Goodbye, Summer!

Well, another summer has come and gone. We have spent lots of time sleeping, playing, and sweating. I would love to say that we traveled to some place exotic, but we haven't made it more than 60 miles from home. That's ok, we still had a good summer! We are making plans to go on a vacation later in the fall. Basically, we are not summer people. I hate hot Texas summers!

Aidan is getting ready for 1st grade. Initially, we were planning to homeschool, but after some careful consideration we opted to send him to school. Public school was NOT ever in my plans, as I have always generally had a disdain for all things public school. However, my best laid plans did NOT intersect with God's plans and we are going to give it a go. I am just praying my heart out that this is successful for Aidan and our family. I am positive that it will be. Thus far, everything has been a rather pleasant surprise. I am glad that we happen to be in a very good school district, with lots of great resources.

I am going back to school and will be starting Monday. I am hopeful that I can somehow juggle college with my already hectic life. I will have to learn to study with a squirmy baby on my hip and a preschooler that wants to play Barbies. Hopefully, I can study and do homework at some point while Aidan is at school.

Izzie has lots of plans for ballet, gymnastics, and art classes this fall. I am looking forward to girly things. I love my precious time with her! She often tells me about all of her life plans for when she is big like me. She tells us that she is going to be a firefighter and plans to be Daddy's partner. She loves wearing her bunker gear around the house. Izzie is sporting a new hairdo that she gave herself. It is something like a mullet, but more fashionable. She cut her bangs to the scalp on one side and refuses to help in my efforts to try and cover the bald spot. Oh, well...it's just hair right?

Noah is crawling ALL over the place, pulling up on anything that will sit still for 2 seconds(including Phoenix) and cruising already. All of this from an 8 month old. He has 6 teeth and is working on number 7. He has a precious smile and a gruff little laugh. He makes all kinds of amazing noises that I am convinced only little boys can make. He adores his big brother and sister. He loves nothing more that to be carried around by a doting Aidan or pulled by his feet by big sissy. He just laughs!

Back into the swing of things bright and early Monday!

Round 7 and our poor old girl

Lynsey had brain surgery number 7 this past week. Her tumor came back and needed to be removed once again. She came through like a champ. I desperately want this thing to go away and never return. I pray and pray for God to give her a miracle, but sometimes it just feels like I am beating my head against a brick wall. I am hopeful though and know that God has a perfect plan in all of this. Lyns was released on Wednesday(she was in and out in two days)which is amazingly speedy. She had to go back for testing and re-hydration today as she has been throwing up non-stop. She just keeps her chin up and pushes through it. Tomorrow, I will be taking her a Frappuccino! She is my hero!

Our dog, Allie, is very old and frail. She is not doing too well these days. She has a very large tumor that is getting worse every day. She is also blind and deaf. Today she fell and couldn't get up. She just looked up at me with her legs all sprawled out with this look that said "please help, I just can't". I just lost it. I cried and helped her find a spot on her blanket to lay down. I have a giant rug spread out on the tile so she doesn't fall anymore. I really thought I was tougher than this, but I guess not. She has always been so sweet, but very detached(and a pain in the butt sometimes). I am finding that it is taking more of a toll than I thought. James and I adopted her 10 years ago. She was our first major decision together.She has been with us through the birth of 3 kids. She has tolerated being climbed on and more. Poor old girl. I wish she would just pass in her sleep so that we don't have to make this decision.

Hair cut on a hot summer day

That's what Izzie did today. Oh yes, she found the scissors and applied them directly to her hair. She thought she needed a cool summer mullet. Business in the front, party in the back! In all seriousness, it's not pretty. She cut her bangs and a little more about 1/8 inch from her scalp. I will now be doing a comb over on a three year old. It's a hot mess. Maybe if I sprinkle Miracle Gro on it, it will grow more quickly.

