Payson Part 1

Payson Nicks Robinson was born on November 9th 2013 at 2:49am. At that moment I became what I was meant to be... A mom.

So many people have advised me to write down Pace's birth story and all my thoughts and feelings. Since this is the closest thing I have to a journal... Here it goes...

Part 1...(I'll break it up for all our sakes.)

On Monday November 4th I pretty much knew my son was coming that week. I don't have these strong feelings very often, so when I do I take them pretty serious. However, because I was so convinced my baby was coming... I had two false alarms during the week. One of them resulted in me going to the hospital because I was convinced my water broke. However, it turned out I just peed my pants. Yeah. You read that right. I'm awesome. Just add that to my LONG list of embarrassing moments. It's fine. Anywayyy the rest of the week consisted of lots of walks, timing contractions, and my husband begging me to SOMEHOW go into labor. He was just a little excited for Payson to come. It was adorable.

The week was pretty emotional for me. Up until that point, having my baby seemed so far away. I had a pretty easy pregnancy and was still waiting for things to become unbearable and miserable. Reality hit me hard. Too many emotions. So little time. I wrote this one night when I was trying to sleep.

"11/6- I'm laying in bed. It's 10:18. My amazing husband is laying right next to me already asleep. We just said our prayers. As I prayed I asked our Father in Heaven to have Payson cherish these last couple moments in heaven. I prayed that our Father in Heaven would tell our son He loved him. That He would be looking over him while he was on this earth and to let him know he will never be alone. I hope Payson will always be able to feel His Father's love on this earth. That although he won't be able to remember it, I prayed Payson will be able to feel the comfort of God's last embrace before he came to this earth. I can't wait to meet our little guy. I want to hold him and cuddle him and kiss his sweet cheeks. I want to tell him I love him. I want to see Corbin hold him. I can't wait for that. Corbin will be the most incredible dad. I'm laying in bed and have no idea what the next couple days hold. But I have faith that everything will go perfect. I can't say I know exactly what being a mom will be like. I can't even say for sure I'm ready or I'll be a good mom. But I can say I will do everything I can to provide and take care of Payson. I know I will love him unconditionally. It's not going to be easy. In fact, it's probably going to be really hard. I'm going to get frustrated, sad, mad, exhausted, and probably feel like I've failed. But I have the best support group. I have my Father in Heaven, my husband, my parents, my sisters, and so many others who are there for me and Payson. I'm scared. I'm excited. I'm giddy. I'm nervous. But mostly, I'm grateful. I hope Payson loves me. I hope I'm a good mom. I hope he serves a mission. I hope he gets sealed in the temple. I hope he will always be a worthy priesthood holder. I hope he loves to cuddle. I hope he loves his cousins as much as I do. I hope he listens to his dad. I hope he is strong and brave. I hope he is healthy. I will tell him I love him everyday of his life."

Little did I know I would be holding Payson almost 48 hours later.

To be continued...

Marriage Myths

Corbin and I have been married 3 and 1/2 months. That only can mean two things:
1.We've made it longer than Kim Kardashian
2. We've made it through 3 menstrual cycles
Both of which are accomplishments in case you were wondering.

Since we've been engaged and even now, people have been telling us what marriage is like and what to expect. So I wanted to share with you what I've found to be myths and truths about marriage. (These apply to us not necessarily everyone)

