Sunday January 18th~

When you arise in the morning, think of 

what a precious privilege it is to be alive 

– to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love...

 Yesterday turned out to be a beautiful 

sunny day. Bit on the cooler side but if 

you’re moving you sure get warm fast.

 As Arvid was watching soccer games,

 I went to the Farmers Market Downtown 

Fort Myers.  It is the first one for the year

 and will hopefully go on until April. 

 Being a beautiful sunny day most people 

had the same idea. It was packed.  Hopefully it 

will be the same next Saturday.  The street

 was closed off between 9am-1pm.

   Good to see that because it means business 

for everyone.  People were buying up a storm.

 I also picked up quite a few things for us.

These markets are not cheap, but everything 

is fresh.  I picked up some baklava and when I

 went to pay she said $20. Yeah I was a bit shocked,

 but I do like it and it sure looked freshly made.

 I  tried a piece as soon as I got home, and it

 was really good. Baklava is a rich, sweet dessert

 pastry made of layers of filo (phylo) dough, filled

 with chopped nuts, and sweetened with syrup or 

honey. It is a staple in many cuisines, particularly

 in the Middle East, Greece, and Turkey.

  Also got some New York style bagels 

for myself and my mom and dad.  Vegetables 

of course and Argentinian empanadas. 

 I sampled a few other things as well. I’m

 hoping that my mini pineapple is as sweet as 

I remember it to be.  These little ones in the 

Bahamas and Puerto Rico tasted like sugar.

When I got home Arvid was still watching 

soccer.  Sniff sleeping next to him.  I made 

lunch then in a few hours Arvid decided he 

would walk since I had already done mine.  

He went out.  I went to feed Legacy.  As soon

 as got back home my phone rings.  Arvid of

 course, telling me that the day is too beautiful

 to be indoors.  Arvid gets restless when alone.

He said if I wanted to go to our favorite 

hangout and have a drink.  Next thing you

 know I'm rushing to get changed and meet 

him at Hideaway.  It was a perfect outing.

Wake up every morning with the thought

 that something wonderful is about to happen...

~Nadiya~

Saturday January 17th~

Be sure you put your feet in 

the right place, then stand firm...

Yesterday we went over to mom and dad's.  

We had a good time just chatting and catching up. 

 No work this time, we all agreed that it was too

cold.  Mom and dad even had the heat going.

On our way back home I asked Arvid if we could 

stop at Manatee Park, and he said he was actually

 going to surprise me by stopping by.  Because it 

was/is so cold manatees flock there right now.

This was Arvid's first time going and my third. 

 We saw manatees and though it was cold, the sun was 

bright and warmed us up.  The park had many visitors.  

Everyone enjoying the manatees.  Made the day really

 good for me.  Also on our way to mom and dad's 

we stopped to feed Legacy, and she was there.

Manatees roam the waters of Florida from April

 through October -- but when things get a bit chilly, they

 head to places like freshwater Florida Springs, where 

the temperatures remain constant throughout the year.

Arvid and I decided we wanted to go downtown

 after all. Even though it was cold it was beautiful 

evening. Also it was Music walk. Unlike us the cold

 did not seem to bother many.  They continued 

to enjoy outdoor seating.  The space heaters sure 

helped to keep everyone warm and happy.

 Instead of sitting outside at our usual hangout 

we chose to sit indoors and stay warm. Good choice.  

We went to Izzy’s.  Arvid likes their spinach and

 artichoke dip. The place was very crowded as was 

downtown. The cold didn’t stop people from sitting 

out while dining, unlike us. We're not that brave.

On our way downtown I did see and feed Legacy, 

but she seems even more scared right now of every sound.

  She would usually come when I put her food out, but

 now she hides behind the fence.  I still leave food,

 but I hope no one did anything to scare her.

Soccer has begun for the day.  About the only time 

Arvid gets up a little earlier.  Both him and Sniff 

are ready.  Sniff has already had a few naps for the 

morning.  To all a good day.  Much warmer today.

Don't watch the clock; do what it does. Keep going...

~Nadiya~

Friday January 16th~🥶

Packing away the flip-flops... for a week...

 Waking up to very cold temperatures.  For sure it

 is a day where we would most likely plan on staying

 home, but we promised my parents to go over so we will 

have to face the chill.  Arvid is more "traumatized" than 

anyone else.  I keep reminding everyone, this man

 is from Norway where most of the year is cold.

