Bring a lot of white shirts. People like to ask for advice for their own upcoming aliyah and I mention this because there is something to celebrate or commemorate or mark in some way that requires your children wearing a white shirt almost every week. Last week all the activity was around Jerusalem day and tomorrow is Shavuot (Feast of Weeks) so A had to wear a white shirt and festive clothes to Gan today. Yesterday as we were walking in, one of her friends made mention to me that she needed to bring a basket to Gan the next day. I gave him a quizzical look. "Ema shel Ariella" (translation: "Ariella's mom"--kids here call you as the mother of your child's name) he went on, "you can't forget the basket." See poor little A probably misses out on some of the goings on in her Gan because they require either a knowledge of how things worked in previous years or a commitment to reading e-mail from the teacher. Now even those of you who are reading in your primary language probably only scan. Reading it in Hebrew things can get lost. The parents don't think to mention these details because what kind of person doesn't know for instance that you are meant to bring a basket to gan the day before Shavuot? So it falls on the kids to bring me up to speed so to speak. I can imagine those little kids "Chaval (oh what a pity), this week she didn't bring the red flower..."
So after the five-year-old gave me the heads-up, I asked the teacher because I was still a bit fuzzy on the details. I left the room thinking I would bring her a yogurt and fruit in a grocery sack. Fortunately, I got another call that night "ema shel Ariella, can she come play?" I love these phone calls because when I'm speaking with the little kids we're all on the same level and they know what it feels like to not be understood so they don't mind repeating or speaking slowly. Anyway, I learned when I dropped her off that it was more a decorated bakset that we were supposed to bring. I'm no historian and I'm not about to get into which tradition came first, but to a girl from Kansas this sounded suspiciously like Easter baskets. I'm sure it's all connected with the first fruits etc. but if I had been given more than a night's notice I could have sent her with a lovely basket. As it is I was able to dig something out of our cupboard and we walked in with our heads held high. All the girls had little flower wreaths on their heads (there's always next year) and since she and her friend had made crowns on the playdate A too had something on her head though a bit more taped-together-construction-paper-than-flowers but she didn't care.
Meanwhile, we are considering getting N a cell phone. Thank goodness he has really fallen in with a nice group of friends and most nights he isn't home. It's constant running and doing and going. I don't want to push my luck but I have also noticed a major drop in comparisons to Kansas or even a mention. Last week when he was speaking with one of his close friends from Kansas, he learned that his friend was moving to Colombia--as in South America. Wow, I said your friend is also moving overseas. N gave me a look and reminded me that there actually was not an ocean separating North and South America. Details.
Back to the subject of Easter bunnies etc. Last week L went with a friend to the local community center to watch a movie. I'll confess I didn't do any screening and the friend's mom told me she thought L understood much of the movie but needed some translation. Turns out the movie was about Santa and the tooth fairy and a group of imaginary characters. Really. We flew all the way to Israel to watch a movie about Santa. Not atypical for living in the U.S., slightly more unexpected for living in Israel. I have a strong suspicion that L was likely the only kid in the theater who knew who many of the characters were. Meanwhile, L lost a tooth last week and she told me "I know there isn't such thing as a tooth fairy, but there are moms. I expect money underneath my pillow when I wake up." Kids these days.
Tonight we head out of town to stay with friends we made through baseball for Shavuot. Really looking forward as I'm sure it will be both a meaningful experience for us and great fun for the kids. With all the Shavuot prep and learning, A has done a great job connecting Passover and Shavuot. And in what I'm sure will become an instant hit in Jewish households across the world she has taken to singing "No, no, no, don't let the dog go."
