Merry Christmas!

Who can resist getting elfed???

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/ZnH9wL7PcYznzwf9wTko

First snow!

We had the most beautiful snow Thursday night! Not only was it the first snow of the season, but it was probably the most snow I've witnessed since we moved to Nashville over 5 years ago!

Our house Thursday night!

Our house Friday morning!

The girls all bundled up and ready to go outside!


Olivia loved the snow!



Madi pretty much stayed in this exact position the whole time!



Olivia got to play with her friends!

She's here with her best buddy, Maddie Grace.

Scout, Nati, Grant & Drew were out too!

Even Chandler got to come out and play with DJ and Daisy!

Halloween

We had a wonderful Halloween! We started the day by going to the pumpkin patch. It was so awesome! We went on a hay rack ride and Olivia loved all the animals!

That evening Olivia and Madi dressed up as Dora the Explorer and Boots! They were so cute! Olivia's "boy friend" Isom, came over and dressed up as Diego and her BFF Maddie Grace dressed up as Tinkerbell! They had a blast going trick or treating together!

Fall update!

Matching monkey jammies

Just makin eggs :)

Helping daddy work!

Olivia's school picture

My little cowgirl

Watchin Elmo together

Having fun at Dollywood

I love this picture of Olivia

Such a happy girl!

What a fun month!

Well it's been awhile since my last blog, but things have been going really well! Olivia is in and out of her "terrible 2s" and as of lately she has been such a sweetheart!!! Madi is FINALLY sleeping through the night!! YAY!! I knew this day would eventually come, but I'm so glad it's here. Madi is such a good baby! She is so laid back and giggles all the time. I love this age!

Olivia just started gymnastics last week and already LOVES it! I, however, do not love her teacher but that's probably because I was a gymnastics teacher for years and he just doesn't teach the way I would. So I'm a little overly critical. What else is new! ANYWAYS.... the point is, she loves it and is having a blast! She is also starting to communicate so much better. Some of her favorite phrases are "What are ya doin?" (in her best southern belle accent,) "I do it." "Come here." and "Be right back" (which usually means she'll be going to do something she's not supposed to!) I still have yet to cut her hair. I go back and forth about every other week. Some days I think it would look so cute in a little bob, but then there are days when I love it long and the fact that I'm able to put it up in a ponytail with bows. :) We are dabbling in potty training and we have some good days and some bad days. I am definitely open to advice in this area!!! She is absolutely in love with her sister and I swear would claim her as her own daughter if she could. She is constantly wanting to feed her and play with her and so far hasn't gotten jealous of her. I'm sure that will all change as soon as Madi is big enough to fend for herself! haha

Madi is just wonderful. She went through a really tough stage for about 3 months, but ever since the "colic" went away, things have been so much better. She is such a chunky monkey! She has got those rolly polly thighs that you just can't help but squeeze! She is eating cereal and fruits and vegetables and LOVES it all! haha Oh and she loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. She will just sit and watch it and laugh the whole time! I've got video of it I'll try to post! She can almost sit up without support but is taking her time in the rolling and crawling department. She just strikes me as the personality type that is not in any hurry! Wonder where she gets that from!

Well anyways, there's a little update! Hope you're all doing well!!

My New Blog!

Check out my newest blog here!

I decided to start a new blog all about stuff that I like. As most business owners will tell you, word of mouth is usually the best advertisment! Well I decided to start my own blog with this very theme! wordofmouth blog was already taken :( so I had to go with a different name and decided to give wordpress a try as well. Maybe I'll blog about which one is better! haha

Please check it out and post comments about whether you like it as well or not and feel free to post what you like in that catagory instead!!

Happy shopping!!

They're here!!!

Mandy finally got the rest of our pictures posted!!

To view them –
www.weddingimagesonline.com
search for robbins family (spelled wrong)
password nicki – all lower case

She prefers to use this site as a viewing site. If you want to order anything call or email her and she will order it for you!! mandysphotos@att.net

Hope you enjoy them as much as I do!! She did an amazing job!!!

Mommy survey - it's all about Olivia

1. Were you married at the time? Yes, 2 1/2 years

2. What were your reactions when you found out you were pregnant? We were shocked and so excited!! We had been trying for awhile so when the test was finally positive, we were so happy!

3. How old were you? 24 when I found out, 25 when I delivered.

4. How did you find out you were pregnant? Well I had taken a test and it was negative. Then a week later had a dream I was pregnant so I took another one first thing that morning and it was positive!

5. Who did you tell first? Matt of course. Woke him out of a deep sleep! ha

6. Did you want to find out the sex? I didn't, but Matt convinced me to. Glad I did.

7. Due date? June 29th

8. Did you deliver early or late? 7 days early on June 21st

9. Did you have morning sickness? Not really, more like gag reflex when I would brush my teeth. Only had one legitimate throw up on the way home from FL.

10. What did you crave? Meat, Mexican food, caramel apples, ice cream

11. Who irritated you the most? hmmmm, not sure

12. What was your first child's sex? girl

13. How many pounds did you gain throughout the pregnancy? 55

14.Did you have any complications during your pregnancy? None.

15.Where did you give birth? Baptist Hospital, Nashville

16. How many hours were you in labor? Water broke at midnight, she was born at 7:39 am

17. Who drove you to the hospital? Matt

18. Who watched? Just Matt

19. Was it natural or c-section? Natural

20. Did you take medicine to ease the pain? Um yes, epidural please

21.How much did your child weigh? 7lb 9 oz

22.Did your child have any complications? Nope!

