Wednesday January 31st~

Forever grateful for this precious moment. 

The best things in life are the memories we

 make. In this moment, time stands still...

 And just like that January 2024 is almost over.  

Time sure flies when you're having fun.  I am making 

the most of the time I have with my parents. 

 I try to see them as often as possible.  For all I know this 

maybe their last time coming to spend the winters in Florida 😭,

 at least that's what they said.  I just hope they change their minds. 

 My dad is getting a little too old he said to do the drive.

  He still can, but I don't know if he wants to.

Mom and dad I will forever be grateful to you both for

 giving me the most beautiful moments of my life.

One thing Arvid does good in the kitchen 

is to boil an egg and to make hot chocolate.  On 

cold days he puts all his skills to good use.  Hot chocolate

 made yesterday and leftovers for tomorrow because Arvid

 said tomorrow will be much colder than today😰

Still having cooler temperatures, but the days are beautiful. 

 Blue skies and sunshine.  A good and happy day to all.

The most important moments are t

he ones that make you feel alive...

~Nadiya~

Tuesday January 30th~

The only time you should ever look

 back is to see how far you have come...

 Ever since the marina by our condo building was destroyed

 by Hurricane Ian, Arvid keeps hoping that soon something will

 happen.  According to city officials that may "soon" be possible. 

 Soon can be years, but at least someone is talking about rebuilding.

  Below is a picture of what the marina looked like.  We had it

 for 8 days before Hurricane Ian destroyed everything.

The building with the 5 towers is ours.  To the left with the green

 roof is Joe's Crab Shack.  Our building had water damage to the 

first 2 levels which are the garage levels.  Joe's Crab Shack had boats 

crashing under it.  Today Joe's Crab Shack is back up and running.

If you are a Floridian, you know there is much to say about the Florida traffic.

Colder mornings continue.  Arvid is threatening to turn on the heat.

Wishing everyone a good day.  Climate change is definitely here.

Climate change is no longer some far-off problem;

 it is happening here; it is happening now...

~Nadiya~

Monday January 29th ~

No matter whether you believe in luck

 or chance, the final decision is from yourself...

Arvid keeps himself busy all the time.  Nothing new, 

but at times I am starting to wonder if there is another reason.  

Does he need to prove that he can do as much now as when he 

was younger?  Not to me because I know he has more 

energy than anyone I know.  Me included.

If we don't go for a walk, he climbs the stairs.  We live on

 the 12th floor and each set of stairs has 16 steps.  He climbs a

 total of 192 steps when there is nothing else to do.  I can't even 

do it without almost dying.  Although we did do it during the

 hurricane last year.  Several times, I didn't die, I'm still here.

As the new week begins I can't wait to see what else he

 does to stay busy.  The balcony has been swept several times 

now.  Yeah, he prepared big time for my sisters.  The washed

 the sliding doors and whatever else could be done he did.

I miss my little sister a lot.  She is a force all by herself.

  A happy one.  Arvid and I had a great time with her

 @ Nervous Nellie's Fort Myers Beach one day after

 their grand reopening after Hurricane Ian 💚

The weather continues to thrill us.  It's winter, 

then summer, spring.  All seasons in one week.

Arvid and Sniff are doing good having a great time together.

Grateful souls focus on the happiness

 and abundance present in their lives and this in turn

 attracts more abundance and joy towards them...

~Nadiya~

Sunday January 28th ~

Memories are the key not to the past, but to

 the future. At every phase in our life, we make 

memories that we cherish all our lives...

 Friday evening Arvid and I managed to make it to downtown.  

Stopped at one of our favorite spots, walked around and as usual

we ended up at the pizza place.  It was a perfect evening.

Last night I got to see many aunts, uncles, cousins and their kids. 

 That part I really enjoyed.  The rest of the people I did not know. 

 I could have done without the speeches, but it was not my call. 

Here at home all is good.  Sniff Sniff makes me happy. 

 I really do not like being away from him.  After Brutus died,

 everything changed.  I'm already stressing about leaving

 him to go to Norway this summer.  A good day to all.

You can walk out of this house, but you always 

return home.  Home is where the heart is...

~Nadiya~

Saturday January 27th~

We must learn to live together as

 brothers or perish together as fools...

Perfect start of the morning.  A beautiful sunrise.

 My uncle turned 90 yesterday and today there is a big 

birthday party to celebrate him.  If you're not Indian, and Arvid

 sure isn't even though people always mistake his accent for 

Indian, it can be extremely OVERWHELMING.  

Many a times when we meet someone whom Arvid has 

only spoken with on the phone, their first reaction is, "I thought

 you were Indian over the phone.😂"   I guess I have rubbed off in

 him in more ways than I know.  on the other hand, my mom always 

says, "you now sound like Arvid."  I don't see it, but there it is.

Back to my uncles party, Indians do it differently 

than most.  The people invited invite their friends as well.

  It's an open invitation to bring other family members. 

 The drinks are never-ending and the food is always more

 than you can eat.  The old fashioned way, you never count how 

many are coming you just prepare for more than you invited.  

The younger generation is different as it should be.

Arvid asked me, "are they going to make LONG speeches?" 

 I said to him, "remember that time I went with you to your 

aunt's birthday party in Norway?  Her daughter babbled for

 almost an hour."  Payback is a B***H.  I don't like to call 

it revenge 😂  Returning the favor sounds much better.

