Reunion with Team Fish

On July 29, we welcomed Team Fish (a.k.a. Uncle Cody, Aunt Michelle and Zoe) to our home for two weeks.  This being their third visit together and second time since being married makes us appreciate our closeness in vicinity and the opportunity to see each other almost annually, whether here or in the States.  We did offer to meet them in the middle somewhere, but Italy is far too enticing when coming from Iraq...so Casa Isonzo it was for the final time before we move.

Two years ago we packed sightseeing and travel into our brief time together.  This visit we were very limited in our excursions with an infant in the picture and having a vehicle only able to transport 7 people.  However, we found much to keep busy with--that is when we weren't all melting from the extreme heat wave.  Ugh--sorry guys!  But at least it made returning to Iraq and AC exciting for you.

We filled our time with conversation, cooking, good eats, playing games like Bohnanza and Spinner, loving on Zoe and going on walks and bike rides.

We all piled in the car together with Zoe in lap only to go to town for gelato.  Cody and Michelle made a couple more trips by foot and bike for a late night treat, much to their nephews and niece's envy.

Cody and Michelle tackled the monumental task of teaching us how to wash carpets, Kurdish style.  Talk about servants' hearts!  This is an annual spring cleaning task in Iraq before they roll up their carpets for the summer months.  I can't even imagine doing this on a roof with just buckets.  The kids helped with the first rug and then Michelle and I soloed it on the final three.  Our bodies were sore for days, but the sense of accomplishment and feel of clean carpet underfoot made it so worth it.  After all, it was the first time in six years for such a cleaning.  The occasional thunderstorm that week made for a frantic team effort to drag all the carpets from the deck into the house and then haul them out again to dry when the sun came out.  And just to clarify, Italians don't typically have thick area carpets so there are no carpet cleaning services or even a place to rent a cleaner.

No doubt the highlight for our children was their time spent with Zoe.  She is a sweet, fun-loving, 10 -month old bundle of cuteness that you just can't get enough of.  Willing hands were there to help change diapers, assist with baths, feed and play with her.  She courageously broke in 3 new teeth while here.  Our kids think she is "one tough cookie" because you would never have known the difficulty for her with that job.  Samuel lost as many teeth as she gained during that time reminding me how quickly time passes from 10 months to 10 years.  Zoe knows a camera well and the kids could not resist (me neither) snapping pictures left and right of her adorableness.

We are so thankful and blessed to have had partial reunions with both sides of our families this summer.  Thankful too for their graciousness as preparing for a move and trying to finish up some major translation projects kept us occupied more than we would have liked at times.  Thanks for all the memories, Team Fish!  We love you!