23. What did you name him/her? Olivia Nicole

24. How old is your first born today? 2!

25. Who does your child look like? It's a toss up. Just as many people say Matt as they do me. She is definitely a good mix now. When she was born though, she was a mini-Matt!

Mommy survey - it's all about Madilyn!

1. Were you married at the time? Yes, 4 1/2 years

2. What were your reactions when you found out you were pregnant? Definite shock! You know the saying, "It only takes one time!"....................

3. How old were you? 26 when I found out, 27 when I delivered.

4. How did you find out you were pregnant? Kinda had a feeling, so took a test. 1st time's a charm!

5. Who did you tell first? Matt again.

6. Did you want to find out the sex? Oh yes

7. Due date? March 3rd

8. Did you deliver early or late? Induced 4 days early, February 28th

9. Did you have morning sickness? Yep. Was much more sick with this one.

10. What did you crave? Crab won tons, lemonade, ice water

11. Who irritated you the most? again, not sure

12. What was your child's sex? girl

13. How many pounds did you gain throughout the pregnancy? 34

14.Did you have any complications during your pregnancy? None. YAY!

15.Where did you give birth? Baptist Hospital, Nashville

16. How many hours were you in labor? Induced at 7:30 am. Delivered at 1:08 pm.

17. Who drove you to the hospital? Matt

18. Who watched? Just Matt

19. Was it natural or c-section? Natural

20.Did you take medicine to ease the pain? Um yes, epidural please....again

21.How much did your child weigh? 7lb 15 oz

22.Did your child have any complications? Nope!

23. What did you name him/her? Madilyn Claire

24. How old is she today? 4 months

25. Who does your child look like? me :)

5 generations!

Well after almost 2 years, we finally went back to Macomb, IL, my hometown, last month. We went to visit my family and to go to the annual Heritage Days festivities! My Great-Grandmother will be 98 in September and we went to visit her and get pictures with Madi of the 5 generations of women. Pretty incredible if you ask me!

Our Anniversary!

Matt and I celebrated our 5 year anniversary on June 21st! We had such an amazing time, I thought it was necessary to blog about it! I have the best husband in the world!!!

Well Matt decided months ago that he wanted to plan this anniversary and it was going to be a surprise! So back over Memorial Day weekend, we were down in Destin and I was sick as a dog and he said he needed to run an errand. Well when he got back, he walked in with a White House Black Market bag. He told me he had gotten me a surprise for our anniversary! I opened the bag and it was the most beautiful black cocktail dress IN MY SIZE!!!! I was shocked and SO excited!

So fast forward to Thursday June 19th. My parents came up for the weekend for Olivia's birthday and so that Matt and I could celebrate our anniversary! On Friday afternoon, it was time to go! I had packed a bag for the night, but had no idea what was in store!

We left the house, just the two of us, and headed downtown. He first took me to Adagio Day Spa and said he was dropping me off to get a facial and then he would be back for our couples massage! I may have to blog about how the facial went later (not so great, but kind of humorous), but the massage was AWESOME!!! After we were done, he drove us to the heart of downtown. I had no clue what was next. Well he pulled up to The Hermitage Hotel. OK let me just tell you, this hotel is just exquisite. Yes I said exquisite. The only thing I know to compare it to is the Waldorf Astoria in NYC or maybe a Ritz Carlton. It was so gorgeous, I wish I could've had more time to explore the whole thing!

But instead we went straight up to our room on the top floor! Matt got the romance package with a Jr. Suite! (OK side note: so this is not normal. We are usually very conscious about getting a great deal on pretty much everything. This was a VERY SPECIAL OCCASION!) We had champagne and chocolate covered strawberries waiting, a ginormous bathroom, turn-down service with robes and slippers and chocolates on our pillows. Not just any chocolates, I'm talkin truffles or something really fancy like that! :)

So we had a couple hours before dinner so we relaxed and took our time getting ready. I decided to give Matt his present then because I didn't want to have to wait until dinner. I got him a pen. Yep that's right, a pen. Makes me laugh as I'm writing this. But it was not just any ordinary pen. It is a magical pen that cost more than my first car payment. But in his line of work, it is very special to have a pen like this and it is something he has always wanted, so I decided it was time to get it for him! He was SO excited!!! He loved it to say the least!

So we left for dinner, all dressed up, and pulled up at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. This is probably our favorite place to eat. (Watermark is a very close second if not tied.) We had a great dinner, ate WAY too much, and finished with 3 desserts! I can't help myself. So midway through dinner Matt gave me my anniversary present.....in a turquoise box with a white bow. My first Tiffany!

It wouldn't have mattered what was inside really. I was in shock. But just when I thought it couldn't get any better, I opened the box and there was the most beautiful diamond bracelet I have ever seen in my life. Not only was it absolutely perfect, it was significant. 5 diamonds for 5 years. I wear it everyday! I love it!!

So we were debating on whether or not we were going to try to venture out for a night on the town and decided a good nights sleep was much more enticing! So we went back to the hotel and walked in to a room filled with rose petals! Beautiful! The next morning we got room service and had breakfast in bed and then I took a very long, relaxing bubble bath in the HUGE bathroom! This place is just phenomenal!

So after all that, it was time to go home and see our beautiful daughters! We had the most amazing time and I wouldn't trade it for anything! Thank you so much Matt for planning and creating the most memorable weekend of my life! I love you with all my heart!!