In general Arvid does not like huge gatherings be it my family

 or  his family.  We like a small gathering 6-8 people.  Makes it cozier. 

 Anything more than that for Arvid is a nightmare.  Imagine today with

 probably 50-100 people?  The man is already sweating, but my dad

 has convinced him he will have a good time.  I stayed quiet 😂

It will be an "interesting" time for sure 🙏

It's different cultures that make the world go 

'round at the end of the day.  The beauty of 

the world lies in the diversity of its people...

~Nadiya~

Friday January 26th~

Be healthy and take care of yourself, but be

 happy with the beautiful things that make you, you...

 Clear blue skies for as far as you can see.  Amazing sunsets.
  Living the dream in the Sunshine State🌴everyday 😎

Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn

 or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of

 living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude.

It was a very good time spent with mom and dad yesterday 

although I am a little confused when it comes to Arvid right now.

  Here at home with me he is protesting how he does not wish to go 

to the family function, yet with my dad he's all jolly about it.  

Oh well I have seen this before.  We all put up different

 "faces" depending on who we're dealing with me.  With 

family I guess some say what they think the other wants 

to hear 😂 Me,  I always tell it as it is.  Family or not 😂

A good day to all.  Today mom and I are doing manicure

 and pedicures.  A must whenever we get together.  Good

 thing is that it's about a three minute walk for me and like a 

six minute from my mom's place.  Should be a good day.

A mother's work is never done—but today, you deserve a rest...

~Nadiya~

Thursday January 25th ~

Some call it a vacation; I call it home.

 😎 Living that Florida life...

 Yesterday was fairly a quiet day. I "gave" my mom and 

dad some time alone to do a few things on their own.  We all 

need alone time.  I love mine, and I know they do as well. 

 Arvid and I spent a good deal of the day cleaning up.

 We’ve had a water leak in our basement/storage unit.  

A lot of work 🥶 Our apartment looks bombed again.

On a totally different note, but as I always say

 " still one of the most beautiful places"

Today mom and dad are taking us out to lunch. We go

 downtown.  We took them to this restaurant last year. 

Now they want take us.  No complaints here. Looking

 forward to another beautiful day.  same as yesterday.

Yesterday we had a beautiful and warm day. Arvid

 and I enjoyed a good walk. The first in weeks.  As always we

 keep wondering when the marina will be back up and running.

  As usual I also fed the birds and squirrels.  I actually have to really

 look to find squirrels.  Always very happy when I do. Today 

will be another warm and perfect Florida day🌴

Sniff and I are awake early.  He's had his brushing and 

some playtime.  He refuses to eat as usual, but is now on his 

heating bed though it's not as cold a day today.  He loves

 it in the early hours of the mornings.  Nice and toasty.

If there is anything that can cause tension in a relationship, 

it's family.  Be it my family or Arvid's.  Does not matter, especially 

when you are doing something you don't really want to do 😂

 culture clash = some pretty tense times for all involved.

Every man's ability may be strengthened or increased by culture...

~Nadiya~

Wednesday January 24th ~

The problem with people is they forget that

 most of the time it's the small things that counts..

 Be it cold, be it hot someone is always complaining.

Sniff just goes with the flow.  That leads him to his heating bed.

The pool at mom and dad's a little repair after the bad weather, 

but ready soon for the warm days ahead.  Good day to all.

The most important thing is to enjoy your life – to be happy...

~Nadiya~

Tuesday January 23rd~

 You can close your eyes to reality but not to memories...

 Nivana, Mala and Rima are already back at their homes.  Nina

 and David are still here and will see them today.  It was a brief, 

 packed and intense visit, but as Michelle said to us yesterday via 

Facetime, "I'm sure it was a very good time."  That it was.  

Yesterday we had a long nice time with Michelle and 

the girls.  Before we knew it we were chatting for almost 

an hour and a half.  Would have been longer had Amelia

 not gotten hungry.  Always good to see them and hear their 

voices.  Of course Sniff was jealous and was very close by.

Back to what it should be in Florida.  Warm and sunshine peeking out.

Though my sisters didn't stay with us, I can feel the quietness 

now that they are not here.  Always like this when we leave or they

 leave.  Same when we go to Norway, there is a sadness as you leave,

 but then life takes over and you're back to your routines.  It was 

brief and good.  We made memories, and they will last forever.

Memories are the key not to the past, but to the future...

~Nadiya~

Monday January 22nd~

 If you can't fly then run.  If you can't run, then walk.

  If you can't walk, then crawl.  But whatever you do, 

you have to keep moving forward...

And just like that another week begins.  Time sure flies 

when you're having fun.  Pretty soon everyone will be 

back home and back to what's "normal" life for them.

Yesterday Arvid and I spent most of the afternoon

 with Rima.  She's always fun to be around.

Rima is my most fun sister.  We love spending time with her. 

 Arvid knows she's into Buddhism so he gave her a very beautiful 

Buddha for her birthday,  Her birthday is in February.  We also took

 her to get a picture with the huge Buddha close to the beach.

Soon my sisters will all be gone.  I'm already missing them.

As the new week begins, I am just happy to be to spend

 time with my family.  I am a little tired, but definitely 

worth all the beautiful memories we are making.

Another cold day and then it's back to warmer times.

Yesterday ended last night, it's 

a brand new day and it's yours...

~Nadiya~