Saturday June 12th ~

Just because I don't always share my troubles, 

doesn't mean I don't have them.  At times, I may 

be fighting battles you know nothing about...

As I lay awake in bed, just about every morning  

 my thoughts take me everywhere.  It always leads me 

to Puerto Rico.  My morning walks, and faces of

 the kitties that would be waiting for me.

That's what it's like when my thoughts are not

 100% occupied with what needs to be done at work.

  Not like there is so much, but there is always someone

 I need to meet, talk to straighten out.  Yesterday

 I had to have one of those serious talks. 

It's going to be a busy Saturday.  Yay! no time to 

complain about boredom, not to let my thoughts wander 

away too much.  It's time to get busy and to get the

 most out of the day.  Happy Saturday everyone.

Sniff is having a really good time fighting with his toy.

I used to have all these plans and think “Ah, I have my 

whole life figured out”, but then I realized no matter how 

much I plan: life happens! So I find myself living day to day 

trying to do my best, embracing every moment as a learning 

opportunity and chance to get to know myself a little more...

~Nadiya~ 

Friday June 10th ~

 I'm an early bird, partly because I like to have

 some quiet time and partly because by 9am emails 

begin arriving, the phone starts ringing and I 

have dragons to kill of one sort or another...

Another week soon over.  Even thought this was

 a less hectic week, it still won’t by very fast.  It’s been

 really quiet at AHL 🙃 not complaining, but I have to say 

I am getting a little restless. Used to being busy, busy.

We have taken care of a lot that needed to be done. 

 Finished with the remodeling of 2 rooms, so now

 it’s back to how it usually is.  Very quiet 🙃.

I will never complain about quiet or boredom 🙏

 at least not for now.  Being Friday it will be a 

bit busier 🙃. Get to see many tenants today

 because quite a few pay on Fridays. 

Weather has been beautiful. Clear skies after

 a little morning fog.  Perfect days here as one of my 

previous tenants would say, “don’t get any better.”

Sniff staying busy with the birds.  Arvid finds

 stuff to do no matter what.  I’m trying to not go 

near grass.  My bites are not healing too well because 

every time I scratch them I make them worse off .

Plans for the weekend?  For us it all depends 

on how the day goes.  Work a little tomorrow and

 hopefully make dinner at home. Just perfect 😀.
To all a good weekend and a relaxing time.

Weekends are days to refuel your soul and to
 be grateful for the blessings that you have...

~Nadiya~

Thursday June 9th ~

 Morning will come, it has no choice...

Today had life not taken this sudden turn, we would have

 been in Chicago for the Blues Festival.  But not happening.  

We cancelled that.  Was hoping that we could squeeze

 it in, but I really don't feel that the timing is right. 

 I do not like the idea of leaving Almost Home for so many

 days without one of us present.   C’est la vie.  Another time 

it will be.  There is always next year to look forward to 😊 

The other day Arvid and I enjoyed a beautiful 

evening at The Landing with a friend.  There was 

good food, good drinks and music, good company.

Best part was that I had two hours all to myself to just

 walk around and do a little shopping.  It's been a long 

time I have actually shopped in an actual store.

It was busy.  People everywhere, laughing, having a

 good time.  It was refreshing to be out of "work" 

environment for a few hours.  I love seeing people 

just having a good time, loving life.

Of course my most favorite attraction at The Landing is 

the dancing fountain.  It mesmerizes me every time.  

I have been pulling weeds and such in my "free" time

 at Almost Home.  Well next thing I know is that I am

 covered in bites.  There is something called chiggers. 

 In Missouri, chiggers bustle about from April to October. 

During the summer, peak activity times are around dawn and dusk

 and during mid-morning, as the temperature rises into the high 

70s and low 80s-their apparent preferred range-and before

 the sun has had a chance to burn off the evening dew.

No more going on the grass nor touching the flowers for 

me😞 too bad because I sure enjoy taking care of the roses

 and the flowers.  From now on it's fake flowers only, and 

no more getting too close to anything resembling a tree.

Wishing everyone a good day.  The day begins a

 little on the cloudy and cooler side, but will get warmer 

and sunnier in a few hours.  For now enjoying 

some quiet time before heading to work.

Things change.  Stuff happens.  Life goes on...

