Thursday June 9th ~

 Morning will come, it has no choice...

Today had life not taken this sudden turn, we would have

 been in Chicago for the Blues Festival.  But not happening.  

We cancelled that.  Was hoping that we could squeeze

 it in, but I really don't feel that the timing is right. 

 I do not like the idea of leaving Almost Home for so many

 days without one of us present.   C’est la vie.  Another time 

it will be.  There is always next year to look forward to 😊 

The other day Arvid and I enjoyed a beautiful 

evening at The Landing with a friend.  There was 

good food, good drinks and music, good company.

Best part was that I had two hours all to myself to just

 walk around and do a little shopping.  It's been a long 

time I have actually shopped in an actual store.

It was busy.  People everywhere, laughing, having a

 good time.  It was refreshing to be out of "work" 

environment for a few hours.  I love seeing people 

just having a good time, loving life.

Of course my most favorite attraction at The Landing is 

the dancing fountain.  It mesmerizes me every time.  

I have been pulling weeds and such in my "free" time

 at Almost Home.  Well next thing I know is that I am

 covered in bites.  There is something called chiggers. 

 In Missouri, chiggers bustle about from April to October. 

During the summer, peak activity times are around dawn and dusk

 and during mid-morning, as the temperature rises into the high 

70s and low 80s-their apparent preferred range-and before

 the sun has had a chance to burn off the evening dew.

No more going on the grass nor touching the flowers for 

me😞 too bad because I sure enjoy taking care of the roses

 and the flowers.  From now on it's fake flowers only, and 

no more getting too close to anything resembling a tree.

Wishing everyone a good day.  The day begins a

 little on the cloudy and cooler side, but will get warmer 

and sunnier in a few hours.  For now enjoying 

some quiet time before heading to work.

Things change.  Stuff happens.  Life goes on...

~Nadiya~

Sunday May 15th

 You need to just do nothing sometimes...

Just these two having the best time snuggling

 up to each other.  Not sure which of the two likes 

it best, but for sure they both enjoy being close.

After a long day at work, this is my favorite sight.

Today all three of us will take it easy and just have a quiet, relaxing day

Wishing everyone a relaxing day.  Take time to smell the roses.

Waking up to a foggy morning, but cooler.  

Yes happy that it's cooler rather than sweltering hot.

Sometimes we just need to take a little time for ourselves...

~Nadiya~

Monday Again ~ October 18th done

 No one is perfect, that's why pencils have erasers...

Sniff seems to be saying that he's not ready to face 

Monday as yet.  I'm sure many feel the same.  What is

 it about Mondays that make people feel so bla?  I do know

 what it is, but it's life.  We all have to put inn our time.

No plans today, although if I'm lucky 🙏 I will not

 be cooking.  Hopefully that will be the case.  Arvid does 

not like eating out too much, neither do I, but I also

 don't like doing tons of dishes everyday😂.

To all a good week. Let's give it our best shot 

and go from there.  Always remember that the

 secret of getting ahead is getting started.

Do a little more each day than 

 you possibly think you can...

~Nadiya~

Friday July 9th ~

 You may be tired and exhausted, but at least 
you woke up today.  Someone else didn't...

Today I am tired. Not so much physically, but rather 

mentally.  I went to see my endocrinologist, and he

 told me what I already knew.  The medication

 I take for my thyroids has been recalled.  

But what he didn't seem to understand is that 

there are many "lots/batches" of the medication.

  I told him so but he won't listen.  He gave me a new 

medication which I do not think I would take.

  I still thought that my batch of my thyroid

 medication is good.  The doctor won't listen to me. 

 Even though I told him that usually I have to 

do some blood work before switching meds

He said that the medication I'm taking will 

poison me🙄.   I still have doubts about it.  I did

 some checking on the FDA website and though the

 medication I am taking has been recalled, I still 

was not certain that the batch I have is recalled.  

After a long time on the line with Walgreens pharmacy,

 and of trying to make the pharmacist understand 

what I was asking about, we finally were able

 to verify that my batch has not been recalled.  

Sure took a lot of time, but finally got that straightened

 out.  Now can relax for the rest of the weekend and have

 a good time.  I feel like something fruity again today.

Also had a busy morning.  Picked up rascal from the vet.

  Brought him home and after making sure he was OK, I released

 him.  Like all the kitties before him, he took off like a bat outta hell.

  Will check on him later this afternoon and give him some foodies.

  I know he will not make an appearance any time soon.

Wishing everyone a great day and a happy weekend. 

 The days are going by really fast and I still have so

 much I would like to do.  But one day at a time.

I'd rather regret the things I have done 

than regret the things I haven't done...

~Nadiya~

Sunday February 28th

Enjoy the peaceful moments you have 
because these moments are very rare...

Being here in North Carolina with mom and dad is 

always peaceful and stress free.  For my sisters as 

well this is the place we all look forward to coming. 

 It is where for a few days we can forget the stresses in

 our daily lives and just be at peace with ourselves.

The quietness, the peacefulness, it  just calls to

 you.  I can't say I would like to live here, but for

 a few days it's exactly what the soul needs. 

Good morning everyone.  I hope you all have a 

place like this, where your mind is at ease 

and your heart is content and happy.

