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Ripped Jeans & Bifocals

Adoption, motherhood and midlife

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All About Jill

Hey there! I’m Jill: wife, mom, travel expert, writer, photographer, foodie  freelance writer, humorist, and foodie (whew what a mouthful, right?)  living in the San Antonio area (although I’m usually somewhere else.)  I have three kids through birth and adoption. Ripped Jeans and Bifocals is a play on words to mean the oldest mom with the youngest kid…which I 99.99% always am.

This is me awkwardly waving at you. Photography: Jessica Morrill

If you’re interested in working with me, please check out my Media Kit. If you like what you see, I’d love for you to email me about your product, service, or destination (I love traveling) to see if it’s a fit. 

For my privacy and disclosure policies, please check out this page…which is boring but you know…legal stuff. I do not accept guest posts. 

I started this blog in 2014 to share stories of adoption and the general state of chaos we call parenting. I struggled with depression after our second adoption in 2013 and writing some of my thoughts and feelings about that down and sharing them was a kind of lifeline for me. My biggest lesson learned through the rough patches was not to bottle things up…which is pretty much my super power. This blog first served as a place to communicate and connect with other adoptive parents, especially those who struggled but as my after-adoption life evolved, this blog did as well.

We are a very serious family. Clearly. Photography: Brittany Brietzke

Although I still share stories about adoption here, you’re more likely to find me writing about travel, family activities and mom hacks (AKA things that save time and recipes my kids will eat without making gagging noises, which is always a win, right?)

Brotherly love…

2017 and 2018 brought some travel opportunities that served as a pivot point for this blog and for me as a person. While I don’t claim the title “minimalist” (because my closet is a horror show) I look for ways to reduce the amount of money and time I spend on “stuff” and instead focus on getting outside, getting out of my comfort zone, and exploring with my family. I believe travel teaches us diversity, humility, problem-solving and it helps our family to be a stronger team.

I’ve been married to my husband for ten years and we have three kids and one grandkid. He supports my Disney addiction, my crazy ideas, and never looks at me weird when the words “Hey, why don’t we go to…” come out of my mouth.

Us. Photography: The eight-year-old. We’re starting ’em off right.

He also agrees when I sign us up for long runs at absurdly early hours without complaining and doesn’t contradict me when I whine “This was all your idea” at mile eight. Smart man.

What’s better than crossing the finish line at Walt Disney World? Photo: runDisney

My oldest is 26 and my youngest two are nine and almost nine. My boys are four months apart and, as you can imagine, people ask us a lot of questions about that.

Continuing the pattern of super-serious family photos…

Super serious, I tell ya.

We love outdoor life, luxury travel, road trips, adventure, and anything to do with Disney, Marvel, and of course, Star Wars.

Kyle (holding the green light sabre) wants to be Darth Vader when he grows up and go to college in space. I’m not telling him he can’t do that.

Thanks for checking out my site and getting to know us a little better. Shoot me an email or connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. I would love to hear from you.

“As far as everyone is concerned, we’re a nice, normal family.” This saying appears in our guest bathroom, which is very nice and might cause you to think we’re a nice, normal family.

Popular Blog Posts:

Why you should give an adoptive mom a baby shower adoption shower|Ripped Jeans and Bifocals.

 

14 things that are awesome about a Disney Cruise|Ripped Jeans and Bifocals

 

Yes I know my kid is small|Ripped Jeans and Bifocals

Other writing and press:

My writing has also appeared in The Washington Post, Scary Mommy, Babble, Woman’s Day, Good Housekeeping, Ravishly, Your Tango, SheKnows, The Huffington Post, Mamalode, What the Flicka, Blunt Moms, The Good Men Project, Mamapedia, xo Jane, Mamamia, Collective Bias, Red Tricycle and Role Reboot.

I have essays in three anthologies: Mothering Through the Darkness, Martinis and Motherhood: Tales of Wonder, Woe and WTF, and Only Trollops Shave Above the Knees: The Crazy, Wonderful Lessons We Learned From Our Mothers.

Locally, my writing has appeared on Alamo City Moms Blog, The Rivard Report and in San Antonio Woman Magazine. I’ve also been honored as one of Healthline Magazine’s Adoption Blog of the Year for 2016, 2017, and 2018, although my blog isn’t very focused on adoption anymore.

In spite of that whole awkward at parties thing, I’m an experienced speaker and can talk to groups about parenting, adoption, social media and how much I love a dress with pockets.

Hi I’m Jill and I love pockets.

I’m a three time producer of Listen to Your Mother in San Antonio and an alum of the 2015 Austin cast. Helping other women tell their stories of motherhood is a huge labor of love for me. 

I was a BlogHer Voice of the Year in 2015, which goes down as one of THE coolest experiences ever:

 

This blog is managed by Ripped Jeans and Bifocals LLC and all content is copyrighted. If you want to use/share any of my images, please get in touch. 