~Nadiya~

Wednesday June 8th ~

 The 3 C's of life: Choices, Chances,

 Changes.  You must make a choice to take 

a  chance or your life will never change...

These last two days were long.  That’s because

 we’re done with the remodeling of the rooms.  It’s

 back to not much to do.  Most would say this is good, 

but somehow for Arvid and I it sure feels weird.  

We feel guilty because we have free time 🤷🏻‍♀️

I have also been trying to stay indoors a lot. 

Not going and touching the grass or pulling weeds. 

 I have been bitten enough to know better. These 

little chiggers have made my arm look totally

 bizarre. They are covered with bites 😳

We finally managed to convince a family to move 

out.  In the process we got rid of a dog, 3 cats, 3

 adults and 2 kids. All in the same room. 

 When we took back Almost Home,

 we sure found the unexpected, but slowly

 we have made changes for the better.

The week is halfway done already.  Hopefully today

 will be a little busier so that the day passes by fast.

 Almost Home is usually very quiet except for the phone

 that never stops ringing, and that includes my cell phone. 

 Either it's ringing or tenants are texting me all the time.

  I have had texts at 2am, 3am etc.  I have

 had to put my phone on silent because it disturbs Arvid.

  The texts can usually wait until morning because they

 are never critical, just someone who works the late shift

 had a question.  Others have been because of the time 

difference.  That's what it's like to have a hotel.  You are 

needed 24-7, and just for nonsense most of the times.

Overall, I can't complain.  We have not had any 

disturbances at night.  We have had undisturbed

 sleep otherwise.  I hope I didn't jinx it 😂

To all a good day and as they say 99% of the

 battle is getting yourself in the right state of mind.

The days that break you are the days that make you...

~Nadiya~

June 7th ~ Day Like These ~

 If you want to be strong, learn to fight , 8th if we close...

Sometimes, actually quite often life throws a curve at

 you when you least expect it, but the way you handle

 it is always what will determine your outcome in life.

Somedays I miss our Brutus so very much,

 but I also love our Sniff with all my heart.

Good morning all.  Branson is already booming 

with people, makes for busy days and lively times.

Life teaches you a new lesson everyday if you

 are attentive enough in the class of life...

~Nadiya~

Monday June 6th ~

You do not find the happy life.  You make it... 

Another week begins and it sure did not feel as if

 we had any time "off" for ourselves this past weekend,

 but sooner or later it will be better 🙏.  For now, we do 

what we have to do and get the "show" on the road.  Hello 

Monday, what do you have in store for us this week?

Sniff was up too early today, and judging from his

 expression not too happy about it.  The good thing for

 Sniff is that he will be getting lots of catching up on

 his rest during the day.  For us it's time to get

 busy and make this week an amazing one. 

Every morning you have two choices: continue to 

sleep with your dreams or wake up and chase them...

~Nadiya~

Sunday May 5th ~

Thinking too much about what happened and what is
 about to happen will wear you down. Live in the moment...

Today is our day "off" at least it should be, but we will

 be going to Almost Home to check in a new tenant. 

 I have already done the background check and

also had my talk about rules and regulations. 

 All that's left is to do the paperwork.  She hails all the 

way from California.  She is now tenant number 3

 from California.  The other 2 are from San Diego.

  Definitely the differences between California and Missouri 

are vast, extreme I would say but believe it or not, these 

tenants choose to live in Branson and are happy here.

I miss the blue waters of the Caribbean Sea as does Arvid.

  I miss the palm trees and a few other things.  I do not 

miss the traffic in Fort Lauderdale.  Not one bit. 

 I miss Puerto Rico a lot.  My sister, Kimsy and my PR 

kitties, but we also like Branson.  We didn't expect it to

 turn out this way, but in life you never know what 

can and will happen.  You just have to go with 

the flow and give it your best shot.

Wishing everyone a relaxing and peaceful day.

You have only one life, and no one else will live

 it for you. Shouldn't you take the time right...

~Nadiya~

Saturday June 4th ~

Sometimes we just need to put down our phones,
 close our eyes and take a few deep breaths. 

Ideas are often in flight patterns around our 

brains, just waiting for clearance to land... 

A very good day.  Yes, it's a short day at work

 today and then to be home and do more work 😂 no

matter what work never ends.  It's just different 

depending on where you are.  Life goes on.

Once again there is rain in the forecast.  Seems 

like we will be having rain every day.  Again.

