Christmas Eve!

This year we were the hosts for my mom's family's Christmas party on Christmas Eve. We were so excited about having all of our family in our new home. We had lots of good food, good conversations and fun w/ Dirty Santa(or white elephant, whatever you call it).

Good Conversation around the food table between: Sharon, Ken, Eva, John S(behind Alan) and Alan.

Partakers of the food table: Jay, Janelle, Nikki, Christian, Uncle Jack and Kathy.

"The Sisters" minus Kathy : Aunt Sue, Aunt Faye and Momma

My cousin Jay and his lovely wife Janelle who travelled all the way from CT. We were fortunate to have them with us and were thankful for Janelle showing us the latest fashion trend: massive hair bows, haha!!

Joy and Jill. I still wonder.....did Jill and I get switched?? They look just like sisters!The young set of cousins: Starting at bottom- Phoebe, Carman, Allie, Josh, Connor, Luke, Jack, Will and Nikki. Purty Youngin's!!

The older set of cousins: Starting at the bottom - Joy, Jill, me, John and Jay. I love this picture b/c John is half way smiling!!

The entire crowd (minus Alan and Sharon-the photographers) : barely visible Jay, Janelle and Uncle Jack!

Mommy/Daughter Baking

I do not know where my kids got their love for being in the kitchen and trying to cook. They sure did not get it from me. For that reason, I try not to discourage this behavior. I got some mommy and me aprons for Christmas this year and Carman loved them. Luke got a Santa one but he was easily distracted and left the kitchen before I could take a picture.

Mommy and Me aprons!

Miss Chef Boyardee!!

8 Things

Rules:

1. Post rules on your blog.

2. Answer the 6 "8" items.

3. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving them a comment.

8 Favorite Shows

1. Lost

2. The Office

3. Jon & Kate Plus 8

4. Dancing with the Stars

5. Grey's Anatomy

6. American Idol

7. Lipstick Jungle (and it is getting cancelled)

8. Heroes

8 Things I Did Yesterday

1. Cleaned 2.5 bathrooms

2. Went last minute grocery shopping for party

3. 2 Loads of Laundry

4. Worked at Day Care for my sister

5. Made oreo truffles for party

6. Decorated house w/ fresh holly for party

7. Had momma over for supper

8. Took a break and looked at blogs!

8 Things I Look Forward To

1. Tomorrow morning when the kids wake up to see what Santa brought them!

2. Our Disney Cruise

3. Christian graduating from graduate school! (that will be a while)

4. Getting unsolicited "i love you mommy" from my kids

5. Date night w/ my husband!

6. Girls Nights Out!

7. New Shoes/Purses!!

8. A good meal that I don't have to cook!

8 Favorite Restaurants

1. Cheesecake Factory

2. Longhorn

3. Olive Gardens

4. Panera Bread

5. Cracker Barrel

6. Los Charros

7. Fresh Seafood from any Beaufort waterfront restaurant

8. University Chophouse

8 Things on my Wish List

1. Kids to be happy!

2. Kids to remain healthy!

3. Kids to choose the right!

4. Kids to get a good education!

5. Christian to advance in his career.

6. To get pregnant sometime in 2009 but lose a few lb.s before that!

7. A pair of Jimmy Choos

8. A Coach bag!

8 People to Tag

1. Charlotte Later

2. Regina Wait

3. Gloria Rowe

4. Kara Thayn

5. Emily Stinson

6. Kelly Rowe

7. Ami Jackson

8. Ashley Anderson

Noteworthy

I had to post this story about Luke so that I don't forget it.
Last week we went to the mailbox and we received a Christmas card from my good friend Jody and she has a little girl named Sarah. I opened the card with the kids at my side and as I opened it I said "Ohhhh, Sarah is so cute!" b/c there was a picture of Jody's daughter Sarah on the front of the card.
Luke then said "let me see"
After handing him the card, he looked at it and said "Oh look it's Sarah Palin!"
It made me laugh so hard. Granted he knows Sarah but he has obviously picked up on the election coverage that we frequently watched during October and November. I guess he is a natural born Republican!

It's the most wonderful time of the year!!

