October 28, 2008

All about 8's


Thanks Brooke for the fun and easy tag!










8 Favorite TV Shows- I don't watch much TV, some may think I live under a rock but, here are a few that I do like.

1. The Office
2. CSI- NYC and LV
3. Mad TV (some times)
4. King of Queens
5.6.7.8
















8 Favorite Restaurants
1. Texas Roadhouse Grill
2. Gurus (Center Street in Provo)
3. Yapona Japanese (great sushi for Utah)
4. Bangkok Thai
5. Bombay House (Indian)
6. Cannella`s (Italian in SLC)
7. Tucano's Brazilian Grill
8. Little America (Sunday Brunch- is exceptional)

8 Things That Happened Yesterday
1. Had breakfast at Einstein Bagels (a pumpkin bagel w/pumpkin smear)
2. Caught some of the Dr. Laura show
3. Squeezed in extra snuggle time w/Stephen
4. Looked at the Grapes and Apples I need to can and wondered when I might find time
5. Orchestrated Olivia's Birthday Party (16 kids)
6. Sang Karaoke: Sweet Child of Mine (Sheryl Crow version)
7. Did homework with kids @ 8:00pm- after the party
8. Took time to read a Bible story to the kids, even though we got to bed late

8 Things I'm Looking Forward To
1. Growing my garden next year
2. Fall Trip to Manhattan, New York: shopping,the great restaurants,Christmas window displays, the street vendors, the arts and culture, the bliss energy of a Manhattan
3. The BYU vs Utah game
4. Family time
5. Accomplishing goals
6. Working on food storage
7. Date night with Stephen
8. Service opportunities

8 Things I love About Fall
1. The sound of crunching leaves beneath my feet
2. Kids playing in the colorful fall leaves
3. The crisp and smokey autumn air
4. The fashion of fall- sweaters, boots and scarfs
5. The inviting colors of fall, so warm and natural
6. Smells from the kitchen of spiced soups, breads, chili,
7. Football Games and parties
8. Change

8 Things On My Wish list
1. To go to Africa with Chandler,Alexis and Olivia to see Emily (have always wanted to go and have a great reason to now- My husband willing?)
2. Have a home that looks and feels inviting (like out of Better Homes and Garden)
3. For Alexis,Olivia and Chandler to know what a beautiful gift life is
4. To practice more charity and patients
5. See the tombs and pyramids in Egypt and ride a camel
6. Discover something scientific
7. Rock climb with my kids
8. Kayak a grand river

8 People I Tag
1. Meridith
2. Melanie
3. Jessica
4. Jordan
5. Aubrey Willcox
6. Angela
7. Mother Teresa
8. Obama

October 24, 2008

Olivia- The Birthday Girl!

It's always a party at our house. People coming and going or even with our own little family we somehow manage to make life fun. When it comes to birthdays, we go all out! A birthday, means we celebrate for a good couple of days. Olivia's Birthday started out with a nutritious breakfast of her favorite kind of breakfast, donuts and chocolate milk, a boisterous "Happy Birthday" song sang by all and Olivia did a birthday dance around the kitchen.



Monday, October 27 we plan to have a party with friends at Classic Skating. We are renting the Karaoke Room. Olivia, is super excited. I will have to post the pictures.

October 22, 2008

Husband Tag - Pretty Fun!

Husband Tag... It just might be the best kind




















1. Where Did You Meet?
It was all in the name of pastrami. We met at a local sandwich shop, Gandolfos. Stephen swears he spotted me first and I swear I saw him first. We kept eyeing each other, I felt this incredible attraction to him. Something about those radiant blue eyes that drew my attention his way, it was as though his eyes spoke to me. The click was instant and the attraction deep.I tried to get brave and find a way to say hello, but I am old fashioned about certain things and men and women's roles. I couldn't bring myself to take the first initiative. My sister Melanie was with me having lunch and a couple of friends. Stephen was there with a few co-workers. My sister noticed I kept looking over and checking out this guy (Stephen), she took it upon her self to go over and find out if he was married, I didn't notice a ring. So Melanie walked right up and said "My sister wants to know if you are married." I about died, I felt like I was in high school. I pretended to act oblivious, then she called me over, we were introduced and he got my number. Oh, it was so awkward-
I was just giddy and super excited for his call. Stephen had never heard of the two day rule, he called me after work that day and invited me to go out that night. I hesitated thinking "doesn't he know about the two day rule?" you can't seem that anxious right off the start. Despite my rule, I accepted and we met up that night. He was super late and I was convinced that I had been stood up. Great relief came when he showed up, I gave him a little grief in a humorous way for standing me up. He had a good enough excuse, so we got our night started. Our first date lasted into the wee hours of the morning, we enjoyed each others company so much.