In each and every day may you take a moment for yourself.

  Close your eyes.  Enjoy the silence.  Slow down. 

 Breathe.  Be still.  Reflect.  Simply be...

~Nadiya~

Wednesday September 30th ~

 The most beautiful way to start and 

end the day is with a grateful heart...

The last  couple of days we have had some extreme

😒 weather. Howling wind, crazy thunder and lightning 

accompanied by heavy rain. Sniff of course is terrified. 

Sounds he’s not used to are now in play. He's scared.

There were hardly any boats in the water, of course, 

you will always see some one, but nothing like it usually is.

Even the be careful pirate flag is out, warning people.

For morning walks it’s nice and breezy and so far I

 have been lucky to not have the rain when walking.

Even luckier is I see the sunrises.  My favorite part 

of the day.  Well one of.  I also love sunsets.

I still can’t stop smiling because of Loffen, Victoria

 and Michael’s cat. They say hope is the last thing we lose,

 and they never lost hope that Loffen would walk

 right back in. To where he belongs.

 Loffen of course has been calling the shots since 

coming back home. And yes, they love it and can’t do 

enough for him. Soon Loffen will be given a GPS tracker. 

If any kitty needs it it’s him. Now he can’t get “lost” again.

We had a relaxing day yesterday. Lunch with my 

sister and Kimsy. I love PR even more because they

 live here and we get to see them once in a while.

Even though it’s windy, the days are beautiful and

 the skies are blue. Always the prettiest blue skies.

We are enjoying our time in Puerto Rico because I 

never know when it will suddenly come to an end.

Right now we do not miss being in Florida.

 We are very comfortable right where we are. 

The only one still not 100% happy is Sniff 😩.

Another crazy weather day here.  Wind is still

 howling,  it makes the ocean look very mysterious

and dangerous. I like it, but not so much Sniff.

A good day to all.  Island life is good to us.

I am blessed with everything I need.  I am working 

hard towards everything I want, but most of all I

appreciate and am thankful for all I have...

~Nadiya~

A Visit To Ponce ~

There is a whole world out there, right

outside your window.  You'd be a fool to miss it... 

As a young girl growing up in Puerto Rico, one of the 

places we went to on a school outing was Ponce.  We actually

 did it a few times with the school, because there is so much

 to see.  I remember from long ago the old buildings, and

 a must at the time was Museo de Arte de Ponce.

Not in a million years would I have thought I would be 

living one day again in Puerto Rico.  I have to say, I am seeing

 it with different eyes today, and what I see I love.  A couple of

 things I do remember from childhood, the food and the

 kindness of the people.  That has not changed.

Ponce is a large city on Puerto Rico’s southern coast.

 Its well-preserved old town features grand mansions built

 in the unique Ponce Creole architectural style, such as the

 Centro Cultural de Ponce Carmen Solá de Pereira. 

Nearby, the Museo de Arte de Ponce is famed for its 

huge European and Puerto Rican art collections. South,

 the seafront boardwalk of Paseo Tablado La Guancha

 is lined with restaurants and bars.  Happy discovery.

   Our day out to Ponce did not turn out exactly how we wanted

 nor was it what we expected.  We had a great lunch, walked 

around a beautiful mall, but all the attractions we wanted to see

 were closed.  Thank you COVID.  The above is the Boardwalk.  

Called La Guancha.  This is what it was before COVID,

 now it's still closed so we never even got close to it.

The streets looked fairly rundown and beat up.  

Still not recovered from Hurricane Maria and the many 

earthquakes that hit it.  COVID does not help one bit.

For now Ponce is on a waiting list to be revisited.  

One day far into the future, when hopefully things

 are back up and running.  This can take some time.

The island is still greatly affected by COVID, remnants 

of Hurricane maria and the many earthquakes it has had and 

continues to have.  Even so, the beauty is undeniable.

Wishing everyone a great week ahead.

Man cannot discover new oceans unless 

he has the courage to lose sight of the shore...

~Nadiya~

Life According To The New Norm ~ Chicago Days

 Things may never go back to normal. 

 You may need to create a new normal...

Looking out from our balcony and I see one of my favorite ships.

The Pirate boat is out and everyone is out enjoying the Lake.

Even the duckies were out enjoying

 this warm Chicago summer day.

The sea levels are rising at an alarming rate.  

Once we were able to walk on this platform, 

now the water levels are so high that everyone 

uses it as a launch pad.  All having a good time 

making the most of what is there.  Happy life.

This is the new way of life.  Masked people everywhere.

Now it's weird when someone passes you and does not have on a mask.

Not liking this new norm one bit.  I hate wearing the mask. 

My new normal is to continually get used to new

 normals.  It's a crazy world we live in today.  It is

 constantly changing 😲😲as to what we think is, and 

Chicago's rules are much stricter than Fort Lauderdale.

Since this pandemic has begun specifically 

since mid March, Arvid and I have not eaten out at

 a restaurant.  Here in Chicago we had to go to one of 

our favorites.  I will say, though the food was

 good the entire experience was not 😒😩.

Change is only scary when it become 

your new normal.  Keep going...

~Nadiya~