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Saturday, May 4, 2013
The Right Way to Make Unsafe Choices
I am so excited that my new friend (who feels like an old friend), Gila from aliyahbyaccident.blogspot.co.il mentioned me and my blog in her blog. I have been reading Gila's blog for around two years and she doesn't disappoint. In fact, hers is the only blog I read on a regular basis. Recently, we actually spent a Shabbat with her family and all the different counterparts got along. Isn't it great when that happens. Anyway, I mostly started this blog for my mom and my friend Ilene (who came up with the name for oysandjoys) but if any readers from accident want to join--you are very welcome. I may have just set a world record for using the word blog in a 5 sentence paragraph.
So do other parents ever get the feeling that the message you may be trying to send just isn't getting received? I feel like I try to emphasize safety with my children especially since my career involves dealing with a lot of the aftermath of unsafe choices (generally mixed with alcohol, but still . . .) When Ariella was a baby she used to find tiny little objects in the house, put them in her mouth and then bring them to me and say "choking hazard." You know all the times I had taken something small out of her mouth and warned her about choking hazards somehow got mixed up in her mind. We were never able to fix that one.
Today I discovered Ariella blending two phenomena with which our Israel experience has thus far graced us: Bicycle safety and stone floors.
Well, bicycle safety has always been a big theme for us, and our children, including Ariella, never tire of pointing out the common practice here of bike-riding without helmets.
The stone floor phenomenon is widespread here. The upstairs, downstairs, and the stairs connecting them in our house and in almost every other home we have seen in Israel are made of stone. They are rumored to lack the soft, plushy qualities that many carpets possess (except for the "Grey Banshee" that was our carpet in Kansas for several years.)
I caught Ariella blending these two important themes as she prepared to pillow-surf her way down the stone stairs. Her final preparation: Putting on her bike helmet.
So do other parents ever get the feeling that the message you may be trying to send just isn't getting received? I feel like I try to emphasize safety with my children especially since my career involves dealing with a lot of the aftermath of unsafe choices (generally mixed with alcohol, but still . . .) When Ariella was a baby she used to find tiny little objects in the house, put them in her mouth and then bring them to me and say "choking hazard." You know all the times I had taken something small out of her mouth and warned her about choking hazards somehow got mixed up in her mind. We were never able to fix that one.
Today I discovered Ariella blending two phenomena with which our Israel experience has thus far graced us: Bicycle safety and stone floors.
Well, bicycle safety has always been a big theme for us, and our children, including Ariella, never tire of pointing out the common practice here of bike-riding without helmets.
The stone floor phenomenon is widespread here. The upstairs, downstairs, and the stairs connecting them in our house and in almost every other home we have seen in Israel are made of stone. They are rumored to lack the soft, plushy qualities that many carpets possess (except for the "Grey Banshee" that was our carpet in Kansas for several years.)
I caught Ariella blending these two important themes as she prepared to pillow-surf her way down the stone stairs. Her final preparation: Putting on her bike helmet.
Friday, May 3, 2013
And how many ways do you use oven cleaner?
So I'm a tad behind with my update as Lag b'omer was last week but it was so much fun that I figure better late than never. First of all, as with so many things here there is some controversy surrounding the way this "little wee holiday turned serious dedication to burning things" day has evolved. For instance, where exactly did all of that wood the kids collect come from? But that is a conversation for a different forum. Anyway, there was so much build up and so much of it seemed well sort of downright scary, that I was prepared to consider it a success if I didn't have to use my newly acquired medical license that night. Fortunately, at least in our little neck of the woods no medical emergencies (though I did make one house call for a trip and fall who was just fine, thank you).
We had such a great time. It's a hard scene to describe but essentially every 400 feet or so there are little groups having bonfires. Our family for instance had 4 different fires we could have belonged to but we chose to attend the second grade bonfire and I let N go on his own to the 4th grade fire since M was out of town. Even while I'm typing this it sounds alarming that I would let my 10 year old go on his own to burn things with friends but I knew there were parents assigned to monitor and also it's sort of normal. And he had a complete and total blast. Imagine organized chaos. At our fire we made our own pita, roasted marshmallows and hot dogs. We also ate roasted potatoes and onions that were soooo good. The technique was rather ingenious. We poked a long wire through the foil wrapped potatoes/onions and put them in the fire. After awhile you just pull the wire to take it out. There were also games and singing. I felt a certain amount of pride when A and L sang along. It's new to me but it won't be to them.
