December 26th~ Boxing Day

 I’m not in this world to live up 

to your expectations and you’re not
 in this world to live up to mine...

Yesterday I woke up at 4am to begin cooking. 

 I was making a baked chicken with stuffing.  My 

sister Nina really likes it so now every Christmas

 we go by her I make 2 baked 🐔chickens.  I had

 to bake it for four hours hence the early start.  

Earlier in the day I made us malanga (taro)

 chips.  Ever since Puerto Rico Arvid loves it, and

 of course my family does as well.  I made quite

 a lot.  Took me lots of time to peel the taro root. 

 Slice it really thin with a mandoline slicer and

 then fry it.  End result, Arvid was happy.

Christmas in Tampa seems like a tradition now. 

 We have been doing it for a few years in a row. What

 made this year even better was that Danielle, Andrew

 and their fur baby Wall Popeye Ngo Dyal were there. 

They drove all the way from Pennsylvania just 

so that they could bring Wally in comfort.

Arvid drove.  First we picked up Max because 

his car is in Pennsylvania where he is going back to

 school for his medical degree.  Then we picked

 up mom and dad.  Pretty tight fit all of us in 

the car, but we managed to made it work.

Sniff as usual is a slacker, but I won't have it 

any other way.  He makes us happy.  He decreases 

our stress levels, both mine and Arvid.  Hearing 

him purr next to us is the best feeling there is.

To all a very good day.  Looking forward to doing 

absolutely nothing today.  Just feed Legacy in the afternoon 

and watch a movie later at home.  Just the three of us.

If you spend too much time thinking

 about a thing, you'll never get it done...

~Nadiya~

December 25th~ Merry Christmas to All🎄

🎄 Christmas is doing a little

 something extra for someone🎄

I am grateful to have my sister and my parents 

in Florida this year.  Nina, David, Danielle, Andrew, 

(Wally Popeye, their doggie), Max and Kelsey are all 

in Florida.  Arvid and I are very happy to see Danielle.  

We have not seen her since her wedding day in 2022.

Everyday I am grateful for all the blessings in 

our lives.  For family, for Arvid and Sniff and all the 

ones I have loved who are no longer here.  From each

 I have something special no one can take away.

Mom and dad as mentioned before now are back 

in Florida.  Lucky me, I get to spend special days

 again with them.  For that I am always grateful.

As a child growing up in Puerto Rico, Christmas

 was always a special time.  Not because we had 

lots of presents, that we didn't, but because we had 

love every which way we turned.  That we still 

do, but the feeling is a bit different as an adult.

 I believe that I/we have been very fortunate

 to have been raised in Puerto Rico where some

 of the nicest, warmest people on earth live.

Those memories are forever a part of me. 

 Each day/year we make new memories, but

 some are forever embedded in our hearts. 

The smells of Christmas

 are the smells of childhood...

~Nadiya~

Wednesday December 24th~

From home to home and heart to heart, from 

one place to another, may the warmth and joy 

of Christmas bring us closer to each other... 

I am really happy and grateful that we get to spend 

Christmas with my parents.  Today we take mom 

and dad to an early Christmas and birthday dinner.  

Yes, as I have mentioned so many times before, 

mom's birthday is on December 25th 🎄

Yesterday Arvid spoke to our friend Roger in 

Branson.  Made us miss Branson and the people 

we call friends. Branson is having a very warm 

Christmas this year.  They are having temperatures 

in the high 70'F (high 21C).  Not unusual.

  Branson has unpredictable weather.

Yesterday ended with another stunning sunset.

 Of course I had to take a ton of pictures.  

We spent a quiet day yesterday with mom and

 dad.  I did do a few errands, but close to home  

Of course  one was Publix.  Sniff is loving all 

his beds, so he keeps me busy with laundry.

The best part of Christmas

 is sharing it with family...

~Nadiya~

Tuesday December 23rd~

Christmas waves a magic wand over
 this world and behold, everything
 is softer and more beautiful...

Fun times during the holidays at Fort Myers Beach. 

 Picture by Christine Brickman.  It was the annual

 Pedals and Presents parade.  Everyone brings

 an unopened gift for children in need.

Fort Myers has a unique way of doing Christmas. 

 At Times Square (Fort Myers Beach) and at the Fort Myers

 International Airport instead of the traditional Christmas

 tree they have a Christmas tree with real poinsettias. 

Christmas is also a time to reflect.  These last few days my 

thoughts have been everywhere.  I have been hearing the 

same song almost every other day.  A Spanish song that 

was the theme of a telenovela when i lived in New York. 

 My husband at the time used to tease me about it. Now I

 hear it and I just can't seem to stop crying. Life happens.

We did our walk yesterday and of course Legacy 

was waiting for me.  She was resting on the towels I

 set out for her. She's actually getting a little friendlier.  I 

would love to catch her and take her to the vet.

Wishing everyone a beautiful day.  Ours 

begins with a warm breeze and lots of sunshine.  

Wherever you are, make it a time to remember.

Christmas is not as much about opening 

our presents as opening our hearts...

~Nadiya~

Monday December 22nd~

 Let us keep Christmas beautiful 
without a thought of greed...

Back home from Orlando. Glad to be home, 

but I have to say that I had a very good time. No I 

did not enjoy the almost 6 hour ceremony.  It’s 

not my thing but it’s family so I endured.  

The function is officiated by a pandit.  A pandit is an 

individual with specialised knowledge or a teacher of 

any field of knowledge in Hinduism. They  sure have the

 gift of talking, and after he was done with his 2 hours,

 another Pandit took over for another 2 hours 😭.

 Pandit #1 sat next to me and I have to say

 that after that everything was better. He is funny. 

