Sleepover

Today was a busy day. Before school Danya announced that her ear still hurt her(if you recall she has been complaining on and off but never really seriously complaining). So I figured with the flight tomorrow I should check it out, so after driving carpool I brought Danya to the doctors office. She was nervous to meet Dr. Minkus since she has never seen him before, but she really liked him a lot! He said there was nothing wrong with her ear...I think she just was running low on stickers. I am wondering how these pediatricians are going to stay in business after we move! I brought her to school and headed in to a busy day at work. After work I had to stop at the library, the bank, a store and the dressmaker. The dressmaker completely redid my skirt since she knew I was really unhappy with it. Now it is much better than it was last week. I felt bad that she went to the trouble but I really like it much more! After the dressmaker I finally made it home. While I procrastinated on the packing Danya and Jordy played "camp out" in the basement. After that Josh put them to bed, allowing them to have a sleepover in Jordy's room. We didn't think it would last as it has been attempted before but they are both sleeping. I finally baked the cookies for Silver Spring but I still have to pack for the trip tomorrow morning....think I should start? It is almost 10:30pm! Have a Chag Samech and I will try to post along the trip!

Early to bed

Today after school/work Lanie, Maayan and Savta came over with pizza for dinner. We sat down for dinner and discussed what we did today. Jordy told us about how he went to Tara's house how she "got a new bike. It is beauty-ful.". Then Danya told us about her day. She told us about how she played tidley winks during speech today. Then she told us about how in the morning they had practice for her kindergarten graduation. She said it was boring because it was so long. I asked her how long the graduation was and she said "18 hours I think". Yup...that will be a long graduation! I will be sure to bring a pillow with me for that one!!! After everyone left Danya and Jordy were not behaving and I told them if they didn't start behaving they were going to go right to bed. Well they didn't listen and they were really sad when I put them to bed at 6:45. Jordy kept crying "Mommy, I want to behave". Hopefully this will have taught them their lesson! I took some pictures and will post them soon!

Memorial Day Weekend

Shabbos we spent at my parents with Lanie and Maayan. Bubby came for lunch and brought the kids gifts which the kids loved. After lunch we walked over to Jon and Yocheved Neuwman's house where we also saw Adam Fishman and the Lehrfields(for those of you who don't know them the Neuwmans are going to be living in Hashmonaim next year, the Lehrfields are making Aliyah to Maleah Adumim and Adam Fishman lives in Modiin already) so it was a little bit of Israel-fest. The kids were having a great time playing and behaving so we got to stay for a while. Then we headed back to my parents. On Sunday Lanie went to St. Louis for a wedding so we took Maayan with us to the Arie Crown picnic. We had a good time there and all 3 kids were well behaved! After the picnic Danya and Jordy went with Bubs and Pops downtown to the "poppy water" which is a water fountain at Navy Pier that has water that pops out. I ran a few errands including buying a bike! Of course I didn't have time to ride it but one thing at a time. Today we went out to breakfast. We were going to DaNali's but it was closed for Memorial Day(weird, right?), so we went to Bagel Country. After that I dropped Josh off at his baseball game and took the kids home. We were going to plant with a gardening kit we got a gift but I opened the kit and it said I needed a 40# bag of Pete moss...forget that! So I took them out fr ice cream instead....they didn't seem to mind. I got them each a chocolate cone with sprinkles as they requested and I got myself a chocolate milkshake and I should have taken a lesson from Simon Kirschenbaum because neither kid wanted their cone, they split my milkshake and their cones when in the garbage. Oh well! I only take them about once a year so I will forget for next time! After ice cream we went to the park to meet Josh and we played baseball for a little and played in the playground. It was about 95 degrees and we were hot. After baseball we went home and Danya and Jordy suited up for the sprinkler!!! While they did that I showed the dining room set to another interested buyer...we will see! After that I ran a few more errands and then we loaded the kids up and took them to my parents house for dinner along with Bubby, Lanie, Maayan and Bubs and Pops! We had a good time and we came home tired from a long weekend. After putting the kids to bed I took my new bike out for a test drive...it works well!
Oh, i almost forgot a funny story...this morning before we did all the things we did Danya wanted to know what we were going to do so I told her all the things I just listed plus bike riding since we were going to take the kids but ran out of time. Anyhow when I finished telling her all the stuff she got all excited and said "This is the best day ever of my life!!!". She was too cute!

