Life is Beautiful

Hello friends! Long time no…write?? Is that what one says in a situation such as this? Hmmm...

I should also say sorry and THANK YOU to those of you who, according to my Site Meter stats, are still checking in despite my nearly 2 month hiatus. Yeah, I checked this morning and was surprised that somewhere out in cyber space people were still stopping by, waiting to see what (if anything) had been updated here.

I have had so many opportunities to write something inspirational, funny, heart felt, or perhaps even boring to some. I am actually very disappointed that I haven’t taken advantage of those memories and shared them with you or placed them in writing for our family.

That, friends, is going to change….

Not only is the Fall season bringing us beautiful changes with colorful leaves, cooler temperatures and shorter days, but life – our life – is bringing beautiful changes as well.


(Before I go any further, no I am not pregnant and no we are not in the adoption process again!!)

But still, at a time when we are very uncertain about certain things, life is beautiful.

At a time when we are giving up a few “luxuries” and focusing on “necessities”, life is beautiful.

As we begin our 17th year as best friends / 16th year of marriage (this past August), life is beautiful.

As we celebrate each day the way God formed our family, life is beautiful.

As we strive to be the Christians we once were and desire to be again, life is beautiful.

As we follow our hearts and what we believe is God’s will, LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL!!

Until the next post, I hope that no matter what season of life you are in, you too will recognize the beauty that surrounds you!

Teaching a New Generation to Never Forget

Although I may be little

It’s important to understand

What happened on 9-11

What happened to our land

God Bless our fire and police men

God Bless our soldiers too

Thank you for your sacrifice for our

Beloved Red, White and Blue.

Written by our Bubby

September 11, 2011

(with mommy’s help)

First Day Pre-K & Dandelion Wishes

Bubby started Pre-K this week, and WOW was he excited on his first day!!

Although he is still attending the same school that he's been in since June 2010 (for daycare), the switch to Pre-K has taken some adjusting from all of us. Class starts and ends at 7:45 and 2:15, respectively. My work schedule/demands changed drastically over the summer (I'll blog about that some other time), and that means I am able to be with him both before and after school.

So, in the morning we are rushing out the door about 40 minutes earlier than when he was in Pre-School. I was worried about having to wake him up 40 minutes earlier as well, but thankfully he's gotten up on his own each morning at 6:30, making both of our lives much easier!

He's getting home much earlier in the afternoon which is great, but yikers is he Mr. Grumpy Pants for about the first 45 minutes or so that we're here. I know his little body and mind are both adjusting to all of the changes, but he's doing great despite being a tad...moody!

Poor boy was just miserable when we got home today and I was trying everything in my bag of tricks to help him feel better but nothing was working. So, I suggested we go outside and play Dino Ball - a game he & I made up awhile back where we each pretend to be different dinosaurs and kick the ball around or play keep away. He LOVED this idea and my happy little boy was back!!

While we were outside, he found his first dandelion and asked me why "the cottonball was growing on a flower stem." I told him that we should pick the dandelions and make wishes, which he was excited to do!!

(Let me back up for a second and say that Norm & I actually tried to introduce him to dandelions in Russia but on that attempt, he inhaled the whole dandelion and was none too impressed!! For some reason ever since he has had an aversion to them!?!?)

I digress...

So today we both picked our dandelions, and he watched me intently as I made a wish and blew the dandelion into the wind. When it was his turn, he squeezed his little eyes closed soooooo tight, had a death grip on the stem, and then blew so hard there was spittle flying everywhere! Very cute.

He asked me what my wish was, and I told him I wished we had a great game of dino ball. Then he said, "Well, mommy, MY wish was that I could be with you forever and always!"

Hmph...how lame was my wish?!?! :-)

I wish the same little man...I definitely wish the same!!

