emma so she could sleep over. The girls were in HEAVEN. She came to church with us, and we really had fun with her. They did not fight or whine or anything... I LOVE it when cousins get along so well! We were sad to see them leave, but I at least had fun with Christine and kids.

As you can see, our Valentine's was full of romance and excitement. The weekend was topped off with Charity feeling beautiful with her green makeup. I love the chunk on the side of her face - she has about as much makeup-putting-on skills as her mom.

Its another long one...

What have I been up to? Wow - not much.
We are just getting settled, and trying to get into the groove in this new place. It feels so weird to not be involved in anything, or totally stressed out about random unimportant things. But, I guess in time I will have something to get me out of bed in the mornings. As for now, it is kindof nice to walk the kids to school and then jump back into bed and cuddle with my babe - who BTW is growing up WAY too quickly.

So, chronologically, from my last post...
Aaron got a hold of my camera, and took a few (several) pictures. He really makes me laugh. You could see the thought he put into quite a few of the shots he took. He took a picture of his shelf - holding his favorite things like his trophies, and autographed WT evidence. He took pictures of his Lego car all posed on the ramp he built. He really must be Joe's son. ;)

Then, on the 10th, we had a little birthday party for Joe. It was nice to have a shindig at our house. Cherry and kids, Dan and Family and the Brann family came over for the festivities. We ate Joe's family favorite from when he was growing up - beans on bread. Trust me, it was a HIT! ;) we also ate some ghetto style cake made by yours truly. Actually, when I asked the birthday boy what kind of cake and frosting he wanted, Joe told Charity to choose. So she became my little assistant and even helped me frost and decorate it. Poor Richelle just sat miserably on my lazyboy (she had a horse accident at the ranch over New Years) but, I think she still had fun! ;)

YUM!!! I didn't get home-made whole wheat bread made (like Joe's mom would have done) but he did get whole green chilies on top...

He turned 35 - which is 3 (4+1)

The best part of Joe's birthday was a song written by his brother Sam. Then, another song was written by his brother Jeff... and so on and so forth.

Starting that Wednesday, I decided to take advantage of my completely BLANK schedule and potty train my 2 1/2 yr old. I knew he was ready, in fact, he was ready several months ago, but because of the move, I just couldn't do it. He did AWESOME. By Friday, we never looked back. The kids didn't have school that day, so Charity (and a new little friend Morgan), Aaron (and our across the street buddy Johnny), Nate (in his new Thomas UNDERWARE) and I headed out to Amazing Jakes. We had so much fun. The kids just ran around and had a blast. Nate never had an accident, and I couldn't have been happier. The innagurial pottytraining excursion was a SUCCESS!

Saturday morning, we took the kids to their EARLY games, and then headed out to the ranch to enjoy the long weekend. Jeff and his family came, and we brought our friends the Walls and the Branns too! Joe's dad wasn't there, so it was just us all weekend. We learned a new game, and really just had fun out there. I didn't get a single picture. I was still just thrilled to have my baby potty trained. He didn't have a single accident... until the drive home. He kept telling us he needed to go potty on the grass (as he had done several times already throughout the 3+ hr drive). But Joe refused to stop. The little guy was kicking his legs and kept telling us he needed to go... but we were SO close to home. ALAS, he peed his carseat as we were a mile from our house. Oh well... that wasnt his fault.

Fast forward to today. After threatening for a whole day, Dallas FINALLY iced over - which meant NO SCHOOL!!! The kids bundled up, and headed straight outside to jump on the icy trampoline. Notice Nate's bloody lip - I can't imagine it being fun to jump with ICE (not to be confused with fluffy soft snow) but they have been outside for more than an hour, and are LOVING it. Now, our super cute neighbor Johnny has come over to join the fun. Ah Kids!

Notice the awesome homemade/knitted hats I made the kids last time we went skiing...