The next morning (kids never go to school in this country so they were home with me), Lital pulled out chopsticks and found some marshmallows and as I was making pancakes she roasted a few marshmallows for the group. Later she and a friend decided to have a bake sale. We made some yummy cupcakes but as it was a million degrees outside they came back in after about two minutes and we played board games until it cooled off. As they were designing their posters for the sale, I realized that the plural form of currency (the shekel) shekalim, rhymes with the word for tasty, ta-im. So they went back out with their cakes and started singing a little ditty. Well they sold out in 30 minutes, I'd like to thank it was the cakes, might have been neighbors eager for the poem/song to end.
Today I went to an ultrasound course in Tel Aviv that the Shaare Zedek docs invited me to. First of all when there isn't any traffic (since Friday is not a standard work day), Tel Aviv is actually only 30 minutes away. It likely would have taken me 2-3 times as long to get there on a regular weekday. The course was great, I got to meet a few ER docs and some medical students who served as models. The lectures were in Hebrew but the slides were in English so between the two I was pretty well able to follow along. The students who were Americans at an American/Israeli medical school (Sackler) told me that after a few months with patient care I would have a decent fluency. As most of them did not know Hebrew before they came, that was good to hear. Especially since I recently discovered that I have been cleaning the toilets with oven cleaner for the better part of 6 weeks. Hmmmm.
We had such a great time. It's a hard scene to describe but essentially every 400 feet or so there are little groups having bonfires. Our family for instance had 4 different fires we could have belonged to but we chose to attend the second grade bonfire and I let N go on his own to the 4th grade fire since M was out of town. Even while I'm typing this it sounds alarming that I would let my 10 year old go on his own to burn things with friends but I knew there were parents assigned to monitor and also it's sort of normal. And he had a complete and total blast. Imagine organized chaos. At our fire we made our own pita, roasted marshmallows and hot dogs. We also ate roasted potatoes and onions that were soooo good. The technique was rather ingenious. We poked a long wire through the foil wrapped potatoes/onions and put them in the fire. After awhile you just pull the wire to take it out. There were also games and singing. I felt a certain amount of pride when A and L sang along. It's new to me but it won't be to them.
The next morning (kids never go to school in this country so they were home with me), Lital pulled out chopsticks and found some marshmallows and as I was making pancakes she roasted a few marshmallows for the group. Later she and a friend decided to have a bake sale. We made some yummy cupcakes but as it was a million degrees outside they came back in after about two minutes and we played board games until it cooled off. As they were designing their posters for the sale, I realized that the plural form of currency (the shekel) shekalim, rhymes with the word for tasty, ta-im. So they went back out with their cakes and started singing a little ditty. Well they sold out in 30 minutes, I'd like to thank it was the cakes, might have been neighbors eager for the poem/song to end.
Today I went to an ultrasound course in Tel Aviv that the Shaare Zedek docs invited me to. First of all when there isn't any traffic (since Friday is not a standard work day), Tel Aviv is actually only 30 minutes away. It likely would have taken me 2-3 times as long to get there on a regular weekday. The course was great, I got to meet a few ER docs and some medical students who served as models. The lectures were in Hebrew but the slides were in English so between the two I was pretty well able to follow along. The students who were Americans at an American/Israeli medical school (Sackler) told me that after a few months with patient care I would have a decent fluency. As most of them did not know Hebrew before they came, that was good to hear. Especially since I recently discovered that I have been cleaning the toilets with oven cleaner for the better part of 6 weeks. Hmmmm.
