New Week Already ~

Tomorrow is often the busiest day of the week.

Start where you are.  Use what you have.  Do what you can...

Just when we start getting used to the so called "good" weather,

 we are hit with more tornado weather, rain, thunder, lightning and more flooding.

  Just hope this will not be the trend.  Once again Sniff is scared and has

 stopped eating.  Just when he gets over the last bad weather, the next 

one hits us.  It's getting to be very annoying now.  Wish it would just

 be summertime weather.  Warm and beautiful sunshine.

Here at our two hotels fortunately all is well.  No flooding or major 

disturbances.  I do have a very concerned citizen living at Almost Home.

  During the last tornado warning she got out her bull horn and at 

1 am started knocking on everyone's door.  

She was yelling that they should all basically evacuate their rooms 

and seek cover.  We do have a safe room for this. All was OK.  

The wind was howling.  Heavy rain, thunder and lightning, 

but noting serious.  Weirdest thing is that I am getting

 used to this crazy weather in Missouri.

Looking forward to the new week and to what it holds. 

 Already Tuesday.  Almost Home is still at 100%.  Hopefully we will 

be able to get all the approvals required for opening the pool.  

So far we are looking good.  Pool is sparkling clean, but a tad

 bit chilly since the sun has been in hiding.

The new week promises to bring sunshine and some more

 rain showers.  At least it will not be cold. Warmer/hot 

days are here to stay.  Happy about that.

  Wishing you all a great week ahead,  filled with smiles,

 happiness and all of the great things in life...

~Nadiya~

Day To Relax ~

Your calm mind is your ultimate weapon 

against your challenges.  So relax....

Sunday.  Plans for the day: spend it with Sniff and do absolutely nothing.

  No running around.  No stress.  No anxieties.  Just peaceful

 and quiet.  I'm happy and relaxed already.  

Sunday.  A day to refuel your soul and be grateful for you blessings.

It's all about quality of life and finding a

 happy balance between work, friends and family...

~Nadiya~

Weather Woes..

There are a lot of false reports about tornadoes,

when people are simply seeing dark clouds...

Sunny and warm.. what a joke.  It did not last yesterday.  Before you

 knew it the weather changed.  The tornado sirens were blaring

 and once again everyone was on alert for tornadoes.

The ice cream store across from Almost Home.  Black clouds rolling in.

The picture below was taken close to our home yesterday.

Not exactly sure anymore what today holds.  Just have to wait and see I guess.  

Right now it's time to start another work day.  Sniff is on the alert and not eating 

too much.  Constantly afraid that the thunder and lightning will strike again.  

Last night was stormy.  Currently raining.  Patiently waiting for summertime,
 hopefully will bring us better weather.  By then I'm sure we will miss the rain.
In the meantime, why not enjoy some summer drinks.  Sounds good to me.

Weather forecast for tonight: dark...

~Nadiya~

Beautiful Day Ahead...

Just because it's not always nice does not mean its not miraculous...

Friday already.  This has been a very warm and sun shiny week.  Yes we have

 had some heavy winds, but it feels good.  I am really enjoying the time 

I have here with my tenants/friends.  I know that there are days when I

 would prefer to be back home in Florida, but at the same time I also 

know I will miss the people here I Branson when that day comes.

  For now, it is a new and interesting time in our lives. 

 Very challenging at times, but NEVER boring.

Nothing but work planned as of right now, but who knows?  Our favorite

 restaurant serving our favorite adult drink is not far from us.  Like last Friday,

 it is only a matter of jumping in the car and heading out there.  Arvid has 

discovered a few things here in Branson that he likes very much and I can 

always tempt him with that if I wanted.  Flan!  Yes his new favorite.

Yesterday was pretty quiet at Almost Home.  Happy about that.  Arvid

 being on the Strip sees a little more activity.  He likes it like

 that, I like it the way I have it.  Both of us happy.

That time of the day already.  Time to get busy and start the day. 

 Happy Friday everyone and wishing you all the perfect weekend

 ahead.  Sunny and warm here.  Could not ask for better.

Challenges are what make life interesting and

 overcoming them is what makes life meaningful...

~Nadiya~

Happy Birthday Brutus and Shadow ~

Missing you comes in wave, and today I'm drowning...

Today our Brutus would have turned 11 years.  It's a year, six months

 and 12 days since he died.  Not a day goes by that I don't miss his little 

face.  Yes the pain is less agonizing, but missing him is something

 that does not go away.  I wish I could hold him again.

Our little Shadow would have been 2 years old today.  He died too soon and

 we never really got to know what he would have grown up to be.  Fearless 

and super curious is what we had with him for a short time.

Here in Branson there is a little kitty that looks exactly like Shadow. 

 We pass him everyday on our way home.  As I mentioned a while

 back, I asked his owner about him and his name.  The little

 kitty that looks exactly like Shadow is named Shadow.

Sniff has filled our lives.  He makes us laugh.  We love Sniff Sniff,

but a part of my heart belongs to just Brutus and as of today

 no one else can or will ever be able to go there.