He sure made me laugh with all his stories. 

 The evening suddenly got 100% better.

After Pandit #2 was done it was time for speeches. 

A good 3 hours😭. Every time I thought it was

 done more happened 😭.  All of that being said 

and endured, I had the best time meeting

 cousins I knew and some I didn’t.  

Family came from Suriname, Dutch Guiana,

 Guyana, The Netherlands, England and of course 

all over the US.  That part was fun and good.

 Also good was the food served after the function.

  It was all vegetarian and boy was it delicious.  It’s is

 nice to meet up with family and to get more and more

 acquainted with them.  It was a good time.  A happy 

time.  A very long function 😭, and I’m sure I will 

be doing it again should the occasion arise.  

A new week begins.  Christmas is around the 

corner and it will be a good one.  Mom and dad

 live once again in Florida, Nina and David are at their 

home in Tampa.  Danielle, Andrew and Wally are also

 on their way to Florida.  Max and Kelsey already live

 here.  We will be spending it with all of them.

 Christmas- It is tenderness for the past, courage 

for the present, hope for the future...

~Nadiya~

Sunday December 21st~

Death marks just one chapter in a bigger story...

I'm still here in Orlando with mom and dad. 

 I have to say, Orlando is not my favorite place 

to be.  Traffic always crazy, and I am not interested

 in any of the Disney stuff, but sometimes one has to 

do things we would prefer not to simply because 

of family.  Our family ties are very strong.

Yesterday we attended a Celebration of Life

for an aunt.  She died a few years ago, and Hindu

 tradition makes sure we do not forget those who died. 

 They live on in us always. I was born a Hindu, baptized

 a Lutheran, and take the best of both for my beliefs.

Hindu tradition views death as a transition, 

not an end, focusing on releasing the soul from 

the body for reincarnation until liberation.

Heading back home today.  As far as I am

 concerned, no place like home.  Sure looking 

forward to seeing my lil Sniff-Sniff soon.

Death is the number one 

killer in the world today...

~Nadiya~

Saturday December 20th~

What you leave behind is not what 

is engraved in stone monuments, but 

what is woven into the lives of others...

Another aunt of mine died, many years ago.  

Today there is another Celebration of Life for 

her.  This time I'm heading out to Orlando. 

They say that our legacy is really the lives we

 touch, the inspiration we give, altering someone's 

plan - if even for a moment, and getting them to

 think, cry, laugh, argue. More than anything, we are 

remembered for our smiles; the ones we share with

 our closest and dearest, and the ones we bestow 

on a total stranger, who needed it right then.

Make sure today and everyday you live a life 

that when you look back you can confidently say,

 "I gave it my all.  I did my best, and I had fun."

Yesterday Arvid and I went downtown for

 Music Walk.  As always we had a great time. Everything, 

everyone, is a bit more festive now at Christmas time.

There was music at all corners.  What's not to like?

We had a very good time.  Stopped on our way to

 feed Legacy, but she had so much food out.  Even so,

 I cleaned up her area.  Ants everywhere even though I

 had gone there one day and cleaned the entire area 

with bleach and water.  No she was not there.  I went 

early in the morning so it dried up right away.

To all a very good day. Orlando next for me. Wishing

 everyone a happy holiday season.  Christmas is right 

around the corner.  Make it a Merry Christmas.

Let your life be your message. 

 What we once enjoyed and deeply 

loved we can never lose...

~Nadiya~

Friday December 19th~

Mistakes are always forgivable if
 one has the courage to admit them...

Christmas in Florida, you see some pretty

 interesting things/signs.  Florida is a diverse state

 and you see a little of everything.  One does not 

have to agree or disagree.  It's just how it is.

This particular sign is everywhere on the road.

  Making sure that we stay safe, drive carefully and 

have a Merry Christmas.  Florida does it right.

Mom and dad have this really tiny tree 

they bought last year, now it's all decorated 

with lights and as you walk into their home 

you can feel Christmas.  It's a very cozy.

 Here at home we don't do much.  Just a few

 decorations is all we have, but I like them.

Yesterday after lunch Arvid surprised me with a 

little trip to the Eagle Nest.  Yes, home of M15 and 

F23 (Lady)  It was my lucky day because I saw one of

 them flying back and forth to the nest with grass. 

 I believe it was M15 because at that same moment

 one of the eaglets, E26 was in its hatching mode. 

 Last night around 7:30 PM we all welcomed E26 

to the world.  Definitely a happy day for all of us. 

 Welcome to the world lil' one.  You're so loved.

My favorite Christmas decoration/present after all is

 said and done is Sniff.  He's always my Happy Place

 and I love him more than words can ever express.

If you love life, don't waste time, 

for time is what life is made up of...

~Nadiya~

Thursday December 18th~

Remember that not getting what you want

 is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck...

We've been waking up to "cold" mornings.  Cold 

for Florida that is, but within a few hours the day sure

 warms up nicely.  Yesterday we went of our walk and 

of course on the way we stopped to feed Legacy. 

As mentioned before, Christmas in Florida 

is special.  Warm weather and lit palm trees 🌴

everywhere.  It's a very happy time of the year.

Thursday, no cooking for me today.  So happy. 

 Though I prefer home-cooked meals best, I also 

like a day without all the clean-up afterwards.

Sniff is good.  He has been puking quite often recently. 

I'm in haveway panic mode already. These last few days

 I have been thinking a lot of my Brutus and Shadow. 

 Life- so many memories.  Good and not so good.

Wishing everyone a good day.  Christmas

 is just 7 days away, so is our moms birthday.

Our lives begin to end the day we

 become silent about things that matter

~Nadiya~