2. How Long Did You Date Before Marriage?
We dated for a year and got married the year mark to the date we met. So, we got married on the same day we met. This was both our second marriage. As Stephen and I got engaged and started making plans for marriage, I didn't want a full blown wedding, I was fine with just eloping or a simple ceremony. Stephen was such a gentleman, he wanted to give me a nice wedding. I never had the white wedding most little girls dream of. I down played the whole wedding thing and had convinced myself it was silly to have traditional wedding. Stephen insisted and to this day I am always so thankful in my heart that my husband felt I was worthy of the best wedding possible. Our wedding was so amazing, the most beautiful day created with a man who truly cherishes me. Our wedding to this day is still talked about by so many people and the best thing was that our three children got to be a part of it all and the memories they talk about warms my heart.



3. How Long Have We Been married?
Four great growing and loving years.

4. What Does He Do To Surprise You?
Stephen is always full of surprises:) He keeps me smiling! Sometimes he'll send flowers when he goes on long business trips, spoils me by taking me on surprise trips. Stephen surprises me when he sings impromptu songs he makes up all on his own. Last week he wrote me a poem for the very first time, I loved it. A super surprise is when he volunteers to do laundry. Yeah, my husband is pretty great-

5. Favorite Feature?
I make the assumption this is asking for physical feature? love it all, but my favorite feature of his would be Stephen's eyes. Eyes are the window to ones soul and my hubby has good soul. There are other features I would admit, but...
this is a blog my children and sisters read.


6. Favorite Quality?
Great qualities is not something Stephen falls short of. He posses a great gift of knowledge and admired a lot because of his intelligence. I sometimes have to remind him, that not every one is as smart of him. Another great quality of his is that he is integrable. EXAMPLE: we go to the BYU games and one of my family members has a handicap parking pass, we got offered to use it and Stephen took such a integrable stand, I was all about the pass. So, thank you honey for keeping me honest.
I love how patient he is too, I learn many great things from him. Stephen is also quite the funny guy. Some people don't always know how to take him because he comes across as the serious type, but watch out- He'll try and pull you leg. We have a lot of laughs together, keeps life in check.

7. Does he have a nick name for me?
*Char-Bucks, he came up with that all on his own.

8. Favorite Color?
* Blue- he looks really awesome in this color too.

9. Favorite Food?
*Steak- we both like a lot of the same foods.

10. Favorite Sport?
* Are you ready for some FOOTBALL? We love football season in this house. Stephen plays with the guys in the neighborhood every Saturday morning. Also, Steve should have been a pro golfer- he has amazing drives.

11. When and Where Was Our First Kiss?
Stephen tried to kiss me on our fist date, he was hard to turn down but, I resisted and only because I really liked him. Yeah, I know it doesn't make a lot of sense. Four dates and a week later, after a romantic dinner date at Sundance our fist kiss happened and all I can say is it was WOOOOOOOW. After four years of marriage and this is no lie, it's still that great.

12. What Do We Like To Do Together?
Stephen and I are truly best friends, we do everything together. Some of our favorite things to do together is vacationing, taking walks, golfing, watching and going to football games. Watching movies in bed, while eating ice cream. Making Sunday breakfast together. We get out on the dance floor every now and then, Stephen is a pretty good country dancer.



13. Do We Have Any Children?
Only the three most adorable kids ever. Alexis, Chandler and Olivia. We are a blended family, my blog name "soothing smoothie" derives from the term blended family.














There is no his or hers, they are ours. No greater joy than our children and my husband. We learn a lot from one another and share lots of giggles.

14. Does He Have Any Hidden Talent?
Stephen, is a great cook. He makes the best omelets I have ever had, omelets are his specialty. He does cool sketches, they are better than he realizes. He sings well, I really like it when he sings(serious, I really do). But this is his most hidden talent.
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15. How Old Is He?
33 years old and like a fine wine or a delicious cheese he becomes more refined with age.

