Happy Couples ....

[Mithra 1,185]

Congrats on not having people suspicious about your husband anymore. That must've sucked having to deal with naysayers for all those years.

Sorry this is so short - it's late, and I really need to get to bed. I just happened to see your thread, and wanted to chime in. My husband and I are very happy. We've been together for more than 6 years now (he's been here more than 5-1/2 of those). We both hated when (small minded) people assumed he was just with me for - well, first the visa, then the green card, then citizenship - just because he was from a MENA country. Now that he's been a citizen for more than a year, those people have finally shut up!

heehee

I wish I had time to read though what everyone else has to say (hopefully another day, soon). I just remember how scary it was at times, hearing the worst of what could happen, and loving to hear the happy stories. Now we are one of the happy stories!

Best of luck to all!

venusfire

[Amber & Ahmed 133]

Fuul public service announcement - refried beans are made from pinto beans, fuul is made from fava beans. You can find canned fuul mudamas/fava beans in any Mid Eastern market or section of most grocery stores. They don't taste the same so it's not a proper substitute. The only similarity is texture and even that isn't exact. Egyptian fuul mudamas usually includes cumin, salt, pepper, olive oil and lemon. I also add garlic powder. I mash the beans with a heavy, heat proof cup/glass before serving.

Agree with Mithra on Fuul.. but Ahmed taught me to add a bit of Tahini right before serving... it is fantastic ! I also like to slice thinly fresh garlic and allow the garlic to cook in tje olive oil a bit. Also I add crushed red pepper becaise we prefer spicy food. Before we moved to Florida we did use pinto beans but now we have access to a fabulous Arabian market and use Fava beans. We just made Tameia with the Fava beans and it was delicious. I now can also make Mashee and Basboosa on my own... I have been having a good time learning Egyptian recipes and making Egyptian/American dinners every night. Since starting his new position Ahmed has met another Egyptian man that told him about a middle eastern restaraunt called Petra so when I cant make something specific we can go there and have it.

As far as being a happy couple... we have been married 2 1/2 years now and overall we are happy. We do have our disagreements but we find a way to get thru it. He has been here since January. We moved to Florida in March. He had looked for a job since day one. He started studying for the CPA exam. While waiting for work he started doing a mobile mechanic business. He HATED IT! But he stuck it out and we supported one another and kept our sense of humor. One month ago now he was hired as a financial analyst. He is happy to be back in the corporate world but still hoping for an accounting position.

We are just really enjoying living a normal life together. We eat together. Go shopping a few times a week. We jump in our pool together. We sleep every night together. We sit and talk... discuss,.. debate together. We are making our dreams come true together. The main thing is TOGETHER! And that right there is the most important to us both. We started this journey because we knew we had to have a life together. We both had great lives seperate of each other but once our lives became one our life is now beyond our wildest dream!

Now I am not saying everything is perfect all the time... I am simply stating we are PERFECTLY HAPPY TOGETHER!!!!

Edited August 2, 2012 by Amber & Ahmed

[morocco4ever 63]

I've found treating my husband like a novelty item has been

very beneficial for us. I highlight all his weird and foreign foreign-ness at every possible turn, and it's working out really well.

I realize that this is an old thread, but I had to say that this really made me chuckle.

[sandinista! 1,816]

I realize that this is an old thread, but I had to say that this really made me chuckle.

[AngelK96 0]

I realize that this is an old thread, but I had to say that this really made me chuckle.

this made me chuckle and chuckle esp when i seen your name..i said gawd i know that gal back in the day when her husband got denied before there was even a middle east thread here..sheesh..

[AngelK96 0]

i just remember thinking oh ######..if that happened to her..gawd.... in hindsight..you provided a lot of info to gals who did get denied back in the day...you were awesome!!