Start Of The New Week ~

When life gives you Monday, 

dip it in glitter and sparkle all day...

New week again, and when you wake up to cuteness 

like this, you know the week will be a good one.  

Yesterdays nice weather did not last too long. 

 One minute we were out on the balcony, 

and before you knew it the temperature dropped

 and the rain began. Chicago for you.

As always when we have to go somewhere, 

there is to take care of.  In my case I need to make sure

 everything is perfect for Sniff and to make sure to leave

 detained instructions to his pet sitter Katrina.

Katrina is from Ireland, but lived in Massachusetts

 and for the last several years home is Chicago.

Sniff has been getting deliveries 

for the last 2 weeks from all different pet

 stores.  My favorite is Chewy of course, but 

because they did not have his litter 

we had to order it from Petco.  

First and last time doing that.  The litter was all opened

and his bag of dry food was also opened.  Not again

  I believe he now has enough food and litter to last him

 the entire summer if not more, but I always have

 to make sure he's set before we leave.

Wishing everyone a very productive start of the new week.

Monday is a fresh start.  It is never too late to

 dig in and  begin a new journey of success...

~Nadiya~

Sunday Vibes ~

The best things in life are the people you love,

the places you go, and the memories you make...

Beautiful days are back.  Summer finally came to 

The Windy City.  Hoping this time it's for good.  Yesterday 

was actually warm and one of the first days we did not have

 to bundle up too much.  Arvid did have his sweater on.

Beautiful weather means walks in the city   Of course,

 as soon as we head out Arvid goes to the theater to check

 out what he can buy.  Tickets for upcoming concerts.  

Rain id predicted for later today, but they said the same for yesterday,

 and surprisingly we had none.  Hoping today will be the same.

Sniff has started to sense that something is going on.  He is very

 quiet and withdrawn.  My stress about him has begun..

It's now just a few days before we leave for Branson. 

 Super excited, and at the same time a little sad because

 we will be leaving Sniff.  The worse is seeing that he already

senses that something is going on.  So smart they are.

Happy Sunday everyone.  I am enjoying my last week

 here in the US before we leave for Norway.  Also can't wait 

to see everyone, especially our 2 little grand-daughters.

Life is about moments. 

 Don't wait for them create them...

~Nadiya~

Saturday In Chicago ~

At the end of the day all that matters is love 

and memories, so make sure that you give 

it and make sure that you make them...

No matter where you go in this city one thing is sure.  VIEWS!

From our apartment the view is quite beautiful.  

Today Arvid felt the need to wash the inside of the windows.

  Always needing to stay busy.  Just like me.

When the weather is beautiful, all I have to do is step out 

onto the balcony and enjoy the view as I have my coffee.  

Even on foggy days, there is beauty all around you.

I always find something to smile about.  Because life is good.

Our walks never disappoint.  There is always something to see and do.

My favorite views are the ones from our balcony.  As pictured above.

Though the weather has not been perfect, the scenery always is.

 Tonight Arvid and I go to Buddy Guy's Legends

 in hopes that the Rolling Stones make an appearance.  

The Rolling Stones had their first concert of their No

 Filter Tour last night here in Chicago.  The stadium,

 Soldier Field is in clear sight from our apartment.

Happy Saturday all.  Here in the city it is a beautiful day.

Our pictures are our footprints...

~Nadiya~

Start Of Summer ~

Never get tired of doing little things for others.  Sometimes 

those little things occupy the biggest part of their hearts...

Yesterday ended on a little warmer note.  

It did help that Arvid and I went to the hot tub

and stayed under for at least a good half hour.  

Sniff has not seen the sunlight since we got to Chicago. 

Makes him try all sorts of things to stay busy.

  Like me, he gets bored fast. One thing he loves

 to bask in it.  Hopefully if predictions are correct we 

will sure see some this weekend.  One can hope.

From what I was able to research, it seems that the

 last time it was this cold in Chicago was 1992.  

The fact that the lake is still so very cold, that 

means most likely the fog will remain.

Chicago has experienced more rain than usual. 

This also contributes to this crazy weather that’s going

 on right now.  I am chilled to the bones. The apartment

 has no heat during this time of the year.