This cold weather in Florida will last for a few

 days.  Last year Florida saw snow ⛄  Who knows,

 maybe we will have a little bit of that again.  Will 

not surprise me anymore.  Climate change 🥶

Yesterday was a good day.  We "saw" the girls.  

Amelia our youngest granddaughter was super chatty.  

She kept us laughing😍.  Whenever we Facetime, 

Sniff is never far.  He gets jealous when we pay 

attention to anyone but him. I love my Sniff.

We also saw Max and Kelsey. We had lunch 

with them and went to Blue Moon Pizza. Max

 swears it's the best. Lunch was good, but best 

was the time we had with Max and K. 

Those two especially Max are funny.  They 

made us laugh throughout lunch with their antics 

and stories.  Was very happy we saw them. It 

was cold and windy, but we missed the rain.

After lunch we drove over to where Legacy 

usually hangs out.  Of course she was not there. 

I was there an hour too early. She’s very punctual 

and does not deviate from her pattern/routines.  

I did go back at my usual time, but she was

 not there.  It had to be because it was very

 cold and the wind was howling.  I left

 her clean water and some dry food.

The day was grey, windy and cold but nothing

 compared to what today holds. As you can imagine, 

Sniff is staying warm on his heating bed. We were 

planning on going downtown, but I’m almost certain

 we would rather stay home and stay warm.  The 

day is still young and plans can be changed. 

Some say that Florida's winters are light and playful.

 But cold days in Florida can be severe... people gradually 

lose the ability to dress for colder weather... It's a damp

 and windy cold... ski jackets with flip-flops...

Florida is closed.  We are

 busy trying to find our jackets...

~Nadiya~

Thursday January 15th~

In family relationships love is really spelled t-i-m-e...

 Today we take Max and Kelsey to lunch.  Max's 

favorite place is Blue Moon Pizza, and that's exactly 

where we are we're going today. Looking forward

 to seeing them both.  Rain in the forecast, and 

Arvid is not that happy to be going out in it.

As mentioned before the temperature is slowly

 dropping.  For us it's cold.  All Arvid keeps 

saying is that he wishes that we could spend 

all January-February in Puerto Rico🌞 

As of right now still not cold, but don't ask

 Arvid.  He will say that it's too cold.  We have and

 are having a little rain.  Nothing that will make

 a dent to the drought, but everything helps.

Wishing everyone a very good day. No pretty sunrise 

this morning.  A bit on the grey and gloomy side, but at 

least it is not freezing cold like in many other places.

We are here to add what we can to

 life, not to get what we can from life...

~Nadiya~

Wednesday January 14th~

The best gifts are not always 

the most expensive, but the ones 

that come from the heart 💗...

 Sniff and I are having some quiet time.  Both of 

us doing something that relaxes us and makes us feel

 better. I am working on not letting everything affect me,

 but it's hard.  Rima is my baby sister and just the same 

with all my sisters, bonus girls (Victoria and Michelle) 

and grandkids, if they are sad, I am sad.  My life.

The temperature is changing, what we call cold

 is nothing what our families both in the US and 

Norway are experiencing.  They are having it cold 🥶,

 living in Florida spoils you, because as soon as the

 temperature dips below 70F (21C)  we complain, me 

included🫣. The Florida weather has spoilt us.

At Rimas home no matter how sad it is life goes on.

  Same as with all of us. We grieve, but we cannot/do

 not stop living.  Kingston lost his best friend (Marley), 

but he still has an entire family loving him.  That's Kingston

 being walked by his daddy in the Virginia sunset yesterday.

The morning is  bit cooler just ask Sniff.  He's 

already on his heating bed nice and cozy.

A good day to all.  Our sunsets continue to amaze me.

Giving up doesn’t always mean you’re weak, 

sometimes it means you are strong enough 

and smart enough to let go and move on...

~Nadiya~

Tuesday January 13th

Some things cannot be fixed, only carried…

I’m am so sad. So sad.  Whenever one of the pets in 

our family dies it breaks my heart all over again. For them. 

 For me. For Brutus and for what happened to Shadow. 