Christmas is upon us and I am enjoying all the joys of the season!
We started last week with a party on Thursday night with the ECU College of Business. It was at the Hilton and they had a very nice meal for us. After the party Christian noted that he doesn't think he wants to be a professor. Even though I am one, I must say.... it is a different crowd than a typical work party.
That same weekend was our Christmas party at church. It was very nice and lots of good food. Too bad that during the nativity re-enactment Luke kept saying "when is this going to be over? I am ready to play basketball." Well... he got it honest... the boy is Christian's son and sports run through his veins. Might I add that after the party, he was shooting hoops and did very good for a 4 year old. Carman was completely occupied during the party b/c Tommy and Allison sat with us and they had the babies with them. Carman tried to make sure that they had a pacifier in their mouth the entire night!



Luke, Jack & Carman before the Church Christmas party! (Jack spent the afternoon w/ us and went with us to the party. He was very proud of the rabbit ears)
Another before the party picture. I like how this one shows the tree in the background. Do you notice how all the ornaments are at one level? Can you tell that I let the kids decorate it? (they had so much fun and were so proud that I couldn't change it)

So.... tonight for FHE we decided to go and see Santa. All day Luke kept telling me "He is not at the mall.... he is at the North Pole." Despite my attempts to explain the situation, he persisted. He gets his hard head from me. So we made the trek to the Greenville Mall. We were unsure about how Carman was going to handle it b/c if you saw the pictures from last year you know that it didn't go too well. Carman is very timid. My girl is even scared of seagulls on the beach. But...... she did soooooo good tonight. She kept saying all day "I am going to shake Santa's hand." Well she did more than that.... she sat on his lap and told him that she wanted Dora. I was so proud of her. Of course Luke did well. As a matter of fact, in the pictures he looks quite relaxed in Santa's lap. He was a very friendly Santa!

Waiting their turn. I love how Luke's head is tilted in this shot.

They did such a good job!

Update on Carman's potty training.... the past couple of days we have revisited potty training and today she only had 1 accident. She even told me on 3 occasions that she had to potty and when I took her she did it. I have been beyond excited w/ her progress today. Maybe by Christmas she will be decently trained. That would be a great gift to her mommy!!

Photo Tag

Here are the rules:

1. choose the 4th picture folder on your computer

2. choose the 4th picture

3. explain the picture

4. tag at least 4 people to do the same

This picture is of Luke at 6 months old. Most of the pictures on my computer are of my children, b/c I hope to capture every single moment that I can, b/c I tend to forget what I had for breakfast, much less what my kids did 4 years ago. I do remember that Luke loved this exersaucer. His favorite thing to do was to gnaw on the green and blue attachment that sticks up. I can still hear him bouncing in that exersaucer. Sweet memories!! Thanks for tagging me Ami!!

I tag....

Leah

Alisha

Lauren

Colette

and whoever else would like to do it.... It is one of the better tags!!

Look Ma... No Training Wheels!!

Last Saturday, the 15th I decided that I was going to do my monthly exercise so I went for a walk around the neighborhood. When I got back I found Christian teaching Luke to ride his bike without the training wheels. At first I thought 'how did Christian convince him to do it?' Every time I ever mentioned it to Luke, he would quickly answer "No" with fear in his voice. But, Luke did a great job and so did Christian!! I tried multiple times to post a video clip and I couldn't get it to upload. Any tips on doing that?

I also wanted to post a picture of Carman with our neighbor Taylor. She is such a pretty girl and I am so thankful that the kids have such a good friend to play with. The last picture is of Carman in a dress that Taylor gave her.

