Robinson Road

I have found that this blog site doesn't work too well with my Mac for some odd reason.

So we have created a new blog at

http://lifeastherobinsons.blogspot.com/

Please come check us out there and make sure to add the new address to your favorites. :)

Starting Sunday night Savannah and I were struggling with some kind of stomach bug. Savannah was puking all night. I luckily got through the night by taking an anti-nausea pill. By Tuesday we both felt better, but not 100%. Then Tuesday night Savannah was puking by 2 am again. Blu doesn’t do well with throw up so I got up to help and I almost lost my dinner. So gratefully he sent me back to bed with another pill. Being eight months pregnant and throwing up, I am sure just wouldn’t go over well. I ended up with diarrhea, stomach cramping, exhaustion, and contractions.

By Wednesday at lunch things weren’t getting much better for me. When Blu called from work to check on us, I just started crying. He immediately calmed me down like usual and said he would be home in an hour to take care of things and for me not to worry.

Blu truly is the love of my life and the greatest man ever. He came home and said he had cleared his schedule and that he could miss school tonight. He is so amazing when I am sick. He tells me to relax and puts me to bed. He closes the bedroom door and instantly goes to cleaning the house and doing laundry. He always says you can't start feeling better until things around you are clean. He opened some of the windows to freeze out the germs and Lysol’s everything. Usually he is a great surface cleaner, but he really deep cleaned and I found him even dusting.

For dinner he headed out to the store and bought tons of fresh fruits and vegetables. He came home and made a wonderful HOMEMADE soup. He then gave me a priesthood blessing followed by the girls who then wanted one too. Brooklyn asked “Mom, why do always cry during priesthood blessings?” ☺ I am so grateful to have such a wonderful caring husband who honors his priesthood and is always ready and willing to give me a blessing when I need one.

Blu has always been this way when I get sick. I really hope I am just as helpful to him when he isn’t feeling well.

More now than ever Blu and I have been focusing on following the words of our prophets by having family home evening. This past weekend was our stake conference and one of the major themes of the adult session was to not only hold FHE, but to make Monday just as spiritual as Sunday. It is neat for us to sit back and listen to the stories Brooklyn brings home from Primary and the ones Savannah has remembered that we talk about.

I recall when Blu and I taught primary, after finding out all the little secrets of our students home life, we marveled at how much they knew, which at times was more than us. We spent some nights searching for references to what they told us and more often than not the stories held true. I remember thinking how I wanted to be able to teach my children so much at home and not rely solely on the primary teachers to teach it all.

Slowly but surely Blu and I made it a priority to hold FHE each Monday night. Funny how something so simple can at times be so difficult. And funny how something so difficult can turn into something so wonderful. With Blu's schedule being chaotic at best we look forward to this time to spend as a family.

We have done some pretty interesting things these last couple of weeks and feel you can find spirituality in some of the darnedest places. Once we found ourselves wandering through the Bean Museum after a brief discussion about the creation of the world. Oh thank heavens the girls didn't question why these animals were all dead. A week later we had been talking about our bodies and keeping them healthy so we went to the recreation center and went swimming.

And now tonight with the passing of President Hinckley and the press conference of our newly called prophet we talked about the past prophets of the church and practiced the new prophets name of President Monson. We had finally got Savannah to the point that she could identify who President Hinckley was (or as she calls him President Hinkey) now the teaching continues, introducing her and Brooklyn to President Monson. :)

It is weird to now see that their is value in FHE. {Yes, Dad all those years did teach me something. Even though I am 31 now}

Well, there is the fact that I have moved over to what they say is the new 'hip' world of technology. I got a MacBook, therefore making me 'cool'. Except for the fact everything is new and I feel like an idiot. I mean, when I was in school I took keyboarding, not computers! At least the typewriters were electronic, so I am not that old. ;) I do remember us having an Apple IIe computer, but my dad was the one that knew everything, I didn't.

I remember my older brother Jarom making the coolest program on a DOS file where a guy was to jump on a trampoline, but when he put the program into play the guy stayed in the air and the trampoline moved up and down underneath him. LOL We still laugh about it. Even though right now that is how I am feeling with this Mac.