•  "Little things about your spouse will drive you crazy... Like how they eat their oatmeal!" - WHAT. THE. CRAP?!? First of all... Neither of us eat oatmeal.. Second of all... I can't even imagine a way that someone could possibly eat oatmeal that would drive me crazy? MTYH. (Although Corbin does squeeze the toothpaste tube from the top and not the bottom... but we've had our "talks" about that.)
• "Being domestic is fun"- HA.... And that's all I have to say about that... MYTH
• "Do ONE nice thing a day for your spouse."- MYTH-- do 2.
• "Splitting up holidays between families is hard." A-FREAKING-MEN. It was pretty much that movie Four Christmases. (I've never really seen that, I'm just judging off the title so don't hold me accountable for any content in the duration of the film.) TRUTH
• "DIYS will become addicting and your new pass time"- Who am I and what have I done with Jenna?! TRUTH
• "Laundry isn't too bad for just two people" Not when you're living proof that the myth about "losing socks in the laundry" is true. And not when you had never done laundry before you got married... MYTH.
• "Transitioning to sharing a bed with someone is easy. You'll love it!"- For me: TRUTH, for Corbin: MYTH. A diagonal starfish is my position of choice while sleeping.... This leaves Corbin with 1/5 of the bed. (And don't think that's a random number... He measured.)
• "The first year of marriage is so hard."- For us, this has been a myth for sure. Yes, we have our moments, but it's been a really easy and fun transition for the both of us. We dated for longer than the average Mormon couple and knew each other better than the back of our hands before we got married. I think that has helped a ton to make it extremely easy. I can honestly say there have been no "surprises" for either of us about living with each other. (How creepy is that term "surprises" while talking about that?!)
• "Get Neflix."- TRUTH! Best decision we've made in our marriage thus far. Expect.. we didn't really "get" Netflix.. So shout out and a big thanks to my sister Katie for letting us use her account!
• "Marriage is the best thing ever."- TRUTH TRUTH TRUTH! I don't mean to get all sappy and stuff but it really has been. It helps that Corbin might be the easiest person ever to be married to. But it gets better and better each and everyday and I wouldn't change it for anything. 

I hope you enjoyed, 

Meeting The Robinsons

My Birthday Boy

It's hard to put into words how much someone means to you when they mean everything to you... But I guess their birthday is a good day to try.

This is my handsome husband and today is his birthday. 

I don't even know where to start with Corbin. I could list his qualities, his talents, his cheesy pick up lines, his amazing personality traits, the incredibly long list of foods he dislikes and the very short list of food he does like, or even a list of things I love about him. But instead, I am just going to tell you some random things about the man I am incredibly honored and blessed to call my husband, and the guy I'm too lucky to have as a best friend.

1. He's a terrible singer. But it's my favorite. It's terrible but it's cute... It's terribly cute.
2. Corbin not only woke up every single day at 4am to FaceTime me while I was living in London, but he also slept on the couch every night because his room didn't have reliable wifi. Everyday guys. 4AM.
3. He has perfected forehead kisses.

4. Corbin slow dances with me. In our kitchen, at sports games, in downtown London, in the middle of airports, on the beach, waiting in the lines at Disneyland, in movie theaters during the credits, at parks... He is always grabbing my hand and pulling me in to dance.

6. One time our disposal broke and we couldn't even turn on the water at the sink. I came home from a long day at school to a husband who did the dishes in our bathtub. Then Cloroxed it.
7. It's annoying how much of a morning person Corbin is. Seriously. It's annoying. I get annoyed every morning.
8. When Corbin asked if I would marry him, I had never felt so much giddiness yet peace at the same time. I will never be able to explain it. It was the most magical and indescribable moment. I knew from that moment on I would forever be the luckiest girl in the world.

Engagement Video

7. He takes pinky promises very seriously.
8. I have to bribe him to eat vegetables and fruit. To the point where I feel like I'm talking to a stubborn toddler. Only... Corbin doesn't give in or fall for it.
9. All he wanted for his birthday was a day with me.
10. Corbin takes the role of being a provider, best friend, and husband very seriously.
11. He truly and honestly makes me strive to be a better person. I'm not kidding. Ask anyone who knew the pre-Corbin Jenna. They will tell you the same I pinky promise.
12. He's not perfect but he's perfect for me.

13. Corbin is obsessed with Vampire Diaries. He's team Stefan incase you were wondering. I'm team Damon. This causes contention in the home.
14. He is 100% serious when he thinks he's being healthy by ordering lettuce on his Double Decker from Taco Bell.
15. The only thing better than having Corbin as my husband is knowing he will be the dad to our kids someday.
16. When we go out to eat he orders "water on the rocks."
17. When we (I) are running late Corbin blow dries my hair while I do my make up. Sometimes when I'm really lucky he will even act like my gay stylist while doing it.
18. What matters to me matters to him. No matter how stupid, small, or silly it may be.
19. I have never heard anyone say one negative thing about Corbin. That says a lot about a person and I can't say that about hardly anyone.
20. Loving Corbin is the easiest thing in the world.