 

All About Jill

Hey there and welcome! My name is Jill Robbins and this is my space on the internet. I’m happy you are here. Just so you know, if this weren’t the internet, I’d be smiling awkwardly and answering simple questions like “how are you today” with gems like “Me too!” and “Great, but I forgot to put on deodorant.” I’m that person.

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Recent Snaps

rippedjeansandbifocals

🌎 ✈️🛳Travel Expert: Family|Luxury|Adventure
🥑 🍷 Foodie
🏰 Disney Lover
❤️ Mom of 3
🇺🇸 Veteran
📍🏚 in #SATX

Instagram post 2195241953174585297_182735783 Give me a 🙌🏻 if you think men are hard to shop for! (AD)
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This year, I'm keeping everything simple and buying lots of gift cards, for the hard-to-shop-for people on my list and the not-so-hard-to-shop-for peeps. If you say gift cards aren't personal enough, I say WRONG. There are so many different gift cards available at Walmart - look for the giant display near the checkout area - that you'll be able to find something for everyone. to see what the display looks like so you can go right to it when you go to Walmart to do your holiday shopping. 🌲
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You can pair the gift card with your giftee's interest, grab a cute gift card holder or some fun items to pair with it, and BAM. You're done. If you have to have a physical gift to go along with the gift card, you can grab some candy, some fun socks, mittens, or gloves, or a cute Christmas ornament. Y'all know Walmart has it all. 🧦 🍭 🎁
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I snagged this $25 Regal gift card that comes with a special offer: free small drink with large popcorn purchase. Popcorn 🍿
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And yes...this is a total "take me to the movies" hint, and yes...this gift is as much for me as it is him. #Winning
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Make it easy on yourself and take advantage of one-stop shopping this year!
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#winning #SaveMoneyGiveBetter19 #giftcard #giftideasforhim #giftideas #giftsforguys #rippedjeansandbifocals
Instagram post 2193754610924038868_182735783 5K ✅
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So proud of my little guys for completing their training program with @san_antonio_roadrunners & completing the Rock n Roll San Antonio 5K this morning. It was a great program, not only for them but for us...it got us up and outdoors every Sunday morning and helped us goal set as a family.
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Here’s to more keeping it moving in 2020. 🏃‍♀️ 🏃🏃🏃
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#rocknrollsanantonio #rocknrollsanantonio5k #kidswhorun #familieswhoruntogether #alamocreatives #igsanantonio #igtexas #amrunning #alamocityvibes #mysa #travispark #centrosa
Instagram post 2191832509092177761_182735783 This guy and I have been married for 10 years. In a lot of ways it doesn't seem that long but it a lot of ways it seems longer, although not in a bad way. 💗
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It just seems like I've been with him forever. We spent a couple of days alone together at the Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort & Spa near Bastrop Texas. Like typical parents, we spent most of the weekend talking about our kids and about how much they'd love this resort. 🌲🌲🌲
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While we DID enjoy our time alone and while the IS a great couple's get-a-way, it's amazingly family friendly and the property has a ton of amenities. Plus delicious food. I could go on and on about the breakfast but I'll tell you about that another day. Or, you could go read my full review, which is linked in my profile section. ⬆️
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Bottom line? This property is luxurious but there's not an ounce of stiffness or pretentiousness anywhere. Highly recommend.🌟🌟
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Thanks @hyattlostpines for hosting us - we look forward to coming back!
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#LostPinesMoment #HyattLostPines #TexasTravelInspiration #happyanniversarytous #bastroptexas #visitbastroptx #texasforever #alamocreatives #igtexas #igtexasphoto #igsanantonio #texasblogger #luxurytraveller #luxurytravels #getaway
Instagram post 2190311215106933589_182735783 Thanksgiving may be over, but holiday shopping has only just begun! #ad
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When I’m running around, I know bladder leaks might happen – but @PoiseBrand Active pads with no-slip wings have me covered so I can stay comfortable through all the errands. Grab yours through the link in my bio. #stayyoustayamazing
Instagram post 2187926003014362074_182735783 Why buy a fair isle sweater when you can buy a DINOSAUR fair isle sweater? 🦖
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🌟UPDATE! @carters & @oshkoshkids have SUPER SATURDAY up on their site: Everything is STILL 60 % OFF!See the link below ⬇️ or check out my stories today!🌟
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OshKosh B’Gosh & Carter’s has 60% off everything site-wide. No exclusions + FREE SHIPPING. This is their best sale of the year and I’ve already stocked up. You should, too!
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Sale rund thru today. Shop this link: https://bit.ly/2Dnrk5x & check out my stories today for some other super Black Friday finds.
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P.S. this picture is a sneak from our Christmas session w/ @brittany_brietzke_photography ...I l💗 how they turned out!
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@oshkoshkids @carters .
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#blackfriday2019 #blackfridaysale #blackfriday #blackfridaydeals #carters #oshkoshkids #dinosaursweater #christmassweaters #igsanantonio #ignewbraunfels #alamocreatives #igtexas #kidstyle #kidfashiontrends
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