Life as a Boocock

Monday, April 5, 2010

And then there were 3!

Changes are coming to the Boocock household. No longer will it be just Neal and I. That's right! We are having a baby!! We are super excited to announce Baby Boocock, due October 2, 2010! We are 14 weeks pregnant right now. I have been really lucky and not had any morning sickness, just feeling really tired all the time! I keep waiting to get my energy back so hopefully soon! Still no baby bump but I'm sure it will come soon enough. We are really excited and know big changes are in store for us. So far we've seen an ultrasound at 9 weeks and just this last Monday I got to hear the heartbeat for the first time! Hearing the heartbeat made it all seem so much more real! We know that God had big plans for us and this new life.

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Construction!

We just finished our first big project as homeowners! We took the money we got back as first time home buyers and put it right back into the house. When we bought, it was a 2 bedroom home. The second bedroom had previously had a wall taken down to make it a super bedroom. It was a catch all space that had both the guest bedroom and office all as one. It was long and felt awkward to us so we knew that the first thing we wanted to do was put the wall back to create a 3 bedroom house. Here's what it looked like when we moved in.

So a few months ago we had a friend who's in construction come in and do the work for us. It was messy and dusty but it went surprisingly fast. The construction lasted just over a week was all. A wall went up and closet for each of the bedrooms. The carpet got pulled back and a new entrance had to be created for the other bedroom.

New doorway. There used to be a closet on that wall in the hallway.

We are so glad we did this! We now have two separate spaces. Here's the new office. It's the smaller of the two rooms but it fits what we need it to.

And this is the guest bedroom that has room for both the bed and a reading space. This is the bigger of the two rooms. And the upstairs hall doesn't have a weird placed closet anymore! We love the final outcome. The house has a better flow to it now and it just feels like it should be this way. Plus we've added value!

Saturday, May 16, 2009

My Grandma

Marian Margaret Huff

1922-2009

My grandma passed away this last week. She was a remarkable woman and I greatly miss her. There is a hole in the hearts of each member of my family right now. We are comforted by the fact that we know she is in Heaven now with her Savior, free to dance and rejoice with Him. It has been hard to let her go and her service today was especially hard. I will hold memeories of her close to my heart and use her as a role model for parenting my future children. I never want to forget her hugs or her voice and I will make sure that my children know what an amazing woman their great-grandmother was. To give you a taste of what she was like here is my reflection on her impact in my life.

As a young girl, the best description I could have given you of my Gra ndma was fun. My sister and I would often spend the night at their house and it was something we always looked forward to. Grandma’s house was a home with few limits. We could watch as much TV as we wanted, which included cable -something we didn’t have at our house, and eat snacks at the times we weren’t allowed to at home. Pepsi, chips and a freezer that was always stocked with ice cream, usually pecan pralines, were snacks from Grandma. Bath time was a true event at Grandma’s. She would go into her kitchen and bring what seemed like every pot, pan, and utensil to the tub for me to play with. There was not a single one that didn’t become a bath tub toy. It seemed like she always managed to get more pots and pans in that tub with us than the laws of physics should allow. I never thought to ask if they got a real washing before the next meal. Summer days were always deemed “too hot for clothes”, according to Grandma. It was a common occurrence to find my sister and I running around their house in just our underwear in the summer months. She would always tell us we were “hot as a pistol” and strip us down. At that young age, without realizing it, Grandma was teaching me to never take life too seriously and that fun could be found in the everyday things of life

As I got older, I got to see a different side to Grandma. Devoted would be the word I would use to describe her. She was a devoted follower of our Lord. I remember curling up next to her on the couch, each of us reading our own books. Mine was usually some teen drama series and hers, a devotional or real stories of faith. At the funny stories she would start laughing so hard trying to re-tell them to me that she was unable to form words and her laugh was so infectious that I would just start laughing with her even though I never got to actually hear the story. She had this laugh that came down from her toes and when she started to laugh she just couldn’t stop. I’ve been told that this is a trait I’ve inherited from her. I remember when I was in high school and I had invited a friend to church with me. That friend later made the decision to become a Christian and Grandma wrote me one of the most powerful notes I’ve ever received, telling me how proud she was of me for having the courage to speak my faith. My Grandma never spoke at the pulpit in church or never went to a foreign country to spread the Word. But her impact on the world was just as great as anyone who has. She influenced me just by silently setting an example of love and faith.

