Peter the Penguin

RJ and I at the aquarium

All of my life I've loved penguins! I've never seen any in real life. I've been trying to get to the Georgia Aquarium for the longest time. Well, the Tennessee Aquarium has a large penguin exhibit. You have to drive right past the Tennessee Aquarium to get to Gatlinburg, and I wanted to stop there on our way to our cabin. Well, it sounded great in theory, but in reality we were both too tired. So I thus gave up on my dream of gazing at this darling creature - even if it is through glass.
Well, there is a great aquarium in Gatlinburg. It is owned by the Ripley's corporation. They did a great job on their aquarium, but the penguin exhibit was superb. The exhibit was full of tunnels, crawl spaces, and glass floors. I was simply in heaven! These birds were so adorable gliding through the water and playing with each other. I crawled through the tunnel (conquering my fears of tight enclosed spaces) in order to be up close and personal with these graceful birds! RJ had to coax me out of there, I did not want to leave.

The button!

This exhibit was the last one, and we exited through the gift shop. RJ told me to continue shopping and he would be right back. Of course I didn't second guess or become suspicious because RJ is always looking for ways to get out of shopping. Well after he disappeared for a while I went to look for him. Low and behold he was outside the gate with a pin on his shirt that read "Penguin Playhouse Participant." Fighting back tears, I asked him what it was. Just as I thought, he bought tickets that enabled us to meet a penguin up close and personal! I was so excited!

waiting patiently..

After we waited for what seemed like FOREVER, we went inside and waited some more. Eventually we were given the signal to follow and were lead downstairs with about 7 other penguin enthusiasts. I envied the trainer so much. Not only did she get to spend EVERYDAY with penguins she got paid for it! This lady had a good relationship with all the penguins and knew each of their personalities. Can we say DREAM JOB? We all got to learn about penguins and their life cycles. I am so excited to be so much more informed about my favorite animal.

Getting to pet Peter was really cool. The first time around the trainer held him and let us pet him. What did he feel like? AWESOME! Exactly what you'd think a penguin would feel like. His thousands of feathers created a sleek and soft coat that felt almost like skin. After we all got to pet him, she let him just walk around. It was at this point that I fell deeper in love with the animal. He was inquisitive like a cat, but he was very clumsy in stature. He waddled across the room in search of something. The trainer informed us that he was looking for his girlfriend. Penguins are "colony" animals. They enjoy the company of each other much more than solitude. They bond with a mate for life, and stay within the same colony for their entire life, too. This was one of the most memorable aquarium experiences, ever. It will be hard to beat! Check out this video of Peter...

Baby it's Cold Outside...

My how time has flown this year!

It is already time for the holiday madness! RJ and I are checking with our respective families and trying to map our Christmas journey to spend time with family. This should be real interesting! His family has very specific traditions (which I really like and hope to continue with our immediate family), and my family just gets together whenever we can all be together. My uncle Carey used to be a fireman and had a schedule that altered each year. The Volnoff family has lunch on Christmas Day every year. Things are also very different for my family this year with my Mamaw and Papaw buying a house, especially since Christmas at their house used to be a REALLY BIG DEAL! It is not a wise choice for my grandfather to travel with his condition, so we are hoping and praying that everyone will get to come to Alabama to celebrate Christmas.

I have done a small amount of Christmas shopping. With the wedding just passing, going on the honeymoon, and moving into the apartment with RJ - Christmas gifts have been the last thing on my mind. I’m not even motivated to decorate our apartment for the season. I know that is very “un-domestic” of me, and I should probably provide my husband with a much better Christmas home, but he understands the stresses I’ve been going through. My goal is to have our tree up and decorated by the weekend. Luckily, I’ve convinced RJ to let me have a real tree this year (It wasn’t that hard). I already have some decorations from my college years, and some of our lovely wedding guests gave us Christmas decorations, too.

The hubs and I get the joy of taking part in many of our church’s festivities this year. We have been chosen to be Mary and Joseph for the Children’s Musical and to do some interpretive movement as Mary and Joseph in the annual Cantata. We will also be performing “How Many Kings” with my father. Rj will play the piano and sing, my dad will sing, and I will do some interpretive movement (dancing). We also get to take part in some of the advent candle readings.

Now, excuse me while I do some Cyber Monday Christmas shopping!

What's this? Time to blog?

Here I am sitting with my sister, Carrot, and RJ watching the Tide run all over MS State and I thought to myself "I could be BLOGGING right now!"

RJ and I got to take Laila to the park today on the anniversary of her arrival into our family. She has been with us 6 weeks today. It was so much fun, and I'm so proud of her. She ran and played so much! She even ate a dandelion! She did really well without her leash - until we approached other dogs.  I'm so excited to have her as a part of our family! 