But yesterday is gone, and today is a new day.  

As I woke up the first thing I noticed was that 

the fog was gone.  The skies are blue and the

 sun is most likely to make its presence felt. 

 Definitely a beautiful start for the first day of summer.

  If this holds, I would live to go to the park with Arvid

 and to our favorite Friday hangout, The Grille Park.  

Who knows maybe a few mojitos today.  

Rain is predicted later on in the afternoon bummer,

but these predictions are constantly wrong.  So in the

 meantime it is happy positive thoughts.  After all it is 

Friday.  Happy Hour Friday is not that far away.

Summertime and the living is easy. It's a smile, 

it's a kiss, it's a sip of wine ... it's summertime!..

~Nadiya~

Thursday In Chicago ~

You know what the say about Chicago, if you

 don't like the weather then wait fifteen minutes...

Chicago life.  Even in the cold and foggy days 

you still have to get out and walk around.  In the 

evenings warm up in the hot tub.  Best part.

The fog concentrates close to where we are, close to 

the lake.  As you get a little more into the city it sorts of

 disperses a little.  It's also a little less chilly in the city 

than where we are.  Every little bit helps when 

walking is your main form of transportation.

Above is what it looks like as we step out 

of our building and head out for our daily walk.

We make the best of the weather here.  What's the 

alternative?  For me having my OJ in the mornings in a

 pretty glass makes up for some of it.  It's cold and windy on

 the balcony, but every so often the wind dies down.

Wishing everyone a great day.  Our day is not on the 

sunny side (yet again).  Later today it's the hot tub

 again.  Need to warm up these Floridian bones.

Life is like Chicago weather, you never know 

what you're gunna get. Dear Mother Nature, get back 

on your meds, pop open a bottle of wine, and 

start thinking warm, happy thoughts...

~Nadiya~

Foggy Day In The City ~ Again

The things you're waiting and hoping for,

 tend to arrive at the most unexpected moments...

I guess it's because we will soon be going to Norway. 

 I stress.  I think of Brutus and how difficult it always

 was to leave him.  I never wanted to go away for so 

long because I worried about Brutus and his paw.  

In the picture above Wendy, his pet sitter at the

 time tried giving him his pills.  Not always successful. 

I guess I am thinking even more of Brutus because

 am am having the blues right now.

Maybe it has to do with the weather.  It's cold, 

 foggy and wet just about everyday.  Also I am stressing

 about being in Norway for so long.  I look forward to 

seeing everyone, but I also don't want to leave Sniff

 alone for so long.  This happens every single year.

Happy Wednesday to all.  I keep reminding myself that 

if one waits for perfect conditions, we"ll never get anything done.

Never let a bad situation bring out

 the worst in you. Be strong and choose to

 be positive, no matter how hard it is...

~Nadiya~

Foggy Day In Chicago ~

Life is short, and if we enjoy every moment of 

every day, then we will be happy no matter what 

happens or what changes along the way...

So far most of our days here in Chicago have looked like this:

So how about your part of the world?  Has summer gotten to you?

One place that is always warm and beautiful no matter 

what kind of weather we are having is the pool and hot tub area. 

 Here we use them more than we ever do in Florida.

Soon we will be going to Branson.  That I am excited

 about.  Can't wait.  I loved everything we did and accomplished

 in Branson, and the people we met and so much more.  I can't 

wait to go. Counting down the days until we're there.

Wishing you all a warm and sunny day.

Smile from your heart; nothing is more beautiful

 than a woman who is happy to be herself...

~Nadiya~

Monday Again ~

Life is short, and if we enjoy every moment 

of every day, then we will be happy no matter 

what happens or what changes along the way...

Our time with Rima went by way too fast, but the

time we had together was well spent.  We did so much in 

just a few days.  Even the cold, wind, rain and fog were

 not able to stop us.  Arvid just keeps saying, "she's so

 easy to have with us."  I love that because it's true.

 The temperature here in Chicago is still cold.  It is 20 

degrees colder than it should be at this time of the year.  