Dear Sam, these pictures are for you:
My house. in desperate need of your famous landscaping skills
Across the street and FYI, if you google maps it, you can push on a little button called STREET VIEW... kindof a nifty tool. You should try it sometime.

new school new house

My kids had their first day of school!
Charity's new teacher is Mrs. Samples
Aaron's new teacher is Mrs. Eggleston
As I took them into the school yesterday, Charity was visibly nervous - looking around and not saying a word. Aaron could have cared less. After school, they seemed very confident and excited. They both had a wonderful 1st day at their new school!
Now, here is a slideshow tour of my new house.
The walls are bare and WHITE. I could use some help coming up with a color to warm the place up a bit. Decorating ideas anyone?

Long Update

We FINALLY closed on our new house!!!
Seriously, this was a fun adventure. Joe was finally sick of the apartment, and wanted to get into the house fast. SO, of course, he made sure the deal closed a LOT quicker than expected... well, there was one slight hiccup... but it was still fast.

We threw all of our stuff into our new house, (thanks to Dan and Steve for working SOOOO hard Thursday night - seriously, I OWE YOU BIG TIME). Then, we headed down to the ranch for the Robinson Christmas party. The kids of course enjoyed themselves immensely. There was a 2 mile jingle bell fun run. (Thanks to Jessie, all the kids got a blue ribbon for participating). We went on a hay ride. We had a wonderful dinner. It really was fun to see everyone. I drove the tractor (it makes me feel like a real woman!) - we had to move the boar trap to a more strategic location. Santa even made the trip all the way to High Kailbur Ranch!

I couldn't resist this picture. This is Charity waiting patiently for Santa to arrive. Notice she is still proudly wearing her ribbon for finishing the fun run SEVERAL hours ago.

Nate was thrilled to see him! ;)

Charity at least likes Santa now.

Aaron was just excited to get the little toy!

VERY classy family picture here!!! ;)

We didn't stay long because Christmas was 3 days away (we hadn't even STARTED shopping), and our new CHAOTIC house was beckoning.

Monday night we went to my mom's house for the Christmas festivities there. It was fun to see Sue (and fam) and Ronda (and fam). We went caroling to the neighbor's house. We had our own little program. Sue continued the tradition of the candy pass to "THE Night before Christmas". That night, we raided Cherry's house for all the stuff they were storing for us. There was a slight miscalculation when it came to the table and the trailer, so we left that behind. (oh no, we didnt even get into an argument about that...) ha

Tuesday, we got a babysitter and did ALL of our shopping in about an hour and a half. We have never really been in the habit of getting much for our kids. We don't spend much on our kids either. I think I am the world's meanest mother, but at least they got SOMETHING...
Joe and I were busy stressing about the fact that for Christmas we were getting a home.
AND, that home, because it was a foreclosure came with lots and lots of fun things to fix/buy as well!
1. The lighting was ripped out of the cieling.
2. The built-in microwave was stolen
3. The plumbing was messed up (no hot water in any of the showers)...
4. The garage door was broken...
5. We needed a new bed (somehow Emily gave our bed away when we moved from our old house - because it was OLD and she wanted a new one thinking they fell from the sky)
6. We had to buy a new fridge
7. A few days before we closed, someone stole the dishwasher and busted the back fence... tore up the plumbing in the sink... that was fun to discover WHEN THE INSTALLER WAS ALREADY AT THE HOUSE! rrrrrrrrgghhhrrrr (that is my mean/angry sound)

SO that was our Christmas.
Joe has been busy setting things up, installing cieling fans, setting up all the equipment that makes him feel at home (media/network/various computers).
I have been busy organizing and putting things away.

Christmas Eve, we made it back out to Keller to get the MASSIVE homemade table from Cherry's house. (Thanks Dan for lending us your truck). FYI: if you ever decide to build yourself a table, listen to your husband when he says it is retarded to dowel and screw the table legs to the table top. he probably knows what he is talking about.

I managed to set out the Christmas tree. We put the train around it (that is the most important thing to Aaron). Christmas Eve, I threw net lights on it. I also had everyone write down things they were grateful for on peices of paper tied to string for our ornaments. It was a pretty pathetic looking tree, but hey, we JUST moved in!

This is how awesome our Christmas was. Don't let that big box by the closet door fool you - that was a big Craftsman tool box for Joe - I have since returned it...

They were so thrilled!!! Mom and Dad were thrilled because they actually let us sleep in till 8:30!