Daddy's Where???

I know I don't usually post now but I wanted to share a cute story that I will for sure forget by tomorrow night!
This morning after I took Jordy out of his crib he ran into our room to find Josh but Josh had already left for work. So he looks at me and said "where's Daddy" so I told him he already went to work and he responded in the cutest, exasperated voice ever "AGAIN???" It was way too funny!
Danya woke up in the middle of the night after a nightmare and ended up sleeping in our room(which means she kicked me all night) and Jordy woke up a few times from his coughing. I took Jordy to the doctor this morning as his cough has progressed into his good ole wheezing. The doctor of course told us it was bad and he needed to be treated again. He didn't like that at all but he didn't fight it, just sat on my lap and cried the whole time. After this round of treatment is over we are going to try a preventative medicine to see if that help the asthma at all. Just another fun thing to deal with before moving I guess!!!

The grown up menu

Lanie and Maayan came in town today. After school today I picked up Danya and we stopped in to say hi. Danya wanted to stay and play so I left her there and picked up Jordy so we could have dinner there. Danya decided she wanted the Spinach Ravioli with Alfredo sauce(what Josh got last time) rather than pizza or grilled cheese. Saba made a comment about how she isn't eating off of the kid menu anymore. So Danya took a bite of Jordy's pizza and said "see Saba, I am eating off the kid menu". After we got home everything fell apart...Danya got a splinter, Jordy couldn't stop coughing, Danya couldn't sleep because her ear hurt her and Jordy was crying because he needed to make after he got into bed! Once the kids got settled I decided to pack another box. I headed upstairs to pack up all my winter clothes and was surprised to realize that my winter clothes took up about a half a box...I guess I need to buy more winter clothes :)

Spamalot

After school/work Danya and Jordy were excited to hear that they were going to go to Bubs and Pops house to be babysat for. First Savta stopped over to drop off a turkey roast for me to cook for Shabbos. Then I got the kids in the car and dropped them off at Bubs and Pops house! Hooray! Josh and I ate some salmon and then we headed downtown to see Monty Python's Spamalot. It was a wonderful show. Lots of funny songs! If you can see it you should!

Wabbit Season

After I came home today Danya and Jordy helped unload the car. After unloading we Jordy stayed outside so I came out to see what he was waiting for and he told me our Arnevet was back. We have had a rabbit that has been hanging out on our lawn the past few weeks. We left some carrots for it to eat and it was happily eating all the carrots. We watched him eat the carrots...he was so cute! Then the kids played baseball on the lawn with Josh while I went to the dress maker. After I got back they went to bed. Then we had another couple over to look at some furniture we are selling. And now it is 10:40pm and I can't figure out how it is so late already!

4 more boxes

A really funny story from this morning when I dropped Danya off. I got to the door of her class and Adina Drapkin(Josh's cousin Tami's daughter)came racing to the door yelling "Tamar has a baby brother!!!". I thought it was so funny that we got word that Seth and Lori Gerson had a baby boy from our 5 year old cousin! So Mazel Tov to Seth and Lori!!! Danya and Jordy were fighting the whole night tonight from the minute I walked in the door. Hitting, kicking, calling names....you name it they were doing it. I was quite happy when bed time came around! After then went to bed I went back to packing! I polished off 4 more boxes. It is really time consuming! Not so much the actually box loading but the cataloguing and valuing everything...good thing we are starting as early as we are! Sorry I didn't take any pictures of Danya and Jordy beating each other up! Maybe tomorrow!