Do you believe me now when I said he was my everything? He's my biggest blessing. He's my biggest annoyance. He is my cuddle buddy, my biggest motivation, my best cheerleader, and he truly is my best friend. I confide in him. I trust him. I love him with everything in me. He pushes me, he believes in me, he puts me in my place, he cheers me up, he respects me, he teaches me, he takes care of me, and he stands up for me. He proves me wrong everyday.... I go to bed at night and think to myself "there's no way I could ever love Corbin more than I already do." But then I wake up and he proves me wrong. I fall more in love with him every second of everyday.

So HAPPY BIRTHDAY CORBIN NICKS ROBINSON! I consider myself the luckiest girl in the world because you choose me. And if I had to choose again, I would choose you. Each and everyday. You are my favorite. Thank you for changing my life. I love you and hope you have the best day.

Jenna Rai

Trophy Wife

So we are all know I'm a trophy wife. OBVIOUSLY. But incase you still need convincing I wrote a blog post about it.

I'll start off with my cooking skills. I came across the easiest and best meal and have to share it with you all. It's so fast and easy and we have had it for about 13 meals since we've been married (CAN YOU SAY TROPHY WIFE?!).  It's nice to find something we both love! Plus, it's so easy to take while on the run. And cheap! AND you can have it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. This whole meal costs $2.12! Awesome right? Anyway here it is:

All you need to do is locate your nearest QT. So easy right? I prefer a Dr. Pepper and Tapito chips. So does Corbin. We are like two peas in a pod. (Side note: Corbin is addicted to Tapito. Like he puts it in his Mac&Cheese and Mashed Potatoes... a lot of you are wondering what this has to do with anything but just stop wondering cause I'll tell you straight up it doesn't have anything to do with anything),   Plus... if you are feeling a little crazy you can even add cherry or vanilla. But that's only for special occasions and when I'm feeling extra domestic. Anyway I hope you enjoy! Also, let it be known that QT is the only thing stopping us from packing our bags and moving to London.

Also... as more proof... I go grocery shopping allllllll the time. (Really though. I go all the time because I forget something every time I go... One day I will learn what a grocery list is... one day) They practically know me by name at Super Target (Hint #4 I'm being 100% sarcastic is because everyone knows Super Target is freaking expensive and trophy wives always get the best deals) See look at this picture Corbin took of me while we were grocery shopping.

I may or may not have (but really did) sit like this the whole time. Do I even need to say anything about this picture? No? Didn't think so. OH WAIT! Yes I do. Please note that the only thing you can see in the cart is frozen pizza. But don't worry. Not pictured there are also Doritos, an over-priced half empty/half full-or-air bag of the holiday circus animal cookies, a bag of pretzels, and a 24 pack of Coke. Good gosh I'm so good at the grocery shopping thing.

So if for some crazy reason those things weren't convincing enough, here is one more reason. I look good everywhere we go. It's hard work. I don't know how I do it. See look at me at the ASU game....

I COULDN'T EVEN SHOW MY FACE PEOPLE! You know it was pretttttttty dang bad when it was 90 degrees yet I still wore my jacket and hood the whole game. 

So, Corbin Nicks Robinson, you're welcome for going above and beyond all your expectations of being the trophy wife you also wanted. Remember that while Christmas shopping.

Actually don't. Really don't. 

I hope you enjoyed, 

Meeting The Robinsons! 

Social Media

First of all, to state the obvious, let it be known that I love social media. All of you who know me, or those of you who don't for that matter, I know what you are thinking, "Well duh. If you had a 'I'm a mormon' slogan it would go something along the lines of 'I am Jenna (Allen) Robinson. I am a wife, I am overly obsessed with ASU football, I love social media, and I am a mormon." That being said... DISCLAIMER: I am found just as guilty as the next person when it comes to #SocialMediaProblems

Social media can have positive impacts on us and be very useful. For example:

• We don't even need to get out of bed to know what the weather is like and what to wear that day. I mean even when I was in London for the summer I probably knew what the high was every day in Arizona thanks to social media. And it's so nice because before I go visit Utah I don't even have to look up the weather while packing. Weatherbook is the new Facebook.
• Also, as far as politics. Who needs the news? All you have to do is read the controversial status of the day that has 79 comments of the same people arguing and making their points. No need to research before registering Republican or Democrat! 
• Pretty soon, I might not even have to go to church because I will be able to get 3 hours worth of spiritually insights on Sundays. BONUS: and it's the good stuff only. weed out the boring thoughts.
• Or, if you missed the new episode of Bachelorette, X-Factor, Gossip Girl, Parenthood, Breaking Bad, or Modern Family? NO WORRIES! Just check Facebook for the newest cliffhanger, Twitter for the play-by-play, and Instagram for a picture of the climax (also probably featured in the picture... the person's cute shoes, cozy blanket, and their cute Anthropology mug that they just using for the picture). And if you are lucky you might even find a whole blog post about it. Problem solved. 
• PLUS, you don't even have to take a risk of wasting your money on date night. Just steal someone else's date that you saw they raved about the week before. Done and done.

(But for real, Social Media CAN be very useful and is a great tool available to us. BUT for even more real.... THE LENGTHS PEOPLE WILL GO FOR A PICTURE NEVER SIEZES TO AMAZE ME! And... Do people even do anything for the fun of it anymore or take a picture for the memory? Or just to post it somewhere? K I'm done.)

However social media can also have very negative effects as well. And I'm kinda embarrassed to admit I have caught myself allowing it to sometimes have a negative effect on me lately. I find myself comparing my life, my marriage, my wife skills, my family, my clothes, my goals, and everything else for that matter to others (whether its for the good or bad). It's not healthy. And I have no reason to. I have an amazing life with a husband who adores me. Yet, even though I have a husband who sleeps on the ground with me when I can't sleep at night, a husband who washes our dishes in the bathtub when our sink is broken, a husband who is loyal, patient, understanding, hardworking, and takes the role of a husband VERY seriously, I will still find myself comparing. Which makes me sick and makes me want to punch myself in both eyes because of it. People often make their lives out to be something it's not... perfect. And at the end of the day, where does that get you? Nowhere. It doesn't change the reality of it. So someone wants your life? Cool. How does that do you ANY good? That being said, I also realize people would rather reflect on the good than bad. You just have to remember that it is the case. Which I get and agree with. But we all know where to draw the line.

So I think my point is just what I wish people would remind me:

• You are so incredibly blessed. 
• Never compare your life to other's cause 1) that will get you nowhere 2) I'd put some serious money down that how they portray it and the reality of the situation are different 3) RED FLASHING LIGHTS AND BEEPING NOISES... it is unhealthy.
• The grass it not greener on the other side. It's green where you water it. (Wait what? Justin Bieber reference? Uhhh just move on....)
• Don't take social media so serious. 

So sorry if this is random. Just something I have been thinking a lot about lately. And like I said... I'm found just as guilty of some of these things and despite everything else, I really do love social media. I just had to rant. It's my blog. I do what I want. (K let's be real... I do that anyway)

Hope you enjoyed Meeting the Robinson's! 

The GB&U

Remember how I said you were going to get the good, the bad, and ugly from our lives? (I act as if people care and/or actually remember what I say on here) Welp. Here they are. These are our good, bad, and ugly moments from our weekend.

The Good: Friday night we were able to go to Raising Canes and the Halloween HotAir Balloon Festival at the Talking Stick Resort.

To anyone who hasn't been to Raising Canes yet: First of all... I'm sorry. Second of all... GO. Like Yesterday. You're missing out. 

After dinner we went to the Halloween HotAir Balloon festival. Corbin was a trooper. He wasn't feeling too great but knew how badly I wanted to go. I'm a sucker for these things. Plus, I love that it is starting to feel like fall in AZ. (Let's just pretend I'm the first, not the 607th, person in Arizona to say that and nod your head and move on.) But we loved going and getting out with the family! My nieces Madelyn and Charlotte were PacMan ghosts and loved going balloon to balloon getting candy. How cute are they?

The Bad: Corbin hadn't been feeling well all weekend and come Saturday night he was in bad shape. Fever, raspy voice, chills, cough... the whole 9 yards. Even with how bad he was, I do not know what was worse. My wife skills or his sickness. It was bad people. I was panicked, emotional, and quite frankly, no help at all. He was taking care of me attempting to take care of him. If it wasn't so embarrassing it would have been cute. Anyway... After talking to my mom, I went to Walmart basically cleared out the medicine section. 