Bunco turned to Yucko

Have you ever heard of Bunco? Well, I have heard of it but I had no clue what it was. A group of ladies in our neighborhood invited me to a Bunco night. I immediately told them I have no idea what it is or how to do it. Apparently it is a dice game (according to my google search). But, I thought it would be a good opportunity to get to know some of the women that live on my street. Well, I had put it on my calendar for last Thursday and I was kinda excited about the new adventure. Thursday rolls around and as I am leaving my last class and walking to my car on ECU campus, Christian calls and tells me his meeting in Winston-Salem has run over and he will not be home until after 8:00. Bunco started at 7:00. I was initially really ticked and then thought I could get someone to watch them. So, I am on my way to pick the kiddos up at my momma's house. I pick them up and I am in McDonald's(close to mom's house) drive-thru giving my order when I look back and Luke is vomiting into his hands. My first thought..."Serenity Now"! I go back to mom's to clean up the car and Luke. He was so pitiful. He is never still and quiet but he was at that point. I didn't mention that Luke vomited in Christian's brand new 2009 car! So after clean up, we head home w/ only 1 time pulling off the road. Once we get home he gets sick 2 more times. And I realized even if Christian gets home soon, I cannot leave Luke. Plus I was worn out! So that is how Bunco quickly turned into Yucko!! Maybe next month I will be able to explain how Bunco works???

Elf on the Shelf

I know it is a little early, but Luke and I were so excited about introducing the Elf on the Shelf to our family.

For those of you who don't know what "Elf on the Shelf" is. Let me briefly explain....I bought this kit from Hallmark that includes a book and an elf. The book explains the whole christmas tradition of "Elf on the Shelf".........So that Santa can see who is naughty or nice, he sends his elves to watch the children. A family can adopt one of his elves and gives it a name and then places it on a shelf in their home. The elf cannot talk (per Santa's request) but the children can tell him anything they want to. The children cannot touch the elf either or his Christmas magic will disappear. But the elf watches the children all day and at night while they sleep, he uses Christmas magic to fly back to the North Pole and give Santa his report. In the morning, when the children wake up, the elf is in a new location and the children have to find it.

Luke is so into this new tradition. As I put him to bed last night he said:

Luke: "Mommy is that elf really going to fly back to the North Pole tonight?"

Mommy: "Yes, he will"

Luke: "How will he do that?"

Mommy: "He will use Christmas magic."

Luke: "Cool, I am going to find him first in the morning!"

Sure enough at 6:45 am I hear "I found it... I found the elf first".

Then later that morning at the kitchen table I overhear the following conversation:

Carman: crying over something

Luke: "Carman, that elf can hear you and he is watching you!!"

Carman: No response (she doesn't really give 2 cents about this elf)

My thoughts are... maybe I should keep the elf out all year!! Nevertheless, I love this time of the year and the best part is seeing it through my children's eyes. They make it so much fun!!

Halloween 2008

The kids checking out their stash of candy from trick or treating.
Our family at the scary house on the block!
Trick or Treat!
Me and my babies!!
Carman, Luke, David G., and Phoebe!
Taking a break at Trunk or Treat!
Cinderella and Luke Skywalker the night of Trunk of Treat!!


I know that I shouldn't be a grump, but I am glad that Halloween is over. It was exhausting!! On Thursday, 30th we had Trunk or Treat at church! So as soon as I got off work, I went to the church. It was nice. The kids did a cake walk and then they went outside to trunk or treat. There was also classrooms in the church that were occupied by different families that decorated their room for halloween. Luke was excited b/c his cousins were there and David Grant from the first ward. Carman loved it b/c Luke loved it!!
The next morning, which was Halloween morning, I took the kids to their parties at the day care. They enjoyed seeing their friends and eating more goodies.
That afternoon, I got the kids ready for the big night. We first visited our neighbors and then we went to our old neighborhood to visit our neighbors there. Then we headed to Aunt Faye's for the real reason for halloween...... Kathy's birthday. I feel so lucky to have Kathy in my life. She means so much to me and I love her so much! My kids have caught the Kathy bug as well. They love her and enjoy being around her. Her sweetness is contagious! All the cousins were at Aunt Faye's and enjoyed being together! There was one guest who wasn't welcome.... "that mean ugly man". My brother-in-law, in the spirit of Halloween, got a hairy monster mask for his costume. He had it on was walking around Aunt Faye's house. I didn't think anything of it, but when I went in the back room of her house, I found my sweet Carman at the very back of the couch. I said "what are you doing Carman?". Her bottom lip started to quiver and her mouth turned to a frown and she said, as tears started to fall "That mean ugly man going to get me." It was so pitiful. She wouldn't let go of me for the next 30 minutes. She still talks about that "mean ugly man" getting her. Carman got past it in time to go trick or treating. We all had a great time. Kathy had a great time as well and she was the belle of the ball. We love you Kathy!!! (I am so upset that I didn't even get her a picture of her)

I had trouble formatting this post, b/c I am using the Mac and I am still trying to figure it out. Sorry!

