A World United

Some of the best decisions are those you never needed to make.

Chris and I picked up a family of 5 (but, really 9 - I'll tell you about that later) from the airport on Friday. They'd traveled a long way from home to a new place that didn't promise them anything else but opportunity and safety. The ride from the airport was quiet, but I could tell that this was one of those best decisions. I could tell from the moment Ahmed, the 8-year-old boy, spoke something in Arabic and ran to my car. The translator said, "he wants to ride in your car, not mine haha!" Ahmed was the only one not depleted of energy. It took them three days to travel from Syria to America. But, he didn't care. He wanted the window down so he could look at everything we passed. Once we got them to their apartment, there wasn't much conversation. All we knew was that they wanted a TV. So, a couple of Facebook statuses later, we had two thanks to some good friends! We told them to get some rest and we'd be back with the TV soon.

Fast forward to today. Chris and I got home around 6 o clock, picked up the last of the TVs, and drove out to their apartment. As we drove in, we saw them at the laundry room. No matter - they (even the mom) chased our car all the way home. TV > Laundry, apparently! Chris got their TV hooked up and we sat down for some tea and cookies. Luckily, a man from the next apartment building was with them. He's been here for four years, so he translated. What I'm about to write, I didn't expect to happen. 

We talked for almost three hours. We laughed, I cried, and we all understood each other. The mom (Mrs. Mousa) told us about why her husband wasn't with them. She explained that they are Sunni Muslims - about 3 years ago a group of Shiite Muslims kidnapped him. I asked, "So, he was murdered?" She said, "I really don't know what's happened to him". I couldn't help it - my eyes got all watery and i held Chris' knee under the table. She told us about her other three sons left behind in Syria and a daughter still in Iraq (that makes a family of nine!). Two of her sons are scheduled to come over soon. Whatever "soon" means. The guy helping us translate said that could mean two months or two years. The other son chose to cancel his application and start over. He met a woman in Syria and he couldn't stand the thought of leaving her behind. So, they got married. But, the system considers a change in marital status as a void application. Mrs. Mousa told us (in English as best she could), "He said I love you. He has to stay". Again with my tears.

The rest of the time we found things to laugh about. Like, real laughing. The kind that makes your face and belly hurt. She looked at the translator guy (I think his name is Salem... or, something like that) and said a bunch of words. He looked at us and said, "When they get more settled, she wants to cook you a real Iraqi meal! In Iraq, when people eat together, they're family forever". Chris and I looked at each other, and Chris said, "We can't wait!"

We decided around 9 o clock we should probably get home. But, they were sad to see us leave. As we got up, Mrs. Mousa (She has a first name, I just can't pronounce it and, therefore, can't spell it) said something else. Salem said, "she says that she's going to pray every day that you have babies". Perfect! Haha. 

As we pulled into our garage, Chris turned to me and said, "I couldn't imagine a better way to have spent our evening". It's times like this I fall in love with him all over again. We have the same heart. And we get to do this whole thing together. Every day. Today our hearts were on a holy mission: to sympathize with a family from a completely different world with experiences we couldn't even try to understand, a mission to suspend all judgement and preconceived stereotypes, a mission to genuinely love these people. Man, oh man.

I was only able to take a couple of pictures. And, not everyone is in them (the little kids were playing outside). But, I hope it gives you a better picture of my night : )

A little laughter

and Life Stories.

Sometimes You Make Pretend

That you're an electrician.

For the past, hm, 8 months or so, we've been living with a light switch in the bathroom that turns off on its own. It comes at the most unexpected of times - while you're in the shower, or washing your face. Today we decided no more will we be the victims of darkness. So, it was off to Home Depot we went!

We bought a new light fuse (?). And, we got to work.

Circuit breaker: Off
Cell Phone Flashlight: On

BEGIN.

After bending a bunch of wires, screwing and unscrewing 8 screws, and only a minor electrocution incident (luckily, the breaker tripped!), our project was done. Behold:

Broken.

Fixed!

 We like it when we fix things. It adds to our adult points.

What To Do When Your Husband is Cooler Than You.

It's true. And, I've got three little cousins who will tell you so. Chris has completely owned this responsibility and made little brothers and sisters out of these kids. They cling to him, look up to him, (usually) respect him, and best of all, love him. 