In other earth shattering Robinson family news, Noah has tooth number 6. Seriously, for a 7 month old, that's alot. He is so mobile now. He is all over the place and very active. God gave me a short break with Izzie. She was always a very good baby. She didn't sprint away from me or climb the shelves at Target(I use Target as an example because it's my fave). I love all of my people, even the ones that are attempting to "fly" off of the dining room table or stick some type of object in an electrical socket(kidding, they are child proof) or use the nearest object as a pretend gun. Dear Lord, please give me the energy to chase another little boy. Amen.

Just got back from the water park. Pretty sure that I'm sun-burned. Even Noah had a blast playing in the water. Aidan doesn't like to swim unless he has no less than a dozen flotation devices. He is so petrified of water and I'm not sure why. He just knows that he will drown if his face touches the water. Now for dinner...chicken caesar salad and bread. Yummy!

Date Night

Not much to report these days, just the usual summer stuff. It's 546 degrees outside and I hate Texas summers. It's too hot to even move!

I made Izzie a superhero cape. Appliqued with her initial of course. She says that she is "Super Izzie", and I wholeheartedly agree. She finished her first ballet session this week. I am trying to get videos up, but haven't had the time yet. She is a graceful little thing and can't wait for more dance time. I am also trying to get a picture of the funniest face that she has started making. She crosses her eyes and scrunches her nose. I could sop her up with a biscuit! Seriously.

I was taken out on a date to Chili's and CVS by the MOST handsome 6 year old to walk the face of this earth. Ladies, back off - he's mine. Aidan was ever the gentleman. He opened the car door(nevermind the fact that he crawled all over me and stepped on various body parts trying to get to his seat) and the door at Chili's. So sweet. He ordered his 2nd favorite meal. Chips and ranch. He also had a corn dog, sans the outer part and fries also. I have never understood why he peels them. The outside is the best part! He just eats the weenie. Crazy boy. It was priceless getting to spend one on one time with my special guy. We talked about lots of things. Right now, Lynsey needing surgery number 7 is weighing heavily on me. He always seems to pick up on when I'm not my normal self. He and I are very connected in that sense. He is a very sensitive boy despite his outward wildness. We had a great time! Oh, and the gum...the kid loves his Trident Layers. And a big multi pack no less!

Noah is growing so FAST. It's not right. He is already pulling up on things, crawling and rolling around, and soooo proud of his five(will be six in about a day) teeth. Not every 7 month old can say that.

I am blessed with the best(and craziest)kids. In my humble opinion, of course.

Alright, it is almost 1 in the morning and I have soccer mom obligations that I will gladly be fulfilling at 7am. I am off to get 12 minutes of sleep.

8th of July

Belated post of 4th of July and other thoughts bouncing around in my brain.

We started our celebration of the 4th on the 3rd with a party at my parents place. Good times were had by all - well, mostly. Noah is scared of fireworks unless viewed from the safety of the house. My cousin put together a phenomenal fireworks display that almost didn't happen as a result of rain. Fortunately, it let up for a short time. There was a scary moment that involved flames shooting out and fireworks going in all directions as my brothers girlfriend took cover by the deck. The kids spent the day swimming and sliding on the water slide. Until the storm came in...

We were also able to meet my brother's(Jordan)girlfriend and spend some time getting to know her. She is so perfect for him! She is a little country and has a real heart for God. What could be better?

On the actual 4th, James was working so the kids and I had a fairly lazy day. In the evening, we grabbed some ice cream and found a cool place out at the lake to watch fireworks. We were all in our jammies and flip flops. I love spontaneous outings like that.

Please excuse me, but I just had another random firing of the brain and failed to mention that DeAnna took family pics for us. Can't wait to see the ones of the kids! The kids were SO done by the time that we got to family poses. It was very muggy and everyone was really thirsty and tired.

My Noah has cut three teeth this week alone! Two today and one right at a week ago. That makes five! Oh, how I will miss my gummy grins! Speaking of, he just woke up...AGAIN.