Friday, April 26, 2013
Lip gloss, Pyromania and Emergency rooms
On our journey to absorption, adjustment, integration, whichever term fits we can now add another experience: Home birthday party. Wow, was that an experience. Now is as good a time as any to recall the backyard obstacle course I built two years ago for N & L's birthday parties. I love making creative home parties and I think our kids and their friends have generally rather enjoyed themselves. A dear friend, B, once told me that she just loved watching Michael and me in party action. Well, dear readers, ulpan doesn't really give you the vocab necessary to reign in thirteen 8-year olds. It was a rather rowdy group and there were several little future criminals, lawyers in the group. We had a lip gloss making dance party. When it was time to break into small groups so that the girls could choreograph their performances the arguments began. One group absolutely could not agree and when Michael went in to broker a peace deal so to speak, another girl came complaining to me "zeh lo fair, zeh lo fair" (does that really need translation?) Apparently it offended her sense of fairness that an adult was helping another group and might give them an extra advantage in the final dance-off. Or she didn't like the color of her lip gloss. Beats me because she was talking so fast I didn't stand a chance. The important part is that L had a great time and (I think) so did the rest of her class. It has been rather remarkable to watch the transition as L has gone from new kid who doesn't speak the language to accepted girl with friends who speaks enough to participate.
Sunday Michael leaves for France for work. Great timing for him as the kids don't have school on Sunday or Monday and apparently it will become bonfire city (countrywide) on Sunday night to celebrate Lag B'Omer (Jewish holiday). It's also great timing since the weather is projected to be over 90 degrees, perfect for dozens and dozens of gigantic bonfires consuming branches, discarded doors, and pretty much anything made out of wood that hasn't been nailed down.
Hopefully the hot day/cool night pattern will stick, because everyone is super excited. The kids have been collecting wood with their friends for about two months for the huge group bonfires. Will keep you posted. N has an all day olympiad to participate in on Monday so I will get some downtime with just the girls.
Update on my medical licensing. I received my license before Pesach which means I can now practice medicine in Israel. This is great. Now, in order to receive specialty recognition I need to work for 3 months in an emergency department (much less than what physicians from outside of North America need to do, and of note, foreign docs who want to get licensed in U.S. have to redo their entire training). I met yesterday with the director of Shaarei Tzedek, which houses the busiest ED in Jerusalem. Looks like a great place to do my histaklut as soon as I can find 3 months in a row which will likely be next Fall. In the meantime I am hoping to start working at an urgi-care this summer, so that I can LEARN HEBREW and start to get the sense of how medicine is practiced here.
Sunday Michael leaves for France for work. Great timing for him as the kids don't have school on Sunday or Monday and apparently it will become bonfire city (countrywide) on Sunday night to celebrate Lag B'Omer (Jewish holiday). It's also great timing since the weather is projected to be over 90 degrees, perfect for dozens and dozens of gigantic bonfires consuming branches, discarded doors, and pretty much anything made out of wood that hasn't been nailed down.
Hopefully the hot day/cool night pattern will stick, because everyone is super excited. The kids have been collecting wood with their friends for about two months for the huge group bonfires. Will keep you posted. N has an all day olympiad to participate in on Monday so I will get some downtime with just the girls.
Update on my medical licensing. I received my license before Pesach which means I can now practice medicine in Israel. This is great. Now, in order to receive specialty recognition I need to work for 3 months in an emergency department (much less than what physicians from outside of North America need to do, and of note, foreign docs who want to get licensed in U.S. have to redo their entire training). I met yesterday with the director of Shaarei Tzedek, which houses the busiest ED in Jerusalem. Looks like a great place to do my histaklut as soon as I can find 3 months in a row which will likely be next Fall. In the meantime I am hoping to start working at an urgi-care this summer, so that I can LEARN HEBREW and start to get the sense of how medicine is practiced here.
Friday, April 19, 2013
Vicissitudes
What a crazy week this has been. It seems that the world is raging around us. In the U.S., the horrible attack in Boston, poison sent to a U.S. Senator, and the fertilizer plant tragedy in Oklahoma seem to have come as a one-two-three punch to all of us.