May Showers

This morning I went to a shower for Marissa(my future sister-in-law). It was really nice and she got a lot of nice gifts. Funny how after few years you realize how out dated your own stuff is! By the time I had gotten home the shipper had delivered our boxes so we started packing! It is going to take a while as we need to really catalogue everything and value it all for the insurance. We also had a bunch of phone calls and a few people come in responding to our ad. We sold a bunch of stuff already! I couldn't believe the response this ad has brought in! The kids ate dinner and went to bed and I cleaned the kitchen while Josh went to play hockey and then another couple came to look at the dining room set. Here is a picture of Janice(Marissa's mom), Marissa, my mother-in-law and Matthew.

Shabbos

Whew, we had a busy day today!
Danya and Jordy went with Josh to shul in the morning. I met them there a little later. I was pleasantly surprised to see Beth Weisenberg there. I haven't seen/talked to her in a really long time so it was nice to have a few minutes to catch up with her. After we ate at the kiddush we headed to Missy's for lunch. Jordy was not very cooperative about going there but once we got there he was thrilled to be there. Danya and Jordy had a great time playing with Dina and Gabe(who really play now!). We couldn't believe it when we realized we were there until 4:30! We stopped at the park on the way home for a few minutes. Danya was really excited to see a few friends from school at the park. Then we went home since Saba and Savta said they may walk over in the afternoon and sure enough they were waiting for us when we got there! Once they rested from their walk and had a drink they headed outside to play ball with the kids. They spent the rest of Shabbos playing with the kids. Danya and Jordy were in bed before Shabbos was over. After shabbos our phone started ringing as I had placed an ad in the school newsletter for the stuff we were selling. I had 5 phone calls-hopefully there will be more tomorrow! A well spent $5!!! Goodnight!!!

"Esgusting"

This morning was unremarkable. After school Danya decided she wanted to brush Jordy's hair(which is funny since Jordy doesn't really have so much hair and it doesn't really move). Then Savta stopped by to pick something up and say hi. After Josh came home from work today he took Danya and Jordy to the candy store. They came home with some gum, 2 different kinds. Jordy had a piece of his and came to tell us his was "esgusting" and he needed a piece of Danya's. His was way too "esgusting". It was too cute! After the gum they kids played in the basement for a while. We did a little playing baseball until bedtime which ended on a bad note because Danya threw the bat at Josh. We put them to bed after the bat incident!

Dress Maker, Dress Maker, Make Me a Dress

Jordy woke up a little early this morning. I told him to go back to bed but he told me he was pishy. So I had to take him out of his crib and change him at which point he wanted breakfast. So I set him up with a nice toasty waffle and an episode of Caillou and went back to bed. Nothing majorly exciting happened during the day. It was a busy day at work but I got a lot done, so that was good. After work I went to the dress maker. After months of procrastination I finally called the dressmaker last night and of course she is making dresses for a million summer weddings but since she has made about a dozen dresses for me she couldn't say no, so she told me to come to her today. I brought her a picture of what I wanted and she told me if I wanted to use the black satin(the dress has to be black and tea length)she has I don't need to go to the fabric store which was music to my ears because I HATE going to the fabric store! So black satin it will be! She told me she is going to make the dress right away and get it out of the way so we will see what that really means. Matthew and Marissa aren't getting married until July 2nd so I have a little time! I also warned her that I may need her to make me another dress soon. After that I went home and as I was driving around the corner from my house it started majorly hailing! I got pelted on my way in the house. Danya and Jordy were pretty well behaved. After dinner they had a bath and right to bed. Danya was complaining that her ear hurt her so we may make a detour tomorrow to the doctor...we will see. Now going to make a list of all the stuff we are looking to sell. Seriously, anyone need a used microwave?

Dead Bug

Not much exciting happened today. Funny story though, Danya and Jordy were playing in the basement and then she came up with a crumpled kleenex. "Mommy look" she said. I asked her what she had and she told me there was a little bug and she smushed it with a kleenex to make it dead. Lovely story right? Here is a video of Danya and Jordy riding their bikes around the dining room table(which we are looking to sell so if you know anyone looking for a dining room set let me know).


