Sunday March 29th ~

Within you there is a stillness and a sanctuary to 

which you can retreat at any time and be yourself...

 I woke up late again, well later than my usual 

time. It feels so good.  I feel rested.  Another day to 

enjoy some alone time.  Really loving it.  I have no 

schedule.  Feels so good.  I still get everything done, 

but at my own pace.  Below, is the view I wake up 

to and the view I see before going to sleep.

In the meantime Arvid and Vidar are having 

a good time in Branson. Arvid is taking him around, 

 They have been to a few of our favorite spots already. 

 Visited Almost Home and The View.  I’m sure after 

this trip, Vidar will have a better understanding of why

 we enjoy Branson so much. Yesterday I did a few 

things I enjoyed and did not have to rush to get back 

home and make lunch.  I had leisure, relaxed time.

My nephew Sachin sent me a picture of the two

 of us.  Yes a long time ago.  Taken in Weston, 

Florida when mom and dad first lived here.

Sniff watched a bird movie for at least an hour

 before falling asleep. He keeps sitting on Arvid’s spot a lot.  

He misses him, and keeps looking for him everywhere.

Yesterday as usual I went to feed Legacy.  Again she

 was not there.  I left her clean water and foodies, and

 I cleaned up the "dirty dishes" from the morning. 

 Yes, someone also feeds her in the mornings.

A good day to all.  May it be relaxing and stress free.

Life is all about balance.  You don't always

 need to be getting stuff done.  Sometimes it's 

perfectly okay, and absolutely necessary, to 

shut down, kick back, and do nothing...

~Nadiya~

Saturday March 28th~

Stepping into the weekend 

like it's the red carpet of life..

What an early start we had yesterday morning. 

Though I did not go with Arvid and his brother I 

had to take them to the airport. I was so exhausted 

from not having slept much for the last two nights, 

but Arvid already called me a few times and 

said they were having a very good time.  

If you know Arvid he will try to show Vidar

 as much as possible.  Also planned for last night

 was to meet a couple of friends.  Arvid likes to surprise 

people so I don't know how successful it will be to get 

hold of everyone, but they will still have a great time.

After dropping them off at the airport I went

 to mom and dad's.  They are still on the cruise

 so I went to water her pepper trees. It was still 

pitch dark.  I got there a little after 5am.  It was 

eerily quiet at that hour, not a soul in sight.

 I also made some food and left it in her fridge

 so that when the come home, she does not have to 

cook that same day.  She always give me food 😍

Once I got home I did some cleaning up.  Took 

care of Sniff again and took off to the outlets.  I was

 exhausted, but still unable to relax and take a nap.

I checked out the stores, Ford's Garage but 

what caught my attention was the baby turtles and 

the fish in one of the ponds. All the little kids 

were enjoying them as well.  So many turtles.

Today I slept in.  Felt good and I still had my 

alone time in the morning since Arvid is not home.  

Sniff checked out an Amazon box, and then we both

 just took it easy for a while. There is no rushing to

 eat breakfast nor to get a million things done at 

once.  I think I will just take the morning "off"

What a lovely surprise to discover

 how un-lonely being alone can be...

~Nadiya~

Friday March 27th~

What a wonderful thought it is

 that some of the best days of our

 lives haven't even happened yet...

 Early this morning the brothers took off on a 

little weekend trip on their own.  That means I 

will have a few days on my own to do whatever

 I like.  Everyone is happy and we're all looking 

forward to what the next few days hold 😍

Yesterday Arvid took his brother around and 

showed him more of where we live and showed 

him damages still visible from Hurricane Ian.  

There are still many boats in the canals that 

now cannot be removed because of some

 protected fish that lives in those canals.

Afterwards the three of us went to Pinchers at the 

Westin for lunch.  Another favorite place of ours. 

 We had good food.  Watched the boats passing

 by, and enjoyed each other's company. 

Afterwards it was back home.  They both 

needed to freshen up, because last night they 

went to a concert.  Yup.  The same one I told 

Arvid to take his brother to instead of me.

  I know they will have a good time.

Once we got home I packed my Legacy and 

bird food bag.  I did see Legacy and Newbie, but 

both were behind the fence, and neither came to the 

food while I was there.  I still left food and fresh

 water.  They will get it on their own time.

Sniff and I had more time to chill.  Sniff

 was sad all day yesterday because he saw the

 suitcase out, but when he realized I did not go he 

was happy again.  Sniff  get very emotional😂

Collect beautiful moments and let

 them tell the story of your life...

~Nadiya~

Thursday March 26th~

The simplest pleasures are

 sometimes the most extraordinary...

 I enjoy seeing Arvid having such a good time 

with his brother. He waited a long time for this.

 They are both enjoying each others company. 

They are actually getting to spend more time now

 than when we go to Norway. Strange, but true.

 Our days begin with Vidar coming over to us.

  The two of them enjoying some time on the balcony, 

and then we set out to do some "exploring."  It is so

 hot that my suggestion is let's get the walking in early, 

and in the evenings we can do the downtown scene.

Yesterday we went to Fort Myers Beach. I love

 going to the beach. We got there before the sun 

really sweltered.  We showed Vidar around many of

 our favorite spots.  Margaritaville was picked. 

The pool was full and everyone was

 having a great spring break. 

The first three people I met were loving the

 heat.  Me not so much.  They were from Maine,

 Iowa and Wisconsin. They said they have 

had enough cold. I can only imagine.

Arvid and Vidar enjoyed time together, but it was

 almost impossible to get pictures of them. Neither 

of the two want their picture taken, but I managed

 to get them to look at the camera for a change. 

 Most of the pictures I have is of their  backs. 