I miss these little guys a lot some weeks. Most of you know I lived with my aunt, Chrissy for about a year before the rest of my family moved down here.  I watched Skylar grow up from level 1! Then came Charley and Max. We were all awesome buds. I took care of them every day after school and most of the summertime. But, big girl jobs mean big girl free time (which isn't much). So, little Olivia barely even knows me. Chris fills me in, though. We spend most of our dinner conversations talking about "the kids" - what they said, what their spelling grades were, and who threw the worst tantrum.

He's doing a stellar job. If I could have picked anyone else to take my place, it would have been Chris. He's the cool guy that plays sword fights and the best multiplication teacher.

He's "Chris the Manny" to a bunch of kids that just adore him. 

     

 I was home sick from work on Friday when Chris said "I almost forgot - today's the Dolphin Dash! I promised the kids I'd watch them run!" He was half way out the door when I told him I was going with him. My throat might have been on fire, but I wasn't about to miss the Dolphin Dash if I could help it.

                   

                          

 

You're gonna be the best dad, Chris.

.:Saturday at It's Best:.

Today has been a perfect Saturday. I'll just let you look at the pictures.

                         

                                                     

                                            

                                                            

                                                 

                                                       

A morning at the Farmer's Market, an afternoon of poolside and smoothies, and an evening of baking fresh bread, sewing pillows and eating chicken tacos. 

And Chris, of course, watched two movies.

We have it good.

The Browning Challenge

For 30 days, replace two meals a day with a smoothie.

That's it.

We're on day three. And, so far so good. The set back happens next week when spring break is over and I can't come home for lunch. We'll figure out a way to make it work.

Here are a couple of our favorite smoothies so far:

The Mean Green

Believe it or not, it's delicious.

1 1/2 c. (packed) of fresh baby spinach

1/2 c. frozen pineapple

1/2 c. frozen mango

1/2 c. water

1/2 c. fresh pressed apple juice

dollop of vanilla yogurt

                            

All In

We took every fruit (and some spinach) we had and dumped it the blender!

1 c. (packed) spinach

1/2 c. of frozen pineapple

1/2 c. of frozen mango

1/2 c. of frozen strawberries

1/2 of a frozen bananas

dollop of blueberry yogurt

1/2 c. of water

1/2 c. of fresh pressed apple juice

We're running low on frozen fruits. Another trip to the Farmer's Market is on the agenda for this weekend!

The Christmas that Happened in February.

Kind of.

Most of you know that I got Chris a t.v. wall mount for Christmas. But, it was a horrible disaster. It was the wrong size and needed to be returned. We got the right one sometime in late January. With some extra hands and an awesome tool box, Chris finally got to enjoy his Christmas present. In February. Sorry, Bloom.

And, since the t.v. is out of the way, we got a new computer desk and put the computer in the living room! Victory!

(okay, we made a batch of cookies...get off my back, already!)

But, then it wasn't level. So, our friends had to come back with their toolbox.

"Don't Get Mad At Me When You Have to Purchase Mad D-Batteries"

I'm a pretty great liar. Chris ceases to understand the lengths I will go to protect a surprise.

"You took my mailbox key, trickster Danni!"

"...what? I swear I didn't touch it. Maybe it broke off your keychain... that happened to me once. I'll call our association on my lunch break and order you a new one"

(Psh... I totally had that key)

I set up a scavenger hunt the night before Valentine's Day. The first clue was obviously in the dog food bin - It's the first thing he does when he gets up. Chris flew through most of the clues (save one). He got stumped with "Walk, SkinnyGirl, Walk" (it was the clue to his blu-ray, "Run, FatBoy, Run").

                                                  
The last clue was a small heart-shaped pillow that I made with our mailbox key stuffed inside! I drove it to my aunt's house and hid it in a basket. The end result was a happy husband with a new beard trimmer and a Samurai movie.

                                                   

My favorite part of Valentine's Day is always making Chris' day excellent. It's the best ever.

But, when I got home it was my turn! People just don't get me like Chris does. As I opened my gift and saw that it was a cast iron dutch oven, I almost jumped out of my seat. Just THINK of all the delicious things I'll cook it in!

                                                  
                                 

Then, we were off to a mystery dinner in St. Augustine. Chris, semi-blindly, picked a restaurant that he thought looked cozy and quaint. As we drove through the residential areas of St. Augustine, Chris says, "I'm sorry if we get there and it's in someone's house".

But, it wasn't someone's house. It was a tiny place with only 10 tables... and the greatest food. We were adventurous and tried all kinds of new things... scallops, pears on our salad, and shrimp bisque.
                           

                                                              

The drive home was spent sleepy, holding hands and singing along to "Stereo Hearts".