Not only was she devoted to the Lord, her heart also was devoted to her family. Her loving spirit was a powerful influence on our family. While in college, I got the opportunity to go out to dinner more regularly with her and Grandpa and got to see the amazing relationship they had. The way they interacted with each other spoke volumes about the deep love they shared. They were not two individuals, instead they were one unit that was stronger than one person could be. This model of true love and devotion to another person will continue to help guide me in my marriage. Her servant’s heart also spoke to me. I never walked away from their house hungry thanks to Grandma. The last time I went to their house to visit before she fell ill, she must have asked me at least 6 times if I wanted a sandwich, and this was a common theme to our conversations when I was there. “Al, are you hungry? Do you want a sandwich?” “I’m ok Grandma. Thanks.” “Are you sure? I can make you a sandwich.” She never wanted others taking care of her but preferred to take care of them. Even when her health was declining she wanted to give to others. She got true joy from seeing others happy. She loved taking care of her family and spent her life doing the best she could for each of us.

Grandma was one of the most amazing women I’ve ever known and I was so blessed to have her as my grandma. God truly gave me such an amazing gift in her. I consider myself so lucky to have gotten so many good years with her. I will never forget all that she gave me and the love she had for me. She had a way of making you feel like the most special person in her life. Even though it is painful for us right now to have her absent from our lives, I know she is in Heaven, free from any pain physically or mentally and she is celebrating an eternity with her Creator. I will continue to treasure my memories of her and look forward to the day when we can be reunited again.

Friday, April 3, 2009

A Fresh Outlook

Last year was a really rough year for me professionally, which lead to being rough emotionally. I felt abused and rejected. I carried around a very negative attitude and looked at life as something to just get through. I realize now that I wasted so much time and effort having a 'tude and it didn't help anything. So here's what I've come to realize.

First- God's plans are always better than mine. Neal and I were talking the other day and we realize that it may have been a true blessing in disguise that I lost my job last school year instead of this year. If it had been this year, with the economy being what it is, its very possible that my current employer would not have been able to hire me. God saw ahead and planned an opportunity for me that has been amazing and such a blessing. It is wonderful to go to work each day with coworkers that are so supportive and loving. My kids at work I have also come to truly love. I find myself excited to get to work with some of the kids and consider myself lucky to get the chance to make a difference in their lives. Thank you Lord for this opportunity.

Second- A negative attitude just makes me an ugly person. I realize now that my bitterness and anger served me no purpose. I could have gotten so much more out of my current job sooner had I not been in such a permanent bad mood. I was mooping around the house again one day, just lost in my yucky thoughts when I realized that I wasn't liking myself very much. (Thanks to one friend who gave me and honest insight into what I really was doing to myself,) I didn't like who I'd become. Thats not who I used to be. I loved life and was now just scrapping by. I realized that whenever anyone asked me how I was my answer was not positive; "sick", "blah", etc. Who wants to be around a person like that? I know I wouldn't want to be. I saw myself from an outside perspective and realized that if I were someone else I wouldn't want to hang around a person like me. I knew then that it was time to let go. So I would like to take this opportunity to apologize to everyone that I was like this with and tell you I am sorry and that it not the person I really am. If you will allow me I'd like another chance to show you the real me.

Third-I am very capable. I had lots of self doubting thoughts about my abilities to perform a job. Through God's healing and the support of my coworkers I realize that I am good at working with kids and should not have let the thoughts in that I was not able to do it. I have renewed strength and determination now. I felt stripped of my confidence but now feel that I have it back. I know I am not perfect and still have lots to learn but I know that with practice and hard work I can do it.