On the Israeli end, terrorists fired rockets from the Sinai into Eilat. Thank God everyone got to safety before the rockets landed.
It seems strange to blog about "everyday life" in light of these events, but everyday life must go on. In fact, affirming everyday life may be among the best tools we have to deal with tragedy. To that end:
Last week was Yom Hazikaron (Memorial Day) which is followed by Yom Haatzmaut (Independence Day). It is a difficult transition to go from a very sad day to a very happy day and L actually asked me as we were headed out for a Memorial Ceremony before beginning the Independence day celebration how people could go from being so sad to so happy. The night Memorial Day started N went to a program with a friend. I stayed home with the girls because A is too young to understand and I wasn't sure how much L would understand (especially as it is of course in Hebrew). When N got home I sat down to talk about it with him. He told me it was very sad because many young soldiers had died when they had their whole lives ahead of them. He also told me that he felt scared because "when they were reading the names from the list I realized that my name could be on that list one day, and I don't want it to." What could I say? It's scary for all of us and something that I hope we never ever have to face. The sirens sound for a moment of silence at night and once during the day. It is a very powerful sound and emotion as an entire nation of people stops to recognize, remember and mourn those killed in action.
This is all followed by a huge celebration that marks Israeli Independence Day. I had heard about how amazing Yom Haatzmaut is in Israel so I was sort of prepared to be disappointed. I figured that reports had likely been exaggerated. Boy was I wrong. First we went to a Memorial ceremony at our local congregation. I didn't understand all of it but they did a good job, remembering and mourning. They read names from a list of people who had relatives in our congregation. Unfortunately, with Israel being such a small country and so surrounded by enemies, many families had a loved one whose name was read. There was a drum roll and the raising of the Israeli flag from half mast. Afterwards we all sang the national anthem and then the kids performed some songs and dances and we all joined in for some traditional folk dancing. Next we headed to the main drag in our town "Rothschild Street." It is hard to describe the scene. What a feast for the senses. It was like one long street fair/carnival. There was music and dancing and street performers, fire eaters, jugglers, people on stilts, people as statues, balloons, kids carnival games. And of course tons of street fair food. I had no idea cotton candy was so delicious. The excitement and celebration was unbelievable (and Tricia if you're reading---not like that.) I don't think I have ever been to a party like that. Our little town did an amazing job. Savta Joanie and Saba Paul also had a thrilling time (Joan could have been hired as the town photographer). We even met the mayor and told him that we were new immigrants to the town and had our picture taken with him. We dragged the kids away at midnight but they were still going strong.
Also, my dad who had been in the hospital a few days after his first chemo gained his independence and went home on Yom Haatzmaut. Hooray!
The next day we went to an air force base across the street. Five thousand of our closest friends had the same idea so it took about an hour to get to the base once we exited our town (normally perhaps a 7 minute drive). It was super duper windy but that did not stop the air force from doing an amazing Red Baron air show! We had fun again looking at all the different air crafts and exhibits (and of course eating the ice cream, popcorn and cotton candy!). Interestingly, N proclaimed that he would wait to leave Israel for the major leagues until after his army service. He even turned to L and told her "hey, we'll be in the army at the same time."
A few days later marked the end of the visit from grandparents. They took us out for a last night celebration dinner. Funnily, the restaurant was called "Breishit" (beginnings). But to be so cliche, I suppose every ending is a beginning. Anyway, the restaurant was in a nearby town which is rather artsy and fun. It was a very quaint, rustic setting and after a fabulous meal (who knew Israelis had so mastered fish and chips!) we went out to the courtyard where N filmed his first movie "Chicken and the Roosters." It is about a man who is called Chicken because he is afraid of so much. He must get an egg from the roosters in order to have a perfect breakfast. It's a comedy. He wanted me to post it to the blog but since Michael was the main actor and Saba Paul had a large role I'll need to get their permission. L and A did some song and dance performances for us and then we went back to Mazkeret to have cake as a belated birthday celebration for N and L. Was really a perfect evening. It was hard to say goodbye.