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Shipping

Monday morning...usual Monday morning except I drove carpool since the 4th kid in carpool had a serious leg injury and won't be going to school anymore this year. After carpool I went to work and dove into it. I am trying to get through all the stuff that has piled up since I was away but it is really hard to do since it just keeps piling up! After work I called the shipper and told him we are going ahead with him. I am not so sure he is the best but I don't think there is a perfect solution and I think he is the best option. I am also relieved to be done with that. Aside from accomplishing that I booked tickets for our July trip to Disney World along with the house we are renting there(I actually did that Sat. night but completed it today). Sure feels like I got some stuff accomplished! After I came home all Danya would talk about was how Daddy is taking her out to ice cream after he came home. So when he finally came home he took Danya to ice cream(Jordy didn't get to go because he wasn't behaving yesterday). Jordy and I stayed home and played Lincoln Logs. We built a sheriff's house. After they went to bed I settled in for the 2 hour season finale of Greys Anatomy(I am typing during commercials).

Black Tie Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day everyone!!! We had a lazy-ish morning just hanging out. We tried Jordy's tuxedo on him(not an easy task). He looked so cute...it is hard to tell in the pictures but it has tails and actually fits him pretty well! I sure hope he will wear it more than 5 minutes at the weddings!!! After the tux try on we got our act together and went to Bubby Gladys with Savta for Mother's Day. We had a nice lunch there and Danya was pretty entertaining telling bubby all about Florida. The funny part was she was talking really loud so bubby can hear her...it was cute! After Bubby's we came home and decided that everyone should nap. Of course that didn't happen! I ended up running a few errands and then came home to do some more Israel planning. The kids had some dinner and went to bed and I paid some bills and settled in for the first half of the Grey's Anatomy finale.

Friday/Shabbos

Friday was pretty typical. I was pretty mad that the shipping guy never called me back after I called to complain that he missed the appointment but that will be his loss in the long run! Before Shabbos Danya and Jordy were happily playing in the basement which should have alerted me that trouble was brewing! They took the foam soap that Jordy got in Florida and they were making a big mess with it on the table in the basement. At least they kept it in one spot! Friday night was pretty quiet. I put the kids to bed before lighting candles. Of course Danya got out of bed and joined us for dinner but it was fine. Shabbos morning Josh got both kids dressed and took them to shul at 9 and I went back to sleep! I woke up at about 10:15 and went to shul. We had a luncheon at shul for a shabbaton. We had a nice time sitting with the Abrams and the Stricks. We got home at around 1:30 and we spent between 1:30 and 4 seeing how much longer until Benyamin Dickman was coming. At 4 he finally arrived for the playdate and Danya was so excited! They played really nicely while Jordy and I played about a trillion games of Zingo! Then they had dinner and before we knew it he was leaving again! Danya and Jordy played a little more but were sleeping before Shabbos was over.

Return and back into life

OK, I am going to catch up from Tues to today so I won't be behind anymore!
Tues:
It was a rainy morning. We had breakfast and packed up/cleaned up. After it stopped raining the kids went for one last swim before we had to leave for the airport. We had a fairly uneventful flight home. By the time we got home it was almost dinner time. We gave the kids dinner and put them to bed pretty early and pretty much collapsed.
Wed:
Back to carpool, school, work etc. Nothing too exciting. I can't even remember what happened.
Thursday:
After driving carpool Josh and I went downtown to the Israeli Consulate to get another document signed and to get Jordy's Aliyah visa corrected since they had his birthday wrong. After that we went to work. Josh e-mailed me not long after that we got our Aliyah date from Nefesh B'Nefesh. We are on the August 15th flight out of Toronto. At first I was disappointed that we were going out of Toronto rather than NY but we will be back in the fall for Avi and Eva's wedding so we will have plenty of time to see everyone. So another detail taken care of. After work I straightened up for the 3rd guy who was giving me an estimate on shipping. I was pretty sure the appointment was at 6 but by 6:25 when he didn't show I figured it might have been at 6:30...but by 7 I was just plain mad. He is going to be getting an angry phone call from me tomorrow. I went to Jewell tonight and now back home and we are all caught up! Hooray!!!