Notice his head has been shaven. Someone confused him for a girl, and I gave in. I guess his hair had gotten a bit too long. :(

Christmas night, Cherry and Scott came and slept over. We played games and ate a ton of food. Then some people got in a fight...

Joe and Aaron took off the next morning for the Ranch again. Things were getting pretty exciting. Grandpa had already had his Christmas miracle! He caught/killed 2 boar!!

Nate, Charity and I stayed at home and cleaned and organized. I also cleaned out the apartment so we could sign off on that as well.
I was SO ready to settle in, make new friends and start a life here. I felt like we had been in limbo for SO long I was going crazy.
I had the Walls over to play rock band on Saturday night. It was really fun to see them, and remember that I actually have a friend somewhere (that isn't my family and thus required to be my friend).

Overall, this has been a wonderful vacation. I sleep in. My house is no longer chaotic (it is mostly organized except a few things in random closets...)

Let me list off some of the things I LOVE about my home now:
1. MY PIANO IS FINALLY HOME! yes, after 5 months of living without music in my house, I am thrilled to say I have it back. Thank you Ruth for storing it for me. Thank you also for giving it back ;).
*** ok, now, someone help me! The lighting was ripped out of this ceiling, and Joe and I can't decide what to put here. It is a 13' ceiling. It will just be the piano room. maybe we will put a few chairs in there, and DEFINATELY a bigger rug. BUT the big question is WHAT KIND OF LIGHTS? a chandelier would be pretty, but we really liked how in our old house we had track lighting focusing on the piano and the art work around the piano. HOWEVER, 13 feet is high, and track lighting might look stupid? what about a downward facing light chandelier? AGHHH what to do what to do!!! suggestions???(and yes, i will eventually paint the room when i figure out what color would work with that color trim)***
2. A bigger hot water heater. Our apartment had a 5 gallon water heater- 1 person could shower every hour. The dishwasher/washing machine had to be off well before anyone showered. Hot water ran out SO fast.
3. A bigger sink. My sink now can hide 2 days worth of dishes before creeping above the counter line.
4. A play room - my kids have somewhere to play and run around and they aren't RIGHT ON TOP OF ME!
5. Space!!! I have space! perhaps it is too much space, but still, I HAVE SPACE! I have a craft station for Charity. I have a cabinet for my cleaning supplies. I even have room in my kitchen to store the rice cooker/griddle/crockpot in a CABINET! WOW. How spoiled am I???

Really, I am grateful for so many things. That is why, when I opened up the fence hinge (to repair our broken fence) and old pair of gloves Joe so kindly wrapped for me to open on Christmas morning, I giggled. I didn't want/need a single thing more. PLUS, I knew that we just bought a laptop computer for me a month ago that counted as Christmas too ;)

I am also glad that our kids don't have super high expectations for Christmas as well. I am so lucky to have the most wonderful children. Aaron got only 1 thing from his Christmas wish list. Charity as well... (and a couple fillers). They were just thrilled to get something. They are so easy to please and so loving and understanding.

Ok, here is the updated score:
Robinsons: 5
Boar: 0

Aaron was so excited he got to watch them shoot one. He said it immediately fell flat to the ground- dead. For all of you animal lovers who cringe at this report, I could just show you the damage those stupid boars are doing to the property, and show you the reports that the boar population here is OUT OF CONTROL, and you would maybe not be so upset.


PS. Candles don't store well in a NON air-conditioned unit over the summer.

Charity and I took pictures of ourselves. I also dyed my hair dark (to go with my pasty skin).
OK, FINALLY, this forever long post is over

It has been a busy month!

Let us rewind:
We FINALLY found a home!!! It is in a nice neighborhood, it has all the rooms we require, and my kids can walk to school. I am so excited. We will close before Christmas! I am so ready to get my piano back and FINALLY feel settled - to make friends and to make a home for my kids. Our time here has really been tough on the kids - Aaron especially. I am looking forward to living in a neighborhood again, having my kids able to ride their bikes, and make friends, and have a backyard! Ok, enough about that - suffice it to say I am looking forward to having a home again. Living in this 2 bedroom apartment with 3 kids has been a learning experience. It hasn't been COMPLETELY miserable - just the limbo part has been tough. BUT GOOD BYE LIMBO! I KNOW WHERE WE WILL BE NEXT MONTH!! FYI, it is a forclosure, so we are getting a good deal... but we have a bit of work ahead - like replacing the built in microwave they ripped out, fixing carpet they pooped on, and replacing light fixtures they ripped out of the ceiling in places... but beyond that, the house is in good shape. ;)

Here are 2 pictures of why I am so excited about this house - 1. it is beautiful, and 2. it has a really nice kitchen.