D.I.Y - The Best Room EVER! Part II

Oopsie..."Tomorrow" came and went pretty quickly!! Hehehe

Just after my last post where I revealed Bubby's new bedroom, Bailey Girl decided to give us a pretty good scare health-wise. So, my focus has been on her AND the ridiculous number of road trips we have taken lately.

Thankfully Bay refuses to let her health concerns get her fun-loving spirit down, and our family survived numerous 10hr trips to Virginia, North Carolina and Florida since July.

I finally have a few minutes to share the rest of our nearly-whole-house makeover!! Don't judge me for the mess in the background of some of these pictures...some rooms are still a work in progress...

Bubby's old bedroom became the new guest room - -
complete with a puppy dog border - -
Hey, at least the border and comforter/pillows are color coordinated!

My old office / guest bedroom became Bubby's new playroom

Our old dining room - - which got soooooooo much use (not) - -
is now a living or sitting room which I find VERY cozy

I'm not sure what this room used to be because we never used it
but it's now my home office and I love it!

All of the rooms in our house now have a function and I love the new arrangement! I still have some organization to get through but all in all, it's coming along nicely. For the first time in a long time, our house feels like home to me!

D.I.Y - The Best Room EVER!

We love home renovation shows such as Renovation Re@lities. Love them.

In fact, we are PROS at kicking back with a bowl of popcorn (for the hubs) and a bowl of ice cream (for me) and laughing watching as a few poor souls tackle a DIY project that, frankly, they have no bizness considering.

Sooooo, when I had the grand idea to re-do Bubby's room with bunk beds, this is the expression I got from Bailey Girl:

So long as it didn't interfere with her 23 hr/day nap schedule, or my duties of handing out milk bones for the 1 hr she isn't cat napping, she was good with whatev.

We quickly realized that one of the wall angles in Bubby's room wouldn't accommodate the bunks we picked out. Thankfully this came to light BEFORE ordering the bunks!! hehehe

So, we decided to swap one of our guest rooms with Bubby's room and as the furniture swapping took place, my office (which also served as our 2nd guest room) quickly disappeared:

The guest room we decided to make Bubby's new bedroom had a LOVELY (not!!) and huge princess and unicorn border. The hubs wasted no time saying Hasta La Vista to the good Princess and her sidekick...and after the fun of taking that border down, I absolutely detest anything to do with wallpaper or paste...

I also realized that this bad boy....

...hurts VERY BADLY when you step on it without shoes. Sitting on it doesn't feel so well either. Just an FYI for your next DIY!

With the princess now evicted, we decided to do Bubby's room in an ocean theme instead. He was THRILLED to be able to help his daddy paint one of the walls.

Considering all that could go wrong with handing over a paint brush to a 4 year old, we came out relatively unscathed!

With the room finally painted, we eagerly awaited the big day...
Friday, July 22 - the bunk beds are delivered!! Despite having a window of 1-5pm, they actually didn't make it to the house until 7pm. Here's Bubby waiting patiently for the delivery men to come.
And then - - they're here!!!
Bubby sat in the hallway outside his room supervising as his beds were assembled. But as a cruel twist, Bubby wasn't allowed to sleep in them that night. We hadn't quite finished his room yet and wanted all of it to be a surprise, so he had to wait until Saturday for the big reveal.

His expression here is priceless as he notices all the sharks for the first time! He was shouting "This is the best room E.V.E.R!!"


I love this wall with all the sharks, fish, and sting rays. Bubby had no idea we were going to do this and he was fascinated!!

We opted for bunks with steps instead of a ladder. Each step has a drawer for storage, plus there is a bureau on the opposite side so no need for a chest of drawers or dresser in his room.

Notice all the stuffed animals on that top bunk? ALL OF THEM were on Bubby's old bed. Each and every one. There was barely room for him to sleep, so we had no choice but to get the bunks! :-)
This is only part I of the DIY project though! We didn't stop at just bunks...it was a trickle effect. Setting up Bubby's new room caused change in every other room in our house except for our master bedroom and our kitchen. Literally every thing else changed. Who knew getting bunks for your son would result in a whole house make over?