Truly not happy about that right now.  Wish to be back in 

Florida.  It would be OK if it were cold and sunny, but not 

even. One can only hope July and August will be better.

It's always good to go back to "normal"  At the same 

time I miss her and her infectious laugh.  Her family

 of course is happy she's soon going to be home. 

 Overall we all had a great time. Grateful!

Monday again.  Start of a new week.  

Hopefully we will see the sunshine soon. Let's not 

forget that what you feel inside reflects on your face.

 So be happy and positive all the time.

Happiness is a choice. You can choose to be happy. 

There's going to be stress in life, but it's your

 choice whether you let it affect you or not...

~Nadiya~

Happy Sunday ~

A sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost...

In the process of looking for a pet sitter for Sniff,
I ended up pet sitting 2 kitties.  One is called frisky
and the other Baby.  Supposedly they are
mom (Frisky) and daughter (Baby). 

Frisky is super friendly and Baby is scared of
 everything,  and everyone.  The first time I went there
I did not see her.  Second time Arvid went with me,
 hoping she would come out.  No luck.

  The following day, lucky me after playing with Frisky for a
while, Baby came out.  Looked at us from a distance and even
played a little with the toy, but never let me get close to her.

I have had three and a half days with them.  Just saw them
for the last time.  Arvid went with me this morning, and
 now Rima and I just went back.  Hopefully before the
 summer is over I will be able to watch them again.

Yesterday was wet, cloudy and very gloomy. 
Not much  one can do except go to the movies and
 out for a nice meal. It rained as we went to the movies,
but even so we walked.   Here it's all about walking. 
The scenery was still beautiful but gloomy.

Today it is still cloudy.  We hope to be able to go to
 360 Chicago Observation Deck, but if the fog persists
it's a no go.  Even so we managed to do so far quite
a lot of things even in this no so great weather.

To all the dad's out there and especially to our dad,
 Happy Fathers Day.  A dad that person who is always
there for you, who listens to you, and who no matter what ,
loves you like no one else.  For us one of the greatest gift
 we have ever had came from God and we call him dad.

Happy Fathers Day daddy.  Everyone can be
 a father, but it takes a lot to be a dad. Thank
 you for ALWAYS being there for us.

A fathers job isn't to teach his daughter how to
 be a lady, it's to teach her how a lady should be.

~Nadiya~

Making Memories ~

It takes a moment to make memories

 and a lifetime to forget them... 

Rima came in with a bang.  She laughs like no one I know. 

 Contagious and makes for good times and happy memories.

Coffee time just got better and afternoon tea as well.

Since she does not have many days with us, we wanted 

to make sure we show her as many places as possible.  

Yesterday we were out for over 8 hours and we

 walked everywhere.  We had a good workout.

We started our very early because the day was beautiful. 

 First stop was Navy Pier.  We walked forever, and then 

in between we quenched our thirst.  Unfortunately, both

 Rima and I have the cough and we're really not 100%

Rima surprised us by taking us to a very good steakhouse.

  It so happens that this is the same steakhouse Arvid's

 brother wanted to go to a few years ago when here.

Arvid's brother knows about food, and this was the one

 he really wanted to go to, and it so happens that Rima 

took us there.  I am fortunate, my family is something else. 

 Rima said a late birthday present for both Arvid and I.

The food was excellent, the weather was perfect and 

we had a table on the outside.  People watching galore. 

 This is the same area we saw Bono some years ago.

After that we decided to tour the city some more.  

We took her walking along The Magnificent Mile. 

 Beautiful stores and everything you can want, all in the 

same area.  The weather could not have been better.

Arvid says Rima is easy going and not difficult to be with.

  She's simple and not pretentious.  She does not need

 to impress anyone and we like that.  Simple.

We toured the city until we were about to drop.  

I got an asthma attack and at that point we thought it was

 best to come home.  But in one day she has seen quite a bit. 

 Tomorrow is another day with lots more to do.

I'm happy she's here.  Staying with us.  She really

 needed a little vacation away from everything, 

and we are happy she chose to spend it with us.

Wishing everyone a happy Saturday.  Rain

 or shine we have plans and things to do.

Live for moments you can't put into words...

~Nadiya~