Ghosts & Jack-o-lanterns!!!

Last week we were all nestled in our home when the doorbell rang and Luke ran to the door. I was in the garage and didn't hear the doorbell, but when I got inside Luke was yelling about us getting a treat. Once I went to investigate I found out that our house had been hit by a ghost..... The Phantom Ghost. This is a fun surprise gift that is left on someone's door without them knowing who left it! You are suppose to copy the letter that comes w/ the treat, gather a bag of treats, and make a little sign with a ghost on it. Then put them all in a little treat bag or basket and leave them on someone's front steps - you cannot let them see you! Of course I love this type of stuff, so I had to post it. The best part was the next night when we "ghosted" 2 neighbors home. It was so much fun!!

Ever since we got our pumpkins, the kids have been anxiously awaiting the opportunity to carve them. So for our Family Home Evening activity this past Monday night, we made our Jack-o-lanterns. At first Luke was hesitant about sticking his hand inside the pumpkin. Of course Carman was not and did not waste any time getting her seeds out. Eventually Luke warmed up to the idea and joined in the festivities. We had a great time!!!

Carman taking her turn at the pumpkin guts!!

Luke going for it! (I love Carman's expression in the background)

The finished products. Mine is the "R" pumpkin for Robinsons and the kids picked the kitten design. Aren't the the 2 cutest pumpkins you have ever seen? (and I am not talking about the round orange things)

What's Happening with the Robinsons!!!

October has turned out to be a very busy month for us. We got Luke's group picture taken for soccer. He had another game today and he played his good buddy David's team. Luke scored 3 goals today, which was critical b/c grandma and poppop came to Luke's game and Poppop LOVES Krispy Kreme doughnuts!!(our tradition of getting doughnuts for every goal scored)

Carman has also been very lucky this past week. Her grandma got her a new table for her room. That she loves to have "Hot Chocolate parties" w/ her babies. Memaw also made her some new window treatments for her room. I love them both. Thanks Grandma and Memaw!

This past Friday we met Luke's class at the pumpkin patch. They had so much fun picking out their perfect pumpkin. After that we went to Chick-Fil-A for lunch.

Tonight we had a Harvest Ho'Down at church and it was so much fun. We had a Chili and Dessert contest. I didn't win anything, but wasn't expecting to either. The best part was that we were taught some basic square dancing moves. It was a lot of fun. Luke even got into it and asked me as soon as we got home to do it again. Sweet Carman even gives it a valiant try as well. So it has been a good and busy October so far!!!

Potty Training!

This is a new record for me: 3 posts in 1 day. I had to post this picture of Carman. This picture pretty much sums up how potty training is going. After a few days of this, I put the potty up for awhile. We will revisit this another time.

Ode to Christian!

This past Wednesday, October 1st was Christian's 32nd birthday. We celebrated by having family and friends over for cake and ice cream. I want him to know how very thankful I am to have such an amazing husband and friend. He does so much for me and our family and he continues to put a smile on my face after 7 years. I hope he knows how very much I love him. Below are some pictures from his party:

Luke and Carman waiting on the front porch for our guests!

2 of my favorite people in the entire world.

Allie, Jack, Luke and Carman (not pictured: Josh, Phoebe & Nikki)

Christian opening some presents and cards!

Goal!!!

This is Luke's 3rd season playing soccer and he loves it! He has made so much progress and I am very proud of him. The first season was ... of course, comical!! All the kids thought the ball was "their ball" and Luke threw several fits on the field. The second season, Luke finally started to grasp the concept behind soccer. The third season, he enjoys playing and is really good. Last game, his prediction was that he was going to score 10 goals. He actually made it half way there. He scored 5 goals. Our tradition is to go to Krispy Kreme after each game and he can get the same amount of doughnuts as the number of goals he scores. He loves this tradition and does not let us forget it. He is going to empty our wallets and expand our bellies, though! Here is a picture of him about to score a goal at his last game.

Obama's Clock

I got the following email the other day and I thought it was so funny. Enjoy!


