It's A Good Day ~ Saturday March 26th

 Change is good.  Never get too comfortable...

Even though we go in to work on Saturdays, the day is
 a short one.  There is always something good about each day,

 and I always try to see the positive side of things.  My positive 

is it's a short day, and hopefully my reward will be Indian 

foodies.  Branson has the BEST Indian restaurant.

Sniff will be happy to see us home at a decent time instead of at

 the end of the day.  I get extra time to brush him 💙, check out the

 birdies and fill their feeders.  Overall, not a bad day at all.  Happy 

day to all and don't forget to always look for the good in each day.

Change is good.  Sometimes it brings opportunity..

~Nadiya~

Sunday February 13th ~

You just can't let life happen to you, 

you have to make life happen...

I never thought I would be one to enjoy socializing 
with the neighbors 😊 it’s just not my thing,

 or at least that’s what I always thought.

Now I realize that I actually did like it. 

 It was a small gathering.  Good company,

good food, and a very good time overall.

I did not expect to laugh as much, and to enjoy 

actually myself as much, but I did 😀. The

 “down” side to all of this is that I have now been

 invited to several different events 😮 hope to do

 as much as possible in the next week.  Life 😂

The birds have been fed as have the squirrels.  

I got the squirrels their own food because they were

  eating all the bird food. They probably still will. 

After all they entertain Sniff and I quite a lot 🥰

February is almost done.  How did the month 

go by so fast?  It’s almost three and a half mints 

since we left PR. Three and a half months

 I have not seen my PR kitties. So long

  I really miss them and some days my mind just

 wanders 😭.  It just happens. Suddenly, without any

 warning.  These last few days it has happened quite a lot.

  I have not had video or picture of them in 2 weeks.

Sunday. Always a good day.  Looking forward to

 everything it promises.  Wishing everyone a good day. 

 My days have suddenly gotten very busy 🙃.

 Happiest when busy 🙂  As they say, an idle 

mind is the devil's playground.  We can't have that.

Every day, I like to wake up and remind 

myself to be grateful of the simple things...

~Nadiya~

Christmas In Puerto Rico ~

Traditions touch us, they connect us, and they expand us...

 The other night Arvid and I drove around town

 and checked out some of the Christmas lights.

 Such a wonderful time of the year. Loved it.

We are really enjoying living in this "sleepy" town.

Quiet, not much traffic and very easy to move around.

Many Puerto Ricans will attend a midnight ☄🎇

 mass known as Misa de Gallo, where they welcome

 Christmas as a commemoration of the birth of Jesus.

Puerto Rico takes pride in having the longest holiday 

season in the world. On the island, la Navidad lasts around 45 days,

 starting right after Thanksgiving Day in November, extending 

through mid-January, and culminating with the Fiestas de 

la Calle San Sebastian, also known as la SanSe.

A parranda or trulla is the boricua version of a 

Christmas Carol. Friends and families gather in front of a

 house  usually after 10:00 p.m. – with instruments like

 panderos, maracas, güiros, cuatros, and guitars to

 sing aguinaldos (traditional Christmas songs)

The idea is to surprise the household, so the 

parranderos round up as quietly as possible and then 

break into song with the intention of waking people up 

with joyful and jubilant music. It is a tradition for

 the household to offer refreshments and then join 

the group to bring the party to the next house. 

Sometimes, parrandas can last until sunrise😍

We grew up with these traditions.  Some of the most 

beautiful memories were right here in Puerto Rico. 

Puerto Ricans usually put up their Christmas

 trees and decorations by Thanksgiving and don’t take

 them down until mid-January, so the island feels 

especially magical during the holiday season. 

With town squares and houses lit up with Santa 

Clauses and snowflakes as well as local designs 

like jibaritos, Puerto Rico turns into a tropical winter 

wonderland where every corner is a photo opportunity.

We enjoyed the evening, and we even made new furry friends.
  Fortunately, I always carry food with me so we made 

a couple of kitties happy.  Also made me happy.

I know that everything essential and great 

originated from the fact that the human being

 had a homeland and was rooted in tradition..

~Nadiya~

Happy Days ~

Live life for the moment because 
everything else is uncertain!

Arvid came back from Miami and said to me, 

"Nirvana and I talked all the way back to the apartment.  

45 minutes sure went by fast."  This was yesterday.  Arvid 

picked her up in Miami and brought her to our place. 

Yesterday everyone had lunch at our place.  It was

 relaxing and very enjoyable.  When they were about

 to leave Arvid said, "well this went by very fast." 

Time with family is always relaxing.  I love to cook,

so for me it is fun.  The cleaning up is another story,

 but as Arvid loves to say, "we work good together."  

Nivana is going to be a regular "visitor" in Florida now.

After all her son J lives here, whom we also plan to see a little

 more often.  If our lifestyle is busy, then J and Alexandra's

 is even busier.  With regular jobs these two still manage 

to take off almost every weekend to some mini vacation.

Last month was Punta Cana.  This coming weekend they go

 to Puerto Rico.  In November they go to Cancun.  All of this 

for weddings for their friends.  Come Christmas and New Year

 they will be spending it in Peru with Kimsy and their dad. 

 Boy, we actually have to make an appointment to see J.

Life is good.  I am really liking having visits from my 

family for a change.  Soon we will also see my sister in

 Tampa and I can't wait for that as well.  For now, 

I will enjoy my parents' visit and my sisters.

Wishing everyone a good day.  Remember, don't 

make things too complicated. Try to relax, enjoy

 every moment, get used to everything.

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

~Nadiya~