Pokémon Go - Let's not forget our manners!

Ok folks! I love Pokémon Go as much as the next girl,  but let's take a moment to consider our manners and talk with our littles about what is appropriate behavior. 

If you are out hunting and find yourself near retail locations, take a moment to consider that corporate retail stores sometimes depend on certain things, like "conversion". These are numbers that tell their higher management and corporate office how they are doing. Specifically,  Conversions tell them how many people walk into the store vs how many people actually buy something. The customers are counted by a sensor.

If you, or the kiddos, walk into a store to look for Pokémon,  you could be hurting that store and it's employees.  It could effect how management thinks they are working, but it can also effect things like bonuses.  You could literally effect how much money someone makes.

I get it! Pokémon Go is awesome!  We love playing it! Let's just be smart and considerate of those around us. It's not hard.

○If it looks like you have to go into a store and cannot catch it from outside, be polite. If there are more than one person in your party, take turns going into stores.  All 5 of you don't necessarily need to walk into a Vera Bradley store to catch a Pidgey.

○When an employee greets you, don't ignore them. Be an ambassador for Pokémon trainers. Smile and explain that you will only be a moment. If you're nice and they are not busy, an employee may even help you!

○Say "Thank You", before you leave. Appreciate that an employee's time and efficiency is often monitored.

See? It's not all that hard and you will be doing other players a solid, because stores won't think poorly of the rest of us. 😊😊😊

Resurrection of a Blog Forgotten

For quite some time now, I have primarily used Facebook as a social media outlet. It was a great way to find and stay in touch with old friends, long lost family, and bloggers who I enjoyed. Plus, I was able to stay fairly up to date on what was going on in the world. It was great!

Over the last few years, the climate in our country has shifted. There appears to be more and more hate. Satire sites are masquerading as true news, News is giving information to the public without taking the time to verify anything. They are often so unreliable,  that they Mai as well be satire. People are lashing out at anyone and everyone,  seemingly to feel better about their own place in this world. Skinny, fat, black, white, Clinton, Trump.... 

There is constant division,  even between people who could normally sit and have really interesting conversations. Now they sit behind their keyboard and say whatever... off of information that is likely false.

I clung to the positivity that I found. I tried to peacefully express my opinions. I shared experiences and adventures, as a release but also as a way to share a smile with someone. I enjoyed having an outlet.

All of that is changing. I need to step away for a while, in an attempt to protect myself and our family. I will still be around social media.  You can find me on Instagram  (therobbinszoo) or, believe it or not, I will still have a Facebook presence. Just in a different context. Our page for our family blog is still active, so you can find me on The Robbins Zoo.

I know several people who have deleted or temporarily deactivated their Facebook accounts, but I honestly don't want to do that.  There are far to many people, who I genuinely love,  that I would likely lose contact with completely.  I'm not ok with that.

Love, Hugs and Belly Rubs!
The Robbins Zoo

Rest Well Sweet Girl

We recently lost our sweet Ti Ti. I came to the blog to see the pictures of her and Bunny on the beach. I was reminded, once again, of what a gentle soul she was. I miss her so much.

Rest well sweet girl. I hope you and Rooster are playing and enjoying each other.

Pickle

I told you a while back that we were going to foster a kitten that Bunny named Pickle. He was roughly 11 days old when he and his 2 siblings came into our home. They were all so small, cold and hungry.

Well... As you may have guessed... Pickle has become a member of the family zoo. He is wonderful and growing like crazy. He spends way to much time with our Husky, Lina. She has convinced him that he is a Husky Puppy. :/ Pickle has a pur that can only be rivaled by a John Deer and more of a chirp than a meow.

The following is his FB album. This way I hope it will update as he and his album grow. :D

PICKLE

Our Little Island

We love our beautiful little island.  

 Tide was going out..

 A Bunny and her Dog.

 Ahhhhh!! That monster wave is going to get us.

This is Ti.  

Bunny took this picture.

Trip to Waycross

The littles and I decided to visit family in my hometown, Waycross, GA. We had a wonderful visit! I will share some pictures of our roaming zoo. :D

 That is Pogo on the water tower.

This is my Nana!! She and Bunny wanted to make a Pecan Pie from scratch... That included going out on the buggy to pick up bucket full of pecans.

 When Nana said that she wanted to show Bunny how to make a pecan pie from scratch.. she was serious! Here they are shelling them.  LOL

  Logan found out why Nana had to take "the bitters" out... the hard way.

 This was a rather large lizard that was in the house. He was obviously rescued before the cat found him.

 Nana and Pickle. - We had to take Pickle every where went. Thank goodness he was a good traveller. He mostly curled up in Bunny's lap.

Making pies.

 While the pies were baking the littles played.

 This is my Brother. He isn't so little.. but he still loves to play.

 Bunny

 Alisha. She is my brother's new bride. Bless her for putting up with him. <3

 This is why there aren't very many pictures of Bug. He was seldom still.

This is a painting at an overpass. It always makes Bunny giggle.

 HA!! I got one of Bug... well, sort of. LOL

Reaching for the stars ~ Muffin Tin Monday.

I was inspired to reach for the stars for Muffin Tin Monday. What better way to welcome Monday than with a fun lunch. I will ignore that my littles don't feel very well and only ate a little bit of it. It was the thought that counts, right? They were excited about lunch.. so I had to take the picture fast. No time to set up or arrange for a nice picture. LOL I was inspired to reach for the stars, and embrace MTM again. I have been in a bit of a funk and what better way to

They had PB&J stars, Swiss cheese star on a  bed of sharp cheddar, strawberry yogurt, apple slices, and gummies left over from Halloween.

