Holiday greetings from the tropical islands! 

 I wish you all a memorable Christmas with family, friends and loved ones. 

XOXO,

Arni

Hello everyone! I am deeply honored to have  Nikki here today We grew up together and she is more like a sister than a cousin. Despite living thousands of miles away from each other, I'm so happy that this sisterly love surpasses time and distance. 

Nikki is the author of the blog, The Kasama Kusina, a collection of her own recipe creations that are near and dear to her heart.  Let's all welcome Nikki as she shares with us what happiness means to her. 

The first time I found myself pregnant ended with the pain of miscarriage, and I never thought I could ever produce a child after that. It was to my dread and surprise two years ago around this time that I found myself a newlywed of about a month and pregnant. Fear and elation washed over me after reading the word "PREGNANT" on a home pregnancy test stick, yet the memory of my lost pregnancy lingered on my mind. The optimist in me shrugged off the trauma, yet during the first trimester of my pregnancy, my husband, Paul, rushed me to the hospital where I was diagnosed with “threatened abortion” or a “threatened miscarriage”.   Immediately, I was devastated. The only solace the emergency room doctor could give me was to "wait it out" and that situations like mine "happened to a lot of women". Once again, I felt helpless, but I heeded his advice of rest and plenty of fluids with ample food, and did my best to stay off my feet. During my follow up appointment with an Ob-Gyn, I was given this sonogram, which shows an embryo that was still implanted onto my uterus. I was told that as long as the bleeding does not reoccur, I should have a viable pregnancy. The next time I went to the doctor was a month after my diagnosis, and I was told that as long as I stayed healthy, the baby growing inside of me would be healthy, too.  I was over-the-moon!  

"Missing someone gets easier everyday because even though you are one day further from the last time you saw them, you are one day closer to the next time you will." - Loving From a Distance 

Source

In twelve days, I will finally see my husband again.  Living together for almost 9 years, this is our first Christmas apart. I miss him. Technology keeps us connected, but I miss being in his arms, cooking for him and spending time together. During travels, I'd think about him knowing how much he'd enjoy a particular scenery or food. Wondering what he has to say about something said and whether he would laugh at a funny incident. One month and a half - This is the longest time we've been apart since.