RJ and I also had the joy of adding some lovely art to our living room today! The apartment still has pretty naked walls, but we have ideas (and plenty of stuff to hang). There is simply no time to decorate right now, so we just have the essentials.

Our new Vinyl Wall Art

Can we talk about how excited I am for the WEDDING next Saturday. The reception is going to be beautiful thanks to the help of all our friends and family who are pulling together at the last minute to help. I can't wait to see all my maids in their outfits! They are all going to be so gorgeous! I'm doing my own hair, so i'm kind of nervous about that - but I've practiced! No matter what, I'll still leave with the same Groom! We are down to the nitty gritty, and I'm so in love with RJ! I have so much fun with him on a daily basis! I am looking forward to spending our first Thanksgiving in the mountains, too! 

Well, the next time I blog, I'll be Mrs. Volnoff!

11 Days Out...

Well here we are eleven days away from our wedding day!
We have been very busy lately nailing down details of our marriage and ceremony.
A few last minute crises have arisen, but everything is going well with plan B. We are
now having the reception in our home church, Millbrook Baptist, due to some unforeseen circumstances with our caterer/decorator. Bless his heart; his wife has gone home to be with the
Lord. RJ and I aren’t upset about this; honestly, we are just ready to start our journey together as
a married couple!
RJ has been in the apartment for about two months. It is slowly, but surely, coming together.
We love our quaint (one level) community! We have a new addition to our family. Her name is
Laila, and she is now ten and a half weeks old.
We have completed our pre-marriage counseling and are blessed to have been able to learn so
much from our pastor and his sweet wife.
I have had several showers (two that RJ attended), and have been blessed with beautiful gifts!
My lingerie shower was a blast, and very entertaining. I was (to my own surprise) uncomfortable
at first, but I ended up lightening up and making the party take an unexpected turn!


All of this wedding stuff has not been as stressful as everyone has told me it would be. My
mother and I got along great! The only thing that caused stress was the twist we had right here
at the end. Even so, we are all handling it well. I’m blessed to have a mother who is willing to
plan and organize while I simple “approve.” There hasn’t been much drama. There was certainly
some unnecessary attitude towards the very beginning, but overall my wedding planning has
been a pleasant experience.


What advice might I offer to brides?
1. Don’t choose your bridesmaids too soon. I chose mostly family because I know they will
always be there no matter what. The reason I suggest not to choose to soon is because 1)
everyone is always so excited for you upon engagement, but their true colors do not show
until about a few months in, and 2) I had a bridesmaid get pregnant and had to step down
after the dress had been ordered. Obviously, there was nothing I could do about this, and
the chances of your BMs due date being the week after your wedding are slim to none.
(Note – I’m not upset about Rachel not being IN my wedding, I just hope she can just BE
THERE!)
2. Just think of the gift. RJ’s sister gave me this piece of advice. When people are rude to
you, make odd suggestions, offend you, ask inappropriate questions… just think about
the gift they’ll give you. Do not react with haste. Think about your response and ensure
that it is classy; you do not have to answer any questions you do not want to.
3. Remember what’s REALLY important. Your Groom. Don’t let his needs get put to the
side simply because you are busy or want different things. There is always room for
compromise (it’s helpful to learn this BEFORE marriage). Ensure that you spend plenty
of time together. Planning your MARRIAGE is more important than planning your
WEDDING.
4. It’s not worth it to fight with your mother. If you have a good relationship with her, don’t
let your Big Day ruin it. This is her day, too, ya know? (see tip #5) I was blessed to have
a mother who wanted to help plan. My laid back attitude let her do what she wanted. I
couldn’t stress over it… especially when I saw that glow come over her once she had a
good idea.


5. It’s not really YOUR day. Your time comes during the honeymoon! This celebration is
really for your family and friends. The sooner you realize that, the better. Yes, stand firm
for the things that are important to you, but be sure to weigh the importance of every
decision before you freak. Again, your fun will be later ;)
6. I recommend short engagements….(short being like 6-10 months)
7. Know that things will go wrong as you get closer to the big day. (See above ;) )
8. HAVE FUN!! You only (or should only) get to do this once!


My next post will probably after the wedding ;)

Ok... Much Better

It’s amazing how God works sometimes!