Looking forward to really just being home. 

 Relaxing and watching a movie tonight with Arvid

 and Sniff.  Yes, Pepsi and potato chips are going

 to be consumed.  Happy times indeed 😂.

Here at AHL, one of our tenants has taken it upon himself

 to make a little garden for everyone.  Radishes have already 

been picked.  He's also made the bench on his own.  

Next will be the BBQ pit.  Good times here.

Have a truly relaxing and recharging weekend.  Ours started 

out beautifully with a video of our youngest granddaughter blissed 

out to the beat of Bob Marley. Perfect start of another work day.  

Little Amelia, just 7 months old, and I still have not held her 😢

As important as it is to have a plan for doing work, 

it is perhaps more important to have a plan

 for rest, relaxation, self-care, and sleep...

~Nadiya~

Friday June 3rd ~

 Live every day as if it's going to be
 your last, and one day, you'll be right...

And just like that another week is soon over.  It's been
 a very busy one, making it go by even faster than ever.

Even though it is busy, we still took time to have 

lunch out together, and of course I could not miss taking 

pictures of one of my favorite landmarks in Branson, The 

Branson Ferris Wheel of course.  All the way from Chicago.

With the rain comes the waterfall.  

I see on my way to and from work.

Boys time.  Every evening after a long day at work it really is 

a sight for sore eyes.  These two have a bond, even if sometimes 

Arvid is a little less than patient with Sniff.  Sniff after all 

walks all over him constantly. Arvid's tolerance level is low

 at times, but once Sniff is settled in, all good with them.

Wishing everyone a great day and an early start of 
the weekend if that's the case.  Seems a long time ago

 we started our weekends early.  Now we're lucky if

 we have Sundays off 😂 What a life we live.

Some days you just have to create your own sunshine...

~Nadiya~

Thursday June 2nd ~

 If you obey all the rules, you’ll miss all the fun...

Starting out the day in a most delicious of ways.

  I know, not healthy, too much sugar..bla, bla, bla.  On the 

other hand if you can't enjoy the things you like every so 

often where is the fun in being alive.  So here is to not the 

healthiest of breakfasts, but definitely to a yummy one.

In the meantime, Sniff is slacking off as usual.  

Enjoying time with us in the evenings and we with him.

  Evenings are snuggle time and we all make sure to get 

lots of it with Sniff Sniff.  Everyone is happy 😍.

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed 

by the things you didn’t do than by the things you did...

~Nadiya~

June 1st ~ New Month Again

 Whatever the new month is bringing for you, be it good or bad; 

always keep that smile on your face no matter what...

Time stands still for no one.  Seems like just the other

 day we were living in Puerto Rico enjoying a beautiful

 relaxed lifestyle.  Next thing you know were were back in

 Branson, MO taking over the hotel again.  The previous owners 

whom we trusted just took off in the middle of the night 😐 

 They did exactly what some tenants do.  This was the

 last thing we expected, but Arvid and I are a force of nature

 when we do something.  We took it back and it is getting better

 and better every day.  Hopefully one day we can again enjoy 

that relaxed life we had, but for now it's work,

 work, work.  Sometimes 7 days a week.  

As the new month begins we have already accomplished

 so much.  The tenants are happy and at ease that things are

 running smoothly and that the bill are all paid.  As they

 have said, "we thank you both for our homes."

Working together is what we do best, and it sure pays off.

  I see smiling faces everywhere, and Arvid has shaped

 up, many already.  Many of the tenants were here when 

we first came to Almost Home.  They are happy and the

 "new" ones that came after we left have told us that they

 have never seen anyone work as hard as we do 😊.  

From what I understand the previous owners 

never helped the maintenance man much.  We do all 

the time, as needed in order to get things moving along.

New month and things are going well.  Almost Home 

is looking good and yes HAPPY.  It's a happy place to be.  

Our waiting list keeps growing and growing.  I have to say,

 we do have a good reputation, and the fact that Arvid

 and I are back has been spreading like wild fire 😅. 

 Good?  Not so good? time and our deeds will tell.

May this month be even better than the last, and may 

you always believe that something wonderful is about to happen.

  And never forget that your focus determines your reality.  

Happy new month everyone.  Let's do this.

 Here’s to a month of possibilities, overcoming 

challenges and all-round success..

~Nadiya~