AND THIS IS US
In a bustling city where the rhythm of life never missed a beat, Chris and Mel found themselves navigating the bustling streets, unaware that destiny had its own romantic script in mind for them.
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Their story began on a rainy afternoon, with Chris, a perpetually cheerful optimist, darting through the downpour, determined to reach his destination without turning into a soggy mess. Meanwhile, Mel, a pragmatic realist with a penchant for overthinking, was quietly cursing her luck as she wrestled with an umbrella that seemed determined to defy the laws of physics.
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Their paths collided in a classic "umbrella bump" moment, reminiscent of a scene straight out of a romantic comedy. As they exchanged sheepish apologies and laughter over their shared predicament, little did they know that this chance encounter would mark the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
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Over cups of steaming coffee and slices of decadent cheesecake at their favorite neighborhood cafe, Chris and Mel discovered a shared love for old movies, cheesy jokes, and late-night conversations about life, love, and everything in between. They became each other's confidants, sounding boards, and partners in crime, navigating the highs and lows of city life with a blend of humor and heart.
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As the seasons changed and the cityscape transformed, Chris and Mel's bond only grew stronger, evolving from friendship to something more. They laughed, they cried, they danced in the rain, and with each passing day, they found themselves falling deeper and deeper in love.
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In a city where millions of stories unfolded every day, Chris and Mel's love story stood out as a testament to the power of serendipity, friendship, and the magic of finding your perfect match in the most unexpected of places. And as they strolled hand in hand through the rain-soaked streets, they knew that their love story was just beginning, with every chapter yet to be written.
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Cute right?
It's also utter nonsense and the plot of "How Harry met Sally" LOL
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Chris and I met each other in a weird way, two people who managed to find each other in a sea of 7 billion other Humans. We first collided in 2016 playing Neverwinter on Xbox, where we both belonged to the same Guild. As life will have it, we lived in different states but soon figured out we were two peas in the same pod. Chris loved Bugs, and Mel loved Bug Photography. We are both avid Gamers and Sci-Fi Lovers. Mel hates Pickles, and Chris loves them. Chris was bald, and Mel had enough hair for two people. You get what we mean ;)
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About a year into the relationship, we decided to do the strangest thing possible and became Roach breeders. Yep, you read that correctly. We breed Cockroaches. Discoid Roaches, to be exact, and it bloomed into a thriving business that is now in Year 6! You wouldn't believe how many people there are in Florida who also love Reptiles, and those Reptiles have to eat too. We ship Roaches all over the United States and have the most amazing Customers on the planet! Come check us out over on LUNA ROACHES!
Eventually, we had to expand, and so we moved right before COVID-19 at the end of May 2020. Away from the Beach and into Rural Florida onto 1.25 acres. Image this: A blank slate. An entire property with nothing but the new home on it. Nothing was planted, no landscaping, and about 60% of the Land was cleared. We were all in! You would think that would have been enough to wake up our Homesteading gene, but not so much. That didn’t happen until 2021 and it started slowly. We knew some about growing stuff, but not enough to be successful, and the first year, we failed. A LOT!
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In year two, we started to tackle this with all of the enthusiasm of newlyweds on their wedding night! We researched, we pivoted, we researched, and ended up with a bit of success but not enough to be self-sufficient. But we got smarter and experimented. Due to Mel’s Lupus, growing things that required a lot of maintenance in the garden were out. The Sun triggers Lupus flare-ups, so that was a no-go. (This also re-started the love for Herbalism, and we went all in with School, classes, learning, and research!) We decided to plant ten crops in all of the spirit of “May the odds be ever in your favor!” Seed in the ground, water until germination, and then you are on your own little Plant. We had a LOT of Success that way and had a great harvest of Seminole Pumpkins, Black Eyed Peas, Cassava, Grapes, Mulberries, Cranberry Hibiscus, Tomatoes and Sweet Potatoes. We also learned to bake everything from scratch, canning, fermenting, dehydrating, and adding a Freeze Dryer.
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Now, in Year three of our Homesteading Journey, we have five Turkeys, a flock of Barnyard mix egg layers that give us the prettiest eggs, and a newly raised flock of Bielefelders and Jersey Giants that will be our Dual-Purpose birds for Meat and Eggs. But that wasn’t enough, and we also decided to become Bee Keepers this year. On top of that, we expanded our growing garden, started our Food Forrest, and now have about triple the space to grow and become more self-sufficient because, after all, that is the goal!
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Chris and I are the kind of people who don’t mind being together 24/7. We work well together and have a ton of fun doing it, it just works in our marriage. There is rarely a day when we don’t have a belly-aching laugh over something or the other.
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We hope you come join us on our Journey, it’ll be weird because… weird is what we do best!
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