A man died and went to heaven. As he stood in front of St. Peter at the Pearly Gates, he saw a huge wall of clocks behind him. He asked, 'What are all those clocks?' St. Peter answered, 'Those are Lie-Clocks. Everyone on Earth has a Lie-Clock. Every time you lie the hands on your clock will move. 'Oh,' said the man, 'whose clock is that? ''That's Mother Teresa's. The hands have never moved, indicating that she never told a lie.' 'Incredible,' said the man. 'And whose clock is that one?' St. Peter responded, 'That's Abraham Lincoln's=2 0clock. The hands have moved twice, telling us that Abe told only two lies in his entire life.'Where's Senator Obama's clock?' asked the man. 'Obama's clock is in Jesus' office. He's using it as a ceiling fan.


Let me add that I think just about every politician out there has told more than his/her fair share of lies, but since this joke highlighted Obama I loved it!!!

We are the Pirates of ECU, hey!!

I love love love my Pirates. I am so freakin' proud of them tonight. Today they beat down the #8 team West Virginia at Dowdy Ficklen Stadium. It was an awesome game. The crowd filled with fellow ECU fans didn't stop cheering the entire game. The pirates totally dominated the Mountaineers. If you are at all interested in how good the Pirates played, visit any sports website, b/c I don't mean to brag, but we are the "talk of the town"!! Below are some pictures from the game.

One more thing before I end this post, we had a social at the house on Labor Day for the Elders Quorum group at our house. Below is a picture that the kids paused for 1 second to let me take.

Our 4 year old aspiring artist and The Trip to Charlotte

I had to post the latest adventure with my 4 year old little boy! Last Sunday I went like any other Sunday to pick Luke up from his Sunbeam class but this time it was a bit different. When I picked him up I instantly noticed that he didn't look the same as he did when I dropped him off. During his time in Sunbeams that day he had managed to color his face and arms and managed to completely miss his clothing (thank goodness). At first I was shocked and then mad and later when I got home I had to keep turning my head to laugh so that he couldn't see me. He never gave me a good reason as to why he wanted to color himself. I thought it was a boy thing but Camille in his class did it as well. But trust me, she didn't color half as much as Luke. Maybe he is an aspiring artist! Oh by the way, immediately following church that day was my Grandma Phoebe's 94th birthday party. So I had to bring him home and put him in the tub. The water turned blue once he got in.

This past weekend we travelled to Charlotte to see the ECU vs. Virginia Tech game in the Bank of America Stadium. We decided to bring Luke and Carman stayed with Joy for the weekend. We left Friday afternoon and as soon as we hit the road the fun began. The entire ride up to Charlotte we were joined by several Pirate fans flying their flags. That night we went to eat at TGIFriday's and noticed that Lowe's Motor Speedway was not even a mile from the restaurant. Since Luke is a huge racecar lover (thanks to the movie "Cars", trust me, we don't watch Nascar or anything), we decided to take him by the track. It was dark and we couldn't get in and we couldn't really see anything. He was disappointed but we promised him that if he behaved at the game that we would bring him back by the track. So we went to our hotel and after letting Luke swim in the pool we finally went to sleep. Since Luke stayed up way past his bedtime, we assumed that he would sleep in the following morning. WRONG. He was up at his normal 7:00. We got ready and left for the game. Once we parked our car, we saw nothing but Pirate and Hookie fans. It was great! The stadium was huge. The first half of the game I had to get past the heat. The second half, I didn't even think about it. The game was sooooo good. I am sure that you know by now that we won! Now, I cannot wait until this Saturday for the West Virginia game. I hope it doesn't get rained out. Go Pirates!!!

Notice Luke's face. He was not as excited as we were. Despite his tiredness and desire to go to the racetrack, he was really good.

So, after we witnessed the Pirate victory, we took Luke by the Lowe's Motor Speedway. Please notice the difference in his expression in this picture from the one above. He was in heaven at the racetrack.

I cannot leave out my precious Carman in this post. I constantly thought of her as we were away but knew she was in the best of hands. I don't know what we would do without Aunt Joy. Below is a picture of Carman helping Grandma Phoebe blow out her birthday candles.