I am so blessed by God to have such a wonderful fiancé to get me through the worst of times. I’ve had such a crazy emotional roller coaster ride these past few weeks, and he has stuck through it with me. It’s so comparative to God’s love. No matter what we do. No matter how hard we indirectly push Him away, He still holds us, He still loves us, He still smiles when He looks upon us.
My RJ has demonstrated God’s love to me this week. The way he treated me has encouraged me to love like God loves. It’s so rewarding. Often times we get angry at someone or are used and mistreated; we then decide to act unloving. That’s not the way it is supposed to work. In all our relationships we are to “love our neighbor as we love ourselves” despite how we are treated by our neighbor.
If you are having trouble with this virtue, you may want to ask yourself if you actually love yourself. I struggled with not loving myself years ago. It took the Lord and His servants to show me how. For some this is harder than others. Sometime us women are cruel, cruel people… TO OURSELVES! We must stop this disease, raise our chins high, and LOVE the person that God has created us to be.
I encourage you to love as God has loved you – including yourself!

I need this feeling to go away. I'm so tired that i'm numb. I think stress is a disease that i suffer from. I have such a great life and i can't even enjoy it.

Wedding Shower Number One

This past weekend I had the joy of going down to Mobile, AL with my fiancé and his family. We got to go to a nice southern wedding on Saturday and a reception afterwards. The reception was beautiful on the countryside of Lucedale, MS.

The following day RJ’s lovely aunts threw us our first shower. It was such an amazing experience. I got to meet more of RJ’s family, and connect on a deeper level with those that I already knew. One of my dad’s cousins was also there, Julia Ellen, and it was a JOY to see her and catch up. I’m so excited to be a part of this family, and I could not ask for a more beautiful extended family. I'm also so proud of my lovely fiancé who decided to go to the shower with me. I told him it was 100%  his decision, and he chose to stay. I did not take any pictures, but I hope to receive digital copies from those who did.

We got some great gifts: three place settings, kitchen utensils, sheets, “V” stuff, “Mr. V” and “Mrs. V” towels, cleaning supplies, frames, décor items, and so much more! I’m so overwhelmed at the generosity of this family! Now… for the thank you notes :)

One Day at a Time!

...sweet jesus.

After the most awful work experience ever, the Lord has rescued me as He promised in Psalms 91:14.
I will not go into detail at how poorly I was treated by my boss simply because he now means nothing to me. I really thought (before realizing how unprofessional Kim N. Price of Price Publications is) I could have a long term relationship with this company. I should have known when in the interview during my salary discussion Kim told me not to "over market myself" after I already quoted him my BARE MINIMUM salary. Anyways, back to my Lord and savior.

I tool a leap of faith on Friday and quit my job. I had a good feeling about a position I applied for at Hyundai, but knew nothing for sure. I went home after quiting at nine in the morning and did homework ALL DAY. My phone rang at four that afternoon and it was one of the recruiters from my interview. They wanted me to start ASAP. I go for my pre-screening computer software test on Monday with a drug test thereafter.

God's timing is perfect. I am simply speechless about this situation, but I think the story speaks for itself. Praise Him!

This position is a temporary one, but there is a good chance that another position will be open upon the completion of this project. I will be assisting the HR department in preparation for their yearly audit. I will be making sure that all files contain the necessary documents, etc. I've been told that my tasks will consist of some degree of repetitiveness, but I do not care. As long as I'm not degraded and insulted on a daily basis, all is well.

Also, I went and tested this morning for a Budget Analyst position for the State of Alabama. I was quite nervous, for I had not even looked at the preparation packet until last night at ten o'clock. Upon reading the preface, God revealed His perfect timing to me even more. It will take the state approximately six weeks to get my scores and ranking information completed and mailed to me. Then, the interviewing and placement process begins. Can we talk about the fact that, if the Budget Analyst position comes through, it will be RIGHT AFTER MY HYUNDAI JOB IS COMPLETE! God is good.

In the words of one of my best friends, If I wasn't supposed to be at Hyundai, it wouldn't have come together so smoothly. People without faith might worry about the termination of the Hyundai job resulting in unemployment, but I know the Lord will take care of me, amen!

Also, RJ signed the lease for our quaint and cozy apartment on Main Street Millbrook this morning. The housing process has been gruelling, confusing, and frustrating, but we have a good feeling about living in this apartment. It is in such a great location for a good price. We are going in to clean and get a few things set up tonight, and RJ will move in tomorrow. I will move in when we get married! And that is that, no more ups, downs, or unexpected turns concerning where to live.

An update on my family.... My Granny is doing AMAZING. She has bounced back so quickly. Her incisions are healing and she is feeling great. The news with my mom's dad isn't as charming, but we know who is in control. His cancer is in the fourth stage. He goes in Monday for an iron treatment, and will start chemo on Tuesday. The doctor says he is certain the cancer will respond to the therapy, but doesn't know if it will heal. We ask that you pray for the physicians, my Mamaw who is taking care of him, and for us as we deal with this shocking news.

... and I still haven't been able to part with Vibrams. I'll send them in next week sometime.