Certainly not the hubs, TRUST ME!! (yeah, I suckered him good this time!)

Tune in tomorrow for Part Deux!

RV There Yet? 4th of July Florida Style

Our view from here - beautiful!
More to follow...

Bubby-isms (quotes from our 4 year old)

Bubby: "Daddy, please fix my Handy Manny motorcycle.
Here’s Handy Manny, here’s his motorcycle and
here’s the screwdriver. But I don’t know the name
of the screwdriver."

Daddy: "um, Phillip"*

Bubby: "To fill up with gas?"

*(as in Phillip's screwdriver)

***********************

Bubby: "Mommy, can we please go to church this Sunday?"

Mommy: "Sure, what church do you want to go to?"**

Bubby: "Ummmm the one with God in it!"

**(we were searching for a church home at the time but have decided to return to NMC)

***********************

Bubby: "Mommy, can I pee on the grass?"

Mommy: "What?? NO! Why would you ask that?"

Bubby: "Bailey's allowed to!!"***

***Bailey is our Lab

***********************

Everytime I come home from getting a pedicure...

Bubby: "Mommy, did you buy new toes today??!! They're beautiful!!"

***********************

While reading his Bible, he cam across this picture


Bubby: "Mommy, why is Baby Jesus in that nest?"

RV There Yet? Camping at Lake Lanier

One of the changes we experienced in 2010 was upgrading our beloved Poppy

(the pop up trailer) for this bad boy

Our 31' BQ Keystone Outback Travel Trailer!

We have 4 bunks up front; kitchen, living and dining area at the first slide;
and master bedroom at the 2nd slide.

Bubby L.O.V.E.S. our new digs but...we haven't come up with a name
for the new trailer yet. Feel free to leave a comment if you can
think of something catchy.

We were blessed to take A LOT of camping trips to Florida last year,
but have only been able to go on one so far this year...

Welcome to Shoal Creek Campground at
Lake Lanier Islands
where we recently spent a wonderful few days!!

Getting into our site (#80) was pretty darn tricky but
the view that awaited us was amazing...

refreshing...
and silly




We had great times with great friends

enjoyed kiddie karaoke

rested

and waited for daddy to get back from diving.
Norm took part in a specialized dive class during part of our stay
which gave Bubby and me a lot of mommy and son time.
He & I explored the campground, played on the playground,
gathered pine cones, made silly face photos
(which someday I may get brave and post here)
and looked forward to Norm's return
so we could enjoy even more family time.

Becky and Andrew stopped by to visit as well, and as always
the boys played well together. We had a fabulous stay and can't wait
to sleep under Lake Lanier's stars again soon!

The Unwrapping

Hello and welcome to new family blog - Our Box of Chocolate!

If you're joining us our previous family blog Love More, Laugh Often, we are so glad you found your way to our new home. If you're brand new, we're thrilled you are here as well!

So what's with the name we selected? Well, as Forest Gump's momma said..."Life is like a box of chocolate. You never know what you're gonna get." And as you either already know, or will soon learn, you never really know what you're gonna get when you sit down to read one of my posts!

I love to poke fun at myself, I love to laugh, and I love being a mom, wife, pet guardian, blogger, animal rescuer, daughter, sister, aunt, and friend. (Though not in that same order every day!)

I am also real and do my best to be genuine, which some days can honestly be difficult. What I am not is a cook - that part has not changed! :-)

I am sometimes zany and sometimes (though less often) serious. I am also very happy to be back to blogging our families memories and I hope that you enjoy reading as much as I enjoy writing.

So feel free to follow us, bookmark us, leave comments or drop an email. We look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks for stopping by for the unwrapping of Our Box of Chocolates!

Oh, and as for the other pages at the top of the screen. Well, be patient. They'll be completed soon!

Hugs,