Happy Australiaversary to us!

Today is our third Australiaversary 🇦🇺 As cliche as it is, it's hard to believe it's been three years since we first arrived to Sydney.

Eytan was 8 yrs old and Micah was 5 yrs old; Micah is now the same age Eytan was when we arrived! It's so hard to wrap my head around this.

This photo was from 23 Jan 2017. M wore those shorts
a few days ago and was wearing that shirt this
morning (pictured here on E). M still sleeps with
"kangy" that he picked out that day.

Micah is undoubtedly the most Aussie of all of us, having lived 3/8 of his life Down Under. One of his favourite songs is 'I Am Australian'. It's up for review and debate whether he has an accent; he doesn't sound fully Aussie, nor does he sound fully American (though he skews strongly American). His lingo is undoubtedly Aussie. His love of American sport leaves no doubt which country issued his passport (and who his father is, lol).

Still not sold on vegemite but we keep it in the house for visitors!

Our 18-month adventure has (happily!) turned indefinite. We're finalising materials to submit our application for permanent residency and my once far-off dream of having dual-citizenship may actually come true! Forget an inheritance - Aaron has decided this will be his legacy to our children.

We've figured out driving on the left hand side of the road, we've been in awe of Uluru, we've learnt a new language (and spelling!), marveled at the Reef, explored Tassie, enjoyed The Tennis and so much more!

Our family has evolved in incredible ways and I'm crazy proud of us. Since we're here for the foreseeable future book a flight and come for a visit!

We're okay!

We've been inundated with the most beautiful messages to check on us from so many parts of our lives - friends from childhood, acquaintances of our parents and grandparents, friends from high school, university, jobs early in our careers, many cities we've lived in, many cities we haven't lived in. Just so much love, concern and care. Thank you!

We've been thinking about writing this post for so long but it's been really difficult. In part because the crisis isn't over.

So, what the hell is going on in Australia?

It's bushfire season. It's a thing. Around Sydney, bushfires kicked up late October. We'd have an occasional day where we'd wake up and have to close all the windows because it would smell so smoky. Outdoor play at school was turned indoors. Baseball would get canceled. The sky would be hazy. For days. We'd hope and pray for rain. But it didn't come. The sky would be hazier. Ash would fall like snow. Ferries would be canceled due to low visibility. Schools had 'fire' days instead of 'snow' days. Hundreds of fires in New South Wales. Hundreds of fires in Victoria. Our country was ablaze. Small bushfires couldn't be contained. Homes destroyed. Lives lost. Animals gone. A billion creatures.

But we're okay. There aren't fires directly in Sydney. The nearest fires are outside the city. Some in the mountains to the west. Some to the south. Really bad in the south coast of our state (NSW, which combined with another fire in N Victoria) - that's what most people saw on TV the first weekend in January. Devastation.

This photo is from Sunday 12 Jan looking from Victoria Rd in Balmain / Rozelle toward the CBD ("city") about 4kms away. It was one of the smokiest days we've had, though it doesn't look as bad as other days have looked.

There are still hundreds of fires. There are firies from all over the world that have come to help. Heaps of American firies. They're celebrities arriving to the airport with their gear and game faces. Help from all over the world. Our neighbourhood community has rallied so beautifully, donating anything we can that is requested. I'd imagine all communities are doing the same.

Food being dropped in ravaged areas for wildlife. NYC putting up stuffed koalas to encourage ppl to donate to WIRES to help the animals. A concert. Controlled burns to prevent catastrophic uncontrolled fires. Tributes.

Please don't think this crisis has been solved just because you may have stopped hearing about it. Australia can't do this alone <3