Yesterday, we got back into some routine. The kids took my ipad and were trying to get Siri (who can be addressed even when the ipad is locked) to give them the password for the parental lock. At a certain point I think A was highly confused. Wait a minute, she wondered, "how does it talk without a mouth?" She was clearly recalling some theological questions she has been asking about how God can "speak", although incorporeal. Is Siri. . . ?
On the Israeli end, terrorists fired rockets from the Sinai into Eilat. Thank God everyone got to safety before the rockets landed.
It seems strange to blog about "everyday life" in light of these events, but everyday life must go on. In fact, affirming everyday life may be among the best tools we have to deal with tragedy. To that end:
Last week was Yom Hazikaron (Memorial Day) which is followed by Yom Haatzmaut (Independence Day). It is a difficult transition to go from a very sad day to a very happy day and L actually asked me as we were headed out for a Memorial Ceremony before beginning the Independence day celebration how people could go from being so sad to so happy. The night Memorial Day started N went to a program with a friend. I stayed home with the girls because A is too young to understand and I wasn't sure how much L would understand (especially as it is of course in Hebrew). When N got home I sat down to talk about it with him. He told me it was very sad because many young soldiers had died when they had their whole lives ahead of them. He also told me that he felt scared because "when they were reading the names from the list I realized that my name could be on that list one day, and I don't want it to." What could I say? It's scary for all of us and something that I hope we never ever have to face. The sirens sound for a moment of silence at night and once during the day. It is a very powerful sound and emotion as an entire nation of people stops to recognize, remember and mourn those killed in action.
This is all followed by a huge celebration that marks Israeli Independence Day. I had heard about how amazing Yom Haatzmaut is in Israel so I was sort of prepared to be disappointed. I figured that reports had likely been exaggerated. Boy was I wrong. First we went to a Memorial ceremony at our local congregation. I didn't understand all of it but they did a good job, remembering and mourning. They read names from a list of people who had relatives in our congregation. Unfortunately, with Israel being such a small country and so surrounded by enemies, many families had a loved one whose name was read. There was a drum roll and the raising of the Israeli flag from half mast. Afterwards we all sang the national anthem and then the kids performed some songs and dances and we all joined in for some traditional folk dancing. Next we headed to the main drag in our town "Rothschild Street." It is hard to describe the scene. What a feast for the senses. It was like one long street fair/carnival. There was music and dancing and street performers, fire eaters, jugglers, people on stilts, people as statues, balloons, kids carnival games. And of course tons of street fair food. I had no idea cotton candy was so delicious. The excitement and celebration was unbelievable (and Tricia if you're reading---not like that.) I don't think I have ever been to a party like that. Our little town did an amazing job. Savta Joanie and Saba Paul also had a thrilling time (Joan could have been hired as the town photographer). We even met the mayor and told him that we were new immigrants to the town and had our picture taken with him. We dragged the kids away at midnight but they were still going strong.
Also, my dad who had been in the hospital a few days after his first chemo gained his independence and went home on Yom Haatzmaut. Hooray!
The next day we went to an air force base across the street. Five thousand of our closest friends had the same idea so it took about an hour to get to the base once we exited our town (normally perhaps a 7 minute drive). It was super duper windy but that did not stop the air force from doing an amazing Red Baron air show! We had fun again looking at all the different air crafts and exhibits (and of course eating the ice cream, popcorn and cotton candy!). Interestingly, N proclaimed that he would wait to leave Israel for the major leagues until after his army service. He even turned to L and told her "hey, we'll be in the army at the same time."