M-I-C-K-E-Y-M-O-U-S-E

Monday morning we woke up around 6:30 and anxiously awaited the time when we could go to Disney World! Pops and Josh were going to go to a 8:30 minyan and Bubs and I were going to take the kids to the grocery store while they were at minyan. IT was a good plan...but when we dropped them off at minyan and there was only one more person there we knew it was too good to be true. We left them there to Daven while we shopped. Then we picked them up and went back to the condo to eat breakfast and pack up stuff for lunch. Then Pops dropped the rest of us at Disney World and he headed back to do some work. As soon as we walked into the park we saw Mickey, Minnie and Goofy! Since all Danya and Jordy wanted to do was meet Minnie we immediately got in line to meet her. Josh then took Danya in another line to meet Goofy. Jordy and I ran over there when they got to the front of the line and then we ran back to Bubs and got to meet Minnie! That done we headed to tomorrowland. We went on the Wedgeway people mover twice, the carousel of progress, A Buzz lightyear ride and then Jordy and Bubs went on Wedgeway again while Josh and Danya headed to the race cars and I went to the locker to get the lunches. After we ate we headed out of the park. Pops met us and he and I traded. They went over to the Animal Kingdom and I took the car and after a few wrong turns went outlet shopping for an hour. I picked them up and then we headed back. Pops got grilling while Danya and Josh went swimming(Jordy couldn't go swimming since he wasn't behaving). After a great dinner Josh and I headed to MGM and tried to do as much as we could before the park closed. After MGM we went to Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum which was pretty cool. Then we headed back as it was 1:15!

It's A Small World After All!

Sunday morning we woke up early and did all the last minute gathering and packing. By the time we loaded the car, ate breakfast and were heading out it was 8:15. The kids really behaved in the car. Danya did make a really funny comment at one point. My father-in-law was driving and she said “Pops, your driving is like a ride at Disney World!”. We all got a kick out of that one. We arrived at Disney World around 12 and ate lunch before entering the park. We got our tickets and hit Main Street USA! First we went to the Tiki Room since we never went to the Parrot Jungle. They like this but were scared of part of it. Then we went on the Jungle Ride which was a fun boat ride that everyone enjoyed. Next we went to the Haunted Mansion much to the dismay of Danya and Jordy. Neither liked that one at all!!! But they were quickly cheered up when they realized that the character parade was going on and they got to see everyone!!! After that Pops left to check us into our hotel/condo, pick up some essentials and get dinner. Then we headed to the carousel, the 3-D Donald Duck show, It's a Small World, Dumbo, The Winnie the Pooh ride and the 3-D Donald duck thing again. By then we were pooped. We met Pops in the parking lot and we went back for dinner and the kids crashed. Bubs and Pops took the night off and went to see fire works at Epcot. After they got back Josh and I went for a swim and now to bed before another huge day!

Shabbos!

The morning was kind of lazy. Josh and my father-in-law went to shul that was 45 minutes away. Danya got dressed and went with Bubs for a few walks but Jordy and I were pretty confined to the house as he wouldn't get dressed (did I tell you that he has been assigned the nickname of Mr. Stubborn which Danya pronounces Mr. Stuvorn). So once they all returned we had a nice lunch and then the exhaustion hit. I tried to keep my eyes open but I just couldn't. I ended up napping for a few hours. My father-in-law took Danya and Jordy to the park at one point. When it was time for Mincha I went with Josh on the far walk just to get out and then after mincha we walked back. We got back just as shabbos was ending. After Shabbos I did laundry and packed everyone up. We spent a while at the apartment making lists, planning and Josh had to help Pops change a flat tire on the rental which he had to trade in. After all that Josh and I went to Biselah for dinner. We were so hungry we practically ordered everything on the menu.. We got in around 1:30 and got some sleep for the big day ahead of us!