All that being said, I'm not saying that I won't occasionally slip back into sulking but I really am trying to move on and trust God's plans for my life. Thank you to my friends who patiently listened to me and allowed me to pout and still loved me through it all. Also thank you for calling me out when I needed it. I am so lucky to have people in my life that are there for the good, bad, and ugly. I am rebuilding myself and returning to the person I once was. I am each day making a conscious effort to have more positive experiences and to let go of the past. I am trying to pray for my continued healing and would really appreciate prayers from friends too. Thank you everyone.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Comfort vs. Calling

This morning at church the pastor was talking about how God did not create us to have a comfortable life here on Earth. He called us to go out into the world and be His light and be like Him. He was saying that comfort should not be our ultimate goal here; if given the choice between a completely comfortable life and a harder life, as Christians we shouldn't even have to stop and think about it; that comfort would be off the table. I had to admit to myself that the life of comfort was what attracted me. I felt the pull of "A life of comfort, never having to worry sounds amazing." I really desire that life of comfort where I don't have to work to hard to enjoy life and all it has to offer. I couldn't honestly say that I could choose calling to do God's work over comfort.
This got me to thinking: I've always identified myself as a Christian. Gone to church my whole life, baptized in 7th grade, got really involved in high school. Since that time I've pulled back. My faith is not the driving force in my life. I follow when it's convenient for me. I haven't gotten involved in anything since high school. I just a Sunday attender. I know that something is missing from my life. My spirit just hasn't felt full in a long time and I have a feeling it's because I have been choosing comfort.
So know that I have been woken up and realize that I need to follow my calling I'm left wondering, what is my calling? How do people figure that out? I can't say I've ever really felt the Lord speak to me. And if He does how do I know it's Him and not something else? Any guidance from some of my more spiritually mature friends would be greatly appreciated.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Sadness

My last entry was all about my desire to get a Cavalier puppy. After talking to lots of breeders the advice we were given was to get a slightly older puppy. An older puppy would be easier to train and better able to handle being alone during the day. So we contacted and heard back from a breeder in Temecula who had a beautiful 8 month old girl named Bella. We went out there this weekend and immediately fell for her. We had to bring her home. We made the long drive back home and were so excited to have her be part of our lives now. The bad part was she did not get along with the cat but it was getting better as the weekend progressed. Bella instantly bonded with Neal. She was his girl. Following him around and wanting to be with him at every moment. It wasn't the same with me. She didn't seem to really care about me that much which I think was the most dissapointing part of it all to me. I had wanted her so badly and she couldn't care less about my existence. But to move on, we tried leaving her alone for periods of time to get her used to us not being home during the day. She whined and barked the whole time. The neighbors we talked to were obviously not fans of dogs so we couldn't leave her in the yard. Neal tried a doggy pen in the house which she climbed over and got out. Behind closed doors she continued to whine and was miserable. We had to do some soul searching and realized we were probably not the best home for her. She needed to be with a family that could devote more time to her. So we made the heartbreaking decision to take her back. It has left us feeling sad and the house feeling empty. We are so dissapointed that it didn't work out and not sure how to move on from it. She was a good dog and we had to do what was best for her. But we miss her.

Saturday, December 27, 2008

Doggy Dilemma

So Neal and I finally were able to agree on the type of dog to get. We randomly saw a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel (see above picture) while out getting our Christmas tree and both fell in love. We did research online and found out that they are really good dogs and will work really well for our lifestyle. So of course I got all excited and began picturing our nightly walks and weekends at dog beach with our totally cute puppy! I had Friday off work so I was going to spend the day looking for breeders around here that are reputable.

Massive bummer, to get a good puppy from a quality breeder the cost is outrageous! Like $2,400!!! We obviously do not have this kind of money just laying around. So now I'm really bummed because I was so looking forward to having a puppy. We've looked and asked around and that pretty much is the going rate. I don't want to get a puppy from a puppy mill which would be much cheaper but potentially bad because of all the bad stuff that goes on there and the potential health problems later in the dogs life. (King Charles can have pretty serious health issues if they are not from a good line.) Now I don't know what to do. We looked online and found some breeders that seems to know what they are doing and have all the right certification and are less expensive but they are out of state. It says they can ship but I don't know how I feel about that for the sake of the puppy and that we can't meet the dog before buying it.

So I'm appealing to all of you, if you know of anyone or anyway to help us find a quality King Charles for less money I will be eternally grateful. For my birthday, I'll be wishing on my candles for a puppy.