A few days later marked the end of the visit from grandparents. They took us out for a last night celebration dinner. Funnily, the restaurant was called "Breishit" (beginnings). But to be so cliche, I suppose every ending is a beginning. Anyway, the restaurant was in a nearby town which is rather artsy and fun. It was a very quaint, rustic setting and after a fabulous meal (who knew Israelis had so mastered fish and chips!) we went out to the courtyard where N filmed his first movie "Chicken and the Roosters." It is about a man who is called Chicken because he is afraid of so much. He must get an egg from the roosters in order to have a perfect breakfast. It's a comedy. He wanted me to post it to the blog but since Michael was the main actor and Saba Paul had a large role I'll need to get their permission. L and A did some song and dance performances for us and then we went back to Mazkeret to have cake as a belated birthday celebration for N and L. Was really a perfect evening. It was hard to say goodbye.
Yesterday, we got back into some routine. The kids took my ipad and were trying to get Siri (who can be addressed even when the ipad is locked) to give them the password for the parental lock. At a certain point I think A was highly confused. Wait a minute, she wondered, "how does it talk without a mouth?" She was clearly recalling some theological questions she has been asking about how God can "speak", although incorporeal. Is Siri. . . ?
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
It's my party and I'll sit out if I want to
Yom Ha'atzmaut (Independence Day) celebrations have begun. Israeli flags and blue/white banners are popping up everywhere and the spirit of pride and excitement is contagious. This morning we went with Paul and Joan to a celebration at the community center with all of our town's pre-K schools. There were apparently 720 kids. It was quite a moving production with singing and dancing and lots of blue and white crepe paper. Ariella participated for about half and then decided to join us. I was more of a ham myself so it's different to have a child who prefers to observe and absorb than stand in the spotlight. The mayor even came and after making a speech he released some blue and white balloons (to the ceiling--we were indoors so don't worry about the environment!)
After a few minutes, Ariella turned to Michael and asked "Whose party is this?" Oy, I felt for her. I don't think she has really wrapped her head around the idea of nations and independence.
Yesterday we went to "Mini Israel" with Joan and Paul. It was pretty interesting and fun for the kids (who were particularly enthralled by a soccer match in a mini-Teddy Stadium). After mini-Israel, N had a baseball game and according to Michael this one was actually pretty close. His team (Gezer Bats) won 8-7 against the Bet Shemesh Predators. First they were up, then the Predators tied it, and then they were up, and then the Predators tied it, etc., until the Predators were actually up 7-6 going into the bottom of the last inning. Nehemiah handled himself admirably in the field as well as at the plate with a solid fly ball which was unfortunately caught. Nonetheless, the Gezer Bats are actually undefeated this year. I don't remember that happening with the Bad news bears but life doesn't always imitate t.v.
Meanwhile the last month has seen a real change with the kids. I think we have gotten over the first hurdle (doesn't matter that there are so many hurdles still ahead). Most of their friends from school live within a few blocks of us and now after school they are going to this one, that one. In the US you might have called it "play dates" but here it seems more informal and is arranged by the children. More like what I remember from my own childhood. It is so nice to see them hanging out with their new friends and feeling included. My Hebrew had better pick up fast or I will have no idea what they are talking about with their friends--though I must admit that this is already an issue!
We are currently in the time period between the Passover holiday and Shavuot holiday. These two are very thematically linked and we actually count the days between the two each night. Anyway, on the 33rd day there is a custom in Israel to have bonfires and I can not begin to describe the wood collecting that our children and all of their friends are involved in. This is not the time of year to bring your wood working out because the kids collect any wood they find in anticipation of the bonfires. It is commonplace to see gaggles of kids running around with tree branches, door frames, beams. Pretty much any piece of wood not nailed down is fair game. You would need an elaborate court system to determine which wooden piles belong to which groups but the children's information network seems to do a pretty good job monitoring all of that. Though just the other day we had to mediate a dispute where one group was collecting from a pile stashed by another group, and the object of the dispute was whether the hiding place was private property or not. (We thought it was not, and Michael's brilliant counsel amounted to "stop involving us, work it out yourselves").