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On another note, we have a sweet little kitten who we are fostering. I am not sure if it is a boy or girl, but Bunny named it Pickle. Pickle is roughly 2 weeks old and lost her/his Mom a few days ago. My little brother is EMT/Firefighter and his new wife is a nurse at the hospital. There was no way that they could care for them. I have one and one of my Mommy friends was kind enough to foster the other. They both seem to be doing very well.

Happy Muffin Tin Monday :D

I thought today would be a good day to start back with sharing our MTM meals. We have not done it much the past few weeks. To my surprise.. when I put Bunny's breakfast down she was super excited and said "YAAAY! I can't believe it's Monday already!"

Much to my poor husband's dismay, he married a morning person. THEN, I had the audacity to give birth to two more morning people. If that were not enough, I also insist on celebrating Monday. My theory is that if I'm nice to Monday.. maybe Monday will be nice to me. So far it's working out to my favor. (most weeks LOL)

Monday is greeted with a "Happy Monday Dance" - Today I'm feeling a little No Doubt coming on. :D I'm feeling a little nostalgic.

For breakfast.. the littles had fresh strawberries, eggs, hotdog, and a jelly snake.

The snake is in honor of the rather long black snake that Bunny saw slithering through our back yard and hasn't stopped talking about it since.

We are looking forward to an AWESOME Monday and I hope you have a wonderful week!

Rest Well Rooster

A few weeks ago, 4/16/06 to be exact, I lost my Rooster. He was my one true confidant for 12 years. I got him when he was just over 1 year old.. and boy did we have a life together.. though I still find my self tearing up when I have to admit that he is no longer here, I also feel my heart fill when I talk to people who knew him.

He was an amazing friend and as you can see in the picture... He LOVED his babies. He first thought Bunny was loud and smelled funny... then once she started eating real food, he thought she was delicious.... and when she started to feed herself (and share with him) he was in love. It was at that point that he agreed we could keep her. She loved her "roohoo" and he loved her. He like Bug an awful lot too... but Mommy and Bunny was where his heart was. Well... that and hot dogs.

For those who didn't know him, he also sang country Music. LOL Check out Rooster Sings The Judds. He was only about 6 or 7 years here.

I miss him. I probably always will.

MTM - Dinosaurs/Green

It's St Patrick's Day week!! YAY!! Living this close to Savannah.. you can imagine that we get a little excited about the celebrations. So what did we do for Muffin Tin Monday, you ask? DINOSAURS!!! LOL

Croutons (stones) - Some dinosaurs ate rocks and stones to help digest their food. ** Romaine Lettuce (food for herbivores) ** Banana on a stick (Dinosaur tooth) ** Yogurt covered raisins (Dinosaur eggs) **Stegosaurus friend made out of bologna**Vanilla yogurt with green sprinkles (by request from the Dinosaur Princess.. Mommy just threw in some sprinkles for good St. Patty's Day fun :o)

Sharing the "DoughMessTic" Wealth

There is a great blog/site called - She's becoming doughmesstic. Those of us who enjoy learning new tips in and out of the kitchen... would LOVE her.

I learned of a giveaway that she has and couldn't help but share.

Mixing It Up With Friends

This would be a FANTASTIC giveaway.. but she has made it even more so. I'm not sure if she is trying to teach up all to share.. but whatever. I will. LOL

It ends on the 15th of March. This happens to be my birthday. LOL How cool would that be to help celebrate turning 35!?! If you should head over to enter.. make sure to let her know that Salina from The Robbins' Zoo sent you. :o) We could BOTH win!!

The Sandbox

We have live here for a little over two years and finally went to visit The Sandbox. It was a planned play date with Bunny's BFF and we had so much fun that we got a membership before we left.

Who would have thought The Sandbox would not only have a real sandbox.. but that it would have MAGIC sand in it! LOL

Magic or not.. Bug didn't think it tasted very good.

Chef Bunny

Bunny's BFF. From what I understand they were going to the moon.

They have arts and craft tables that were a HUGE hit!!!

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The Doctor is - In.

Fun in the sun

Is there anything better than a beautiful day? Yes. Yes, there is! Using that day to soak up some sunshine and get a little dirty. :o) Maybe even have a nice frozen treat.
Our littles love water..

and dirt/sand..

Bug loves woodchips...



And who doesn't love frozen Go-Gurts?

Muffin Tin Monday!!!

YAY!!! I remembered to take a picture before Bunny dived into it. LOL

I was a little sad to see that they don't have any specific themes each week.. but I guess that just means that I can get a little funky with them. Now.. where did I put my thinking cap?

As for this week, Bunny had grapes, carrots, ham/cheese sammies on a sick, orange, ranch for the carrots, and some pretzels. I'm glad I got the picture when I did. You would have thought that I hadn't fed the child for 3 days the way she destroyed her lunch.

Bug had a PB&J with some grapes. He's not relaly feeling the MTM yet. LOL
Now that we have full bellies it's time to go outside and enjoy this FANTASTIC weather!!! We need to get some Vit D and what ever nutriants that you get from rolling around in dirt. :o)
Don't forget to check out what other Moms are doing on MTM.

Happy Monday - Fav Foods :o)

I was thrilled to learn that the theme for this week was Favorite Foods. The littles have been sick for the past week or so. Bunny has not been eating much, if at all. At this point.. I'm just happy she's eating. PERIOD! LOL

(Fruit Gummies, Fresh strawberries, grapes, FrootLoops, "Smarshmellows" and pretzel fish.)

I would also like to point out that this heart shaped tin was brought to you by folowing Muffin Tin Mom on Facebook. She posted about these great finds at Target for $2.50 each in the $1 section. WOOHOO!!