Naseem’s Family

One of my friends I met earlier this year is spending the holidays on an island near the main island. On Saturday, he and his family came by our house—it was so good to see them! He invited us to come swim at their beach today, so we took him up on it.

We caught the 11:00 a.m. boat to the main island, took a taxi across town, and hopped on another boat to the island where Naseem is staying. He met us at the ferry station and took us to his home. Naseem has three little girls, and Kyndal was in heaven—one of them is even six, just like her.

Kyndal stayed at the house with the girls while the rest of us took a tour of the new island. When we came back, she was wearing a head covering! It was so cute. The girls had given it to her as a gift, and she brought it home.

We had a great time at the beach. Both families went swimming and just enjoyed being together. It felt like our families grew closer today, and we’re all looking forward to more time together.

Speaking of that—tomorrow is mine and Angie’s 13th wedding anniversary. We’ve invited Naseem’s family and a few others over for a BBQ. Naseem even offered to help with the fish. It’s going to be a great time. We’re planning to share the story of how Angie and I met and how we were meant to be together. Everyone loves a good love story, right? We’ll also share about how our love has grown—and the source of that love.

I know some of you will be thinking of us tomorrow around your breakfast time.

Tonight, we were able to tune in to our friends in Tulsa again—6:30 p.m. our time (8:30 a.m. Tulsa time). Deron, thanks for the great stories. We’re living it over here.

Now, about the crabs…

Since there are only about 145 billion crabs on our beach (give or take a few), I suggested we catch a couple and make a little home for them. We cut some 5-liter clear water bottles and filled them with sand to create mini crab habitats. In Tulsa, the kids had hermit crabs in an aquarium, so this felt familiar—just a bit more DIY.

Each kid made their own crab home, complete with a bottle cap “in-ground swimming pool.” Braden named his crabs Shareef and Mohammed (keeping it local), while Kyndal chose the names Luke and Lily—after our dogs back in America.

I’ll have to postpone the Day in the Life series for now while we’re in the middle of all this other good stuff. Don’t worry—we’ll catch up! I’d just rather write about what’s happening while it’s happening.