We ended up going to Lani Kai for lunch.

 I always have a great meal because I have 

the snow crabs. Arvid and his brother 

enjoyed the baby back ribs. 

Afterwards we walked around some more. 

We took Vidar to Matanzas (On The Bay) and 

just like Arvid, he loved it there  who knows

 we may have to go back one more time before 

Vidar leaves.  There are so many places we

 want to take him.  Time is not enough

We drove him around a bit showing him 

what Hurricane Ian did and how the beach and 

surrounding areas is coming back to life.

We then went back home and the plan was to 

meet later in the evening and go bar hopping

 downtown.  My knee was already hurting so 

I decided I was not going to with them. 

Plus I  usually can’t drink much.

I did go to feed Legacy.  She was not there 

neither was Newbie. I cleaned up her area and 

left her her foodies.  I’m sure she would eat it,

  and maybe Newbie as well.  They always do.

Arvid and his brother enjoyed an evening

 downtown.  Sniff and I enjoyed an evening

 at home.  Everyone happy. The brothers

 are definitely having a very good time.

To all a very good day. Another 

busy day here. Looking forward to it. 

Learn to take breaks from everything

 and chill once in a while.  Take

 a deep breath and enjoy life...

~Nadiya~

Wednesday March 24th

Once a brother, always a brother, 

no matter the distance, no matter the

 difference and no matter the issue...

 Arvid’s brother made it to Fort Myers after being 

on the go for 26 hours. Saying that he was exhausted

 when we picked him up is an understatement.  We

 learnt that he did not make his connection to Toronto, 

Canada due to a mistake made by the Norwegian 

agent who checked him in in Oslo, Norway.

He then had to scramble to find another flight

 to get to Fort Myers.  He was detoured to Newark,

 New Jersey, and that’s where the “fun” began. 

 Traveling has become a nightmare. At least 

I think so. I really dread it these days.

But as the new day began, all was good

 and we breathed a sigh of relief that Arvid’s 

brother Vidar is actually here in Fort Myers.

Yesterday morning Arvid met Vidar early

 at the hotel.  Together they walked over to

 us, from there on it was relaxed time.

Sniff knows something is going on so he stayed

 under my clothes in the closet most of the morning. 

 It’s was a beautiful day.  A bit too hot for me, but 

definitely not cold. A good change for someone

 coming from the Norwegian cold weather.

As I did a few chores on my own 😊 Arvid 

and Vidar spent some time at home just chatting.

  Afterwards they went downtown to walk around a

 bit then I was supposed to meet them at a given time 

so that the three of us would have lunch together.

I thought it over and called Arvid and told 

him that I was not going to meet them for lunch.  

I thought it would be very okay for them to have 

this day alone together, just bonding.  I don't mind

 spending time, and doing lunch by myself.  It was

 very relaxing and best of all I did not cook.  Arvid 

and his brother enjoyed their meal at Ford's Garage.

As usual I went to check on Legacy. Never 

forgotten as long as I’m at home.  Did some cleaning 

and gave her fresh water as always.  She was not 

there so I waited a bit, then I saw her and Newbie.

  So happy.  Of course they had extra foodies.

Another busy but fun filled day awaits us.  It is

 another sweltering hot day, and we have a lot

 of exploring to do.  To all a very good day.

Life's pleasures are often found in simple,

 everyday moments rather than grand achievements...

~Nadiya~

Tuesday March 24th~

The longer you have to wait for something the 

more you appreciate it when it finally comes...

 All the waiting is finally over. Arvid’s brother is

 here and we could not be any happier. Arvid is 

over the moon.  He has talked non-stop about how

 good it will be for his brother to visit. I am happy

 they will get to spend time together on their own.

  Yes, we have planned a few things to do😍

Arvid and I spent most of yesterday cleaning.  

We did an even deeper clean because Arvid's 

brother is allergic to cats.  As you all know, 

Sniff rules our home.  Just had to make sure 

we dusted the place a little more than usual.

Arvid's brothers journey from Norway to Fort 

Myers was not an easy one.  From start to end the

rip took more than 24 hours.  Delays included.  Arvid's

 brother started in Oslo to Frankfurt, from there

 he travelled to Ontario, Canada and from there 

finally to Fort Myers.  A very long day.

I took a break from cleaning and went to

 feed Legacy.  Today she was there.  Yesterday 

I went a bit late and she was not there.

For the next few days we have a full schedule.  I'm happy.  

Family: A little bit of crazy, a little

 bit of loud, and a whole lot of love...

~Nadiya~

Monday March 23rd~

Start your week with high energy and

 purpose,  focusing on new opportunities, 

growth, and a positive mindset... 

  The other day we got a flyer in the mail stating

 we won $2500 from a car dealership.  Right away Arvid 

pulled out his magnifying lens to properly read it.  He read 

what we won, but not the fine print. They get you there.

Before I knew what was going on, Arvid took off

 faster than lightning to the dealership.  In less than an

 hour he was back saying it was a scam.  I looked at him 

and said, "I thought by now you would know better."

If all goes according to plans we have a PACKED

 week ahead of us. Both Arvid and I are looking

 forward to it and very excited to see how it goes.

Yesterday we had our usual Sunday outing.  We went 

to one of our favorite spots, and one of my favorite 

restaurants.  We always have the exact same thing. 

 I go for the whole red snapper fish and Arvid has

 the steak.  Maybe it's more my favorite than his.

Having company is always a great incentive to 

really clean.  More cleaning today.  The place

 will smell fresh and will have to be spotless.

May the new week bring us all closer to our goals.

May your week be filled with good

 thoughts, kind people, and happy moments...

~Nadiya~