I must say I am enjoying it, but the learning curve will take some time. I made my first iMovie. I edited our home video and put our recent California trip on DVD. The girls LUV it and ask to watch it multiple times a day. Today I noticed that somehow I deleted/lost all of my internet favorites/bookmarks. If any of you find them please let me know, because it took me hours to even get them on this thing in the first place. :)

Just over a week ago we also traded in our Chrysler Town and Country and got my dream minivan. Isn't that the weirdest thing to say... a dream minivan. But seriously, in the world of minivans and kids, the Honda Odyssey is the ultimate. If you have young kids and are currently pregnant (which both apply to me, minivans are a necessity). You don't have to bend down to get yourself and the other toddlers in and out of the car. BTW, that is nearly impossible in my current state. Also the windows on the sliding doors roll down. This is one of the most amazing features since the girls love the wind blowing in their hair, even when it is 24 degrees out. I could go on and on, but it comes down to the fact that it is made for families and is a Honda and I adore Honda's. They are quality vehicles that last and have great resale.

I am now just over 32 weeks along with little Boston. I went to the doctor this week and discussed my current pain situation. We think I have something called Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction (SPD). This is where one of the pregnancy hormones that help loosen your ligaments for labor is on high and loosens/opens your pelvis too early. Therefore causing horrible stabbing pains in your pelvis. There are many times I try to stand up and can not walk it hurts so badly. I have had the same type of pain with all of my pregnancies, but this one seems to be worse. My OB said to take it easy and she remembered prescribing a walker to one of her patients with the same problem years ago. I sure hope that doesn't happen! I am currently considering hiring someone to clean my house, I just can't keep up. Blu is a wonderful help, but right now he is just so busy.

Blu has doubled up his classes so that he can graduate sooner Now he has school twice a week, FT job, private clients, and bishopric duties. Infact tonight he is up Payson Canyon at Camp Maple Dell with the scouts for the Klondike (crazy snow camp) and when he gets home tomorrow afternoon he gets to shower, change, and head over to his 4 hours of stake conference meetings. What a trooper! The girls miss him so much. Most days when he gets ready to leave Savannah says, "But Daddy, I want to keep you." It is the cutest thing ever and just breaks Blu's heart. :(

The snow keeps falling and I can't say I am sick of it yet. We haven't had a winter like this since I was a kid. I would also much rather have snow alternating with beautiful blue skies than our more recent winters filled with inversions. I remember a few years ago we had an inversion in January that lasted for 17 straight days. Really not seeing the sun for that long can drive a person insane, let alone, not being able to see across the street. It is just too claustrophobic for me.

One of the most common questions people ask each other when they are getting acquainted is “What do you do?”  Usually, they are asking about a person’s job, occupation, or career when they ask this. While this may be interesting information, what really makes each of us unique is not so much what we do, but HOW we do what we do. 

Whether you are answering phones, flipping burgers, trading stocks, teaching school, raising kids, flying airplanes, or leading a country; How are you doing what you do?  Do you do it with a cheerful attitude and gratitude, or with grumpiness and cynicism?  Whatever you are doing today, do it with enthusiasm and find the happiness in it.

An interesting point about happiness that I wanted to pass along is that many people spend much of their time and effort trying to find the way to happiness.  This can be very elusive, because happiness is not to be found “out there” somewhere.  I think that we can’t find the way TO happiness because the way IS happiness.  Happiness is a choice, and can be the WAY to create other great things in life.  I also believe that happiness, peace, and joy is your natural state – the way you are when there are not disturbances to that natural state. 

Sometimes we allow life’s circumstances to lead us into the kind of thinking that disturbs our natural happy state.  When you have a choice (and you always do) – choose happiness. As I work with people to help them see how to accomplish happiness in their life, I always emphasize the fact that it is a choice.  Some people challenge this idea, and think that I am asking them to “fake it”.  I heard for an interview in a pod cast that faking it is really just practicing.  You’re practicing how to be happy, so you’re ready when you really are.  You can either practice how to be depressed and miserable, how to be disheartened and resentful, or you can practice how to be joyful.  Either way, you’re going to get really good at one of them.  It’s not likely you will be good at both—each requires too much commitment in time and energy.

What makes me happy? Time, time with my wife, girls, relatives, friends and time on my bike. See the world and enjoy.

Blu