Tuesday December 30th~

Close the chapter of last year with 

a smile and reflection. Allow excitement 

and joy to bring in your new tomorrow...

2025 is nearing the end. It’s natural to

 reflect on the highs, lows, and everything 

in between. The end of the year is a time 

to celebrate the lessons we’ve learned, the

 growth we’ve experienced, and the memories

 we’ve made. It’s also a moment to look

 ahead, filled with hope, inspiration, and 

motivation for the coming year🎉

Arvid and I went over to mom and

 dad’s. As mentioned before, Arvid had 

a few things to do.  Not too much this time

 so we enjoyed a little time talking.  As 

always a good time. Of course mom 

 had foodies for me to bring home.

Back home I made lunch. We watched an 

episode of a Netflix show, and then I went 

to clean Legacy’s area.  She was not there. 

 I didn’t expect her to be there was too early, 

but when Arvid and I went for a walk she 

was there. Waiting for some foodies.

  Another beautiful day here in Paradise 

as so many call it, even the Florida cold is 

somehow bearable.  After all it only lasts 

for a few days. To all a very good day. 

The first step towards getting 

somewhere is to decide you’re not 

going to stay where you are....

~Nadiya~

Monday December 29th~

On this road called life, You have to take the 

good with the bad, Smile with the sad, Love what

 you got, and remember what you had. Always 

forgive, but never forget. People change. Things 

go wrong. But just remember, the ride goes on

It's the last Monday/week of 2025.  It has 

been a very good week for us, but not a very 

good year.  One has to take the good with 

the bad.  What other options do we have?

Today we once again go over to mom and 

dad's to do a few things.  Arvid is back to being

 in his fixer upper mode.  Dad has a few things that 

needs to be done, and Arvid is the man to do it. 

 Mom and dad said they have never seen 

anyone work as clean and do such a great job

 as Arvid, and trust me they have paid many

 to have things done for them.  Arvid is 

not only free😂, but he is good.

Arvid and I had a little trip downtown for lunch. 

 The walk as always is very good, and so was

 our outing.  Yesterday we went to Capone's and

 had their coal fired pizza. Was pretty good.

  Of course at the end we did conclude we preferred 

Downtown House of Pizza better, but Capones 

was delicious also.  Once we like something

it's very difficult to sway us elsewhere.

 On the way to lunch I checked in again on

 Legacy .  She looked  full and content enjoying 

her warm mats. The next few it days it will be

 getting much "colder" after all, this is Florida 

so anything below 70F is considered cold.

All good here.  Looking forward to what the week 

holds.  Sniff is already comfy on his heating bed.  For

 the next couple of hours he will be getting toasty.

Use only that which works, and 

take it from any place you can find it...

~Nadiya~

Sunday December 27th~

The most beautiful things are 

not associated with money; they 

are memories and moments...

 Yesterday Arvid and I decided that the day 

was just too beautiful to stay indoors. We chose 

to go to Fort Myers Beach. There was quite a

 bit of traffic to get there, but was worth it.

 We have a favorite restaurant there with 

just views.  Yesterday the boat just kept coming.  

We sat and enjoyed a good meal and most of all 

the boats passing by.  Non-stop parade of boats.

A favorite boat in these waterways is Nor-Tech 

boats.  Made right here in Cape Coral, Florida.

As always I enjoyed the sunset, and the great 

weather.  Arvid loves to say that it's December and 

we're sitting outdoors. We had a beautiful time.

Not wanting the enning to end, we decided to stop

 into Pinchers for another drink.  Mostly Arvid was 

keen on another drink, but it was a beautiful evening 

so why not.  There we also had a great few hours.

All good here.  Another beautiful day awaits us. 

 I went early to feed Legacy, but someone had beaten 

me to it again.  She had lots of food, so I cleaned up

 her area and took her another mat.  Cold weather is 

coming once again.  Sniff is doing good and enjoying 

his morning sunshine.  A happy Sunday/day to all.

Life moves so fast. You gotta 

document the good times, man...

~Nadiya~

Saturday December 27th~

Sometimes all we need to

 do is be still and breathe...

 Yesterday we had a quiet day at home 

 no noise. No phone calls. Just the three of

 us enjoying a peaceful and relaxing day.  

Arvid washed the car.  I made lunch and

 then we just relaxed. Sounds so simple,

 but these are some of the best days.

Arvid watched a soccer game. I enjoyed

 my French series and Sniff napped away.  All 

three of us doing something we enjoyed.  

Early in the afternoon I went out to 

feed Legacy. Can’t forget about her.  As 

usual she was there waiting for food.

Soccer has already begun and there are many games

 today. Arvid is happy as can be.  Waking up to a cooler

 morning, but the real cold will be here in a few days.

To all a very good day.  Enjoy the last days of 2025.

As the year comes to an end, it's the perfect time 

to pause and reflect on the experiences, challenges, 

and memories that shaped the past twelve months

~Nadiya~

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~