Top Reasons how You Know You are in a Cross Cultural Relationship

This is one of our very first unofficial pictures together. 

 On November 11, 2014 Gallo asked me on our first date. I should have known the crazy ride we were in for when I barely even understood what he asked me that night. Welcome to the wonderful magical world of cross cultural relationships! 

I was prepared for the worst, fighting, disagreeing, not being understood, not getting along with relatives, the list went on. What was I getting into being with a *gulp* Latino?! 
All in all I have been PLEASANTLY surprised at the beauty and not-terribly difficult bi-cultural relationship I am in. Here are some reasons you know you are in a relationship with someone who is not from your home culture. 

Numero One: You talk in both languages at the same time and in the same sentence. "Pasame the salt please?" 

Numero Two: When you are arguing and the person arguing says a word funny or wrong in the other person's language and you both immediately start laughing. For example, Gallo was looking for his glasses case and couldn't find it, he thought I lost it and we were arguing about it. "No se donde esta tu "cachuche!!" I yelled. We both burst out laughing because the word is "estuche" for glasses case, cachuche isn't even a word. It helped break the tension. 

Number Tres: You are basically a white girl playing the role of Mexican wife. In my case that is. My grocery cart looks like that of a 5'2'' long hair milk chocolate complexion Mexican woman and not a 5'6'' Scandinavian. 

Numero Four: The whole not letting your feet touch the cold floor or not taking a shower when your body is hot from exercise thing is really getting out of hand at my house. We have conversations about the validity of these concerns perhaps every other day. 

Number Cinco: When you switch off and on what kind of breakfast you are having, Mexican or American. Sometimes tortillas, sometimes pancakes. 

All you cross cultural relationship friends out there what kind of things have you dealt with in your relationship? Especially those of you with kids I am sure you ran into a lot of interesting situations. I want to know! Share them here! 

our parents really get along well. this is when Gallo first met my parents. 

When we met! 

In Puerto Vallarta. Would we have known we would get married there a year in a half later? 

This is our first official picture, saying to the world, "ya we like each other."

When I met my suegros (in-laws). I am blessed beyond words by my in-laws. 

The Big Scary Duty of Raising Funds

Oh the missionary life. 
Thrift store clothes always (luckily it's hip to shop there now), beat up car (if you even have a car), you will never own a home too expensive, no fun, no going out to dinner or the movies, you are poor, you are a missionary. 
Sometimes as missionaries we have the expectation on ourselves that this is the life we are to lead, boring poor lives. 
We live on the financial support of others, we live off the generosity of other people, sometimes even strangers. This causes a somewhat awkward existence. 
Can I go get coffee at my favorite cafe? What will my supporters think? My nose piercing cost $12. Was that wasteful? Am I ungrateful and unwise with my money? After all, its all given to me, should I ask if its okay?
I know missionaries with cars, and houses, MacBook computers and vacations... 
I live in a community of missionaries, I have seen many different lifestyles and choices made with finances, I see how things work and yet...
I often feel I have dug my own hole of judgement where my self is the subject of ridicule. 
My Amazon account haunts me. I am not allowed to have nice things. 
These are things I tell myself. 
I wanted to slink off to Europe unknown because I didn't know how to explain to people I am a missionary and I am travelling Europe at the same time. Missionaries can't travel they don't have the resources. 

While in Athens I was walking and talking with a fellow YWAM-er. He said something I will never forget, "Why do we (missionaries) think we need to lead miserable lives?" I thought about it, I was walking the streets of Athens after two weeks of visiting friends all over Europe, I was not leading a life of misery in any way and I didn't realize I was carrying the guilt bag until he said that statement. I felt guilty for living my life, and often still do. Everything I bought, ate, every movie I watched or coffee I drank, all was done in guilt. This money should be used for paying rent or saving it till next month, what about Ilumina? Do I even think of the youth? How will they know Jesus if I am buying myself a coffee. 
My judgement kept getting deeper and deeper. 

God has recently challenged my faith and my prayer life. He has called me to pray as if I actually believed he was going to answer my prayers. I had been living months of apathetic prayers and shallow petitions. As I prayed I felt my faith flicker as God fanned the flames. "Believe in Me for a car."
Oh great...here we go. Jumping off another cliff into the oblivion of faith. 
Gallo and I are now praying earnestly and raising funds and saving for the car that God has in store for us and also our own piece of land so we can eventually build our own home and not have to pay rent anymore. I know we have a good God who is my Father and he wants to give me good, and nice things. I am choosing not to be self conscious about anything he gives me. Of course we should have nice things, because our God is our Daddy and he wants us to be blessed and be a blessing! This pious self denial poverty mentality of some Christians, missionaries is pathetic. He is the Most High God! I will accept his blessings with gratitude, I will drink coffee and travel the world if HE provides it, if not, its simple, I won't. Gallo and I will watch him provide for all our needs, great and small and we will not go in need because we are his children and we trust in him. We will have a car soon, we will raise more than $50,000 for our land and home because nothing is impossible for God.  
Will you trust in him? Will you pray big prayers and believe they will be answered?