16. Who Said I Love You First?
He did- I remember the moment well. We were standing outside my condo, about ready to part ways and I was on the curb saying good bye with a kiss and hug. He pulled me back and said "I think I love you." I teased weeks later about the "I think" part. That can be such a awkward moment the first time you tell someone you love them.

17. What Is His Favorite Type Of Music?
He is quite diverse when it comes to music. If you have ever seen Office Space he is like the white guy driving to work who cranks up the rap music, I don't know why but this has always cracked me up- he just doesn't look the rap type.
When we first met he would play Bocelli, this was so appealing, I was raised on Pavarotti. Stephen is a sap for country music, I dare say this is his favorite.

18. What Do You Admire Most About Him?
His charming sense of humor, that he is a very dedicated man in all aspects of his life, he is charitable, very trust worthy and often reminds me that he is an Eagle Scout. I admire his passion, but the thing I admire most is no matter how busy the components of life seem to get, I really feel like he puts me and family above all.

19. Do You Think He Will Read This?
He just may. This blog is primarily my way of keeping a family journal.


My sister in-law Meredith, who I just adore, recently put up a blog.
She has challenged me to husband tag, at first I thought it was kind of funny, I thought of it more like a chain type thing, which I ordinarily would shy away from but because it came from her I decided to do it and Tag my sister in-law Jessica and Brooke... It's actually a pretty fun focus!

October 7, 2008

Prepared?

There has been a stir of a question in my mind as to whether or not I would be prepared If faced with natural disaster of some type.


So, I came to the conclusion I am not. Especially after seeing what happened in hurricane Ike and past devastation's.



I myself have experienced a hurricane(Inki, Hawaii-1993)and know first hand the havoc that takes place, people get crazy. They run to the store when the warning is sent out and they horde supplies, it reminded me of what one might experience on Black Friday.

I dreamt the other night of an earthquake, one of those dreams that jolts you up out of bed. The first thing that came to my mind of frenzy was... I have got to get my water supply filled. I have many empty water storage containers out in my garage and only a couple of them are filled. I also decided to make a fun, but educational lesson for the kids and we worked on our survival kits that we started last summer as one of our summer school projects. We spent two hours going over our packs and family plan. The kids and I had a good time together, it got quite comical.
















Items we have in our emergency packs.

* Hygiene items: Shampoo, conditioner,lotion,tooth brush/paste,chap- stick and biodegradable toilet paper
* Emergency Blankets
* Hand Warmers
* Glow Sticks
* Poncho
* Whistle
* Compass
* Water filter and micropur tablets
* Matches, some water-proof
* Basic first aid kits
* Ginger, antacid
* Electrolyte replacement
* Bug repellent
* Water
* Pocket Knife
* Flint stone
* Magnifying glass
* Flash light
* Book (for entertainment)
* Bag of candy(for morale boost)
* MRE kits

"TEAM ROBERTS" is in check!

With the economy and it's unsteady position it plays into my mind that the pattern though different, reeks much of the same trend that lead to the great depression.
Watching the falling of the economy has opened my eyes to how I would choose to "prepare" for what could lie ahead.

October 3, 2008

The Winds of Change

Autumn has fallen, It's like it almost comes out of know where. Last week, I looked out upon the mountains and I spotted the color splashes. When I saw this I couldn't help but to get a wash of exciting cause and sensation. So, I planned it in my mind to get a better look, and headed up to Sundance.

As Stephen and I walked the familiar paths and we stood on the bridge where he proposed marriage, I perceived it to be like the pages out of some romantic story book- minus the Japanese tourist taking pictures.

We conversed of the winds of change in our lives, the type of conversation that is as deep as the red crimson maple leaves in the fall.

How life is ever changing with children, jobs, economically, spirituality, physically. We go through photosynthesis. The scientific term photosynthesis can go into great textbook depth all just to understand the change in color of the fall leaves. Photosynthesis which means "putting together with light" Is what allows the leaves to turn the beautiful colors they do.

On the way down the mountain and the perfect day it was, I rolled my window down to take in the spiritual moment. My eyes fixed on God's painted canvas of such beauty and then let the wind of change rush trough my hair. Knowing life is sweeter when we can appreciate change.