Catch Up

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Ok, today is Sunday but I am going to back track and catch everyone up on our vacation....so lets pretend it is still Friday...
Friday morning after we lazied around for a little bit I went with my mother-in-law to her flea market to do some heavy duty shopping and satisfy my curiosity about this “flea market” she is always getting her great clothing from. While we shopped Josh took the kids fishing and then swimming. They had a good time. Here is also a video of Danya fishing(note...had Danya really fallen in Josh would HAVE jumped in to save her!). Then they went swimming yet again! After that they went to Jerusalem for lunch. We met up with them as we were both returning at the same time. We took a short break while deciding what to do next. While we were deciding the phone rang....it was Avi calling to say that he and Eva had gotten engaged!!! Hooray!!!! Avi, if you are reading this...it is about time!!!! So we spent a while talking to them and then spreading the great news. After that we packed the kids up and took them to Boomers which is a video arcade that Josh had very found memories of. He, I mean Danya and Jordy had a great time! My father-in-law met us as we were finishing up there and he took the kids back and Josh and I were going to take a detour to Krispy Kreme Doughnuts since we had never had one before. Of course there were some confusion with the directions so we drove past it and in circles for 45 minutes before realizing it. We finally did get there and those were the best doughnuts ever!!! Well worth driving around forever for. Josh went for a swim while I bathed the kids and then I went for a run before Shabbos. We had a nice dinner and then to bed!

Mazel Tov!!!

Breaking news....Avi and Eva are engaged!!! More to come after Shabbos!!!!

Florida!!!

Well to catch you up Wednesday was a nice quiet day. We went to work, we came home, we went out and had a nice quiet evening. On Thursday morning we headed to Midway airport towards sunny Florida. We were able to make some decisions on appliances during the flight, so that wasn't a total loss. When we got to Florida it was a nice toasty 88! We collected our luggage and waited for my in-law's and Danya and Jordy to pick us up. When they picked us up the kids were so excited to see us and they couldn't stop telling us about the things they had done over the past 2 days...they kept talking and talking and talking. A funny story my mother-in-law(aka. Bubs) told me: After being in Florida for a little while Danya said “Bubs, this apartment is small but it is big on fun”! Before we got here they were at the pool, the beach, the store, the pool and did I mention the pool??? The pool has been their life, so as soon as I got the grand tour of Point East we all headed to where else....the pool. Of course this happened in phases because Danya was ready within seconds of returning from the airport and Jordy needed a good 45 minutes to have a tantrum about changing. We did all make it to the pool and had a good time. After the pool we all got dressed and headed to Grill Time for dinner. Aside from Jordy going to the bathroom about 2 times and Danya spilling her pink lemonade all over herself we had a great time and had a TON to eat!!! After we came back Josh and I went to get some stuff at the store and we made a quick stop to buy Josh some shorts, bathing suit and sandals...I know we were going to Florida....why didn't he bring them with? Don't ask! Then we came back, got the kids to sleep and hung out chatting for a while. At around midnight Josh and I decided to go for a swim which was a good idea in theory except the water was a bit cold. It was very short lived. Then we headed back up where we crashed after a long day!

I tried adding pictures but it isn't working now so I will add them later!

Free at Last!

Sorry for skipping yesterday...Aching muscles! Anyhow we packed the kids up because today they went with Bubs and Pops to Florida!!! Yahoo!!! This morning Danya woke up and ran into the bathroom where I was brushing my teeth and yelled "I am going to Florida today!!!" She was so excited!!! I did some last minute packing for them and then we said our goodbyes. Of course even though Danya didn't go to school I still had to drive carpool because what is my life without carpool?? In the afternoon my cell phone rang. It was Danya calling to say they landed. I asked her how she liked Florida and she answered "Mommy, we didn't even get off the plane yet"....DUH! After work I went to Lincolnwood Town Center to do some very light shopping and then back to my nice quiet home. Josh and I went to the Bnei Akiva Yom Ha'atzmaut dinner tonight since we were being recognized for our making Aliyah. It was a nice dinner although it was a bit loud. Now we are home and procrastinating on packing for Thursday. We figure we will pack tonight and then we can go out and enjoy our night of freedom.