I'd settle for a slowdown - just a little though

Wow, this has been a busy month. Aidan had VBS at First Baptist Wylie. They are an amazing church with lots of great programs for elementary aged kiddos. It was themed "Saddle Ridge Ranch". He had a great time and learned a few valuable lessons! We had a one week gap and then had VBS at our church, Plano Bible Chapel. I was in charge of crafts for 3's, 4's and Kinder. Man I love those ages! They are such a darling group with lots of sweet personalities. It required a good bit of prep, but I heart crafts in a major way. It was fun to be able to work with the kids and still have all of my kids with me. LOVE my church! It is full of people that truly have a servants heart, and a heart for God.

Izzie started Ballet a couple of weeks ago. Watch out all other ballerinas, cuz here she comes! It is such a pleasure to watch her and all of the other bitty ballerinas dance their little hearts out. It has given me time to spend with her - true Izzie time. I so look forward to years of enjoying mother/daughter moments. I love them!

This month should be less hectic. I am beginning to work on lesson plans as we have decided to home school Aidan. I'm really looking forward to it! I am reading so many books to educate myself on how best to achieve our goals. I think this is going to not only be a great learning experience for him, but fun for our entire family. He is going to be participating in co-ops with the goal of putting him in Wylie Prep next year. We will just have to see where the road takes us. James and I are making plans that may involve some HUGE changes. More on that at a later time.

Noah has now cut a third tooth. An upper canine! He is very early on that - not to mention very stuffy and fussy. My poor baby boy. I live for his precious grins though.

I have a date to play Barbies now!

Soccer Mom

I can totally rock that title! We scrambled into the "Swagger Wagon" first thing to get to Aidan's soccer game. Can I say that my kid rocks at defense? Ok, he does sometimes trip over the ball, or his feet, or even the air, but he makes it look cool. Not everyone possesses that skill. After the game - "Mom? Was I awesome or cool?" "Duh, you were both!" The things that come out of his mouth never cease to amaze. Sometimes good and sometimes not so much.

James was at work, so the kids and I kicked it at the house most of the day. There was a little World Cup watching, Homeward Bound, and Transformers at bedtime. Homeward Bound still makes me cry. It's that moment that Shadow comes limping over the hill towards his boy. I have an incredible soft spot for Golden Retrievers. All other dogs are second to Goldens. The ultimate dog for me, was my dog, Luke. Luke was my dog growing up - my bestie with four legs. He passed away when I was pregnant with Aidan. Oh, I loved that dog! I could tell a million stories about him, but I won't. Fortunately, our yellow lab, Phoenix, reminds me so much of him. Love his big, dorky-ness! My favorite moment with Phoenix was a few months ago when we came home to find that he had gotten into the trash(not cool) and had gotten a box stuck on his head. Don't know how long it had been stuck, but it was greatness!

This week, Noah has had two teeth come through. My sweet baby has handled it like a champ. He thinks he is so big and wants to eat whatever I eat. He looks up at me with his precious round face and smacks his lips. No baby food for this one! He has also gotten incredibly mobile! He is army crawling and rolling to his desired destinations. Props for resourcefulness! He is having sitting up issues. He is very wobbly and reminds me of a Weeble. Ya know how Weebles just wobble around? That's Noah. Apparently his tushy is too round:))

In other news, Aidan just finished VBS at First Baptist Wylie. That church is awesome! If we didn't love our church so much, we would be at FBS. They do so many cool things for kiddos. Aidan had a blast and is going to the Zoo with them in a couple of weeks. Since he went to school their, he has several friends that go as well. Should be fun.

Our little Molasses fancies herself a ballerina and can't wait for ballet this week. We had a mishap this last week and she was unable to go. I had to explain why she had to have TWO shoes to dance. One would not do the trick. Unless she wants to be a one-legged ballerina. I don't know, but that sounds tricky. One ballet slipper is still AWOL. If anyone sees it - tackle it. My baby needs to dance! She is the CUTEST ballerina that God put on this earth - love her!