I'll post this now before it gets too late because as my dad used to say when we were kids "It's almost time to get up."
After a few minutes, Ariella turned to Michael and asked "Whose party is this?" Oy, I felt for her. I don't think she has really wrapped her head around the idea of nations and independence.
Yesterday we went to "Mini Israel" with Joan and Paul. It was pretty interesting and fun for the kids (who were particularly enthralled by a soccer match in a mini-Teddy Stadium). After mini-Israel, N had a baseball game and according to Michael this one was actually pretty close. His team (Gezer Bats) won 8-7 against the Bet Shemesh Predators. First they were up, then the Predators tied it, and then they were up, and then the Predators tied it, etc., until the Predators were actually up 7-6 going into the bottom of the last inning. Nehemiah handled himself admirably in the field as well as at the plate with a solid fly ball which was unfortunately caught. Nonetheless, the Gezer Bats are actually undefeated this year. I don't remember that happening with the Bad news bears but life doesn't always imitate t.v.
Meanwhile the last month has seen a real change with the kids. I think we have gotten over the first hurdle (doesn't matter that there are so many hurdles still ahead). Most of their friends from school live within a few blocks of us and now after school they are going to this one, that one. In the US you might have called it "play dates" but here it seems more informal and is arranged by the children. More like what I remember from my own childhood. It is so nice to see them hanging out with their new friends and feeling included. My Hebrew had better pick up fast or I will have no idea what they are talking about with their friends--though I must admit that this is already an issue!
We are currently in the time period between the Passover holiday and Shavuot holiday. These two are very thematically linked and we actually count the days between the two each night. Anyway, on the 33rd day there is a custom in Israel to have bonfires and I can not begin to describe the wood collecting that our children and all of their friends are involved in. This is not the time of year to bring your wood working out because the kids collect any wood they find in anticipation of the bonfires. It is commonplace to see gaggles of kids running around with tree branches, door frames, beams. Pretty much any piece of wood not nailed down is fair game. You would need an elaborate court system to determine which wooden piles belong to which groups but the children's information network seems to do a pretty good job monitoring all of that. Though just the other day we had to mediate a dispute where one group was collecting from a pile stashed by another group, and the object of the dispute was whether the hiding place was private property or not. (We thought it was not, and Michael's brilliant counsel amounted to "stop involving us, work it out yourselves").
I'll post this now before it gets too late because as my dad used to say when we were kids "It's almost time to get up."
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Here we are
Empty parkings lots and stores completely closed at 7 pm on a Sunday night even though we were at a major outdoor shopping mall. That's because Yom Hashoah (Holocaust Memorial day) was beginning. Savta Joanie and Saba Paul (grandparents) are visiting us and had taken the kids to Toys 'r us to each pick out a gift. With all the activity of the last few days we hadn't realized what day it was until we saw everything starting to close. We had stopped at a little felafel stand at the mall and watched the place empty out. It's hard to explain in words how that felt but as we drove home past closed stores and empty parking lots the feeling that we are in deed living in a Jewish country sunk in because the entire country is involved in the memorial. We were told that tomorrow at 10am sirens will sound and everyone will stop what they are doing (to include apparently drivers on the road) and stand at attention for two minutes of silence in memory of all the murdered victims.
Also of note, today was a day that a group of cyber hackers who call themselves "anonymous" (really?) vowed to "wipe Israel off the virtual map" and tried to bring all the servers down. So of course I specifically wanted to post my blog today as a way to say, be it eating felafel in our land or posting about it virtually----still here.
Also of note, today was a day that a group of cyber hackers who call themselves "anonymous" (really?) vowed to "wipe Israel off the virtual map" and tried to bring all the servers down. So of course I specifically wanted to post my blog today as a way to say, be it eating felafel in our land or posting about it virtually----still here.
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