ANYWAYS... Living in limbo has offered us an excuse to escape to the ranch every weekend. We sure enjoy that place. The boar has eluded us STILL... reason #1: The Robinsons are crazy. I think any creature would be scared off knowing they were around. #2: There is always an excuse - some of the excuses are that the 4wheelers tip and there are accidents... but other excuses include "I was barefoot" and "I didnt have a gun when I saw the boar" and "It took too long to jump off the 4 wheeler, make sure no other crazy nighttime 4wheeler driver was anywhere near before I took the shot - by then, the boar had run 400 yards..." ya.... Here is my excuse: ROBINSON MALES ARE A BUNCH OF CRAZIES... to catch the boar, they would just have to sit out there and be quiet - but they would rather chase them down on their loud machines... so far?

ROBINSONS 0
BOARS 30.

Enough of the boar... bore...

Thanksgiving was exciting. All 6 Allen kids were in town. We saw Twilight (it was quite an experience sitting next to Dawn - we had our own personal Mystery Science Theatre)...
We went on a ride on the Polar Express - that was sure fun. The kids sent off rockets. We went to the park. We played games. We ate. We saw Ronda, and Koya. We ate. I showed my sisters my new house! We ate. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. It was full of good food and fun times. The kids put on a cute little program (my mom of course had to help them put on the production). It really was just fun to be with my family. It was great to meet Owen's girlfriend. We took family pictures. The boys played in the Turkey Bowl. I for some reason got no pictures... but maybe I will add some in when I find some. We really had a lot of fun playing games together. The kids had a great time together too.
I stopped by the turkey bowl to take pics. I saw Dan make a tackle (grab a flag). Joe QB. Lochlin catch an interception... I think they had fun... you cant beat football on Thanksgiving (oh ya, the REAL Cowboys won too).

Throughout the week, we were pretty concerned about Joe's mom in the hospital.

Friday, after the Polar Express experience (which was really a delight - the kids LOVED it!), I said goodbye to the Allen clan and headed to the ranch. The reason I ditched my family? The Davies! We hadn't seen them for more than a year. My kids had been praying for their cousin Jillian (she has leukemia), but I was afraid they didn't really remember her. Anyways, we had a lot of fun. It is always fun to see family... Except, Joe decided to demolish the RAZOR... so we will just add that to our Christmas list: 1. A house. 2. A fridge 3. A bed 4. A microwave 5. lights for the house 6. A totalled RAZOR... sorry kids, you might not be getting much this year...
actually, to be honest, I am just glad they were ok. Steve had managed to get his arm pinned by that machine a couple weeks ago, and from what I hear, the Joe's wreck was pretty scary - it apparently looked like a nascar wreck with somersaults etc. Luckily, Joe and Tyler (my nephew) had seatbelts on, and the net up, so their limbs stayed in the vehicle, and while their helmets were dingged up, at least their faces stayed in tact.

Sunday, we left the ranch early and headed to Houston to see Joe's mom. She was surprisingly chipper for just having been released from the hospital. She looks great and it was fun to see her. She gave us a scare, but we are relived that she is ok.

On Thursday, Charity got to meet Carly Patterson and Nastia Lupkin at the gym where she takes gymnastics!!! Those two girls actually trained at that gym, so it is VERY cool. They were doing a toy drive autographing thing (quite serendipitous that it was during the same time as Charity's class). SO, rather than sitting and watching Charity, I sat in line. It was so crowded - LOTS of people were there for the event. The timing worked out perfectly - she came out of her class and it was her turn! Aaron was all excited to be on tv (the local news was there)... Nate was just happy to play with the trains. Yes, I love that gym because they have a train table and a tv that plays movies to entertain the tots while mom watches the gymnasts...