It's a beautiful day here.  All is good.  Weather warn, Sniff is happy,

Arvid and I are having the experience, adventure of a lifetime 

here in Branson, yet something is missing.  Happy birthday 

to our Brutus and lil Shadow.  Mama misses you

 everyday Brutus.  It's not the same without you.

Happy birthday Brutus and Shadow.  I miss you very much.

I miss you a lot today...

~Nadiya~

Breakfast Time ~

All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast...

Our day starts once we have had a good breakfast.

After that there is no telling what we will accomplish.

If you want breakfast in bed tomorrow, sleep in the kitchen tonight.

Living in the USA for over 20 plus years, Arvid still has a few things he 

likes/prefers from his country.  One of those is his Norwegian jam.  

Every morning he has it. He does not like change at all.

I am not like that.  I like my own made in the USA stuff, but have to say there

 are some Norwegian products that even I have to admit to liking. Especially 

some of t heir sauces and Norwegian shrimp.  Just delicious.

Arvid and I are like clockwork.  Breakfast at the same time everyday Monday 

through Saturday.  Sundays we live "dangerously" and have a later breakfast.  First

 he calls his family and when he's done we relax to a leisurely/larger breakfast.

Good morning everyone.  I'll eat some breakfast then change the world.

Eat breakfast like a king.  

Lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper...

~Nadiya~

Let's Do It...

A brand new week to laugh, love and shine your light...

The weekend was very good.  Made better by sitting out on a Friday 

evening enjoying good Mexican food and yes, a delicious Piña Colada.

We have had some gorgeous sunny days, and by the looks of it, it is just

 getting better and better.  Fingers crossed that we get no more rain.  Talking

 about rain, Arvid and I visited the Dam.  The water levels in the lakes were still 

very high so the dam was still open.  I was pretty impressed with it.

What used to be parking lots are now flooded.  Picnic benches covered 

with water.The trees are covered with water.  Hopefully the rain 

will stop and things will get back to what is considered "normal."

Looking forward to the new week.  To see what new challenges we 

are presented with.No matter what life is always interesting and definitely 

you never know what will happen once you get to your hotel.

Here is  to a good start of the new week for all of us.  

Happy Monday friends.  Let's do this!

One small positive thought in 

the morning can change your whole day...

~Nadiya~

Happy Mother's Day...

The heart of a mother is a deep abyss at the

 bottom of which you will always find forgiveness....

Just want to dedicate today's blog post to all the wonderful mothers out there.

  If your mom is anything like mine, then all I can say is that we are truly

 blessed.  We may sometimes forget to let them know how much they 

mean to us, but a mothers heart is always open and always

 willing to forgive....just remember though that all mothers 

love to hear those three little words "I love you."

A mother's love is patent and forgiving when all others are forsaking,

it never fails or falters, eveen though the heart is breaking. 

A mom's hug lasts long after she lets go...

~Nadiya~

So Ready For The Weekend ~

Busy is a choice, stress is a choice, joy is a choice.  Choose well.

Better days are coming they are called Saturday and Sunday....

So ready for the weekend to be here.  The work week goes by FAST.  The weekend

 even faster.  Our weekends now consist of just Sundays off.  Saturday we 

both go to "work"  My day is a bit shorter than Arvid's.  Then I come home

 and the work begins all over again.  Staying busy like we wanted to.

This has been a pretty exhausting week.  Especially for Arvid. I look
 at him and I can see how tired he is.  He just never knows when to stop.

By the end of yesterday the skies got dark and the bad weather 

once again took a turn for "not good."  Thunder, lightning, followed by 

hail and tornado winds made for more unpleasant times/evening.  

Sniff got nervous and of course now does now want to eat.  Takes him a 

few days to get over this.  Poor boy has had many frightening moments 

here in Missouri.  Brutus.. not sure how he would have handled it. 

 For sure, we would have petted him more and made sure he was 

not so scared.  Sniff is much braver and independent.  Shadow

 never had the opportunity of knowing what bad weather was all about.

 I'm sure Shadow would have faced everything with pure fierceness 

and determination.  He in his short time with us was FEARLESS!!!

Friday.  Has not started out so great, but if all goes according to the weather

 man then it should just get better and better.  To all a good day and

 a happy start of the weekend.  Umbrella drink is calling...

May your weekend be full of adventure and cheer,

 and may the start of the next week be long away from here..

~Nadiya~

Happy Wednesday ~

Refresh your mind, delete all your problems

undo all your mistakes, and save the happy moments...

Every so often we still find time for each other.  Just Arvid 

and I and some quiet times.  For me it is still the best of times.

Free time we have little of, but what we do have together we sure make the most of.

Yesterday was a fairly quiet day, phone wise, but otherwise it
we had lots going on.  Once we got home the phones never stopped ringing.
I'm getting like Arvid now.  I wish the phones would stop ringing for a little.

Arvid and I did have a little TV time together with Sniff in the evening.
We both relaxed and ready to face what today may hold.  Hello Wednesday.

Always believe something wonderful is about to happen...

~Nadiya~