 Rima is my baby sister and Marley was her baby💔

The picture on the top right was taken by me 

when Arvid and I visited Rima and family in May 

of 2025,  Losing a pet is so traumatic. My mind 

goes to places I don’t want it to, but I just can’t

 stop it. One day Sniff will no longer be with

 us and right now I’m freaking out.

I always wish I could do more to ease the pain, 

but I know that they all have to go through this 

on their own. Grief is a journey of love and

 loss, and no one but yourself can walk it.

  We all grieve differently and there is no set time 

frame as to when grief is “over”.  I don't think I will

 ever stop grieving for Brutus. Yes I have moved on,

 but he took a part of me that will forever grieve.

Life does not stop no matter what we are going

 through.  That is a good thing right?  To all a very

 good day.  The risk of love is loss, and the price of loss

 is grief. But the pain of grief is only a shadow when 

compared with the pain of never risking love ❤

Sometimes losing a pet is more painful than 

losing a human because in the case of the

 pet, you were not pretending to love it...

~Nadiya~

Monday January 12th~

Nobody can go back and start a 
new beginning, but anyone can start

 today and make a new ending...

January is going by pretty fast.  We are already in 

week two.  So far the year has been pretty good to us. 

Sniff, Arvid and I are healthy and doing good we are 

enjoying life in Florida, at the same time we are looking

 forward to going back to Branson. Branson has a pull

 on us, and we keeping going there again and again.

Yesterday Arvid spent most of the day watching

 soccer. I did some cleaning and went to feed Legacy early

 in the morning and also around 4:30 in the afternoon.

During the morning feed a police car pulled up

 next to me and  the first thing he said 

was "what's the last four digits of your phone

 number.”  I asked why he wanted it and he 

just kept saying I had to give it to him. 

I told him I will not do that and I didn’t. He kept bugging 

for it.  I finally said to him, “tell me what are the last four

 digits of the number that called you”. He did and I said nope

 not me.  He said, “are you sure?”  I told him I know my own

 phone number and continued to take care of Legacy. The 

police officer hung around there and once I was done taking 

care of Legacy I left, but he was still there. Weirdo.

After Arvid’s last game we went out for pizza. 

We (Arvid) also tried the calzone.  Arvid has never had 

a it before.  He was shocked at how big it was.  Neither 

of us were able to finish our calzones. It was good but 

messy to eat.  They made it while we waited we came

 back home did a few things then watched some TV.  One 

of our favorite shows (Landman) streams on Sundays. 

Our family is heartbroken.  Rima and family

 are destroyed.  Today their baby Marley was put

 to sleep. One of the worst heartaches for those 

of us who have pets.  My heart is grieving..

It’s Monday. Get a new perspective. Whatever

 obstacle you’re facing — it’s not permanent...

~Nadiya~

Sunday January 11th~

 A winner is a dreamer who never gives up...

Yesterday Arvid and I went over to mom and dad's.  

This time there was not much to do, so we just chatted and

 came up with some plans for the coming week.  As always 

mom had a lot of food to give to me.  Not complaining.

Yesterday was a beautiful day. Arvid and I 

decided to have our Sunday outing on Saturday. 

 Good choice because we had the best time. 

We went to one of my favorite places.  I like it

 because not only is the view great, but they carry

 the whole snapper (fish) my favorite fish.  As always it

 was delicious and I have leftovers for two days.

After lunch we walked around a little.  Always a 

boat that catches Arvid's fancy.  Then he tells me we need 

to get a boat, and I say no because I remember the time 

we had boats.  So much work.  We would use it.  Have 

a great outing, but spent more hours cleaning it than 

using it.  Even so, the idea always intrigues me.

I enjoyed the sunset and what a sunset it was. 

While Arvid enjoyed his drink, I enjoyed taking 

pictures.  Both very happy with the outcome.

The Westin and the restaurants around there is  one of 

our favorite spots.  Me for the fish, and we both love

 the view.  Especially at sunset. Just stunning.

I was awake very early again.  Had time with Sniff 

who started to "bef" for food at 5am.  I resisted and did not 

give in until 6am.  Arvid is more rigid in this than I am.

Today we plan on taking it a bit slower. Arvid 

was a little tired after yesterday. Looking forward 

to hopefully having pizza for lunch. A good 

morning/day to all.  Hope it's a good one.

Your future is created by what 

you do today, not tomorrow...

~Nadiya~