Obviously I am dramatic. I only got 4 things. And forgot 2. I swear one of these days I will get this whole "trophy wife" thing down. Just don't put money on it. 

The Ugly: Good gosh. The Ugly was UGLY. Like hideous. Like U-G-L-Y you ain't got no alibi ugly. I think you get it Anyway the ugly of our weekend was the ASU football game. I thought the whole "getting my heart broken by boys" phase was over. WELL APPARENTLY NOT CAUSE ABOUT 100 OF THEM JUST DID IT SATURDAY. Again. I now know how Taylor Swift feels and I am currently writing my first album. Remember how the first couple months of marriage are supposed to be bliss? Yeah me too. Well not when you are a Sun Devil fan. I need to rethink the whole sideline reporter thing. I get too emotional and worked up about it. I would be on the sidelines like, "Your team sucks. They played terribly. Threw it away. You had NO defense. And you let a stadium of 50,000 people down. How does that make you feel?" (All with a smile on my face of course.) ANYWAY Devils. You almost put my 9-month pregnant sisters into labor for nothing.  

So that was our weekend. The GB&U. The good, the bad, and the ugly. I hope you enjoyed...

Meeting The Robinsons! 

Blog Rules

Hi. I'm Jenna Robinson. I love ASU football, hammocks, gummy bears, blankets, Parenthood, Nike Frees, MetroMint water, and holidays. My husband is Corbin Nicks Robinson. He loves cheez-its, ESPN, our stainless steal fridge,  basketball shorts, Coca-Cola, movie nights, Groupon, and the Kia Optima. Together we love date nights, traveling, going to parks, playing the "or" game, anything that involves food, pictures, slow dancing in public places at wrong times, pretending we are mom and dad with our nieces and nephews, cuddling, going to the temple, and singing really loud to each other in the car. We were married on October 11th 2012. We aren't a big deal but maybe one day we will be.

So this is our blog. It's a requirement for marriage right? We got married two weeks ago so I know we are so behind. My goal is that it will be happy, fun, and not too dysfunctional... But it's too early to make any promises. Right off the back I'm setting some things straight:

- No, I don't have a nickname for my husband. I will never call him "C," "Corbs," "CNR," or "Mr. Robinson" and I'd roll over in my grave before I referred to him as "Hubby." 

- I will not have outfit posts. This is for the following reasons:

1. I am not that flexible and I am incapable of doing that bendy-backward pose. I could try it but I'm not on husbands insurance yet. 

2. My modeling face (you all know the one I'm talking about) does not really work out in my favor. It appears more as if I am about to eat your face off or I'm trying to gaze into the cameras soul. And cameras don't have souls. And for whatever reason it's not socially acceptable to just smile in outfit posts. 

3. If I told Corbin, "Now just take a picture of my neck down. And be sure to get my cute shoes." Or asked him to take a shot as I looked off into the distance and one of me laughing at my shoes... He'd be really confused.

- The closest thing I will do to a "catch up" is doing a post about my obsession with catchup and how I dip everything in. (DISCLAIMER: I do not think it's wrong to do this... I just get anxiety and think I will forget key things)

- If I ever do (chances are I won't) post about food, you can guarantee my ingredients will not be from Spouts, farmers markets, or Whole Foods. And the definitely will not be found NEAR your "healthy eating" board on Pinterest. (I'll find a way to post pictures of my cute dishes somehow though.)

- I would do "giveaways" but I only have two things to offer. Wedding presents that came without a receipt... And leftovers.. because cooking for 2 is hard. So I'll do you a favor and just won't go there. 

-Lastly, I don't think I have the "perfect" anything. I'm not perfect. Corbin isn't perfect. (DISCLAIMER: He really is perfect for me though. And that's a fact proven by a study performed at Stanford.) My life is not perfect. My grades aren't perfect. My hair is not perfect (and when it looks like it there is a 96.7% chance my extensions are in). My "wife skills" are far from perfect. (First hint... I called them "wife skills" and not "homemaking skills"). BUT I am perfectly happy with my life. AND I'm perfectly happy trying each and everyday to improve. 

Other than those things, it's fair game! I'll do my best to portray us as we are. The good, bad, and ugly. We love our life together and everyone in it. I hope you enjoy, Meeting The Robinsons.